Q&A with Michele Harris, a bisexual poet from Western PA about her newest book and her decision to change venues in response to allegations of sexual misconduct by a coffeehouse owner

Michele Harris Poet

A local, queer female-owned bookstore Rickert & Beagle is hosting an upcoming reading on August 16 featuring Western PA native poet, Michele Harris. Harris was originally scheduled to read at Biddle’s Escape in Regent Square, but after learning about allegations of sexual misconduct by the owner, she cancelled in solidarity with the survivors. Rickert & […]

Anastasia, 55, is a Woman Who Identifies as a White Trans Lesbian in Pittsburgh #AMPLIFY

Pittsburgh transgender lesbian

I shouldn’t make presumptions about how folks would react: that I should be prepared for generosity as well as a negative reaction. After the decades of gaslighting, I still struggle to keep this in mind, but I do believe that there is a lot of good will among straight/cis people for the LGBTQ+ community. Name: Anastasia […]

Review: Bella Frutteto Restaurant in Wexford

Stuffed Chicken Asiago

We were both feeling restless yesterday so I suggested we try a new restaurant. To be on the safe side, I opted for something new-to-us and Italian cuisine versus something very off our radar. And that’s how we ended up in Wexford dining at Bella Frutteto. We both like Italian food. We stopped supporting a […]

Sarah, 38, Talks Transitioning in Her Rural Pennsylvania Community #AMPLIFY

Trans Woman Rural Pennsylvania

Students past and present, parents, and community members spoke out against his hateful rhetoric. It briefly went viral in the surrounding area and I received countless messages of support from strangers and friends alike until he deleted the post and backtracked his statements. Obviously, there are still many people who agree with his position in […]

That One Time When Murphy Brown’s Frank Fontana and Avery Brown Were Assaulted in Altoona, PA Because They Are Journalists

Just in case you don’t know – Murphy Brown is a fictional character as are her friend Frank Fontana and her son Avery Brown. They work for fictional networks, Murphy and Frank for CNC hosting ‘Murphy in the Morning’ and Avery for the Wolf Network. They are not actual journalists. They use the sitcom format […]

Back to School Q&A with Trans Activist Daniel, 16, of Lakeview School District

We’ve blogged earlier in the year about the decision of Lakeview School District in Mercer County to expand their nondiscrimination policies to explicitly address needs of transgender students. This was a rule change to better comply with existing policy, not a new policy altogether. When the School Board met in May, one student – Daniel […]

Review and Q&A with Motive Salon on #NorthsidePgh

While I was recovering from my hysterectomy, I had to find a new hair stylist. So I turned to Facebook and asked for a referral to a stylist who was queer friendly and used organic, cruelty free products. That spawned a huge discussion. Some people thought gay friendly was the same as queer friendly (it […]

Kyle, 22, is a Bisexual, Vegetarian from Crawford County #AMPLIFY

crawford county bisexual

  Name:  Kyle Age:  22 County of Residence: Born and raised in Crawford County in Conneaut Lake and Linesville PA, near the Ohio border. Went to Penn State Erie, the Behrend College. Have since become familiar with much of PA Pronouns: He / him / his or Zee / Zem / zer How do you describe your identity? Caucasian, […]

Jess, 22, is a Poly, Bisexual Woman in Pittsburgh #AMPLIFY

Allegheny County LGBTQ

Name:  Jess Age:  22 County of Residence:  Allegheny County, Pronouns: she/her How do you describe your identity? cis polyamorous bisexual/queer woman Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I came out at 18 to most people, and overall my friends and family were very supportive. I was very thankful […]

He’s a cisgender polyamorous bisexual guy, but nobody asks #AMPLIFY

Allegheny County LGBTQ

Name:  Just another lawyer Age:  38 County of Residence:  Allegheny Pronouns: He/His How do you describe your identity? I generally don’t. It’s the advantage to presenting the way I do: I don’t have to describe anything. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face?  To a large degree, I never have. See […]