We’ve reached the halfway point of our journey through what happened in 2024.
June was filled with stories about discrimination, homophonic comments, questionable tattoos and new appointments.
There were huge changes announced for PrideFEST and Living Proud, and we had mountains of fun at the Perth International Cabaret Festival.
News and Politics
Marriage equality arrived in Thailand.
The Archbishop of Sydney declared inf LGBTIQA+ got more protections under the law it would force schools and hospitals to close. A poll showed that voters think that schools that discriminate shouldn’t get government funding.
Meanwhile in NSW a music teacher was fired after parents at the school she taught at discovered she was in a same-sex relationship.
A Sydney Barrister, who was campaigning against his old school going co-ed, complained about the school supporting “transgender midgets”.
Many prominent members of the LGBTIQA+ communities were recognised in the King’s Birthday Honours. There were notable names in the UK version of the honours too.
Professor Lisa Harvey-Smith became the new CEO of Out for Australia. Computing pioneer Lynn Conway died.
ILGA World released a report showing the global state of affairs for LGBTIQA+ rights.
Beau Lamarre-Condon returned to court over his double murder charge for alleging killing Jesse Baird and Luke Davies.
In the USA more charges were filed against the man responsible for the shooting at Club Q in Colorado.
The WA government knocked back a proposal to let public servants have gender transition leave.
Just after he apologised for using a gay slur, the Pope did it again.
Sky News were criticised for their reporting on a teacher at a Perth school is transgender. Over 1,500 people signed a petition calling on the report to be removed.
While columnist and host Caleb Bond delivered his annual rant about US Pride Month not aligning with Pride celebrations around the county. News Corp’s boss Michael Miller gave a speech saying the company never intends to bully women or transgender people.
Teenagers in the USA were facing jail terms over their vandalism of a rainbow crosswalk. Tasmania’s government called for a national inquiry into transgender health care for younger people.
The Australian Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation (ACHPER) was set to make excluding transgender people from participating in sport the top issue for its upcoming conference but suddenly cancelled the event.
Citipointe Christian College in Brisbane offered an apology for their previous actions which were seen as discriminatory.
A new dating app for lesbians was announced in the UK claiming it would block transgender women. The team behind the app also announced a lesbian only bar would open in London.
US President Joe Biden said he would use his clemency powers to pardon all US service personnel who had been convicted of crimes because of their sexuality or gender identity.
Also in the USA politician Marjory Taylor Greene, who is quite well known for odd statements and blunders, delivered a rant about a drag performer confusing children by dressing as a woman, the only problem was the performer was a woman. She’s got quite an impressive resume odd statements.
During the UK election Reform leader Nigel Farage said he was shocked to find candidates for his party had been making racist and homophobic comments. He might have been alone in experiencing this shock.
Mmapaseka Steve Letsike was sworn in as an MP in South Africa. Namibia’s court overturned a ban on same-sex relationships.
Research showed threats to share intimate images are widespread. A NSW rugby player was worked over a homophobic tattoo.
On the Local Front
The City of Perth announced massive tri-annual funding for PrideFEST and Fairday moved into the city’s realm.
We learned that Western Australia would get a new electorate at the 2025 federal election. Meaghan Holden became the inaugural CEO of Living Proud, while One Nation WA questioned the need to fund the service.
With the Perth International Cabaret Festival bringing life into the winter month, we chatted to Glynis Traill-Nash, Mama Alto, Joe Louis Robinson and Caroline O’Connor.
The WA Book Awards showcased local writing talent. We bought so many books from authors after the awards, still reading them.
We hosted a series of Q&A sessions for the film Power Alley at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival
Culture and Celebrity
Heather Mitchell blew our socks off with her performance of Ruth Bader Ginsberg at Black Swan State Theatre Company.
Snatch Game announced it was going on a tour. Robert Irwin, who is taller than you expect, threated legal action against One Nation.
Adam Lambert had new music. Kylie Minogue teamed up with Orville Peck. Alter Boy released their debut LP. Anohni and the Johnsons had new music too.
Bright Light Bright Light and Mykel Kilgore paid tribute to George Michael and Aretha Franklin. Casey Donovan announced her engagement. Arlo Parks and Remi Wolf teamed up at Glastonbury.
The Frankie Goes to Hollywood song Two Tribes marked its 40th anniversary. Marlon Wayons showed why he’s the ultimate LGBTIQA+ ally. Sue Perkins apologised for misgendering Emma D’Arcy during a red-carpet interview.
Callum Scott Howells was cast in a feature film. Dr Who got even queerer as Jonathan Groff guest starred. Later in the month he gave an emotional speech at the Tony Awards. Glee star Chris Colfer shared that he was told to stay in the closet at the beginning of his career.
Perth raised actor Daniel Monks was getting a lot of acclaim for The Room Where He Waits. Star Wars got very queer with The Acolyte, sadly it left us wanting ore, but got cancelled. Actors from Deadlock were up for Logies.
A new reality TV series brought us up close and personal with Tom and Bill from Tokio Hotel.
Franch actor and musician Francoise Hardy passed away, as did Roseanne star Martin Mull. Sir Ian McKellen was rushed to hospital after he fell of the stage during a show.
Porn star Austin Wolf, whose real name is Justin Heath Smith was arrested on charges of distributing child pornography.
