A Light in Very Dark Days: Nancy Pelosi and AIDS; The New York Times, November 7, 2025

Adam Nagourney, Heather Knight, Kellen Browning and Laurel Rosenhall, The New York Times ; A Light in Very Dark Days: Nancy Pelosi and AIDS

"Ms. Pelosi, the new member of Congress representing San Francisco at the time, asked the nurses if they had what they needed and if any patients were up for a bedside visit. Then she would slip into their rooms alone.

“Early on, it was not seen as a wise or popular thing to do, to champion people with AIDS, of all things,” Mr. Wolf, 74, recalled. “You didn’t want to align yourself too closely, but she didn’t care. We were her constituents, and she went to bat for us over and over and over again.”...

Ms. Pelosi, who announced on Thursday her plans to retire from Congress, is known nationally as a Washington leader praised by Democrats for standing up to President Trump and derided by Republicans as a symbol of the radical excesses of the left. But back home, her reputation was shaped by how she stepped forward at the earliest and most terrifying moment of a local crisis and how she fought to help her constituents deal with the AIDS epidemic and fight for L.G.B.T.Q. rights.

The public side of this is by now well-known: How over decades spent in Congress she fought for money for AIDS research and treatment or invited prominent AIDS and gay rights activists to be at her side at the State of the Union address and other events. But much of it took place away from the public eye. It’s those moments many of her gay constituents in San Francisco talk about as she approaches the end of her congressional career."

Realtor ethics case involving gay rights, Montana pastor garnering national attention; KTVH, December 29, 2021

Mike Dennison, KTVH ; Realtor ethics case involving gay rights, Montana pastor garnering national attention

"Weyandt said Huber can hold and express any religious belief he wants, but that he can’t profess anti-gay views and still be a member of the Realtors’ group, according to the code of ethics.

“I definitely respect the individual’s right to their freedom of speech and expression, but when you’re clearly violating the governing doctrine of a private institution, that issues membership, that’s a whole other story,” he said.

Weyandt also said Huber is free to continue selling real estate. 

However, if a Code of Ethics violation leads to Huber getting kicked out of the Realtors’ group, he would lose access to the Montana Regional multiple-listing service for properties, potentially making it difficult to conduct business as a real-estate agent."

After Orlando, Gay Rights Moves off Diplomatic Back Burner; New York Times, 6/14/16

Somini Sengupta, New York Times; After Orlando, Gay Rights Moves off Diplomatic Back Burner:

"Sexual orientation was one of those subjects burdened with too many cultural sensitivities. American officials, even if they wanted to advance it on the diplomatic agenda, were wary of offending their allies, not least in the Islamic world.

The attack on a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla., moved the needle.

In its aftermath, the United States corralled an unlikely group of countries to support a United Nations Security Council statement that condemned the attack for “targeting persons as a result of their sexual orientation.” Even Egypt and Russia — not known for embracing their gay and lesbian citizens — signed on, after what diplomats called intense consultations...

The attack in Orlando on Sunday enabled the United States to elevate the issue on the diplomatic agenda. On Monday morning, as the world was still absorbing the news of the attack, the alternate United States ambassador to the United Nations, David Pressman, told the 193-member General Assembly that condolences were not enough.

“If we are united in our outrage by the killing of so many — and we are — let us be equally united around the basic premise of upholding the universal dignity of all persons regardless of who they love, not just around condemning the terrorists who kill them,” Mr. Pressman said."

Book Ban in Venice Ignites a Gay Rights Battle; New York Times, 8/18/15

Elisabetta Povoledo, New York Times; Book Ban in Venice Ignites a Gay Rights Battle:

"Tracing the origins of the reading list, Ms. Seibezzi explained that education research suggested that such prejudices were “consolidated at 3 years of age.”

She added, “So we said, ‘Let’s start there,’ ” to foster inclusiveness and respect for others...

Books that challenge the status quo are seen as eroding the church’s hold over social issues, said Francesca Pardi, the author of “Piccolo Uovo,” or “Little Egg,” the other book still on the forbidden list.

Her book, the tale of an unhatched egg that sees happiness in various family configurations, won the prestigious Andersen Prize in 2012, Italy’s top nod for children’s literature, even as a popular Catholic magazine cited it as a book to avoid.

“In Italy, it’s as if morality is the prerogative of the church,” Ms. Pardi said, “and so some principles are never put into discussion.” A book that shows that there is “room for all becomes very threatening, especially because it’s told in a simple language that shows there is nothing to be afraid of,” she said.

The book was “breaking down a taboo,” she added.

“Education isn’t about teaching how or what to think, but to pass values,” she said. “Kids won’t become gay if they read a book about two moms, but they will be happier if that is their family situation.”"

Before a Suicide, Hints in Online Musings; New York Times, 10/1/10

Lisa W. Foderaro and Winnie Hu, New York Times; Before a Suicide, Hints in Online Musings:

"Under a leaden sky, students debated whether the surreptitious broadcast was a thoughtless prank or a crime. Gay and lesbian students demanded that the university re-examine its policies on bias and bullying, and called for safe housing and other programs.

On Wednesday night, after the start of the university’s two-year campaign to foster courtesy and respect, demonstrators for gay rights got into a screaming match with residents of Mr. Ravi’s dormitory, Davidson Hall, who objected to some of their language. Several students had to be physically separated."

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/01/nyregion/01suicide.html?scp=4&sq=tyler%20clementi&st=cse