lgbtqia
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I Like It Like That: Hennessy Carolina and Michelle Diaz Get Glammed Up for Pride
She may not have a gold album and multiple platinum singles like her big sis, but don’t sleep on Instagram and reality-TV star Hennessy Carolina (and yes, that’s her real name). Like Bey’s sibling Solange before her, Cardi B’s stylish little sister has been making her own distinctive imprint on pop culture, switching up her…
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#ThriveOver35: We Can No Longer Accept the Brief Life Expectancy of Trans Women of Color
As Ashlee Marie Preston approached her 34th birthday in early June, it was less a celebration than a sobering milestone. Preston is a successful media personality, producer, writer, speaker, civil rights activist, recent political candidate and The Root 100 honoree for 2017. She is also a black transgender woman, fully aware that the average life…
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Serving Face—and Tribute: Lena Waithe Honors the Trailblazing Legacy of Paris Is Burning
Wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the “unbought and unbossed” Shirley Chisholm to Saturday night’s MTV Movie & TV Awards, Trailblazer Award honoree Lena Waithe proved that she will always use her platform to elevate the marginalized, transforming her moment at the podium into a tribute to the gay and transgender icons and culture immortalized in…
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Freedom Over Fear: Janelle Monáe Covers Allure’s Freedom Issue
You strip away the makeup, the costumes and everything you know about Janelle Monáe the artist, and I’m still the African-American, queer woman who grew up with poor, working-class parents. When I walk off a stage, I have to deal with these confrontations. I have to deal with being afraid for my family. The artist…
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Amandla Stenberg Makes It Official: She Is a Black Gay Woman
We long for the day when no one feels compelled to “come out”—or for straight folks to feel equally compelled. Ideally, sexuality should just be considered another natural and accepted part of identity—but then again, so should blackness. But if you do feel so compelled, there’s likely no better month to declare pride in who…
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Daddy’s Girl, Daddy’s Critic: Finding Peace With My Father’s Flaws
I have three dads. But I have a biological dad, whom I met over eight years ago. Then there’s my adoptive dad, whose last name I share. And then I have my stepdad, who came into my life when I was about 9 years old. My relationship with each one varies, and accordingly, every year…
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#WCW: Laverne Cox Is Beauty Goals on Gay Times’ Special Pride Edition
Laverne Cox is always here to serve us looks, and this month she is serving straight-up sunshine, looking stunning in yellow as she graces the cover of Gay Times magazine. Aside from serving as a beauty inspiration for many, Cox is a true role model and trailblazer. After taking on the role of Sophia in…
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Pride for Profit? Nike Catches Criticism for Using the Pink Triangle on Its BeTrue Sneakers
It’s Pride Month, that time of year when rainbow symbology suddenly regains significance in American consciousness—and consumerism. In recent years, mass-market retailers have made big demonstrations of their support of the LGBTQIA community (notably, even more so since the legalization of same-sex marriage in the U.S. in 2015). A stroll down any major retail corridor…
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Strike a Pose: Ryan Murphy’s Tribute to Ballroom Culture Isn’t Perfect, but It Is Very Necessary
From the very first shot, which pans from a disco ball to a pair of voguing hands flexing to the beat of Taana Gardner’s classic dance hit, “Heartbeat,” I knew Pose would likely become a staple in my summer viewing schedule. True confession: In addition to being a sucker for anything fashion-related, I also swoon…
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Bold Beauty: Sephora’s Classes Are Bringing Confidence to Clients in Transition
This Pride Month, Sephora is giving its clients who identify as transgender or nonbinary an extra boost of confidence with a new addition to its Classes for Confidence program. “Bold Beauty for the Transgender Community” is the latest program in Sephora’s social impact and sustainability initiative, Sephora Stands. Each 90-minute in-store beauty workshop is designed…