News :: News Columns

Out in the World: Chilean president signs same-sex marriage bill

Out in the World: Chilean president signs same-sex marriage bill

  • by Heather Cassell
  • Dec 8, 2021

Updated: Wedding bells are expected to ring in Chile after the president signed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage.

News Briefs: USPS' Operation Santa open for letter adoption

News Briefs: USPS' Operation Santa open for letter adoption

  • by Cynthia Laird
  • Dec 8, 2021

The U.S. Postal Service's Operation Santa program is live and people can sign up to be a registered adopter to help make the holiday season special for kids and their families.

Business Briefing: LGBTQ merchants make holiday shopping a breeze

Business Briefing: LGBTQ merchants make holiday shopping a breeze

  • by Matthew S. Bajko
  • Dec 8, 2021

Headlines for months have warned that retail store shelves would be barren this holiday season due to a plethora of problems hitting the country's supply chains. Yet nothing could be further from the case at locally-owned stores in the Castro.

Jock Talk: New IOC policy focuses on inclusion, human rights

Jock Talk: New IOC policy focuses on inclusion, human rights

  • by Roger Brigham
  • Dec 8, 2021

Months after openly transgender athletes competed in the Olympics for the first time, the International Olympic Committee delivered on its promise to release new guidelines about transgender and intersex participation in sports.

Political Notebook: Bi councilman Coleman enters Assembly race

Political Notebook: Bi councilman Coleman enters Assembly race

  • by Matthew S. Bajko
  • Dec 7, 2021

A year after winning a seat on the South San Francisco City Council, James Coleman is now setting his electoral sights on serving in the state Legislature.

LGBTQ Agenda: Prospective lesbian foster parents' case can proceed in South Carolina

LGBTQ Agenda: Prospective lesbian foster parents' case can proceed in South Carolina

  • by John Ferrannini
  • Dec 7, 2021

For the first time, a federal district court ruled that the United States Supreme Court's ruling in Fulton v. Philadelphia does not grant adoption agencies a blanket license to discriminate against queer couples.

Political Notes: Out colleagues back Mullin for SF-area House seat

Political Notes: Out colleagues back Mullin for SF-area House seat

  • by Matthew S. Bajko
  • Dec 6, 2021

A number of his out colleagues he has served with in the California Legislature are backing Assemblymember Kevin Mullin (D-South San Francisco) as he seeks a rare open Bay Area U.S. House seat in 2022.

Out in the World: Global Black Pride announces 2022 in-person event and leadership team

Out in the World: Global Black Pride announces 2022 in-person event and leadership team

  • by Heather Cassell
  • Dec 1, 2021

Global Black Pride will host its first in-person event in Toronto, July 28-31.

News Briefs: ONE to offer encore streaming of 'The Normal Heart'

News Briefs: ONE to offer encore streaming of 'The Normal Heart'

  • by Cynthia Laird
  • Dec 1, 2021

In observance of World AIDS Day, the ONE Archives Foundation, in collaboration with the Invisible Histories Project, will present an encore and final presentation of the virtual reading of Larry Kramer's Tony Award-winning play "The Normal Heart."

Transmissions: Gift giving that matters

Transmissions: Gift giving that matters

  • by Gwendolyn Ann Smith
  • Dec 1, 2021

In the earliest days of what would eventually become my transition, within weeks of my first coming out to the person who would become my spouse of 29 years and counting, I was handed a gift box.

Bay Area Cannasseur: Cannabis dispensaries ask Oakland for more police

Bay Area Cannasseur: Cannabis dispensaries ask Oakland for more police

  • by Sari Staver
  • Dec 1, 2021

Reeling from an estimated $5 million in losses from recent burglaries, East Bay cannabis activists and business leaders rallied outside Oakland City Hall November 29, demanding additional police protection and a two-year tax break.

Political Notebook: Gay attorney to join Alameda court

Political Notebook: Gay attorney to join Alameda court

  • by Matthew S. Bajko
  • Dec 1, 2021

When attorney Peter E. Borkon takes his oath of office as a judge sometime in early 2022, he will bring the number of LGBTQ people serving on the Alameda County Superior Court to 10.

Out in the World: Wedding bells will ring in Switzerland next summer

Out in the World: Wedding bells will ring in Switzerland next summer

  • by Heather Cassell
  • Nov 24, 2021

Swiss same-sex couples can walk down the aisle starting July 1, the Federal Council announced November 17.

Jock Talk: Thank you, sports world

Jock Talk: Thank you, sports world

  • by Roger Brigham
  • Nov 23, 2021

As our extended families gather together for annual (not counting pandemic social distancing breaks) feasts ... let us bow our heads like a shot putter preparing for a throw to give silent thanks for the blessings the sports world bestowed upon us.