Growing up gay in Worcester County, Danielle and Julie Spring both felt isolated from the kind of community they longed for. Even after the two met and married, Julie still faced homophobia from clients at her job as a hairdresser, while Danielle started several small businesses and slowly grew more comfortable with who she was, but still remained partly closeted.

That all changed during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns, when the Springs found themselves quarantined and watching TikTok videos about the lack of lesbian bars across the U.S. Now, almost three years later, Danielle and Julie are on the verge of opening what is ostensibly Worcester's first such venue, Femme Bar.

Berlin CNN — The German parliament for the first time on Friday focused its annual Holocaust memorial commemorations on people persecuted and killed over their sexual or gender identity during World War II.

Campaigners in Germany have worked for decades to establish an official ceremony to commemorate the LGBTQ victims persecuted under the Nazi regime.

“Today’s hour of remembrances focuses on a group of victims which had to fight for a long time to achieve recognition: people who were persecuted by the National Socialists because of their sexual orientation or their gender identity,” Baerbel Bas, president of the Bundestag lower house, said while opening a ceremony marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation.

When I had a total hip replacement this summer at the ripe old age of 40, friends were quick to joke that I had skipped over middle age and landed in my 80s. But for transgender people like me, getting older is actually no laughing matter.

Everyone knows that it’s hard to age in our youth-obsessed culture, which spares little attention and few resources for older adults. For transgender people, however, the experience of aging not only brings common concerns such as health and financial security but also invites the very real possibility of having our identity stripped from us or used as a pretext to mistreat or exclude us.

Have you heard about the national personal care shortage? If you work in the aging and disability fields or have a friend or loved one who relies on these services daily, I’m sure you have. But most people don’t know about the current crisis.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, demand for home health and personal care aides is expected to grow by 33% from 2020 to 2030. With approximately 15 million people who rely on personal care to carry out activities in their daily life, the current shortage of care workers will only get more pronounced.

A new study by the Williams Institute at UCLA finds older LGBTQ+ Americans were affected more negatively by the COVID-19 pandemic than their straight peers.

Using data from the U.S. Census Household Pulse Survey, the report examined the demographics, health, and economic experiences of LGBTQ+ adults aged 50 and older during the COVID-19 pandemic.

For Tammy Rainey, finding a health care provider who knows about gender-affirming care has been a challenge in the rural northern Mississippi town where she lives.

As a transgender woman, Rainey needs the hormone estrogen, which allows her to physically transition by developing more feminine features. But when she asked her doctor for an estrogen prescription, he said he couldn’t provide that type of care.

ANOTHER LEGISLATIVE SESSION FILLED WITH ANTI-LGBTQ BILLS — More than 180 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced so far this legislative session, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, with dozens centered on restricting transgender students in school.

— Last year, state legislators introduced 315 anti-LGBTQ bills, according to the Human Rights Campaign. More than 90 percent of the legislation failed as only 29 bills were signed into law, but HRC said it still “marked the passage of the most anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-transgender legislation in recent history.”

pandemic.

Two payers, Tufts Health Plan and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, have entered into a partnership with virtual care and navigation platform Included Health in an attempt to strengthen healthcare access for those in the LGBTQ+ community.

San Francisco-based Included Health's LGBTQ+ Health offering, a cornerstone of the agreement, serves as a guide and advocate for people in the community, providing personalized health benefit support and navigation. Health plan members gain access to a dedicated team, which is led by LGBTQ+ care coordinators, that can connect them to in-network affirming care, as well as other benefits that extend beyond the traditional healthcare ecosystem, such as relevant social support groups

An openly gay advisor to the Vatican says he's not surprised by Pope Francis' declaration that "being homosexual isn't a crime."

Juan Carlos Cruz, an internationally known Chilean advocate and survivor of clerical sexual abuse, told NPR the pope's remarks made for an "incredible day."

In his first interview since the death of former Pope Benedict XVI, Francis told the Associated Press that laws criminalizing homosexuality are "unjust" and that Catholic bishops should apply "tenderness" and help ease discrimination by welcoming LGBTQ people into the church

The LGBTQIA+ Aging Project at The Fenway Instituteprovides support and technical assistance to elder service organizations who are interested in developing community programs for older LGBTQ+ adults in their area. To learn more about starting virtual or in person programs in your area please contact us at (857) 313-6578. We also provide technical support for LGBTQ+older adults who need help joining these programs or are interested in starting one in their town.