Advocate NL 7/22/26

Hello folks! Audience Editor Edgar Ramirez, back in your inbox on this Wednesday with a scoop from The Advocate's Christopher Wiggins.Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat considered a possible contender for the 2028 presidential race, has made a rather eyebrow-raising move. As Wiggins reports, Shapiro has appointed Seth Grove, a former Republican lawmaker with a long record of opposing transgender rights and attempting to curtail civil rights enforcement, to the state commission charged with protecting Pennsylvanians from discrimination.His appointment places a former legislator who repeatedly supported restrictions on transgender people inside the institution responsible for considering discrimination complaints from them, Wiggins writes. Pennsylvania law requires partisan balance on the commission, and Shapiro’s office defended the appointment. You can read their full statement here.Still, the statement did not answer why Shapiro selected Grove specifically, or whether the governor’s office reviewed Grove’s record on transgender rights, among other questions Wiggins had.Don't miss the full story here.Until next time,EdgarDonald Trump’s assault on foreign aid shuttered 1,700 HIV care sites worldwideParents say Idaho’s Republican-led anti-trans laws isolated their daughter before her deathOhio teachers train colleagues to navigate anti-LGBTQ+ classroom lawsJudge in trans military ban case demands Pentagon explain Hegseth’s testosterone double standardWhy did Josh Shapiro appoint this anti-trans Republican to Pennsylvania's civil rights commission?Holding out for a hero, and finding one in Bonnie TylerTrump administration caves to public pressure after avalanche of opposition to anti-trans hospital ruleTransgender teen quits Irish dance competition after threats from Florida Republicans