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On September 9 of this year, during a public gathering for the 150-year anniversary of Treaty 6 — an agreement signed between several First Nations and the British Crown in 1876 that legally recognized the sovereignty of Indigenous communities — leaders of the Saddle Lake Cree Nation said that they will not allow the Canadian government to make decisions involving the welfare of their trans and gender-nonconforming youth. Specifically, the Saddle Lake Cree are invoking the “medicine chest clause” in the very same treaty establishing the nation’s right to comprehensive healthcare, which its leaders say includes gender-affirming care.

“No longer will our children and families have their rights taken away,” Saddle Lake chief Dale Steinhauer said during the gathering, per CBC News. “When one group's rights are removed, we are all affected.”

Instead, Steinhauer announced that the Saddle Lake Cree Nation, located 100 miles northeast of the province’s capital Edmonton, will recruit doctors to provide gender-affirming care services on its land reserve, so that youth within its borders and in surrounding provinces can legally and safely access the care they need.

The "Love Thy Neighbor" food drive is intended to draw a contrast with the GOP gathering and highlight rising grocery prices, a key focus of Talarico's campaign against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton.

"Next week, billionaire donors and their puppet politicians will gather at a convention in Dallas to toast their own corruption," Talarcio said on social media. "In the shadow of this Billionaire Ball, we'll be collecting food to help Texans struggling with rising grocery prices."

Gov. Kathy Hochul has proclaimed June 2026 as LGBTQ+ Pride Month in New York and directed state buildings and landmarks to raise Pride flags and illuminate in Pride colors throughout the month.

Pride Month proclamation

Hochul announced the designation Monday, June 1, recognizing New York's role as the birthplace of the LGBTQ+ rights movement and reaffirming the state's commitment to protecting LGBTQ+ rights.