Advocate NL 8/13/26

Hello and Happy Thursday, folks! Audience Editor Edgar Ramirez here, back in your inbox.

In his latest opinion piece for The Advocate, John Casey didn't pull back any punches, rightfully tearing into former NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White after they announced their “intention” to enter the 2027 WNBA Draft, claiming they now identify as women for the purposes of professional basketball.

"Two men who built their careers on an elite male professional sport are now trying on a transgender identity like it’s a perverted Halloween costume," Casey writes. "I have talked to so many transgender people over the years, and if there is one thing I want people to understand, it's this: the pain of not being able to live as who you truly are is not something anyone would choose. Ever."

This may come across as a bit harsh, but there's something for Rep. Eugene Vindman and Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell to think about (or consider reaching out to Peggy Flanagan.)

Going back to Casey's op-ed: "Freedom and White don’t belong anywhere near the WNBA. It is mockery, pure and simple."

Not to be outdone on the "mockery" side of things, Trump's Kennedy Center board is once again at it with the rule of law, as Christopher Wiggins reports: "Having been ordered by a federal judge to remove President Donald Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Trump’s handpicked board has devised a new way to put it back."

Forgive us if we remain skeptical this "plan" will work. As Christopher also reported, this is the same administration that is rebuilding the 988 Lifeline’s LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services network, commonly known as “Press 3,” without the The Trevor Project -- you know, the actual organization that piloted it, served as its first provider, and has nearly three decades of experience supporting LGBTQ+ young people.

“The exclusion of our nearly 30 years of expertise is of course disappointing,” Trevor Project CEO Jaymes Black said in a statement to The Advocate.

That's one polite way of putting it.

Thanks folks, we'll be back in your inbox tomorrow!

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