The Grand Jury Report on Sexual Abuse in Pennsylvania Catholic Dioceses: First Thoughts

On Tuesday, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro’s office released a redacted version of the Grand Jury Report on a two-year investigation into six Roman Catholic Dioceses in Pennsylvania investigating wide-spread sexual abuse of children and the institutional cover-up by the dioceses and the Vatican. I’ve discussed my history with Catholicism many times on this blog, […]

Eric, 35, is a Gay Man Who Has Learned to Live With Microaggressions #AMPLIFY

Name: Eric Age: 35 County of Residence: Allegheny Pronouns: He/Him How do you describe your identity? Gay Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? Many. I was raised in a small town in Ohio. Most people come from a Christian background and not a particularly liberal one. I was lucky enough […]

Local LGBTQ Links We Are Reading – August 10, 2018

This is an occasional feature we run, curating news links related to the LGBTQ community and the Pittsburgh region. One of the ugliest examples of local white hate and bigotry I’ve found in the Letters to the Editor section in a long time was published on July 14 via the TribLive. Kathleen Bollinger of Fawn […]

Hutch, 57, Marched With Harvey Milk and Knows We Have Miles To Go #AMPLIFY

Pittsburgh Bisexual Man

Name:  Hutch Age: 57 County of Residence:  Allegheny, formerly Westmoreland Pronouns: Male How do you describe your identity? Bi Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I was kind of out in mid 70s in Massachusetts. But officially came out at 16 when I moved to San Francisco in […]

Programming Note: We are at a conference!

Programming Note: We are at a conference!

There will be no #AMPLIFY posts this week because Laura and I are in New Orleans for the Netroots Nation 2018 Conference. We arrived a day early to enjoy some sightseeing and will be immersed in progressive goodness until Saturday. Our petsitter is billeted with the critters at home, sending us regular updates and photos. […]

My Essay on Hysterectomies and Trauma Informed Care Published Today at PublicSource

My Essay on Hysterectomies and Trauma Informed Care Published Today at PublicSource

I wrote a thing, summarizing the institutional failures around gynecology and sexual trauma. Among other failings. Also, in the pensive cover photo you can’t see that I am standing next to a litter box while my cat is licking my ankles. I’m a pro. Gynecologists should have nursing or social work staff doing follow-up with […]

My InGear Backpack is Now 20 Years Old and Going Strong ( Sort of)

It was August 1998 and I was starting the MSW program at the University of Pittsburgh, with a concentration in Community Organizing. I had been out of school for 3 or 4 years, but as a commuter in a graduate program I was pretty sure that I needed a sturdy backpack. I think I bought […]

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