B, 28, Feels Alone As a Bisexual Person in Beaver County #AMPLIFY

  I can’t be the only one not out. I know there are more of me. Name: B Age: 28 County of Residence: Beaver County Pronouns: She preferred, he or they is also fine though. How do you describe your identity? Queer. Or just as a bisexual person. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? […]

Q&A: Natalia Zukerman Discusses Queer Conventionality and The Women Who Rode Away

The Women Who Road Away Natalia Zukerman

Off the Wall Productions and Carnegie Stage host an intriguing performance series this weekend – queer artist and singersongwriter Natalia Zukerman in a one woman show The Women Who Rode Away. Featuring original music and projected paintings by Zukerman, this intimate portrait recounts the artist’s journey of finding her own voice through the stories of […]

316 Reasons to Add Your LGBTQ Story to the #AMPLIFY Archive

Since 2015, we have been collecting stories from LGBTQ folks with ties to Western Pennsylvania. Some live here now, others grew up in this region. Others still attended college or had a job that brought them here or spent summers with their grandparents in an outlying community. Here includes 26 counties in Western Pennsylvania, from […]

Destiny, 24, is Deaf, Autistic, Androgyne, and Bisexual #AMPLIFY

Deaf Autistic Androgyne Pittsburgh Bisexual

  Name: Destiny Age:  24 County of Residence: Allegheny, previously Luzerne County Pronouns: She/He/They+ How do you describe your identity? DeafAutistic, androgyne, bisexual, 2D animator/illustrator. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I came out as bisexual when I was around maybe 12 years old, I remember asking my mother what […]

Q&A with Phat Man Dee About Celebrating the Roaring 2020’s, Bisexual Identity, and the Power of Creators

Phat Man Dee Roaring 20s

One of our favorite people, Phat Man Dee, is hosting a fete to celebrate the roaring 20’s. It looks like a lot of fun so we asked her to answer a few questions and that led to this Q&A. Phat Man Dee’s Roaring 2020’s * Friday January 31, 2020 * The Oaks Theater Your Name: […]

Castiel, 36, is Bisexual and Gender Fluid in Westmoreland County #AMPLIFY

Bisexual, gender fluid, Westmoreland County

Name: Castiel Hess Age: 36 County of Residence: Westmoreland Pronouns: He, him, his How do you describe your identity? Bi-sexual, gender fluid Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face?  I let a few close people know slowly out of fear of judgment. It actually took me a really long time […]

Rachel Lange, 42, took a few steps out of their gender closet #AMPLIFYupdates

Queer genderqueer Pittsburgh

At the request of our contributors, we are creating space for people to submit updates to the #AMPLIFY LGBTQ project. We know that for some folks, life has changed so we are offering an opportunity to post an update to earlier responses. We will NOT be modifying that content, but we will create a link […]

Trans Man Dustin Parker, 25, Killed in Oklahoma on New Year’s Day

Dustin Parker trans man Oklahmoa

25-year-old Dustin Parker is believed to be the first transgender or gender non-conforming person to die a violent death in 2020. Dustin was working as a cab driver in McAlester, Oklahoma when he was killed by gunfire early on New Year’s Day. McAlester police are investigating after a man was found fatally shot inside a […]

The 20 Most Widely Read Blog Posts from 2019

Top Blog Posts of 2019

Time for the annual wrap-up of the most widely read blog posts during 2019. I use terms like “popular” fully aware that the topics of some of these posts are serious and sober. But it is useful to know what people are choosing to read on blogs like this one. When I compiled this list, […]

My Western Pennsylvania Snow Globe

Author’s note: My name is Rachel, and I consider myself to be the product of a typical Pennsylvanian upbringing. Fire hall marriages with cookie tables, going to Idlewild Park on a hot summer day, and eating home-made gobs on my back porch, are all things that I remember from my childhood. I am transgender, and […]