For many people, church is the house of God and the ideal of it is supposed to be where God resides. It’s been a while since I’ve been in Sunday school, but I do remember that the term ‘church’ can refer to a physical building as well as the “believers” that occupy a space. If I make no mistake, both are supposed to be a place where you go for comfort, seek guidance, and a place of healing for both those seeking and receiving, but sadly that’s not usually the reality for most of us of Trans or queer experience.

On November 22, the NYC homecoming ceremony for the icon, activist and matriarch Miss Major Griffin-Gracy was held. The service took place at The Riverside Church in Manhattan, a church that’s supposed to have a long standing history of being inclusive and supportive of the LGBTQIA community. They even have a Maranatha ministry, a ministry dedicated to being the first LGBTQIA parish-based ministry within the United Church of Christ. With advertising like that, you can imagine the shock and confusion when attendees of Miss Major‘s home going service were asked to leave abruptly with no explanation given to the mourners.

Around an hour and twenty-five minutes into the live-streamed program, the atmosphere shifted. A visibly hurt and frustrated Doroshow announced that despite what she had been told and what she had paid for, she had been informed that they would not be receiving their full time and the program would be cut short. Mariah Moore was the next to speak, and although forced into brevity, started with,

“How cliche, we are here celebrating someone who lived such a full life and we are told that we have limited time.”

In the early morning hours of November 8th, a 22yr old driver engaged in a high-speed chase with Tampa, Florida police, careened into a Ybor City LGBTQ bar and nightclub, killing 4 and injuring at least 13. TPD reports Silas Sampson of Dade City was racing with another vehicle around 12:40AM through Tampa, FL streets, heading towards the interstate that runs north to south through the city. One of the vehicles got on the interstate and was pursued by Florida Highway Patrol who attempted an unsuccessful stop and PIT maneuver. (A Precision Immobilization Technique, PIT, maneuver is a law enforcement tactic to stop a fleeing vehicle by using the patrol car to deliberately and intentionally tap the rear quarter panel of the suspect's vehicle. This contact causes the suspect's car to lose traction, spin out, and stop, bringing the pursuit to a halt. The maneuver requires extensive training and is considered risky due to the potential for severe injury or death). The suspect then headed towards Ybor City, and turned onto 7th Avenue, a highly populated entertainment district lined with countless bars and restaurants. TPA reported stopping chase with the vehicle at that time.

The car crashed into Bradley’s on 7th, a long-standing LGBTQ bar that had been a staple in the community, open for nearly 15yrs, hitting a crowd of party-goers in front of the bar. Three victims died at the scene, another was pronounced dead at the hospital and 10+ were injured. Two of the victims remain in critical condition.

Maybe the most notable win was Zohran Mamdani, who was convincingly elected as the next Mayor of New York City over defamed ex-Governor Andrew Cuomo, NYC royalty from a dynasty of NYC royalty. Cuomo had been on the receiving end of sexual assault accusations but even that rarely matters amongst the white, wealthy and powerful. NYC is the nation’s deepest melting pot but also deeply segregated with very little access to wealth amongst most of its residents. Mamdani, a millennial, Muslim, Ugandan immigrant was everything Trump and a post-9/11 NYC rejected. He self describes as a Democratic Socialist, was outspoken in his support of the working class of the city, immigrants, Muslims, and Trans folks. He chased the youth vote showing up at clubs, concerts, working social media and getting out in the streets to meet the people. He made commercials in the languages (literally and figuratively) of his constituents airing ads in spanish, different Arabic languages and featuring the stories of Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. Instead of trying to make himself “look more American” he made his campaign sound like what America actually looks like. He appealed to the young, immigrant, Black and working class that they say don’t and won’t vote. And then they did. He appealed to the wealthy that actually are willing to give more to do more for those that have less. The Robin Hood of Queens, living in a rent-stabilized apartment while teaching at Columbia- got over 1 MILLION VOTES and over 2 million New Yorkers showed up to make sure their voices were heard which is unheard of in an off year election. The most since 1969- nearly 60 years ago. On Wednesday, congratulations, celebrations and tearful gratitude poured in all over social media from all over the country. From middle-America to the middle of Florida, Mamdani’s win was a flash of light in what have felt like very very dark days in this country.

(Orlando, FL) America has this weird and pervasive narrative that people from significantly disadvantaged backgrounds must somehow pull themselves up by the bootstraps and with drive and determination alone, fight their way into a life of economic stability and “success”. The concept of the “American Dream” is patently false and criminally misleading. The majority of people we consider the most successful came from old money or started with points of privilege or legacy that created an uneven playing field that they benefitted from. They very well may have worked hard, but it wasn’t just tenacity that got them where they are. The true way that most of us find our footing is from depending on each other and when one of us makes it through a door or to a table, we reach back and bring our people with us. In the village, in community, there is no room for gate-keeping- only collaboration and sharing what we know.

In mid-August, Equality Florida hosted the 2nd Annual Voices for Change Convening in Orlando, FL led by Angelique Godwin, their Director of Transgender Equality. The foundation of the Voices for Change Convening brought key Trans leaders from throughout the state together to impart “a deep understanding of strategies and tools necessary to overcome the persistent challenges faced by the Transgender community. These strategies and tools must be developed by the community itself…. creating a space to cultivate innovative and impactful solutions to combat the anti-Trans violence and rhetoric” both the state and the country are currently facing. The convening builds off of pillars that were established the year prior and through careful work and collaboration throughout the year: Community Education, Resource and Information Sharing, Healthcare, Funding and Housing. Angelique and her team were expanding and cultivating the village.

Orlando, FL - On June 30th, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) issued a memo to municipalities, banning street art containing social, political, or ideological messages on roads, shoulders, intersections, and sidewalks. They cited safety concerns for the aggressive stance and went on to threaten withholding state funding from cities that didn’t immediately comply. The directive targets public art like Pride crosswalks that appear throughout the state and the "Black History Matters" street mural found outside of the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museumin St. Petersburg, FL.

Since, several cities including West Palm Beach, Boynton Beach and Tallahassee, have started willingly removing the art while the cities of Delray Beach, Miami Beach, Key West and St. Petersburg, FL seem poised to fight back. In a subsequent letter from the State, several of those cities were told to remove the Art by a deadline of Sept 3rd and if they did not, FDOT would come in without further communication to remove the artwork “by any appropriate method”, the expense of which would be charged back to the municipality.

In stunning news, the City of Orlando woke today to learn that the State of Florida had come in overnight on Wednesday under the cloak of darkness and removed the rainbow cross walk that stretched across Orange Ave, the street that sits directly in front of Pulse Nightclub where 49 innocent victims lost their lives in a mass shooting on June 12, 2016. The city of Orlando, it’s Mayor, several elected officials and countless community members condemned the act and began immediately filling the then blank crosswalk spaces in with color chalk.

July 21st marks Zero HIV Stigma Day. It deeply saddens me to reflect on the unfortunate cuts to HIV research, the criminalization of those living with the illness, and the fact that the top three communities impacted by HIV—Black individuals, men who have sex with men (MSX), cisgender women, and transgender people—are often overlooked.

I long for conversations about HIV to be normalized, free from shame, judgment, or stigma. In my view, these are key factors that allow HIV to run rampant in our communities. We engage in many discussions, not just about HIV but about disclosure on various topics, yet we fail to create a safe space for such discussions. Disclosing your transgender identity can put you at risk, even from someone who looks and sounds just like you. When we add another “taboo” or a barrier to the mix, it complicates matters further. People shy away from discussing these issues because it challenges the reality they work hard to maintain—a sense of normalcy. I pray for a day when we can have honest conversations about something as normal as sex and how to protect ourselves. Until that point, we must stop asking for disclosure when we aren't taking the necessary precautions for our safety, such as using PrEP, Doxy PEP, condoms, and engaging in open conversations about safer sex.

We have written this headline or some version of it before. Trans lives are headline news in 2025. The Executive Orders, in Sports, in Schools, in Medicine and in passports. You can scarcely turn on the news or TikTok or go to the supermarket without debates raging about Trans lives. But Transmisia wasn’t born in January of 2025, nor did it ride in on a MAGA caravan, Trans folks have been being mistreated, neglected and murdered in this country for as long as they have existed- forever. As these debates and stances perched high upon moral high grounds rage on, Trans people, specially Black Trans people continue to die.

On the Blaque/OUT website the TRAII system lists, records and remembers each and every known murder of a Trans, Non-Binary or Gender Non-Conforming person since 2018. The pictures are haunting, the stories are heartbreaking and the stats are infuriating. The list continues to grow. Say the names and read the stories of the folks we’ve lost in just May, June and July of this year alone. Because if we don’t- who will?

On February 23, 1991 Paris Is Burning was released and changed the world. There will forever be mixed reviews as to whether Jennie Livingston hurt or helped the culture but it undeniably exposed wider society to the world of Black and Brown, Queer NYC and Ballroom. Although Transness has existed in different forms always, Paris Is Burning peeked behind the current in ways mainstream hadn’t seen before. It introduced them to names and faces that will be forever etched in Black and Brown Queer and Trans history. One of those was the soft-spoken, petite blond with personality that filled the room, Venus Xtravaganza. 

In her 2024 film just released on Netflix, I’m Your Venus, Kimberly Reed explores the Pellagattis brothers (Venus’ biological siblings) experience as they meet with House of Xtravaganze members and team up to reopen the case surrounding Venus’ 1988 murder. Paris Is Burning was released in early 1991 but Venus Xtravaganza never got to see herself become an icon. Her body was discovered in a hotel room in NYC in 1988. 

The documentary follows John, Joe and Louie Pellagattis as they tell stories about their sisters life and death, visit the Jersey City neighborhood they grew up in, meet with the current Mother of Xtravaganza, Gisele Xtravaganza and the team of lawyers they are working with to compel the NYPD to reexamine the case and release existing details the family says they were never provided. 

Being from community and watching this type of project you can’t help but tune in with both great appreciation that the story is being told as well as deep cynicism about how it will be told. The brothers lovingly talk about their sister and troubled childhood but you wonder if that’s the only version you’ll hear. Through the 85 minutes, the film manages to deconstruct that being the only POV and you watch Venus’ friends and chosen family tell their experience of her, not just in confessionals to the camera but directly to the Pellagattis’.

0:05: Sam Nordquist

1:05 Trans Passport Ban Reversal

2:34 Tennessee Gender-Affirming Care SCOTUS decision

Trans Military Ban 05.08.25

According to a proposed budget document obtained by the Washington Post, The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is planning to eliminate the national LGBTQ youth 988 crisis lifeline at the end of September.

The economy is doing what it always does—shifting, shaking, and making life harder for folks already struggling. If you’ve been feeling like your paycheck isn’t stretching as far as it used to, you’re not alone. The cost of everything—from rent to groceries to gas—is rising, and that’s inflation at work. When the economy slows down too much, businesses stop hiring, people lose jobs, and that’s what we call a recession. If things get real bad, worse than the Great Recession of 2008, we could be looking at something even more devastating—another Great Depression. And let’s be clear: when America catches a cold, Black folks catch pneumonia. And for Black LGBTQ+ folks? The risks are even greater.

Join Javannah Davis and Blaque/OUT Magazine as she witnessed the opening of the Ts Madison Starter House in Atlanta, GA on March 31st.

Make sure you pour into BlaqueOUTMagTV on Youtube and the next issue of Blaque/OUT Magazine in May for a tour of the house and the full interviews with some of the amazing people who worked to open the Starter House, were present to see the ribbon cut and even the Ts herself! Congratulations Madi!

For more information about the Ts Madison Starter House, visit: https://naesminc.org/ts-madison-starter-house/

 Your boy went to the Deeper than Visibility Summit in Atlanta earlier this week for Trans Day Of Visibility.  It was a beautiful space, but that feels like an understatement.  With the Summit being held at Atlanta City Hall, it was really dope to see the city acknowledging and supporting the community. The community that I live in, in North Carolina, that just isn't a thing. It’s funny how you forget or don't even think about what is possible in a community when where you live doesn't have that type of access or support. It saddens me and motivates me all at the same time. 

(Albany, New York) - On March 19th, the New York State Legislature honored the tradition of Black Journalism and Media with Black Press Day at the Capitol. Every year, March 16th is celebrated as “Black Press Day” to honor the 1st Black newspaper ever published in 1827. This year, five Black-Owned publications, started in New York State were recognized on the Assembly floor with a Proclamation Reading, Press Conference and Panel Discussion. Hon. Stefani Zinerman presented The New Amsterdam News of Harlem published since 1909, the Buffalo Criterian Newspaper first published in 1925, the Harlem Community Newspaper started in 1995 represented by Our Town Newspaper out of Brooklyn and Blaque/OUT Magazine started in 2020.

Lobby Days at the Florida capitol have begun, bringing countless special interest groups to Tallahassee to meet with electeds to encourage the representatives to vote with them in mind. This week, Equality Florida hosted a contingent of 400+ LGBTQ+ community members and allies to bring attention and humanity to the plight of Queer and especially Trans Floridians. The country is reeling under the current federal administration seeing everything from DEI and Civil Rights Protections stripped away to the ability for those of the Trans experience to serve in the military. Sadly, this is a familiar fight in Florida as many of the current federal policies were seemingly “tested out” on the state of Florida.

In a powerful and enlightening interview, I had the privilege of sitting down with the creative team behind Nina Simone: Four Women, currently being performed at Geva Theatre, as well as a delightful opportunity to host a live talkback at the theatre as well.

Victoria Von Blaque embodies more than just a name within the Transgender and sex worker rights movements, she’s a force of change, compassion, and perseverance. With over twenty years of experience, she has established herself as an advocate, consultant, and performer. Most importantly, she is dedicated to honoring the impactful legacy of her late mentor, Cecilia Gentili.

Cecilia Gentili was a groundbreaking activist who significantly advanced the rights of the transgender and sex work communities, particularly through her efforts to abolish the "Walking While Trans" law in New York City. Her untimely passing created a profound gap, but Victoria, who viewed Cecilia as a mentor, big sister, and dear friend, has committed herself to carry on Cecilia's vital work, envisioning a future where transgender individuals and sex workers can thrive without the threat of discrimination or criminalization.