[International]
Video: Conchita Wurst rejects ice bucket challenge, but responds in her own way
Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst has rejected the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, but instead opted to respond in a different way.

[UK]
Kellie Maloney donating ‘significant portion’ of Big Brother fee to trans support group
Kellie Maloney will donate a “significant portion” of her Celebrity Big Brother fee to a transgender support group, it has been revealed.

[USA]
Labor Department issues guidance to protect trans workers
The Labor Department issued guidance on Tuesday spelling out that the Obama administration will interpret an executive order prohibiting gender discrimination in the workforce to protect transgender workers.
Federal Contractors Put on Notice: Labor Dept. Issues Non-Discrimination Guidance
22% of workforce protected from Gender Identity Discrimination
Labor Department extends employment protections to transgender workers

[USA]
Laura Jane Grace Doesn't Apologize for Being Herself
The Entertainers: Band front woman Laura Jane Grace is delivering on her promise not to become a demure shrinking violet after coming out as trans.

[DC, USA]
Milestone: Smithsonian Accepts Original Trans Pride Flag
Today, Monica Helms, a transgender activist and Navy veteran, presented the original transgender pride flag created 15 years ago this month to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The flag will be added to the Museum’s permanent archives along with several other objects that represent cultural milestones in LGBT history. Along with the transgender pride flag, the Smithsonian accepted artifacts from Helms’ military career and Renee Richards’ racquet used to play in the 1963 All-Navy Championship and the 1964 New York State Men’s Championship.
Atlanta transgender activist donates flag to Smithsonian
(Photo: NCTE Executive Director, Mara Keisling with Monica helms)

[NJ, USA]
Transgender student may go to other schools
Rachel Pepe, the 13-year-old transgender middle school student who says she was being forced to return to classes as a boy, may now have alternatives after a meeting with schools Superintendent William O. George.
State, federal law protects gender identity
N.J. School Reverses Position, Will Let Trans Teen Attend As Girl She Is
Victory: Garden State Equality Affirms Transgender Student Support
New Jersey School District Accommodates Trans Teen After Their Initial Awfulness

[PA, USA]
17-Year-Old Bucks Co. Trans Man Ends His Life By Stepping in Front of an Amtrak Train
GALAEI‘ s TransHealth Information Project (TIP) just released information about the passing of 17-year-old transgender man Riley Matthew Moscatel, formerly known as Jessica. The young man, a student at Bucks County Technical High School, was killed when an Amtrak train hit him Monday afternoon. Coroners are ruling it a suicide.

[Cuba]
Cuban president’s daughter casts first ‘no’ vote since the Revolution over trans and HIV exclusion
Mariela Castro, a member of Cuba’s National Assembly and daughter of President Raul Castro, cast a ‘no’ vote in protest over a new labor code that protects sexual minorities but not transgender people or people with HIV from discrimination

[Mexico]
Sin esclarecer crímenes homofóbicos en Coatzacoalcos; violencia va en aumento
La comunidad gay en el Estado de Veracruz, incluyendo Coatzacoalcos, no tiene protección de ninguna ley, siguen siendo discriminados, y están siendo víctimas de la inseguridad. En el año, en la entidad se han registrado 18 homicidios, de los cuales, cuatro fueron en este municipio, declaró Luis Giovanni Pérez, presidente del grupo Diversidad Sexual Ambientales de Coatzacoalcos.

[Honduras]
Cambio de sexo tiene entusiasmados a muchos
En Honduras casi todo se ha vuelto imposible: tener una casa, un empleo, vivir en paz… Sin embargo, no todos los hondureños tienen las mismas necesidades. Más de 40 hombres y mujeres lo que solicitan es que se les permita cambiar de sexo.