Black Trans Woman Alicia Simmons Found Dead in Her West Philadephia Home

Alicia Simmons, 37, of West Philadelphia was found dead in her apartment on November 3, 2019. Police are investigating the cause of death and have been careful to state there is no evidence of a suspicious cause.  Philly Gay News reports: Deja Alvarez, trans activist and co-chair of Philadelphia’s LGBT Police Liaison Committee, posted on […]

Q&A: Mean Girls Musical’s Eric Huffman on Damian, Glen Coco, and Neil deGrasse Tyson

Mean Girls Eric Huffman

Ah, Mean Girls – the movie that has had a disproportionate impact on culture, including queer culture, since it debuted in 2004. And then there was the musical debuting in 2018 and it was also a big hit. That big hit comes to Pittsburgh starting this week for a run that’s already close to selling […]

Rural Pennsylvania Group Hosts First Local LGBTQ Pride Gathering in Elk County

Elk County LGBT Pride

This is how it works – or it should work. A group of local folks create a safe space to celebrate and affirm their LGBTQ neighbors. In this case, a 40-year-old pansexual mother of two set up a visibility event in a park in St. Mary’s, Pennsylvania. People came, made connections, joined the Facebook group. […]

How to Be Part of our Pittsburgh LGBTQ Holiday Gift Guide

Reaching out for suggestions for a holidays gift guide for the LGBTQ community. I’d love to include a range of LGBTQ creators and allies. If you are interested, I will have you complete a simple Q&A to describe your gifts and introduce my readers to you/your business. If you are an ally, I will ask […]

Amanda, 25, identifies in part as genderfluid, ecosexual, and focused on being out to themself #AMPLIFY

Allegheny County LGBTQ

Name: Amanda Age: 25 County of Residence: Allegheny County, also has lived in Hawaii Pronouns: she/they How do you describe your identity? genderfluid/agender, gay/queer, western european roots, over seven generations in North America, ecosexual, priestess, prophet That being said some challenges were not having an accepting family, or an accepting school, or an accepting church; not having anyone safe […]

Tickets Available for iCandy Pgh Dead Celebrity Halloween Boos Cruise on Sat, Oct 26

The ladies of iCandy have organized another fantabulous Halloween themed cruise party on Saturday October 26. The Dead Celebrity Halloween Boos Cruise boards in the Strip District at 8 PM and promised a fun-filled evening of queer fun, music, and costumery. Prizes will be awarded. There’s a cash bar. You can bring your own snacks. […]

Black Trans Woman Brianna ‘BB’ Hill, 30, was Murdered in Kansas City this week

Brianna Hill transgender Breonna Hill

Please be sure to read the notes at the bottom of this post regarding updated information on deaths of our neighbors whose identities are unconfirmed or the cause of death is not yet determine to be suspicious. There are some discrepencies in the numbers being reported. I don’t claim to be exactly right, but I […]

Vincent, 54, is a Nonbinary Transmasculine & Queer Asian Pacific Islander in Pittsburgh #AMPLIFY

As an elderly Queer person, I chronically worry about and struggle with poverty and homelessness. And I’m aware that there are a lot of local Queer and Trans folks who are homeless or struggling with food insecurity. Name: Vincent Age: 54 County of Residence: Allegheny County, previously San Francisco Pronouns: He/Him & They/Them How do you describe your […]

Visibility in Coming Out, Both Quietly and Publicly #NationalComingOutDay

Yep I'm Gay

I had an idea to explore an important question around coming out – the need for visibility and representation by publicly out folks in all industries, occupations, walks of life balanced against the very personal decisions we make to come out. I wrote about this in 2015 regarding the workforce of the City of Pittsburgh. […]

Itali Marlowe, 29, of Houston is the 20th Known Transgender Person Killed in 2019

Itali Marlowe

Itali Marlowe was just 29 years old when she was shot to death by Raymond D. Williams on September 20, 2019. It was a little past 2 PM in the afternoon when the Houston woman was found dying in her driveway near the home she shared with Williams. Itali was a Black trans woman. Williams […]