3 Ways That Gender Reveal Parties Can Be Harmful – Plus 3 Awesome Alternatives

by PIDGEON PAGONIS

The day has come. The mini chalkboards urging guests to vote whether you’re having a boy or girl is up. The display listing old wives’ tales is prepared. And the pink and blue cookies, balloons, and candy all marked with white question marks are in their rightful places. Guests begin to arrive and butterflies flutter. Or—wait—was that a kick from the little one baking in your oven? Ow! Definitely a kick. A friend you’ve known since high school takes one look at you, now seven-and-a-half-months pregnant, clicks her teeth, and says definitively, “It’s a girl.” She walks over to the chalkboard to vote while you let out a sigh. You’ve been told it’s better to have a boy, because they’re just easier. You begin to feel everyone’s curious minds and hungry eyes on you, and you realize it’s time. Everyone waits for you to bite into your cupcake. This time, the butterflies are real. Please let it be blue. The frosting oozes out and your sister-in-law is the first to see its color. Giddy with excitement, she trips over her tongue and announces, “It’s a… purple?” You almost don’t hear the collective befuddled gasp made by everyone in the room. Continue Reading

What Men Need to Know About STDs

by ELIZABETH MORRIS

With modern hookup apps, sex is more accessible than ever before, so it’s no surprise that STDs have been on the rise in recent years. Promiscuity is not something to be ashamed of, but it is important to educate yourself on sexual health. Gay men especially have cause to take extra precaution, as new statistics show serious increases within the community. Continue Reading

A Guide for Straight and Cisgender Allies in LGBTQIA+ Spaces

by MIRI MOGILEVSKY

A few weeks ago on December 31, I was getting ready for a wonderful New Year’s Eve with my friends and chosen family. It was a bittersweet night, too, because it was the night our local lesbian nightclub, Wall Street, would be shutting its doors for the last time. Although I wouldn’t be there at its last show because I’d decided to host my own party, I knew I would treasure my memories of it — the burlesque, the drag shows, the drinks, the dancing, and, of course, all my lovely queer friends that I went there with. But that very morning, I heard it — a man’s arrogant voice coming from somewhere in my office building: “I’m definitely going out to Wall Street for New Year’s tonight to look at the freaks!” Continue Reading