While You Were Out: LGBT Groups React To The Pope's Resignation

Groups look towards the Vatican's future, Rep. Brian Sims opens up about coming out, and Eliad Cohen covers Oh My God magazine in your morning links.

Gregorio Borgia / AP

1) LGBT groups react to resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.

"I’m optimistic, I think that the new Pope could only be a better one. The Vatican has understood that they have made a lot of mistakes, on human rights, on LGBT rights, on condoms, on new families and on modern needs of contemporary people," Giuseppina la Delfa, gay family group Famiglie Arcobaleno's president, tells GSN.

2) A bisexual teenager hangs himself after being bullied.

According to GSN, "the body of a teenager found hanged in woodland in Lancashire has been revealed as 16-year-old Anthony Stubbs, a young father who had reportedly been bullied for being bisexual."

1) Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Sims talks to ESPN about coming out.

"The truth is I was gay my whole life," Sims tells ESPN. "I had dated girls in high school. I think I knew I wasn't straight long before I knew I was gay. I knew by the time I got to college that I was gay. My team actually came to me to ask me whether I was gay. They wanted to talk about it. They asked me about the struggle and when I was going to tell people. I didn't go through the same struggles as people today. Today, you have 14-, 15-, 16-year-olds so confident and secure in their sexuality. I was not. I wasn't a gay 17-year-old ready to come out to the world. When I got to college, I realized I was gay. I just didn't know how to go about it. My college didn't have a LGBT group to give me the language to come out. It was my quarterback who asked me first."

2) Colorado moves closer to legalizing civil unions.

3) Meanwhile, in Iowa, GOP lawmakers aren't focused on same-sex marriage.

"Since Iowa's legislative session started a month ago, conservative lawmakers have filed bills on school funding, taxes and abortion, but so far they haven't taken up gay marriage legislation," the AP reports.

4) All Out launches a petition to encourage DC Comics to fire anti-gay writer Orson Scott Card.

1) Sean Karson, MIT's baseball captain comes out.

2) Marriage equality advocates are angry with Mark Zuckerberg for backing Chris Christie.

3) Oh and in case you missed it, the Department of Defense finally extends benefits to same-sex couples.

1) Eliad Cohen covers Oh My God magazine.

Mika, "Grace Kelly"