COURT MATTERS

Supreme Court rejects challenge to Oregon school district’s bathroom policy. SCOTUS rejected without an explanation a petition request to review a legal challenge against an Oregon school district’s inclusive bathroom policy. Parents for Privacy v. Barr challenged the policy at Dallas School District No. 2, a public school district in Pole County in western Oregon.

Federal judge orders funeral home to pay a $250,000 settlement following landmark Bostock decision. Under the consent decree, Harris Funeral Homes in Michigan must pay $130,000 to plaintiff Aimee Stephens’ spouse and widow, Donna Stephens, for back pay, interest and compensatory damages. The other $120,000 goes to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in attorney fees.

Federal judge rules challenging gender identity on U.S. Passport unconstitutional. U.S. District Court Judge Gloria M. Navarro in her ruling granted a transgender man a U.S. passport, saying the government violated his Fifth Amendment rights.

Federal appeals court strikes down two municipal conversion therapy ban laws as violations of free speech. The ruling issued a major blow against bans on conversion therapy for youth, setting up a split within the judiciary that could lead the U.S. Supreme Court to adjudicate the issue on a nationwide basis. In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals determined municipal bans on conversion therapy for youth in the cities of Boca Raton and Palm Beach in Florida contravene the freedom of speech under the First Amendment.

Senate approves judicial nominee who argued for HB2, the anti-trans law in North Carolina. The U.S. Senate approved the nomination of Stephen Schwartz to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Federal Claims. The vote on the Schwartz confirmation was a strict 49-47 party-line vote. Schwartz has an anti-LGBTQ+ record, and represented the North Carolina legislature in defending HB2, which barred municipalities from enacting LGBTQ+ non-discrimination ordinances and transgender people from using bathrooms consistent with their gender identity in state-owned properties.

FEDERAL MATTERS

DOL issues final rule to gut LGBTQ+ workplace protections for federal contractors, broadening religious license to discriminate. The Trump Administration’s Department of Labor’s (DOL) final rule, effective Jan. 8th, grants religious institutions a broader exemption under former President Obama’s executive order barring anti-LGBTQ+ workplace discrimination among federal contractors. The website for DOL’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) indicates the regulation has become final.

Innovation was key to counting LGBTQ+ people in the 2020 U.S. Census; PFLAG National was a lead partner. Despite shortened timeframes, reduced budgets, and targeted attacks on the U.S. Postal Service, LGBTQ+ organizations and people rallied to make sure that all who could be counted, were.

Speaker Pelosi maintains firm support for transgender children's rights. When questioned directly by a reporter about supporting transgender youth, she affirmed her commitment to working for equality for the community.

President-Elect Biden pledges to lead the most pro-equality Administration in history. In brief remarks at the International LGBTQ Leaders Conference, he said he is committed to making an LGBTQ+-affirming administration along with Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris. He cited the record number of LGBTQ+ elected officials from this cycle, and said it is an honor to be an ally and to have been in the battle with the community.

STATE MATTERS

California - San Diego becomes nation’s largest city with an openly gay male mayor. With the swearing-in of Mayor Todd Gloria, he becomes the first out member of the LGBTQ+ community and first person of color to hold the post on a non-interim basis. At the ceremony, Gloria thanked his parents, noting his roots as “the son of a hotel maid and a gardener.” A San Diego native, he is of Filipino, Dutch, Puerto Rican, and Native American heritage.

Michigan -  PFLAG Plymouth/Canton members lead in winning approval of public school trans-affirming policy. The Plymouth-Canton Community Schools Board of Education officially adopted a policy on December 8th that it hopes will ease tensions felt by students who identify as transgender or gender nonconforming. Chapter members weighed in with their individual support letters, and at the chapter’s invitation, PFLAG National Executive Director Brian K. Bond presented a support letter to be read during the live Zoom meeting.

North Carolina - Statewide moratorium on municipalities passing local LGBTQ+ non-discrimination protections expired on Dec. 1st; get ready for NC to rally back. PFLAG chapters across the state--with the steady support of PFLAG National staff--are actively mobilizing to deliver protections for LGBTQ+ people and their families in 2021.

Vermont - Vermont Senate elects lesbian as first woman to be Senate President Pro Tempore. Sen. Becca Balint, a lesbian and Senate Majority Leader since 2017, was elected to her fourth term and will be the first woman and first member of the LGBTQ+ community in this new role. She is one of just a handful of out LGBTQ+ people who have been leaders in state legislatures.

GLOBAL MATTERS

Bhutan - Lawmakers vote to decriminalize same-sex relations. Lawmakers in Bhutan voted to amend portions of the country’s Penal Code that have been used to criminalize consensual same-sex relations. The amendment takes effect as soon as the President signs it, expected promptly.

The Netherlands - Dutch government issues formal apology for forcible sterilization of transgender and intersex people. The Dutch government also agreed to compensate some of those who underwent the procedures under the law from 1985-2014, agreeing to pay 5,000 euros to about 2,000 people. 

Russia - Parliament withdraws anti-LGBTQ+ bill, possible daylight after years of activists fighting for fairness. While 99% of LGBTQ+ people accused for asserting what should be their rights are found guilty--and after the government proposed a law to criminalize same-sex relationships, families, and transgender people--the bill was pulled on Nov. 16th, giving hope that it might not surface again.

MEDIA MATTERS

Laverne Cox and a friend experienced a transphobic attack in Griffith Park on Dec. 1st; openly discusses feeling triggered. [TW: Anti-trans violence] PFLAG friend and transgender icon Laverne Cox and a friend were victims of an attack. We remind everyone to be aware of surroundings, to stay safe, and to join us in wishing Laverne and her friend support and comfort and salute Laverne's courage in openly discussing the triggering experience. We are thankful for their recovery in a year that recorded the most reported murders of transgender people in the U.S., 41.

Actor Elliot Page comes out as transgender and nonbinary. Page, who had his breakout role in 2007's Juno, has since played roles in X Men and currently stars in the popular series The Umbrella Academy, where he will continue his role. Our friends at GLAAD sent out the release, and also shared a helpful dos-and-don’ts resource for media and others regarding how to report on the news.

National AIDS Memorial honors Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. David Ho on World AIDS Day. The virtual event noted that both public health titans have been leading on prevention, treatment, and research on the nation and world’s most crucial infectious diseases for nearly four decades.

Margot Robbie reportedly wants her Pirates of the Caribbean character to be LGBTQ+. The actress has shared that she wants to make the swashbuckling blockbuster even more progressive by portraying her character as LGBTQ+.

The Out100 list is announced, most diverse in its history. The list is the largest annual portfolio recognizing members of the LGBTQ+ community for groundbreaking and culture-shifting impact. This year's honorees span generations including music’s rising stars, a WWII U.S. fighter pilot, activists, athletes, writers, CEOs and others.

Rosie O'Donnell joins the cast of The L Word:Generation Q in season 2. O’Donnell’s character is Carrie, a public defender who works closely with Jennifer Beals’s iconic Bette Porter. Generation Q picked up 10 years after the original L Word ended its six-season run in 2009 and features several trans actors.

ICYMI

Washington Blade interviews transgender leaders whose work centers on immigration and the trans Latinx community. International News Editor and PFLAG friend Michael K. Lavers moderated a panel about immigration and the Latino community with TransLatin@ Coalition President Bamby Salcedo, Dago Bailón of Trans Queer Pueblo, and Marco Antonio Quiroga of the Contigo Fund.

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