When Brooklyn was queer: telling the story of the borough’s LGBT past

In a new book, Hugh Ryan explores the untold history of queer life in Brooklyn from the 1850s forward, revealing some unlikely truths By Dominic Rushe  For five years Hugh Ryan has been hunting queer ghosts through the streets of Brooklyn, amid the racks of New York’s public libraries, among its court records and yellow …

Why Tumblr’s ban on adult content is bad for LGBTQ youth

By Stefanie Duguay As of Dec. 17, Tumblr will no longer allow “adult content,” defined as that which shows “real-life human genitals or female-presenting nipples, and any content — including photos, videos, GIFs and illustrations — that depicts sex acts.” Before this, the platform’s lenient policies contrasted significantly with those of Facebook and Instagram, which …

Gender Identity in Weimar Germany

Remembering an early academic effort to define sexual orientation and gender identity as variable natural phenomena, rather than moral matters. By: Livia Gershon As the already precarious legal rights of trangender Americans come under renewed threat, it’s worth looking back at the first political movement around gender identity in the modern West. As German Studies …

Performance issues in the bedroom are not just an older man’s problem

By Harriet Williamson [A] study has revealed that 36% of young men between the ages of 16 and 24 have experienced sexual performance problems in the last year. The figures are higher for men between 25 and 34, with nearly 40% of those surveyed admitting to having issues in bedroom. Sexual dysfunction is often linked …

Keeping the spark alive in long-term relationships

by Whitney Harder [I]t’s a well-known fact that sexual desire ebbs and flows throughout the life of a long-term relationship for a number of reasons. Questions like “What factors increase and decrease desire?” and “How can couples work through those factors?” have long been topics of interest for researchers and clinicians, but dozens of studies …

A new study quantifies straight women’s “orgasm gap”—and explains how to overcome it

by Leah Fessler [E]ver faked an orgasm? Or just had orgasm-less sex? If you’re a woman—especially if you’re straight—your answer is probably “Ugh.” Followed by “Yes.” Not reaching orgasm during sex is, obviously, a real bummer. Not only does it make the sex itself unfulfilling, but can lead to envy, annoyance, and regret. Thoughts like …

7 condom myths everyone needs to stop believing, according to a doctor

By Sara Hendricks [W]hen it comes to condoms, chances are pretty good that you think you know everything there is know on the matter. Like, you’ve been learning about safe sex since eighth grade health class. You’re good. But where, exactly, does most of your current-day condom knowledge stem from? If it’s sourced from a …

More Men Than You Think Identify As ‘Mostly Straight’

By Ritch Savin-Williams [I]n 2013, Hunger Games actor Josh Hutcherson told an interviewer for Out magazine that he was, in his own words, “mostly straight.” “Maybe I could say right now I’m 100 percent straight. But who knows? In a fucking year, I could meet a guy and be like, ‘Whoa, I’m attracted to this …