Daily newsletter 8/5

➡️ Texas Democrats were at the top of today’s online trends for leaving the state to prevent Republicans from voting to redraw congressional maps in Trump’s favor. Our media partners at The 19th News report that this move was also important for transgender people and abortion rights.

In other encouraging news, a local church in Texas vandalized by homophobes got some help from its community. We also have an inside look at a new documentary featuring prominent LGBTQ+ Americans who are working to reclaim their country’s flag.

Meanwhile, transgender students at Brown University told The Advocate how new restrictions against them went much further than most people realized, and Candace Owens is back with the latest weird twist in her Brigitte Macron “transvestigation” story.

Until tomorrow,

Christine Linnell
Social media manager, The Advocate

Texas Democrats fleeing the state also stopped anti-abortion and anti-trans bills

Scott Olson/Getty Images

Democrats left Texas to stop Republicans from redrawing the state’s congressional maps, but they stopped other bills, too.

Texas church vandalized by homophobes gets restored by affirming community

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The Congregation at Life in the City painted over spray-painted messages of hate before Sunday service rolled around.

How these LGBTQ+ icons are reclaiming the American flag

JENNY ANDERSON (provided); footage still via youtube @ReclaimTheFlag; RAYMOND ROBINSON (provided)

A new documentary explores how, in a Trump-era America where queer symbols have been weaponized, LGBTQ+ people are reclaiming the country's flag.

Brown University is ‘functionally inaccessible’ to transgender students after Trump settlement

EQRoy/Shutterstock

“Everyone I talked to thought it only applied to sports. But it applies to everything," one transgender student told The Advocate.

Candace Owens claims Donald Trump asked her to stop calling Emmanuel Macron’s wife transgender

noamgalai/Shutterstock; JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images

The far-right commentator says the U.S. president intervened on behalf of the French president to get her to stop spreading lies.

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