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A breakaway Episcopal congregation in Elm Grove desecrated the altar of a church it had occupied for years to protest the denomination’s ordination of openly gay clergy.

Although a number of Episcopal congregations have seceded over the issue, St. Edmund’s Episcopal Church is the only one in Wisconsin to do so. In 2008, the congregation voted to join the anti-gay Anglican realignment movement, which has attracted U.S. parishes and dioceses mostly in the South.

The United Nations Human Rights Council endorsed the rights of LGBT people for the first time ever June 17, passing a resolution hailed as historic by the U.S. and other backers and decried by Russia and some African and Muslim countries.

The declaration was cautiously worded, expressing “grave concern” about abuses because of sexual orientation and commissioning a global report on discrimination against gays.

A special election in Iowa on Nov. 8 provided a big victory for marriage equality in the state by allowing Democrats to maintain their narrow 26-24 majority in the Senate.

Democrat Liz Mathis won a Senate seat in a Republican-leaning district by a margin of 55 to 43, defeating right-wing Republican Cindy Golding, who received strong backing from the anti-gay National Organization for Marriage.

An LGBT youth hotline’s new public service announcement featuring Daniel Radcliffe premieres tonight on Fox during the network’s hit series “Glee.”

The 30-second spot encourages LGBT youth to call the Trevor Lifeline if they need support or are considering suicide.

Whether it’s the state’s shaky finances, its recent tax hike or strict gun laws, downstate Illinois knows it can always vent its frustration by blaming Chicago.

The metropolis to the north may be Illinois’ cash cow, but it dominates the political scene and has for most of the state’s 193 years, producing the current leaders of both legislative houses and the governor, who doesn’t venture into the hinterlands much but does so more often than his prison-bound predecessor, Rod Blagojevich – also a Chicago guy.

A two-month bus tour – the 2012 Equality Ride – will begin this week in Philadelphia with a send-off ceremony for the young LGBT activists planning a cross-country journey.

Sponsored by the Soulforce civil disobedience group, the Equality Ride will take activists to fundamentalist colleges and universities with a reputation for anti-LGBT programs and policies.