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Headshot of Melissa Gira Grant
Melissa Gira Grant

Melissa Gira Grant is a staff writer at The New Republic, the author of Playing the Whore: The Work of Sex Work (published by Verso), and the co-director of They Won’t Call It Murder (executive produced by Field of Vision). She was a senior reporter at The Appeal, and a contributing writer at The Village Voice and Pacific Standard.


All Articles
July 6, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
The Straight Man in the Gay Wedding Website Case Is Not the Real Problem
The Christian group behind the Supreme Court wedding website case would rather stoke controversy about the fake inquiry than have us look at how its own story has changed.
June 30, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
The Supreme Court Doesn’t Care That the Gay Wedding Website Case Is Based on Fiction
It still feels unnerving to some, even those caught in the crossfire, to see injuries invented wholesale and lies accepted by the highest court in the land.
June 29, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
The Mysterious Case of the Fake Gay Marriage Website, the Real Straight Man, and the Supreme Court
In filings in the 303 Creative v. Elenis case is a supposed request for a gay wedding website—but the man named in the request says he never filed it.
June 28, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
The Christian Right Is Making Up Wedding Websites to Attack LGBTQ People
What’s curious about the 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis case is that no actual offense to religious freedoms occurred in the first place.
June 20, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
The Far Right and Catholics Team Up to Protest Baseball
Portraying the Dodgers game protest as one led by “religious groups” is technically correct, but it fails to communicate the threat of political violence some of the organizers openly embrace.
June 14, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Trump’s Fascist Troops Have Dispersed, Not Disappeared
The big crowd in Miami for Trump’s arraignment failed to materialize. But his foot soldiers are at work across the country.
June 12, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Why Conservatives Are Losing Their Minds Over Biden’s Pride Flag—and Ignoring Pro-DeSantis Neo-Nazis
Some on the political right see only authoritarian goals in the power of the state.
June 8, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
The Origins of the Right’s War on Target
Target has put up Pride displays since 2015. What’s so different about this year?
May 31, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
How to Stop Neo-Nazis From Crashing Pride Month
The far right is mobilizing against LGBTQ events. But activists are getting ready as well.
May 23, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Trans Prom Is the Reminder This Country Needs
Trans kids are kids—and they deserve to be able to dress up and dance.
May 19, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Christian Nationalism Has Prevailed in Texas. Trans Teens Will Suffer.
As Governor Greg Abbott prepares to sign a law banning gender-affirming care, teens face the possibility of being detransitioned against their will.
May 16, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
So Trump Is Dodging Questions About a Federal Abortion Ban. Hold Your Applause.
Some people think the GOP is retreating from abortion bans because they’re unpopular. If only.
May 9, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Republicans’ Anti-Trans Assault Has an Achilles Heel
By cruelly targeting minorities, the GOP could accidentally create a new constituency.
April 27, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Confused About Mifepristone’s Status? That’s Exactly What Republicans Want
While the Supreme Court temporarily preserved access to the abortion pill, these constant switches make it harder for those seeking abortion, as well as their providers.
April 20, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
What to Watch for in the Supreme Court’s Mifepristone Ruling
The justices could decide to revive a Victorian-era vice law that bans the mailing of abortion materials entirely.
April 12, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Conservatives Are Turning to a 150-Year-Old Obscenity Law to Outlaw Abortion
With the Comstock Act of 1873 coming back to life, reproductive care, LGBTQ protections, and a host of other civil rights are now at risk.
April 6, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Republicans Lose Another Anti-Trans Smear Campaign
The tactic failed again in this week’s Wisconsin Supreme Court election.
April 4, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
The Weird Religious Fervor of the Trump Faithful
The MAGA circus hits the courthouse in Manhattan.
March 16, 2023
MagazineMelissa Gira Grant
Conservatives Are Trying to Ban Books in Your Town. Librarians Are Fighting Back.
How a right-wing mania is destroying the social fabric of communities across America
March 2, 2023
Melissa Gira Grant
Ron DeSantis Is Chasing Conservative Clout at the Expense of His Real Constituents
The governor and 2024 aspirant is building his national brand by making life hell for regular Floridians.

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