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For LGBTQ+ people, questions about identity are rarely shaped by pure curiosity.They are shaped by pressure: what is acc...
01/09/2026

For LGBTQ+ people, questions about identity are rarely shaped by pure curiosity.

They are shaped by pressure: what is acceptable, what is safe, and what is allowed to be named out loud without consequence.

A growing body of research suggests that psychedelic substances, when used in controlled and therapeutic settings, may help loosen those constraints, creating space for people to explore parts of themselves that have long been buried.

Recent reporting from the BBC highlights emerging evidence that psychedelics like psilocybin, M**A, and ketamine can prompt reflection around gender and sexual orientation.

Therapists and researchers stress that these substances do not “turn” people q***r or trans, but instead appear to lower psychological defenses, allowing individuals to engage honestly with questions they may have avoided or felt unable to articulate.

https://buff.ly/YsyEal3

**A ***rWellbeing

Therapeutic psychedelics may loosen mental barriers, helping LGBTQ+ people safely explore gender and sexual identity.

Looking back over Charlotte's LGBTQ+ cultural history, some names are remembered, honored and revered.Many in our commun...
01/09/2026

Looking back over Charlotte's LGBTQ+ cultural history, some names are remembered, honored and revered.

Many in our community remember the names of individuals like political activist Don King, cultural contributor Dan Kirsch and drag legend Boom Boom LaTour.

Far too often, people who make a difference slip through the cracks.

They don't have awards named after them and the homage they deserve never happens. Not everyone needs that kind of attention, but it doesn't mean they're any less deserving.

https://buff.ly/dqFVXR0

***rTrailblazer

Robert Sheets founded QCQ, ran for Charlotte council twice, and championed Pride—an unsung LGBTQ+ pioneer.

After spending much of 2025 advancing its sweeping right-wing blueprint known as Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation i...
01/07/2026

After spending much of 2025 advancing its sweeping right-wing blueprint known as Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation is already laying groundwork for what comes next.

Its 2025–2026 priorities make clear that LGBTQ+ people, particularly transgender people and q***r families, remain central targets of the organization’s long-term political agenda.

The updated framework, titled Restoring America’s Promise, places much of its LGBTQ+-related language under a section called “Put Family First.”

In that section, the Heritage Foundation declares that “every child conceived deserves to be born to a married mother and father who will love, guide, and protect them throughout their lives.”

The document goes on to argue that “radical ideologies that deny social and biological truths about sexual embodiment, marriage, and unborn life poison our courts, our culture, and our laws.”

Read more at link👇

https://buff.ly/pdawuM3

***rAdvocacy

Heritage’s “Restoring America’s Promise” pushes a long‑term anti‑LGBTQ agenda, extending Project 2025 into 2026.

Nicki Minaj built a career alongside an audience that included some of her loudest and most devoted supporters: LGBTQ+ f...
01/07/2026

Nicki Minaj built a career alongside an audience that included some of her loudest and most devoted supporters: LGBTQ+ fans who treated her music, aesthetics, and larger-than-life persona as part of the q***r cultural landscape.

She leaned into that relationship for years, from Pride performances to moments where she publicly framed herself as someone paying attention to women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and freedom of expression.

That history is what makes her political turn sting for many of the people who helped elevate her into “queen” status in the first place.

Over time, Minaj has increasingly used her platform to praise President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance, amplify administration messaging, and take aim at Democrats. For LGBTQ+ fans who once saw her as a pop figure willing to stand alongside them, the shift has felt deeply personal.

Read more at link👇

https://buff.ly/l9lF4j0

***rCommunity

Nicki Minaj built a career alongside an audience that included some of her loudest and most devoted supporters: LGBTQ+ fans who treated her music, aesthetics, and larger-than-life persona as part of the q***r cultural landscape. She leaned into that relationship for years, from Pride performances to...

The Trump administration will review frozen grants to universities without using its controversial standards that discou...
01/06/2026

The Trump administration will review frozen grants to universities without using its controversial standards that discouraged gender, race and sexual orientation initiatives and vaccine research.

In a settlement agreement filed in Massachusetts federal court December 29, the National Institutes of Health and a group of Democratic attorneys general who challenged the new criteria for grant funding said the NIH would consider grant applications made up to Sept. 29, 2025, without judging the efforts related to diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, or vaccines.

Read more at link👇

https://buff.ly/IB64jZ0

Court‑backed settlement lets NIH review frozen grants without DEI or vaccine criteria through Sept 2025.

Some states – including both North and South Carolina – have moved to ban gender-affirming healthcare for trans youth un...
01/06/2026

Some states – including both North and South Carolina – have moved to ban gender-affirming healthcare for trans youth under 18, which has drawn criticism from LGBTQ+ folks and allies alike.

Now, under the direction of Donald Trump and fellow Republicans, the federal government is moving to ban that same care on a national level.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Mehmet Oz, who leads Medicaid and Medicare, announced several moves to limit, restrict and effectively ban gender-affirming healthcare for trans minors a week before Christmas – including states where it is still legal.

Read more at link👇

https://buff.ly/1ULnu9K

Trump‑era federal move to block Medicaid/Medicare gender‑affirming care for trans minors sparks ACLU lawsuits and nationwide backlash.

This past year, you’ve often had to make do. Saving money here, resources there, being inventive and innovative.It’s a t...
01/05/2026

This past year, you’ve often had to make do. Saving money here, resources there, being inventive and innovative.

It’s a talent you’ve honed, but isn’t it time to have the best? Yep, so grab these Ten Best of 2025 books for your new year pleasures.

Review them at link👇

https://buff.ly/GcdBWf6

Kick‑start 2026 with the ten standout books of 2025—curated picks for savvy readers who love smart, fresh storytelling.

Singer/songwriter Janis Ian will always have a special place in my heart. She was the first artist I interviewed at the ...
01/05/2026

Singer/songwriter Janis Ian will always have a special place in my heart. She was the first artist I interviewed at the beginning of my journalism career.

It was 1994, after the release of what some considered to be her comeback album “Breaking Silence.”

She couldn’t have been more delightful or forthcoming. I’ve interviewed her four more times (including this one), as well as attending a few of her concerts over the years.

Now retired from touring and recording, Ian is the subject of Varda Bar-Kar’s informative documentary “Janis Ian: Breaking Silence.”

Read full interview at link👇

https://buff.ly/CYozjig

From a 1994 debut interview to Varda Bar‑Kar’s documentary, Janis Ian’s timeless voice still breaks silence.

Six years ago, a burger-loving Aries packed up his life in Colorado and landed in Charlotte, bringing with him a sharp t...
01/04/2026

Six years ago, a burger-loving Aries packed up his life in Colorado and landed in Charlotte, bringing with him a sharp tech mind, a creative spirit and an unapologetic love for all things nerdy.

Jason Lewis, founder of Olive AI Creative and lead UI/UX mobile developer by day, now calls South End home, where his light-filled loft doubles as both a workstation and a sanctuary decorated with Star Wars art and Pokémon figures.

In this Qnotes interview, Jason opens up about his journey from Western North Carolina to Denver and back, his connection to the LGBTQ+ community, his thoughts on AI and the future of work, and the values that guide his career, relationships and commitment to community.

Read full interview at link👇

https://buff.ly/4HB8Mzy

Burger‑loving Aries‑born UI/UX pro Jason Lewis shares his LGBTQ+ journey, AI vision & Charlotte roots in a candid Qnotes chat.

A resumé rejection that arrives within minutes. A loan decision with no explanation. A customer service chat that never ...
01/04/2026

A resumé rejection that arrives within minutes. A loan decision with no explanation. A customer service chat that never quite sounds human.

These moments are increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, often without people realizing it.

For communities that have long faced discrimination in hiring, housing, healthcare and public services, these experiences feel familiar.

When artificial intelligence is used increasingly in these types of transactions, it can make people feel even more disenfranchised.

Artificial intelligence itself is neither good nor bad. It is a tool. Like other powerful tools, it is neutral by design.

What is not neutral is how that tool is built, used, controlled and who benefits or is harmed as a result.

Read more at link👇

https://buff.ly/8YgUCie

When AI decides faster than a coffee break, marginalized folks feel the sting—let’s unpack bias, consent, and accountability.

Storytelling remains one of the most important ways we make meaning of our lives and experiences. In this multi-author f...
01/03/2026

Storytelling remains one of the most important ways we make meaning of our lives and experiences. In this multi-author feature, Qnotes takes a look at some of our community's local writers.

Read interviews with each author at link 👇

https://buff.ly/KCWV345

Storytelling remains one of the most important ways we make meaning of our lives and experiences. In this multi-author feature, Qnotes takes a look at some of our community’s local writers. ‘God Does Love Me: My Trans Journey to Finding My True Self’ by Dawn J. Flynn Dawn Flynn is a Charlotte-...

Ever wonder how many people in the LGBTQ+ community identify as a conservative, a Republican or maybe even a Trump suppo...
01/03/2026

Ever wonder how many people in the LGBTQ+ community identify as a conservative, a Republican or maybe even a Trump supporter?

Given the long history of intolerance, discrimination and even violence lobbed at us from that part of of our population, ever wonder how anyone in the LGBTQ+ community could fall in line as a supporter of a political party and a section of American society that most progressives and centrists see as the oppressor?

Read more at link👇

https://buff.ly/BV6TygY

***rConservatives

Charlotte’s gay GOP scene: stats, stories & a Log Cabin clubhouse trying to blend rainbow pride with red‑state roots.

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