Top Stories
NHS to roll out ‘life-saving’ meds to combat drug-resistant HIV
The NHS is going to prescribe a new medication to treat the minority of patients living with a drug-resistant strain of HIV, in a landmark move. Around 100,000 people have HIV in England. There is currently no cure, though the vast majority can manage the virus with medication which hugely reduces the viral load to an undetectable level, which means they cannot pass it on. For a minority, though, the virus has mutated and become resistant to medication readily offered. Now, the drug Lenacapavir will be offered to those at risk in the coming weeks – reportedly 92 eligible patients. That number is […]
ICE detains a beloved Philadelphia drag queen. The community is asking for support
Philadelphia’s drag community is rallying around drag queen Chantal Waldorf after their detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The performer’s official Instagram account, which also identifies Waldorf as Manuel, posted a message later shared by supporters announcing that the Nicaraguan immigrant had been taken into custody. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. “As you know, since he arrived in this country, he has dedicated himself to being a hardworking person, who has dedicated himself to fulfilling his dreams and goals, who has integrated and contributed in a positive way […]
White House trusted a transgender CIA briefer with the most sensitive secrets until her identity went public
Julia Curlee spent nearly two decades carrying the country’s secrets. She worked in war zones, traveled to 35 countries, briefed presidents, and boarded Air Force One with the President’s Daily Brief. She was trusted to decide what some of the world’s most powerful people needed to know before beginning their days. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. But in a remarkable first-person account published Monday by The Atlantic, Curlee describes how the second Trump administration came to view something else as dangerously sensitive: the fact that […]
Local News
Human Trafficking Awareness and Violence Against Women Forum Happens August 13
he Commission on the Status of Women warmly invites you to attend the Violence Against Women and Girls: Human Trafficking Forum on August 13, 2026, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM, at 575 Administration Drive, Suite 117C, Santa Rosa, CA 95403. This forum will explore the scope and impact of human trafficking and multiple forms of violence against women, including domestic violence, sexual assault, and exploitation. It serves as a public forum to raise awareness and promote prevention of human trafficking and gender-based violence. The forum will bring together survivors, advocates, service providers, and community leaders to share testimony, examine systemic challenges, and highlight effective […]
Positive Images Social Saturday Happened August 8 at Healdsburg Beach
Join Positive Images and Sonoma County Regional Parks for a Rainbow River day at Healdsburg Veterans Memorial Beach for swimming, and some fun in the sun on August 8th from 12-2pm This is an all ages, family focused event. For questions, please reach out to joy@posimages.org
Arts & Entertainment
Now at Rialto Cinemas in Sebastopol: “Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World”
Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the WorldOne Week Only Starts Friday July 24 3:50 pm & 5:45 pm If poetry had a pop icon, Mary Oliver would be it. Celebrated best-selling poet, Pulitzer Prize-winner, lover of dogs and long walks in the woods, openly queer but intensely private, Oliver was America’s unlikely contemporary mystic, stalking the ponds and forests of Cape Cod for nearly fifty years in order to open herself – and her readers – to the known and unknowable world. From a lonely childhood to literary fame, Oliver’s life was shaped by devotion to nature, paying attention, and the […]
State News
Pro-LGBTQ Pharmacy Vandalized With Slurs
The Davis Vanguard reports: A family-owned Woodland pharmacy was vandalized early Monday morning, with a window smashed near pro-LGBTQ signs and anti-gay slurs painted across another window, prompting community leaders to raise concerns about a potential hate crime and an escalating pattern of online harassment targeting LGBTQ+ supporters in Yolo County. Corner Drug, a longtime Main Street pharmacy, disclosed the vandalism in a Facebook post Monday, saying the damage came after the business had publicly displayed its support for the LGBTQ+ community. “Early this morning the window of our family pharmacy was smashed and anti gay slurs were painted on them,” Corner […]
San Francisco named the world’s best city for LGBTQ+ life, but US cities are sliding
San Francisco has been ranked the world’s best city for LGBTQ+ life, though the study warns that American cities are slipping overall amid the political climate under Donald Trump. The finding comes from the 2026 Sexually Liberal City Index, compiled by adult entertainment platform Erobella, which scored 41 cities worldwide across four areas: sex-work law, LGBTQ+ life, reproductive health and adult lifestyle. San Francisco topped the LGBTQ+ category specifically, scoring 70 out of 100, ahead of Manchester on 62 and Cologne on 61. The city was praised for its enduring community infrastructure, from the Castro to its Pride traditions, and the […]
