Free Republic

Andrea Gibson, a celebrated poet and performance artist who through their verse explored gender identity, politics and their 4-year battle with terminal ovarian cancer, died Monday at age 49. Gibson’s death was announced on social media by their wife, Megan Falley. Gibson and Falley are the main subjects of the documentary “Come See Me in the Good Light,” winner of the Festival Favorite Award this year at the Sundance Film Festival and scheduled to air this fall on Apple TV+.

Baylor University, one of the largest and oldest Baptist universities in the world, has rescinded a $643,000 grant from the Eula Mae and John Baugh Foundation intended to promote LGBTQ acceptance within the church. Was it a principled stance, or something altogether different The grant was awarded to Baylor’s Diana R. Garland School of Social Work “to foster inclusion and belonging in the church,” with a focus on understanding “the disenfranchisement and exclusion of LGBTQIA+ individuals and women within congregations to nurture institutional courage and foster change.” However, public outcry from the university’s community, including churches, partner organizations, and supporters,...

The landmark Supreme Court decision in U.S. v. Skrmetti not only allowed states to protect children from predatory “transgender” medical interventions, but also stands as a massive rebuke of the medical “expert” class that kept insisting that mutilating children was good for them.As Justice Clarence Thomas said in a concurring opinion, “There are several problems with appealing and deferring to the authority of the expert class,” including that they absurdly claim that young children are capable of informed consent and that the alleged “evidence” for the “transition” interventions was “questionable” at best and the expert class “allowed ideology to influence...

WASHINGTON—In a major move against the transgender medical industry, the Federal Trade Commission hosted a workshop Wednesday in Washington, D.C., examining the dangers of so-called gender-affirming care. The FTC’s workshop, first reported by The Daily Wire in late May, has sparked the ire of leftist activists and Democrats, who argue that the focus is inappropriate. Yet the academics, commentators, detransitioners, parents, and doctors present at the workshop argued that the transgender medical industry is pushing ideology upon American children who are not able to fully consent to these life-altering procedures. “The issue of gender medicine has shattered political boundaries,” said...

Border patrol agents have arrested a bearded woman after homemade tire spikes were allegedly used on agency vehicles. Four people were apprehended by agents after an immigration enforcement action in a Home Depot parking lot in Van Nuys, Los Angeles, on Tuesday. Officials said the four 'attempted to impede and obstruct our efforts, using improvised devices aimed at disabling our vehicles'. Images shared by the agency show a crudely fashioned tire spike made from rusty nails and what looks to be a strip of metal pipe. Jasmine Jeannine Allard, 28, Jenaro-Ernesto Ayala, 43, Jude Sadot Jarnica, 54, and Daniel Montenegro,...

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that a trans teacher in Florida has no right to refer to herself with the gendered honorific “Ms.” or ask to be referred to with the pronouns she/her under what critics have called Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law. The trans algebra teacher, Katie Wood, sued her employer, the Hillsborough County School Board, in 2023 soon after Florida’s anti-LGBTQ law was enacted. A lower court found that the law likely infringes on her First Amendment free speech rights and granted a preliminary injunction. However, the conservative-leaning appeals court overruled the lower...

“At the finish line I was upset. I said ‘I did not want to race against a man,’” Peterson said, -snip Peterson came in second place to transgender opponent, Kate “KJ” Phillips – born a biological male – who took the gold medal last Tuesday at the Lyons Masters National Championships in Wisconsin. She is one of multiple veteran female cyclists who are speaking out against USA Cycling after they claim the organization failed to disclose the participation of a transgender athlete in a recent race. Peterson recalled the final sprint of the race where Debbie Milne was the only...

The Pennsylvania transgender coach who had been canned for inappropriate conduct, was rehired, but ultimately resigned over a porn video showing him smoking meth, recently admitted he was the one who had sent the incriminating video. David Yates, who coached tennis at Gettysburg High School and switched to the name “Sasha” in 2022, was not rehired following a pair of incidents which included him allegedly “stripping down to bra and panties” in the girls’ locker room. But Yates later reapplied for the position, and had the backing of many who claimed he’d been let go due to “transphobia.” A district...

An Iowa law removing gender identity as a protected class from the state’s civil rights code took effect Tuesday, the first action of its kind in the United States. The new rollback of protections is the latest attack on trans people in the US and part of a broader movement across conservative-led states working to restrict LGBTQ rights.

The campus of Baylor University in Waco, Texas. | Baylor University/Morty OrtegaBaylor University in Waco, Texas, has received a $643,401 grant from a liberal foundation to foster inclusion among LGBTQ-identified individuals in the church.The hefty grant to the private Baptist research university's Center for Church and Community Impact (C31) came from the Eula Mae and John Baugh Foundation, according to a press release from the school's Diana R. Garland School of Social Work.The grant's goal is "to foster inclusion and belonging in the church," with an emphasis on understanding "the disenfranchisement and exclusion of LGBTQIA+ individuals and women within congregations...

On Saturday more than one million people are expected to attend Pride in London, the UK's largest LGBTQ+ event. But despite huge visitor numbers, organisers say the event - and others like it around the country - face an uncertain future due to a drop in funding and falling volunteer numbers. More than 85 Pride organisations say they've seen a reduction in corporate sponsorships or partnerships. BBC News has spoken to a number of Pride organisers about their worries for the future of Pride events, and what they believe is behind the drop in funding. Dee Llewellyn is volunteer chair...

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy struck a blow at radical LGBTQ activism as “Pride Month” ended. Duffy sent a letter to all 50 state governors, the D.C. mayor, and Puerto Rico’s governor, a letter which he also shared with The Daily Signal. Trump’s transportation secretary told the governors to work on removing distractions, including woke political symbols, from roads and intersections. In the letter, Duffy wrote, “Roads are for safety, not political messages or artwork. Today I am calling on governors in every state to ensure that roadways, intersections, and crosswalks are kept free of distractions.” He added, “Far too many...

Just over two weeks after the Supreme Court upheld Tennessee’s ban on the use of puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender minors, the justices agreed to take up another high-profile issue involving transgender people – specifically, the constitutionality of laws that bar transgender women and girls from participating on girls’ and women’s sports teams. In a list of orders released on Thursday morning, the court granted a pair of petitions filed by Idaho and West Virginia, seeking review of lower-court rulings that barred them from enforcing such laws. Idaho was the first state to enact such a ban in...

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — An Indianapolis church is calling for members of the LGBTQ+ community to be put to death or to kill themselves. Local faith leaders are condemning the message. The call was made during a recent sermon titled “Pray the Gay Away” inside Sure Foundation Baptist Church on the northwest side of the city. “There’s nothing good to be proud about being a f*****. You ought to blow yourself in the head, in the back of the head. You’re so disgusting,” Stephen Falco said from the pulpit. He was speaking during the church’s “Men’s Preaching Night.” The event was...

Former collegiate female UPenn Swimmer Paula Scanlan reacted to the news that trans-identifying male swimmer Lia Thomas would be stripped of all titles he earned while competing in the women's sport, and the university has agreed to apologize for allowing him to compete as a female.Speaking from a press event on Tuesday, Scanlan reacted to the news that her former school, the University of Pennsylvania, has agreed to comply with President Donald Trump's Department of Education resolution agreement about Title IX and correct its violations after allowing a male to compete in women's sports, specifically Thomas."Wow, that's the first thing...

The Trump administration is weighing cutting off funds to hospitals that it says provide gender-related treatments for children and teenagers, a move that would sharply escalate officials’ scrutiny of such programs. The potential for increased federal scrutiny on gender-related healthcare comes after a 30-day deadline passed Saturday for nine children’s hospitals to respond to letters from Mehmet Oz, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator and celebrity physician known as Dr. Oz. The former heart surgeon and television host demanded data related to sex-reassignment surgeries, hormone therapy and puberty blockers. “President Trump has been clear: America will protect kids...

The new president of the International Olympic Committee has held her seat for just one week and is already making monumental moves. As the head of the IOC, Kirsty Coventry wields tremendous power not only in the business world but in setting the tone worldwide for standards in sports. After assuming office on June 23, the former Zimbabwean swimmer took questions in a nearly hour-long press conference, where she made one thing clear: The Olympic Committee is moving away from placating transgender athletes. About halfway through the event, Coventry, Africa's most decorated Olympian, answered questions about how female events will...

Brita Filter says her corporate bookings for Pride events have dropped by 60% this year over last year. She's never had this much downtime in June, a typically busy month for gigs and events. She relies on influencer partnerships and community events to sustain her career, which she loves. Brita Filter, 39, is a household name in drag entertainment. Her popularity went mainstream when she appeared on season 12 of "RuPaul's Drag Race," and she's made appearances on "Saturday Night Live," "Broad City," and "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah."

The end is nigh. That seems to be the message this week from the three liberal justices at the Supreme Court when faced with the nightmarish prospect of parents being able to remove their young children from mandatory classes on gay, lesbian and transgender material. … Justice Sonia Sotomayor declared that there “will be chaos for this nation’s public schools” and both education and children will “suffer” if parents are allowed to opt their children out of these lessons. She also worried about the “chilling effect” of the ruling, which would make schools more hesitant to offer such classes in...

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of a group of Maryland parents who sued a school board over its refusal to allow elementary school children to be taken out of classes with LGBTQ-themed storybooks. In a 6-3 decision along ideological lines Friday, the justices overturned a lower court ruling that found the parents needed to show that their kids were being coerced to act differently than their religious beliefs. The high court concluded that the parents “have shown that they are entitled to a preliminary injunction” because they “are likely to succeed in their challenge to the Board’s policies. “The...