This Way Out: The International LGBTQ Radio Magazine

At the Human Rights Campaign National Dinner, a keynote address by Democratic vice presidential nominee, coach and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz recounts his own track record as an LGBTQ ally, which is as long and cutting-edge as that of his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris.

And in NewsWrap: Georgia’s Parliament passes a package of bills modeled on Russia’s infamous “no promo homo law,” Kharkiv’s “auto Pride” links equality and Ukrainian victory in a motorcade through the city, Taiwan will recognize the marriages of its queer citizens to mainland Chinese spouses, one of the men convicted of murdering gay student Matthew Shepard in 1998 loses a bid to commute the rest of his two consecutive life sentences after 25 years in prison, the Denver-based Tenth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upholds a law banning conversion therapy for minors in the state of Colorado, Kentucky’s governor issues an Executive Order banning conversion therapy on minors, Paige Johnson becomes the first out transgender person elected to public office in the Australian state of New South Wales, and more international LGBTQ news reported by Tanya Kane-Parry and Joe Boehnlein (produced by Brian DeShazor). 

All this on the September 23, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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NOTE TO RADIO STATIONS: Beginning October 1, 2024, the weekly program uploaded to Soundcloud will include a pitch for This Way Out/Overnight Productions (Inc.). Stations can download a pitch-free version from radio4all.net or Pacifica’s AudioPort.Org. For more information, contact [email protected].

The bold, brash and bawdy life and artistry of Sophie Tucker is captured in a risqué and raucous one-woman cabaret show written and performed by Laural Meade (interviewed by Brian DeShazor).

And in NewsWrap: the largest LGBTQ Pride March in Serbia’s history had several thousand people marching through the capital of Belgrade in defiance of violent threats, an accusation of theft in the midst of a contentious break-up gets two gay male Zimbabweans arrested for sodomy, the Australian Bureau of Statistics is refining questions about sexual orientation and gender identity for its 2026 Census, New South Wales has produced a study on puberty blockers for transgender young people that contradicts the U.K.’s controversial Cass Report, U.S.-based corporations Molson/Coors Brewing Company and toolmaking Stanley Black and Decker bow to right-wing pressure to abandon their workplace DEI programs, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Michael Taylor Gray and Melanie Keller (produced by Brian DeShazor). 

All this on the September 16, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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NOTE TO RADIO STATIONS: Beginning October 1, 2024, the weekly program uploaded to Soundcloud will include a pitch for This Way Out/Overnight Productions (Inc.). Stations can download a pitch-free version from radio4all.net or Pacifica’s AudioPort.Org. For more information, contact [email protected].

Drag may be under fire today by the enforcers of “family values,” but not so back in the early 1900s according to scholar and historian Andrew L. Erdman, author of “Beautiful: The story of Julian Eltinge, America’s Greatest Female Impersonator” (interviewed by David Hunt).

And in NewsWrap: openly gay Malcolm Bishop’s appointment as Lord Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Tonga draws immediate calls for his removal, Iran’s government summons Australian Ambassador Ian McConville for a post celebrating Australia’s “Wear It Purple Day” for queer youth. six major U.S. publishers sue Florida for its book ban policy, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints will now “annotate” trans Mormons’ membership records like child pornographers and church embezzlers, Virginia’s Sweet Briar College changes its admissions policy to exclude trans and non-binary applicants, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Elena Botkin-Levy and John Dyer V (produced by Brian DeShazor). 

All this on the September 9, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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NOTE TO RADIO STATIONS: Beginning October 1, 2024, the weekly program uploaded to Soundcloud will include a pitch for This Way Out/Overnight Productions (Inc.). Stations can download a pitch-free version from radio4all.net or Pacifica’s AudioPort.Org. For more information, contact [email protected].

A gay Christian activist-author who started out as the closeted ghostwriter for some of the most powerful televangelists in the U.S. came out in 1994 with the book “Stranger at the Gate: To Be Gay and Christian in America.” Mel White could hardly have been more prescient about the religious right politics that would lead to the MAGA movement and Christian Nationalism (original interview by Ian Masters, thanks to the Pacifica Radio Archives).

And in NewsWrap: the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2026 Census will consider including a question about sexual orientation, the U.S. Census Bureau is developing better ways to include sexual orientation and gender identity, four more U.S. corporations are abandoning their commitments to DEI programs and support for the queer community, Aetna will be the first U.S. insurance company to extend fertility treatment coverage to LGBTQ people, the privacy rights of transgender public school students get the backing of New Hampshire’s Supreme Court, Austin, Texas Brewtorium Brewery and Kitchen is responding to violent threats with a “fruity” Big Gay Beer, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Elena Botkin-Levy and John Dyer V (produced by Brian DeShazor). 

All this on the September 2, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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The Democratic National Convention confirmed the nomination of Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz to top the Party’s ticket in the presidential election campaign at an enthusiastic gathering basking in the glow of the Republicans’ dreaded diversity, equity and inclusion. In addition to Harris and Walz, highlights from queers and allies include Senator LaPhonza Butler (CA), Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Attorney General Dana Nessel (MI), Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson, Rev. Al Sharpton, Oprah Winfrey, former First Lady Michelle Obama, state Representative Malcom Kenyatta (PA), Governors Jared Polis (CO), Phil Murphy (NJ) and Kathy Holcomb (NY), and Saturday Night Live’s Kenan Thompson.

And in NewsWrap: a lesbian co-mother gets one brief visit with one of her two children due to a historic Beijing court ruling before her estranged wife again denies her any contact, hundreds of people march with LGBTQ Pride through the streets of Kathmandu in an event coinciding with Nepal’s memorial festival of Gai Jatra, a federal district court finally puts an end to the U.S. military’s ban on enlisting asymptomatic HIV+ recruits, the full 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturns their three-judge panel’s ruling that Houston County, Texas had violated transgender Sheriff’s Deputy Anna Lange’s civil rights when it denied her gender-affirming surgery under its employee health plan, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton orders the Department of Public Safety to flatly deny all applications to change driver’s license or state ID gender markers, Visit Florida virtually tells queer tourists to go where the sun don’t shine by removing the pages on its website that promoted LGBTQ+ attractions, dumpsters at Florida’s New College are found filled with books from its shuttered Gender and Diversity Program, gay dad gentoo penguin Sphen leaves his Magic behind, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Elena Botkin-Levy and John Dyer V (produced by Brian DeShazor). 

All this on the August 26, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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The late ballplayer Billy Bean talked about his intentions when he was first named Major League Baseball’s gay Ambassador for Inclusion in 2014 (interviewed by Chrisanne Eastwood and Wenzel Jones), and his success is proven by the response to last week’s homophobic incident involving Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran.

Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas are known for being literary mavens, and for Toklas’ mastery of French cooking. In this rare Pacifica Radio Archives selection from a Verve record, Ms. Toklas herself reads the most popular recipe from The Alice B. Toklas Cookbook, and tells the story behind its publication.

And in NewsWrap: the U.S. Supreme Court denies an emergency request from the Department of Justice to enforce its queer-inclusive interpretation of “Title IX” bias protections, Pope Francis joins with LGBTQ activists from Uganda and Ghana in condemning anti-queer legislation in both nations, Team LGBTQ would have finished in 7th among nations for the most medals at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, gay British Olympic diver Tom Daley is retires after winning another Silver medal, Kim Coco Iwamoto will be the first out transgender candidate to win election to state office in Hawai’i, gay Chilean flamingoes Curtis and Arthur give birth to their new chick at South West England’s Paignton Zoo in Devon, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Marcos Najera and Sarah Montague (produced by Brian DeShazor with technical assistance by Daniel Huecias). 

All this on the August 19, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris chooses Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, whose pro-LGBTQ+ track record includes early support for marriage equality and the repeal of “Don’t Ask. Don’t Tell,” and making his state a sanctuary for transgender people.

And in NewsWrap: Sofia’s streets fill with protesters when Bulgaria’s Parliament passes a “no promo homo” law, Argentina’s far-right President Javier Milei closes the sexual orientation and gender identity bias fighting National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism, Utah is the first U.S. state to require the removal of specific books from school library shelves, 23 Republican U.S. senators demand that the NCAA ban all trans women and girls from female school sports, Major League Baseball gay Ambassador for Inclusion Billy Bean dies at the age of 60, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Ava Davis and David Hunt (produced by Brian DeShazor). 

All this on the August 12, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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Right-wing politicians and pundits scream, but most students, faculty and staff believe that college and university diversity, equity and inclusion programs create an environment that’s welcoming for everyone. Assistant vice president Renee Wells of Queens University of Charlotte in North Carolina sees how DEI improves all of campus life. (David Hunt reports)

And in NewsWrap: U.K.’s ban on puberty blockers for pediatric gender-affirming healthcare passes legal muster according to a High Court judge, London Trans+ Pride breaks records with its sixth annual procession, a Nepali law student and human rights activist can change her legal gender to “female” without having to undergo gender-affirming surgery, protections for LGBTQ students in the U.S. are affirmed one day and stripped the next, Nebraska’s Supreme Court allows the ban on trans patients under the age of 19 from getting gender-affirming healthcare, transgender Christian IT specialist Ellenor Zinski is suing Jerry Falwell’s infamous Liberty University for discrimination, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Joe Boehnlein and Melanie Keller (produced by Brian DeShazor). 

All this on the August 5, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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Berlin-based writer, curator, and activist Federico Hewson has spent decades examining the intricate relationship between human beings and flowers and the symbolic interpretations of flowers. His latest initiative further explores that connection by pairing flowers with artistic renderings of queer activists around the world who were tragically murdered for their activism. Hewson shares his personal motivations, shedding light on the emotional resonance and historical importance driving his exploration of the intersection between flowers and queer activism. He also talks about Berlin’s thriving queer art scene and his ongoing efforts to commemorate, honor, and showcase the stories of diverse queer activists (Interviewed by Jason Jenn).

And in NewsWrap: a lawsuit challenging Ghana’s ban on same-gender sex is dismissed by the Supreme Court, the government of Namibia is appealing a High Court decision that struck down laws criminalizing same-gender sex, Christopher Street Day Parade in Cologne, Germany is hailed as the largest parade in the city’s history, the “queer panic defense” comes off the legal table in Michigan, LGBTQ ally U.S. President Joe Biden passes the Democratic Party torch to LGBTQ ally Vice President Kamala Harris, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by John Dyer V and Kalyn Hardman (produced by Brian DeShazor with technical assistance by Daniel Huecias). 

All this on the July 29, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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All too often, companies with pro-LGBTQ public profiles pack up their Pride Month rainbow flags and pay their queer employees harsh reality. That was the experience of trans biotech engineer Alaina Kupec, and queer psychologist Dr. Jenna Brownfield talks about how to deal with the workplace battlefield. (Part 2 of 2 produced by David Hunt.)

And in NewsWrap: South Korea’s Supreme Court orders the National Health Insurance Service to extend spousal coverage to same-gender partners, the cabinet of Burkina Faso’s military junta agrees on legislation to ban homosexuality, the U.S. Republican National Convention re-nominates its iconic felon for president as it attacks LGBTQ people and DEI programs, U.S. farm and garden equipment maker John Deere ends its corporate support for LGBTQ causes, California’s Chino Valley Unified School District sues Governor Gavin Newsom over a bill to protect trans students from being involuntarily outed, far-right figure Elon Musk’s social media platform deletes more than 200 profiles associated with the hashtag ILoveGay, and more international LGBTQ news reported this week by Ava Davis and Joe Boehnlein (produced by Brian DeShazor with technical assistance by Daniel Huecias). 

All this on the July 22, 2024 edition of This Way Out!

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