Pride Source

Linda Perry has spent most of her career behind the curtain — and she's built an empire there. She wrote "Beautiful" and handed it to Christina Aguilera. She has worked with Gwen Stefani, Alicia Keys, Miley Cyrus, Adele — one hit after another, almost none of them credited to her voice.

Former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg was separated from his 4-year-old twins for a day in late June by a false allegation of child abuse — a heinous act made more so because it echoes a long history of people trying to take children from LGBTQ+ parents. Many others have covered the incident in detail; here, I want to look at some of that history. We should note first, though, that we don’t yet know the real reason for the accuser’s action.

If your social feed has ever stopped you mid-scroll because a monstera looked like it’s been better-tended than you have, you've probably already found Christopher Griffin — known to their 800,000-strong plant-loving community as Plant Kween. Griffin — @plantkween on Instagram and author of “You Grow, Gurl!” — has turned houseplant care into something much bigger than watering schedules and sunlight charts.

If your social feed has ever stopped you mid-scroll because a monstera looked like it’s been better-tended than you have, you've probably already found Christopher Griffin — known to their 800,000-strong plant-loving community as Plant Kween. Griffin — @plantkween on Instagram and author of “You Grow, Gurl!” — has turned houseplant care into something much bigger than watering schedules and sunlight charts.

Florida's Rep. Randy Fine, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Rep. Greg Steube represented in full Irish dance regalia. Official State of Florida portraits I just plugged “Is Riverdance Irish dancing” into a search engine. Turns out the answer is yes. Do you remember the Riverdance craze? In the late 90s, people could not get enough of this traditional (probably?) style of Irish dancing, often performed in tap shoes and without arms. Wait, that’s not what I mean. I don’t mean that the dancers didn’t have arms.

At Pride festivals across Michigan this summer, you'll find many expressions of queer joy: drag performers, food trucks with penis-shaped bagels, vendors with dolphin-shaped sex toys and organizations that support the LGBTQ+ community in all its forms, from transmasc plumbers to lesbians who juggle. You might also find something much simpler: a parent standing in a brightly colored T-shirt offering a free hug. For some LGBTQ+ people, that hug is a fun photo opportunity.

How do you define “child” when you're a queer boy who can't carry one but wants to anyways? Growing up, Joseph Osmundson loved the women in his life (“mothers are a poppy seed cake, a lemon drizzle; fathers catch and release”) so much he could imagine fully stepping into their nurturing roles. Like them, he imagined not just raising a “queaby,” or a queer baby, but carrying one himself, in his belly, with Kay, a queer friend he met in college who stayed close into adulthood.

Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow participates in a U.S. Senate candidate debate during the Mackinac Policy Conference on Mackinac Island, Mich., on May 28, 2026. Photo: Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance Democratic state Sen. Mallory McMorrow suspended her campaign for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat on Sunday, leaving the Aug. 4 Democratic primary race a two-way contest between U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens and former Wayne County Health Department executive Abdul El-Sayed.

Fern Fest headliner Olive Klug. Photo: Instagram/@oliveklug The corn may be knee-high by the Fourth of July, but Michigan's summer of queer events is just hitting its stride. Toss sunscreen, a water bottle and a portable phone charger into your fanny pack, gather your favorite people and head out for these five ways to celebrate, connect and discover something new. 1. Game On at Mi-Sci Michigan Science Center. Courtesy photo The cool kids all know: Museums are so much more than school field trips.

This story was originally published by Uncloseted Media, an LGBTQ focused investigative news outlet. Editor's Note: This is the first of a two-part series on the history of LGBTQ rights in the U.S. On June 30, [Uncloseted Media] published another timeline focused on the underreported history of transgender and gender-nonconforming Americans. Since the U.S. was founded in 1776, visibility of the lesbian, bisexual and gay communities has increased.