Q&A with Will Anderson, Candidate for PA State House District 24

This is the next in a series of blog posts about individuals challenging incumbents or running non-traditional races in Pennsylvania. Will’s campaign reached out to me after I posted a call for respondents. He is running in the primary against a Democrat State Rep in the 24th district. Will has documented his years of community […]

Update on Holiday Projects for LGBTQ Neighbors

We’ve been working with three local LGBTQ projects to support our neighbors during the holidays. Here’s an update. Persad’s SAGE project works with LGBTQ elders (50+) and each year identifies clients who have minimal or no family engagement. Coupled with living in rural communities on fixed incomes, their holiday support isn’t really strong. In years […]

Holiday Cards for LGBTQ Elders, Youth

Holiday Projects Pittsburgh

We are once again gearing up to help our LGBTQ neighbors during the holiday season. This year we are highlighting several organizations conducting their own holiday drives. Please give what you can to help those who need our support. Of course, financial gifts to any LGBTQ organization are very welcome, but we know that some […]

Freedom Isn’t Free: Invest in the Work of POC in Our Community

Today is the Fourth of July and many of us are celebrating and/or enjoying the relative degree of freedom we have as American citizens. Not everyone is free and not everyone saw independence in 1776 or anytime soon after. The enslavement of African peoples as well as the eradication of Native Americans indigenous to these […]

Ciora, 27, Says Trans People Have the Strength of Two Souls #AMPLIFY

Pittsburgh Trans Woman

Name: Ciora Thomas

Age: 27

County of Residence: Allegheny

Preferred Pronouns:  she/her/hers

How do you describe your identity? I’m a Bi Transwomn.

Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? My coming out experience wasn’t really a coming out more so i got caught by my step father and my family then turned on me. I found support in downtown Pittsburgh and the GLCC when it was in Squirrel Hill ran by Lyndsey Sickler. I faced many challenges the main being a homeless trans teenager.

Cavanaugh, 25, Talks About Genderflux Identity and the Value of Self-Care #AMPLIFY

queer Pittsburgh

Name: Cavanaugh Age: 25 County of Residence: Allegheny Preferred Pronouns:  They or He How do you describe your identity? Queer, Afrolatin@, fat, trans, polyglam femme. Tenderqueer. I recently heard the word “genderflux” and I really love it. The idea is that my gender, and by extension my presentation, is sometimes a really, really loud version of itself and sometimes […]

AMPLIFY! kelly emphasizes ‘gay is not the totality of me’

Western Pennsylvania LGBTQ

AMPLIFY LGBTQ is a new occasional series of blog posts designed to give a “signal boost” to the voices of our LGBTQ neighbors throughout Western Pennsylvania. We are using a Q&A format and will mostly avoid editing their responses. The questions, however, may change as we ask each participant to tell us what we’ve missed […]

Women of Color: Herstory Month in Pittsburgh

Since 2008, Women of Color HERStory Month® has recognized the exceptional social, economic, political, spiritual and cultural contributions of women of color, creates a forum for women of color to participate in activism, civic engagement and leadership development while also educating the region about Human Rights and Reproductive Justice for all people. This month long […]

Bring Andre Gray Home: A Gay Black Man Disappears in Pittsburgh

On October 23, 2014, Andre Gray disappeared. Andre is a 34 year-old gay black man with a loving family and a circle of friends who miss him dearly. He is more familiarly known as Dre or Pok’ie, nicknames and endearments that remind us that Andre is more than a missing gay black man – he […]

Update On The Search For Andre Gray & How To Donate

Andre Gray has been missing from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania since October 23, 2014. This past weekend, Andre’s family and friends (and strangers) gathered on the North Side to search the area near the spot where Andre’s abandoned car was found. Now we have a new way for you to get involved and show your support for […]