Hi there,

📱 Queer TikTokers are calling out lawmakers attempting to ban TikTok in the U.S. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act passed the House Wednesday with overwhelming support from both Democrats and Republicans, garnering 352 votes in favor and just 65 against. The bill would remove TikTok, owned by Chinese company Bytedance, from app stores in the United States unless Bytedance agrees to sell it to an American company. LGBTQ+ TikTokers have warned that the ban will have a "disproportionate effect on the queer community" and eliminate "networks of support and activism."

📣 “If TikTok is banned, a vibrant, kind, and supportive queer community would disappear overnight,” nonbinary TikToker and best-selling author Jeffrey Marsh told The Advocate. 📣

🍀 Ahead of St. Patrick's Day on Sunday, Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff welcomed Irish Taoiseach (prime minister) Leo Varadkar, one of the few out gay national leaders, and his husband, Matthew Barrett, to the vice president’s residence in Washington, D.C. 🍀

And, J.K. Rowling, yes, Nazis did persecute transgender people. It's a fact. I know you built a fantasy world, but...do better. 👏🏼

Onward and upward,

Alex Cooper