Latest / The Roundup / Political attack ads, transgender students’ sports rights and LGBTQ Pride under pressure

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Political attack ads, transgender students’ sports rights and LGBTQ Pride under pressure · The Roundup

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  SPEAKER_00: It's the Lookout News Roundup for the fourth week of September.
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  SPEAKER_00: Today is September 23rd.
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  SPEAKER_00: I'm Joseph Darius Trafari, editor of Lookout News here in the Southwest, and I'm here to give you this week's top headlines in LGBTQ and civil rights news.
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  SPEAKER_00: Remember, you can get this and more by going to our website at lookoutnews.org, where you can sign up to have this kind of roundup and more sent to your inbox every Wednesday.
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  SPEAKER_00: First up, a campaign message spreading across the Phoenix Valley says Democrats support Republican gubernatorial candidate Andy Biggs.
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  SPEAKER_00: Lookout found the signs are actually being paid for by Turning Point PAC, part of the conservative group Turning Point USA.
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  SPEAKER_00: The signs don't identify which Democrats supposedly support Biggs.
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  SPEAKER_00: Lookout also found that some of the people promoted online as Democrats had changed their party registration years ago.
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  SPEAKER_00: Arizona law generally doesn't regulate whether political advertising makes true or false claims.
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  SPEAKER_00: It does require political ads to disclose who paid for them, though.
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  SPEAKER_00: Turning point PAC has not responded to Lookout's requests for comment.
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  SPEAKER_00: Also from Lookout, a two-year-old Phoenix manslaughter case is raising questions about how police investigated a fatal crash and whether a defendant's criminal history influenced what happened next.
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  SPEAKER_00: Connor Scheuler is charged with reckless manslaughter and endangerment after a 2023 crash killed 78-year-old Shakriya Reyes.
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  SPEAKER_00: Police say Scheuler was driving 69 mph in a 40 mile per hour zone.
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  SPEAKER_00: Scheuler says he swerved to avoid another vehicle.
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  SPEAKER_00: A defense expert who reviewed the case says police failed to investigate potential surveillance footage and witnesses, while another analysis raised questions about whether Reyes was wearing a seatbelt at all.
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  SPEAKER_00: But more broadly, Sheuler's past criminal conduct as a queer youth surviving anti-LGBTQ abuse is now being used to strengthen the case against him.
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  SPEAKER_00: Shouler spent years homeless as a youth and said he turned to fraud after running away from what he described as homophobic abuse from his grandparents.
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  SPEAKER_00: That criminal history is now part of his current case, and he remains in jail as the case moves forward.
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  SPEAKER_00: Arizona Mirror is reporting that the state has spent millions prosecuting death penalty cases, while families of homicide victims are asking for more resources for cold cases.
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  SPEAKER_00: From 1965 through 2025, nearly 6,800 Arizona homicide cases remained unsolved, according to the Murder Accountability Project.
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  SPEAKER_00: But families interviewed by the Mirror say they want more detectives, better crime labs, and resources for missing person investigations.
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  SPEAKER_00: The debate is essentially over whether limited public safety dollars should go toward pursuing capital cases or trying to solve crimes that have already gone cold.
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  SPEAKER_00: And if you're looking for something considerably less grim, Brick Road Coffee is coming to Phoenix's Melrose district.
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  SPEAKER_00: Phoenix New Times reports the LGBTQ owned coffee shop is opening its third valley location at the Royale at Glen Rosa Avenue and 7th Avenue in October.
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  SPEAKER_00: Brick Road started in Tempe B in 2021 before expanding to Mesa.
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  SPEAKER_00: The new Melrose location puts the queer owned coffee shop in one of Phoenix's historic queer neighborhoods.
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  SPEAKER_00: Now, over to Colorado, voters will decide whether transgender students can participate in school sports under the rules currently in place.
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  SPEAKER_00: Colorado Newsline reports that Proposition 134 would prevent transgender children from participating in school sports based on their sex as defined by the measure.
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  SPEAKER_00: The proposal is one of two measures on the November ballot targeting transgender children.
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  SPEAKER_00: Newsline also spoke with a Colorado mother whose transgender daughter played basketball growing up.
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  SPEAKER_00: The family has faced threats after the daughter was outed online.
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  SPEAKER_00: The mother told Newsline she worries about what the measure would mean for kids who simply want to play.
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  SPEAKER_00: And Westward is talking to parents who say those ballot measures are creating fear well beyond the sports field as families with transgender children try to figure out what the November vote could mean for them.
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  SPEAKER_00: Now to the national news, the White House press pool is in conflict with the Trump administration after CNN, MS Now, and Politico were barred from the White House following reporting the president criticized.
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  SPEAKER_00: The Washington Blade, the only LGBTQ publication in the White House press pool, continued providing coverage as other major television networks pulled their crews from the pool.
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  SPEAKER_00: The three BART outlets have sued to regain access.
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  SPEAKER_00: In Texas, the city of Southlake has decided to in Texas, the City of Southlake has denied a permit for an LGBTQ plus Pride Festival that was held there last year.
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  SPEAKER_00: The Dallas Morning News reports the city council voted unanimously against the permit for the October 3rd Pride Kelso Festival without publicly explaining the decision.
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  SPEAKER_00: Last year's event drew more than 1,000 people to the grounds of an Episcopal Church.
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  SPEAKER_00: Organizers say they're still looking for a way to hold the festival.
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  SPEAKER_00: And hospitals around the country are continuing to pull back from gender-affirming care for transgender minors.
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  SPEAKER_00: The Associated Press reports that several hospitals have reached agreements with the Trump administration that end federal investigations into their care while requiring them to stop providing gender-affirming treatment to minors.
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  SPEAKER_00: At least 27 states have laws restricting or banning that care, and more than two dozen hospitals and clinics in states without bans have also stopped offering it since last year.
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  SPEAKER_00: And finally, Defense Secretary Pete Heggseth is facing renewed criticism after using a transphobic slur during a military recruitment event.
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  SPEAKER_00: OK Magazine reports it was the second time in about a month that Heggseth used the same slur publicly.
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  SPEAKER_00: The comments come as the administration has reinstated restrictions on transgender military service, including a ban on transgender people joining the armed forces.
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  SPEAKER_00: And that's it for this week's roundup.
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  SPEAKER_00: For more news like this across the Greater Southwest region, be sure to follow us online at lookoutnews.org as well as all of our socials at Lookout underscore news on Blue Sky, Facebook, and Instagram.
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  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, stay safe, stay informed, and look out for each other.