Hello!

How is your Tuesday?

🗳️ As the 2024 election draws nearer and the stakes could not be higher, money continues to be the ingredient that can make or break a campaign. Democratic U.S. Reps. Ritchie Torres of New York and Mark Takano of CaliforniaNew York and Mark Takano of California, co-chairs of Equality PAC, are spearheading a formidable fundraising campaign to double the number of LGBTQ+ members in Congress this election cycle. Already, they've raised about $12 million. The two spoke exclusively with The Advocate to discuss the importance of these efforts. 🗳️

🐊 Florida's bridges won't be lighting up for Pride Month this year after a GOP official mandated bridges only be lit up in red, white, and blue throughout the summer. Florida Transportation Secretary James Perdue recently announced on social media that as part of the state’s “Freedom Summer,” all bridges will be lit in patriotic colors from May 27 to September 2. 🐊

“As Floridians prepare for Freedom Summer, Florida's bridges will follow suit, illuminating in red, white, and blue from Memorial Day through Labor Day!” he wrote. “Thanks to the leadership of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida continues to be the freest state in the nation.” Really? Really?

🎬 Unlike DeSantis and his cronies administration, one person who is trying to help the world is Cate Blanchett. The Oscar-winning actor is working with her producing partner, Coco Francini, and Stacy Smith, founder of the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative at the University of Southern California, to support women, trans, and nonbinary filmmakers through the Proof of Concept accelerator program. The first 11 creatives were just announced.

Onward and upward,

Alex Cooper