Philadelphia PA

LGBT rights activists gathered in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia on the Fourth of July to mark the progress of their movement and pay tribute to those who launched it a half-century ago – but also made it clear that the fight for equality was far from over.

Regina Sullivan started crying as she squeezed her arms around the man at the center of the latest gay rights milestone: Jim Obergefell, whose lawsuit led to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling making same-sex marriage the law of the land. …

The rainbow crosswalks will be dedicated at the Annual Reminders Block Party on July 5 honoring the 50th anniversary of the first wave of U.S. LGBT rights group demonstrations.

A man has been ordered to stand trial in the stabbing death of a transgender woman in north Philadelphia earlier this year.

The Cradle of Liberty Council vote Friday bans discrimination based on sexual orientation for scouts, leaders and employees.

On the Fourth of July 50 years ago, when homosexuality was considered a mental illness and a same-sex couple’s public declaration of love put their lives and livelihoods at risk, about 40 people took a stand by staging a peaceful protest in front of Independence Hall. This year, Philadelphia’s Independence Day festivities will mark the city’s important place in the history of America’s gay rights movement with events billed as the 50th anniversary of the LGBT rights movement.

Raheam Felton, 31, of Southwest Philadelphia, was charged with murder and possession of an instrument of crime in the killing of London Banks earlier this week.

A judge has refused to downgrade charges against three people accused of beating a gay couple on a Philadelphia street in September.

The Philadelphia City Council will consider asking voters to revise the city charter so that the Office of LGBT Affairs becomes a permanent part of city government.

A Philadelphia judge has ordered three young adults to stand trial for an alleged attack on a gay couple in September that left one of the men with a broken jaw.

PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia’s city council has passed a bill authorizing added penalties for gender identity and sexual orientation hate crimes that aren’t covered under state law. The administration-backed bill won unanimous approval Thursday. Mayor Michael Nutter has two weeks to sign it into law.

PHILADELPHIA — Three young adults charged with beating a gay couple in Philadelphia are due in court Dec. 16 for a preliminary hearing. Police accuse the two men and a suburban police chief’s daughter with taking part in an assault that left one man with a wired jaw.

PHILADELPHIA — More than 200 people advocated for changes to the state’s hate-crimes law in the wake of the beating of a gay couple in downtown Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Thursday that the crowd pushed for Pennsylvania’s anti-hate-crime law to include crimes motivated by sexual orientation. The rally was held in Philadelphia’s…

PHILADELPHIA — While Pennsylvania lawmakers push to advance statewide hate crimes protections that include sexual orientation and gender identity, members of the Philadelphia city council on Thursday will introduce their own measure that would add a hate crime chapter to the city code.

PHILADELPHIA — The three young adults charged with beating a gay couple during a night out on the town in Philadelphia have been released on bail. KYW-TV reports that 24-year-old Philip Williams of Warminster, 24-year-old Kathryn Knott of Southampton and 26-year-old Kevin Harrigan of Warrington left the police department’s Central Detectives …

Kathryn Knott, one of three individuals charged in the beating of a Philadelphia gay couple, has been suspended from her job at a local hospital, and new information indicates she is also being investigated for alleged privacy violations and a series of tweets dating to 2012 that call into question her father’s professional ethics.

PHILADELPHIA — A week after online sleuths used social media to identify suspects in the beating of a gay couple, three suburban Philadelphia defendants surrendered to police Wednesday and were charged in what one defense lawyer called merely a “fist fight that got out of hand.”

PHILADELPHIA — The daughter of a suburban Philadelphia police chief is among the three individuals who have turned themselves in to police to face charges in the beating of a gay couple during a late-night encounter on a city street earlier this month. Police say Philip Williams, 24, Katherine Knott, 24, and Kevin Harrigan, 26, surrendered Wednesday morning….

PHILADELPHIA — Two men and a woman are being charged in the beating of a gay couple during a late-night encounter on a Philadelphia street. Prosecutors identified the suspects Tuesday as 24-year-old Philip Williams, 26-year-old Kevin Harrigan and 24-year-old Katherine Knott.

HARRISBURG, Pa. — A Pennsylvania state lawmaker announced Tuesday that he is gay amid a push by legislators to advance a hate crime bill that includes protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. At a news conference to promote the legislation, State Sen. Jim Ferlo (D-Pittsburgh), who drafted the Senate version of the bill…