At this year's Trevor LIVE, three extraordinary queer youth received the Colin Higgins Youth Courage Award.  The Colin Higgins Foundation established the Youth Courage Awards in 2000 to further the spirit and life of Colin Higgins, the acclaimed  screenwriter and director whose films celebrate honesty and integrity in the face of adversity. Over the last decade, the Foundation has issued 41 awards to activists hailing from 17 states and Puerto Rico. The following is an excerpt from the Trevor LIVE program book. Daunasia Yancey, 19, is self-described as an "African-American, Aggressive-Femme, Lesbian open to other possibilities, peer sexual health educator, public speaker, poet and activist." Daunasia was born to a sex worker and  an incarcerated man in Boston, MA. At the age of four, she lost her mother to AIDS. She came out in 8th grade and mobilized support fr a GSA in her school - the first GSA in a public middle school in Massachusetts. Daunasia was sexually assaulted by a family member when she was 15 and was kicked out of her house shortly following reporting he incident. Despite the lack of support both at home and at school, Daunasia's community activism continued when she became a safe sex educator ...

The identity of the Syrian lesbian blogger that went by the anonymous "Gay Girl in Damascus" title has been revealed. The young writer who was apparently kidnapped in Syria last week is, it turns out, not a lesbian feminist after all, but Tom MacMaster, a middle aged scholar and Middle East activist living in Scotland. His wife confirmed his identity in a email to the British paper the Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/13/syrian-lesbian-blogger-tom-macmaster?mobile-redirect=false This story says a lot about how easily one can invent a completely different persona in today's media age. For all you know, I could be a Texas housewife! Of course, the  story begets the more important matter of how this revelation impacts the blog's message. Is it really that big a deal that MacMaster lied about his identity? Does his message about queer awareness still come across? Let us know what you think!

I've never really seen the appeal of medical dramas, as hospitals tend to freak me out in all situations. However, I've always given Grey's Anatomy credit for being super progressive with its diverse cast, both in terms of race and sexuality. Last week's episode featuring the characters Callie and Arizona (could you really ask for a better lesbian couple name?) walking down the aisle. The last time I saw a lesbian wedding on mainstream network television was probably on Friends in 1995, so this is great news indeed. The show featured a straight couple getting married at the same time, but that's okay- we love everyone! http://youtu.be/kiIFEDBbnQ8