An Ohio judge has apologized after a homophobic column that he wrote while in college came to light.
Maumee Municipal Court Judge Dan Hazard penned the column as a sophomore for the April 30, 1993 edition of The Lantern, the Ohio State University’s student-run newspaper.
Hazard was responding to the March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay, and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation, where millions of LGBTQ individuals marched to call for the repeal of anti-sodomy laws, the passage of LGBTQ nondiscrimination laws, and increases in federal funding for HIV/AIDS education, research, and prevention.
He started the letter to the editor by writing: “I would like to give my thanks to the homosexual community for opening my eyes. I now see what this campus could be like with the removal of gays from our society.”
Hazard raised a number of “concerns” that, in today’s context, read as scare-mongering: fear of sexual harassment at the hands of gay students, second-guessing the sexual orientation of other students, and fears over transmission of AIDS, reports Toledo-area CBS affiliate WTOL.
The judge then pivoted to argue that the “homosexual lifestyle” is not safe, pointing to statistics from the anti-LGBTQ Family Research Council.
FRC has been vocal about the fact that it does not consider homosexuality an “acceptable alternative lifestyle.”
“I see these stats as good news, but I beg the homosexual community one thing: Please keep your AIDS to yourselves. You have killed many innocent children, a few innocent adults (blood transfusions) and a number of not-so-innocent and irresponsible heterosexuals,” wrote Hazard. “Aren’t these deaths enough to draw attention to yourselves? Do you need to hold the country prisoner any longer with your lies and deceit?”
When confronted by reporters about these comments, Hazard, a former Maumee City Council member prior to his elevation to the bench in 2018, responded with a statement, writing: “The letter posted here was reprehensible and deplorable. I wrote this and another of the same tone as a teenage college student 27 years ago and by no means hold those beliefs today.
“I have zero excuse and could not attempt to justify it then or now,” he added. “It was hurtful to anyone that saw it in 1993 or today. I am sorry that it will hurt even more people today including my gay and transgendered family and friends whom I love dearly.”
Hazard told WTOL that one of the first marriages he officiated as a judge was for a same-sex couple, and said that he treats every litigant and attorney with the same respect, regardless of their background.
“I am glad that this allows me to clarify my views that have drastically changed over time,” Hazard concluded. “Respect is owed not only in the courtroom, but in all of society.”
Rob Salem, a law professor and member of the Toledo LGBTQ Bar Council, credited Hazard for apologizing, but said that some LGBTQ people may be skeptical that they’ll receive a fair hearing if they appear before Hazard in court.
“I think he did the right thing,” Salem said. “[But] I think it does cause concern or should still cause some concern for LGBT people who appear in his courtroom.”
A man who tore down a Pride flag hanging outside a candy shop in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, was reported to police by two 10-year-olds who witnessed the vandalism.
Surveillance video shows the suspect approaching Evolution Candy on East State Street -- either with a limp or dragging one leg -- before interacting with the Pride flag. He appears to say something unintelligible during the incident, according to footage aired by WPVI-TV.
James Lamb, the owner of Evolution Candy, said the incident occurred shortly after he stepped away from the store on December 6.
The year's nearly out. Sometimes that calls for taking sweet stock of the past months' wonderful events. Coming to the end of 2025, on the other hand, is more like getting to that denouement in the action movie where the survivors take a breath and pat each other on the back for having made it out alive. At this stage, we are Newt getting tucked-in to her Sulaco hibernation tube.
With some effort and a pinch of luck, may we all fare better in 2026 than poor Newt's end at the start of Alien 3.
Why such a shitty year? So much of it, obviously, can be laid at the feet of Lame Duck Donald. Not that he hasn't had loads of assistance in his evil efforts to erase our transgender family and friends, colleagues, and leaders during 2025. The purge, as promised, began right out of the gate on Inauguration Day.
The U.S. House of Representatives voted largely along party lines to advance a bill that would imprison doctors for providing gender-affirming care to transgender minors and punish parents who consent to their child’s treatment.
The bill, introduced by U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), would impose prison sentences of up to 10 years on medical providers who recommend or prescribe puberty blockers, hormone therapy, or surgery to transgender patients under 18. It would also criminalize parents who consent to their child’s treatment or transport them across state lines to obtain such care.
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