All in LGBTQ

My first opinion piece in @usatoday on paid parental leave. It’s a national embarrassment that we continue to be one of a handful of countries in the world without such a program, but there’s one silver lining in having waited this long

David Dodge
LGBTQ, Parenting

It’s a national embarrassment that we continue to be one of a handful of countries in the world without such a program, but there’s one silver lining in having waited this long: we have the opportunity to do it right the first time around, and create a paid parental leave program inclusive of *all* parents. Such a policy would also make things right with the LGBTQ and adoption community—who are disproportionately denied paid time off.

Regardless of what happens on Election Day this year, our current elected officials need to do the right thing and codify LGBTQ Marriage Equality into national law. And then Congress needs to turn its attention to expanding new rights, n

David Dodge
LGBTQ, Parenting

Regardless of what happens on Election Day this year, our current elected officials need to do the right thing and codify LGBTQ Marriage Equality into national law. And then Congress needs to turn its attention to expanding new rights, not just protect old ones. Enacting paid parental leave — something a majority of both parties actually agree on, and that will confer new rights and protections to LGBTQ families, not just enshrine old ones — may be one of the only areas to make that happen.

Traveling with Pride — Teachable Moments

Traveling with Pride — Teachable Moments

David Dodge
Travel, LGBTQ

British Airways asked me and a couple other LGBTQ travel writers to write about a "memorable experience" we've had while traveling as queer people. My piece was about the time a homophobe and I went to a bar together in Greece (sounds like the set up to a bad joke) and hilarity ensued.

Where to Experience the LGBTQ+ Scene in Amman, Jordan

Where to Experience the LGBTQ+ Scene in Amman, Jordan

David Dodge
LGBTQ, Travel

Excerpted from Sassy Planet: A Queer Guide to 40 Cities. Jordan doesn’t criminalize LGBTQ+ identities, and trans people can even have their gender marker modified there—but locals say that being openly queer nonetheless carries a huge social stigma in Amman and across the country. Still, homosexuality has been decriminalized in Jordan for consenting people over the age of 16 since 1951. While Amman has few queer spaces, the scene is nonetheless very present, a situation unlike in many neighboring countries, where it has been forced underground. Read the article here.

No Sperm Required

No Sperm Required

David Dodge
LGBTQ, Parenting

To consider the future is to consider a future without men — well, at least without male-created sperm. In the laboratory, scientists are drawing closer to growing sperm from skin cells. This piece was part of a special New York Times issue on Fertility, published on November 10, 2019.

Lachlan Watson: Your Next Romantic Lead

Lachlan Watson: Your Next Romantic Lead

David Dodge
Arts & Culture, LGBTQ

My interview with Lachlan Watson, star of Netflix’s reboot of Sabrina, appeared in September 2022 issue of Glass Man. Lachlan was a pleasure to interview, and super impressive. At 18 years old, they’ve spent the last year filming a major television show, gracing magazine covers, and schooling the media on the intricacies of feminism, sexuality, and gender identity. The best part of the interview was listening to Lachlan, one of Hollywood’s most visible nonbinary actors, talk about the roles they’d like to tackle next after Theo. After “always playing the queer kid,” they hope their next role is in a completely different genre — like a Western. “Put me in a corset, give me those ringlet curls, and let me go train hopping,” they said.

Meet the CrossFitters Helping Make the Sport LGBTQ Inclusive

Meet the CrossFitters Helping Make the Sport LGBTQ Inclusive

David Dodge
LGBTQ, Health + Wellness

The most compelling evidence that the queer community has a secret plan to take over CrossFit is through the explosive growth of OUTWOD — a group founded by Will Lanier, a 33-year-old Austin, Texas-based coach, that hosts CrossFit workouts for the LGBTQ community. In 2009, just six people came to the group’s inaugural event in New York. This year, OUTWOD hosted 40 workouts in June alone, surpassed 15,000 followers on Instagram, and is on track to welcome over 5,000 queer athletes at workouts the world over from Belgium to Boise.  Read the article here.


Legal Basics for L.G.B.T.Q Parents

Legal Basics for L.G.B.T.Q Parents

David Dodge
Parenting, LGBTQ

It’s never been easier for L.G.B.T.Q. people to become parents. We can now adopt and serve as foster parents in every state in the country. Thanks to advancements in assisted reproductive technology, otherwise known as ART, and innovative co-parenting and known-donor arrangements, we’re also having biological children in greater numbers. Despite this progress, a complex network of state laws, regulations and restrictions affect many of our most common paths to parenthood, meaning would-be L.G.B.T.Q. parents can face a far more complicated legal landscape than our straight counterparts. Read the article here.