"Homosexuality is not a lifestyle acceptable to the general public and ... homosexual conduct is a criminal offense."

As much as I wish this were a 1950s-era example of past homophobia washed away, the above text is from the current sex education requirements under Alabama state law. That...

A confession: I haven't always supported putting same-sex marriage at the forefront of the LGBT-rights movement. A friend once asked me why. "Not everyone will get married, but everyone needs a job, and everyone needs a roof over their head," I explained. "I wish we'd focus on nondiscrimination laws first."...

Starting this Saturday at sundown is the Jewish holiday of Purim, a celebration of Persian Jews' resilience in the face of an impending extermination. Growing up, I always enjoyed the holiday, which included costumes and hamentashen (triangular fruit-filled cookies), but I've come to form a deeper appreciation about...

Scouting believes same-sex attraction should be introduced and discussed outside of its program with parents, caregivers, or spiritual advisers, at the appropriate time and in the right setting. The vast majority of parents we serve value this right and do not sign their children up for Scouting for it to...

Earlier this month the Oregon Health Plan (Oregon's Medicaid program) announced that, starting in October 2014, they would cover the health care needs of transgender youth, including puberty-suppressing hormones and counseling services. This is great news for transgender youth in Oregon whose families would otherwise never be able...

As 2012 comes to a close, there is a lot to be thankful for in the LGBT world, ranging from the expansion of same-sex marriage to having a record number of LGBT characters on TV. In 2013, overturning DOMA and Prop 8, passing employment non-discrimination legislation and blocking Uganda's proposed...

Earlier this week I came across a critique of College Humor's popular "Gay Men Will Marry Your Girlfriends" video, which pointed out that the video reinforces stereotypes about gay men and straight men to make its point in favor of same-sex marriage. It's true: The clip...

I never expected progress to happen this fast.

Prior to this year's Election Day, 32 states had voted on marriage definitions, and all 32 had voted to restrict marriage to heterosexual unions. With three states -- Maine, Maryland, and Washington -- voting on marriage equality and a fourth -- Minnesota...

I recently moved to California, and as I registered to vote, I shrugged to myself that I was now in the state where my vote counted least toward electing the president. With the U.S.'s bizarre Electoral College system, the larger a state's population, the smaller amount of weight each voter...

It's not every day that I say something positive about George W. Bush. In fact, I can't remember the last time I said anything nice about him. But today I have to give him a tiny bit of credit for being ahead of the Republican Party when it comes to...

This November four states -- Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington -- have marriage-definition questions on their ballots. Within the LGBT community and society at large, we often think of the effects of these elections in terms of whether or not marriage equality will expand to another state, or whether yet...

Thank goodness.

That was my reaction when I read on Sunday that California Governor Jerry Brown had signed a bill outlawing sexual orientation conversion therapy (also known as reparative therapy) for people under 18, making California the first state to do so. Psychologists, psychiatrists, and medical doctors have...

Buried in Mitt Romney's rhetoric about jobs and the economy during his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention on August 30 was a line about his views on marriage. "I will honor the institution of marriage," he said.

This, of course, was code for "I don't think gay people...

Earlier this month, Forbes released its annual America's Top Colleges rankings, starting a season of college reviews that also sees numbers from US News and World Report, Newsweek, and The Princeton Review. Most college applicants will look at rankings of some sort, and over one in...

It's easy for some people to avoid coming into contact with people and ideas they disagree with. There are liberal and conservative news sites, neighborhoods with different political leanings, and organizations and houses of worship that make clear their views on controversial issues. In the past year, this has increasingly...

This year's college freshmen start soon, and those living away from home will receive roommate assignments shortly if they haven't already. While first-years may have a roommate of a different race or religion, from a different socioeconomic background, or from another part of the country, their roommate will almost universally...

Over 10,000 athletes of all backgrounds will participate in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, and a record 20 are openly LGBT, up from 11 in 2008. Yet digging deeper, only three of those 20 are gay males, while the other 17 are female. This...

The Boy Scouts of America announced this week that they will continue their longstanding policy banning gay and bisexual individuals from being Boy Scouts or serving in leadership positions. As a person who studies LGB mental health, the fact that the Boy Scouts would choose to continue this...

A couple of weeks ago I saw the YouTube appeal of a 14-year-old transgender kid named Asher who was raising money to attend a private school where he'd feel safe being out. I was struck by Asher's love for learning and explanation of how an affirming environment would...

Monday's Supreme Court ruling blocking parts of Arizona's controversial immigration law and President Obama's June 15 policy enforcement change halting the deportation of some undocumented immigrants have brought the immigration reform debate back into the national spotlight. Yet after hearing cries against Obama's protections for undocumented...