A queer atheist goes to church

Excerpt: In her new memoir, Ontario politician-cum-minister Cheri DiNovo remembers exploring her faith for the first time

By Cheri DiNovo

Culture

Everything you need to know about JoJo Siwa’s rise to queer icon status

The social media superstar rocked the world when she came out as queer in January

By Mel Woods

Relationships

No, transitioning doesn’t always spell the end of a marriage

My relationship with my partner went through ups and downs—but my transition brought us closer together

By Sydney Bauer

TV & Film

Celebrating the Black female TV characters that Black queer men love

From Khadijah James in “Living Single” to Jodie Landon in “Daria”

By Eric Ford

My Safe Space

My bath time ritual is the perfect pandemic salve

The joy of bathing is the pleasure of being partially or wholly unobserved in the steam

By Hannah Copestake

Xtra Weekly

Topline: Getting my queer social fix on Twitch

The streaming platform has become an unlikely community hub for LGBTQ2S+ gamers

By Erica Lenti

Opinion

Trans folks need more than just visibility

At its best, Trans Day of Visibility is a nod of solidarity between trans people across the world. At its worst, it’s a paltry marketing effort

By Nour Abi-Nakhoul

Xtra Weekly

Topline: A history of anti-Asian violence

Following last week’s mass murder in Atlanta, Asian people and allies are demanding an end to anti-Asian hate

By Rachel Giese

Power

What did Dan Savage do this time?

The columnist came to the defence of controversial journalist Jesse Singal this week, reminding the internet of his past transphobia

By Nour Abi-Nakhoul

Justice

Everything you need to know about Quebec’s gender marker legal ruling

The landmark case removes barriers for LGBTQ2S+ Quebecers who want to change their legal IDs. The rest of Canada still lags behind

By KC Hoard

Identity

For LGBTQ+ Nigerians, Twitter is home for unbridled queer celebration

In the community colloquially known as “Qwitter,” users find safety, comfort and joy with other queer folks—often for the first time

By January Ikeoluwa

Culture

At Paris’ Dirty Lemon, a new kind of lesbian bar has emerged

Ruba Khoury prioritizes queer connection, good eats and tasty cocktails above all—a testament to what LGBTQ+ women really want in their bars

By Emily Monaco

Education

Most Catholic school boards still refuse to recognize Pride

At the world’s largest publicly funded Catholic school board, located in Toronto, the object lesson is prejudice and indifference

By Erica Lenti

The Xtra Long Read

Making tech queer- and trans-friendly is about much more than hiring

Diversity is not an end in itself. Technologies need to serve their users

By Caitlin Stall-Paquet

Culture

Cis people in Hollywood need to stay out of trans folks’ business

“Coming 2 America” is the latest film to include an anti-trans joke

By Tre’vell Anderson

My Safe Space

My phone, a window to a brave new queer world

Watching LGBTQ2S+ content on the small screen of my iPhone is queer escapism, freedom from my everyday mundanities

By Sarah Taher

Identity

Finding euphoria in acts of self-creation

We centre our choice to become, rather than our suffering in not becoming

By Michael Elias

Music

Dax Pierson’s experimental techno chases a ‘queer divine dissatifaction’

The Oakland-based musician says being multi-marginalized helped him face mental and physical recovery

By Jesse Locke