Iowa

*A democratic candidate for governor in Iowa warned activists that Republicans will try to repeal marriage equality if they win in November.

State Senator Jack Hatch said:
“It is very clear [getting rid of same-sex marriage] will be [Republicans’] No. 1 priority and Iowans should be very skeptical of that…People who believe in marriage equality should realize the rights we have in Iowa are only as good as the quality of our politicians and the words of our Constitution. If they want to change the words of our Constitution, we should be very scared of the agenda of the Republican leadership.”

*Iowa State University’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Student Services held an event last week on sexual fluidity. Sexual fluidity is defined as “not just having homosexual and heterosexual [identities] but also having other identities in the middle like pansexuality, bisexuality, and queer,” Elza McGaffin of LGBTSS told the Iowa State Daily.

South Dakota
*A Yankton, South Dakota, teenager, Tyler Brandt, filed a discrimination suit against a local Taco John’s after a manager forced him to wear a name tag that read “gaytard.”

In a letter posted to the American Civil Liberties Union website
“It was wrong for the manager to humiliate me like that, and it was wrong for Taco John’s International to refuse to do anything about what happened at a restaurant with their name. I want other LGBT people to know that this type of harassment is illegal, even in places like South Dakota. And I hope we can make sure nobody who works at any Taco John’s ever has to go through that kind of humiliation at work again.”

Wisconsin

*Wisconsin is about to get its first ever LGBT wedding expo. The Wisconsin LGBT Chamber of Commerce is planning to hold the event in November.
“Marriage equality is going to happen in Wisconsin sooner or later and why not start to plan for it now with businesses that share their values,” Jason Rae, executive director of the chamber told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

North Dakota

A high school in Devil’s Lake is holding an event about LGBT students in order to raise awareness about bullying and harassment after a survey found that 81 percent of students said the environment is negative and uncomfortable for LGBT students.
Jace Riggin hopes his former high school superintendent can re-evaluate his position on the harassment of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered students at the school.
“The current environment for these students is extremely negative,” Jace Riggin, a former student who is helping organize the event told the Jamestown Sun. “Considering that LGBT-identified students are already at a significantly higher risk of self-harm and attempted suicide, I hope that the district will act before irreversible damage to a young life can occur.”
North Dakota Rep. Josh Boschee, D-Fargo, the first openly gay person elected to North Dakota’s Legislature, will moderate.