As Anti-Trans Bills Target Prisoners, Some Warn of a ‘Canary in the Coal Mine’
Legislation targeting transgender people behind bars is part of a much broader campaign against LGBTQ rights. Advocates say the measures could preview future attacks by the anti-trans movement.
Adam M. Rhodes Aug 17, 2023
The Right’s New Solution To Mass Shootings: Ban Trans People, Not Guns
The blame game against trans people is just one of the many diversionary tactics the right has used in our intractable gun violence debate.
Adam M. Rhodes Jul 19, 2023
How Toxic Masculinity Drives Homophobia in Prison
The phrase “toxic masculinity” is ubiquitous these days, but there are few places where it’s more all-consuming than in a men’s prison
Christopher Blackwell Jul 05, 2023
The First Pride Was a Riot. Maybe It’s Time to Return to Those Radical Roots.
As the saying goes, the first Pride was a riot. The only way queer people have won anything is by fighting—in the courts and in the streets.
Adam M. Rhodes Jun 14, 2023
‘They Are Attempting to Criminalize Every Part of Our Identity’
A leader in the LGBTQ community weighs in on the attempts by elected officials to legislate gay and trans people out of existence.
Meg O'Connor Jun 07, 2023
Anti-Trans Bills Flood States in ‘Centrally Coordinated’ Attack on Transgender Existence
Advocates have expressed shock at a rapid escalation in the severity of anti-trans legislation, which is increasingly seeking to restrict medical care and public expression, including with threats of criminal punishment.
Adam M. Rhodes Mar 22, 2023
Georgia Prison Crisis Worsens Amid Federal Investigations
More than six years into DOJ probes, the conditions inside Georgia prisons have only further deteriorated.
C. Dreams, Aja Arnold Feb 01, 2023
New Jersey Rolls Back Protections for Trans Prisoners
After a wave of tabloid coverage about pregnancies involving a trans prisoner at a women’s facility, officials gave themselves more power to deny housing placements consistent with gender identity.
Adam M. Rhodes Jan 17, 2023
Pressure Mounts Against HIV Criminalization as Prosecutions Continue
Roughly 30 states still have some form of HIV criminalization law or sentencing enhancement on the books. Advocates say it’s long past time for change.
Adam M. Rhodes Sep 15, 2022
America’s Dark History of Criminalizing Queerness
New laws imposing criminal penalties for trans healthcare follow a long legislative history of explicitly targeting queer people in the United States.
Adam M. Rhodes May 25, 2022
Gay And Trans ‘Panic’ Is Still Being Used To Justify Anti-LGBTQ Attacks
Some states have banned the controversial legal defense, but other efforts, including at the federal level, are facing challenges.
Adam M. Rhodes Dec 20, 2021
New York Moves A Step Closer To Decriminalizing Sex Work
After organizing to repeal the “walking while trans” ban, advocates in the state—and around the country—are looking ahead to the next fight.
Bryce Covert Feb 09, 2021
Armed Michigan Protesters Fueled Jon Hoadley’s Commitment To Run For Congress
If he wins his bid to represent the state’s Sixth District, Hoadley says he would reallocate police funding, improve health care, and invest in rural communities.
Dawn R. Wolfe Nov 02, 2020
A Transgender Woman’s Attorneys Fear She Won’t Survive Her 60-Month Sentence
New York attorneys have launched a campaign to release transgender, gender nonconforming, and nonbinary prisoners during the pandemic.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg May 28, 2020
‘See How Quickly They Behave Once We Put Our Foot Down?’
A federal lawsuit claims that Palo Alto, California, police falsely detained, arrested, and beat a gay Latinx man—then boasted about their brutality.
Joshua Vaughn Aug 08, 2019
Spotlight: De Blasio—The Circumstances of Layleen Polanco’s Death Shouldn’t Be So Perplexing
When New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio was interviewed this week on a local news network, he was asked about Layleen Polanco, the 27-year-old transgender woman who was recently found dead in her cell at Rikers Island. The specific cause of her death is not known, but why was she held for two months […]
Sarah Lustbader Jun 13, 2019
Communicating While Queer Is Being Punished in Prison
A lawsuit accuses Illinois of cutting off LGBTQ prisoners’ lifeline to supporters.
Raven Rakia Nov 08, 2018