Jo Yurcaba

@joyurcaba.bsky.social

16591 Followers 564 Following

NBC News reporter covering the LGBTQ+ community. DMs open; email Jo.Yurcaba@nbcuni.com; Signal @joyurcaba.91 Pronouns: they/them

Jo sitting in the bleachers at the Texas Tradition Rodeo in Denton in April. They are wearing sunglasses, a white cowboy hat, a black paisley western shirt, blue jeans and black lace up boots.
Jo on Spartan, a big brown horse (or what we call a bay, in the horse world) who belongs to Brian Helander, the president of the International Gay Rodeo Association who has also been a nurse for nearly 50 years and treated some of the country’s first patients with HIV.
A photo of Jo riding a gray horse named Silver. They are running toward a barrel in a rodeo arena in Denton, Texas. Inside the barrel is a small flag that they will pick up, hold while running around a pole at the end of the arena, and then drop into another bucket on the other side of the arena.
Jo is wearing a white protective helmet and white protective vest while standing in a metal rodeo chute with a black and white steer.
A screenshot of an X post from ICONS, an anti-trans sports group. The post includes photos of a recent NBC article about an incident in which a trans woman was removed from the restroom at a pinball tournament in NC. The ICONS post states the following about the story: 📣 MEN overwhelm WOMEN’s pinball championship: At a North Carolina state title tournament, several men entered the women’s national qualifier became outraged after a male player, Kat Lake (41), was removed from the women’s restroom by a female venue manager. 🧵
A screenshot of part of a statement from the Trans Journalists Association regarding reporting on Charlie Kirk shooting investigation: It should also be noted that “transgender ideology” is a term coined for and used in anti-trans political messaging to falsely equate identity with politics, which is a way to frame transgender identity as a political choice rather than an innate identity. As it is often unclear what actions or political positions the phrase actually refers to — not unlike how “the homosexual agenda” is an amorphous term that has no real definition — reporters should be careful about using this term; it is used exclusively to attack a minority group for political gain.
Screenshot of two paragraphs from the NBC article about hospitals ending trans care for minors: When her daughter first sought access to transition care, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration and state Republican legislators were trying to ban it, so in September 2021, the teen and her dad started driving 11 hours to Alabama every few months so she could access care at the University of Alabama’s gender clinic. Then, in August 2023, a court allowed a care ban to take effect in Alabama. Last July, they began flying to Washington, D.C., to receive care at Children’s National Hospital. Last month, the hospital announced in a message on its website that “in light of escalating legal and regulatory risks to Children’s National, our providers, and the families we serve, we will be discontinuing the prescription of gender-affirming medications” effective Aug. 30.
A screenshot of a statement from Navy Commander Emily Shilling in response to the Supreme Court allowing Trump's transgender military ban to take effect while a court case proceeds. It reads: Today’s decision by the Supreme Court to stay the injunction in Shilling v. United States is a heavy blow—not just to me, but to every transgender service member who has worn the uniform with honor and integrity. We asked for clarity. We asked for stability. Instead, we received uncertainty. The protections granted by the District Court, which affirmed our right to serve openly and authentically, are now paused while this case continues its journey through the courts. But let me be perfectly clear: this is not defeat. This is delay. Transgender service members have served this nation with courage, skill, and selflessness for years. We’ve flown combat missions, led sailors, commanded troops, and stood watch. We are not a theory. We are not a policy debate. We are real people, doing real jobs, in defense of a nation we still believe in, even when it struggles to believe in us. I know this decision will cause fear and doubt in the ranks. To those feeling shaken, I say this: stand tall. You are not alone. You are part of a community that will fight for you, stand beside you, and never stop pushing forward. This case isn’t over. The truth is still on our side. And history, like it always has, will find in favor of those who choose courage over cowardice, service over exclusion, and unity over fear. We carry on and fight forward.
A screenshot of the last paragraph of an NBC News article that features a quote from Rosie Sandri: “My message to Libs of TikTok is, ‘You picked the wrong one,’” Sandri said. “The whole community stands behind me, and they don’t care, and I am lucky enough to have that privilege that a lot of trans people don’t have. So my message to everyone is, ‘Don’t just make this about me. Go out there and help the trans people and the LGBTQIA community, because there are Black and brown trans people, there are trans youth, there are gay and lesbian people who are having their right to marriage threatened right now. Go out there and help these people.”
A screenshot of an interactive map in an NBC News news article about women's sports bars opening across the U.S.
Dark chocolate sourdough bread dough with dried cherries in a large metal bowl after its bulk fermentation.
Reyes: Would it be fair to say that excluding a group of people from military service based on unsupported assertions that they are liars, immodest, lack integrity, are undisciplined and are dishonorable, would you agree with me that — particularly where there's no support for any of those assertions — that that is animated by animus? I want to know whether this executive order signed by the President of the United States, who calls an entire category of people dishonest, dishonorable, undisciplined, immodest, lack integrity — people who have taken an oath to defend this country, people who have been under fire, people who have received medals for taking fire for this country — I want to know from the government, whether that language expresses animus.
Consistent with the military mission and longstanding DoD policy, expressing a false “gender identity” divergent from an individual’s sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service. Beyond the hormonal and surgical medical interventions involved, adoption of a gender identity inconsistent with an individual’s sex conflicts with a soldier’s commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle, even in one’s personal life. A man’s assertion that he is a woman, and his requirement that others honor this falsehood, is not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member. With the second sentence highlighted.
A screenshot of two paragraphs from an NBC News article about a New York doctor who said he'll continue providing transition care despite a recent executive order issued by President Trump that attempts to restrict such care for those under 19. The paragraphs say the following: Birnbaum said Trump’s executive order seeking to restrict care, along with another that describes the idea that someone can be trans as “gender ideology,” denies the realities of the people he treats every day. “If somebody says the sky is green, just because they say it, doesn’t make the sky green,” Birnbaum said. “I’m looking at the medical literature, research that’s been done. I’m looking at real people in front of me. I’m not looking at some right-wing, religious ideologue who is referring to this as ‘gender ideology.’ It’s no ideology. They have the ideology. I’m dealing with science and medicine.”
An email with the subject line "Jo's crimes against God..." from Mitch Etling to Jo Yurcaba. The portion of the email shown in the photo says: Jo, I saw your article: "One of Los Angeles' two lesbian bars announces it will close due to wildfires"... I thought that I should let you know the following: ---------- The world is ran by Satan and his angels... Satan has set up a world structure that essentially guarantees that every living person on Earth will willfully sin at least once and then be condemned to Hell. You must realize that because *you've* sinned even one time, that you've *already* been condemned to Hell - as soon as you die you have to go to Hell. ---------- For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23 ---------- For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
A screenshot of part of the State Department webpage titled "Selecting your Gender Marker." It said: You can select male (M), female (F), or unspecified or another gender identity (X) as the gender marker on your U.S. passport book and card. The gender marker you select does not need to match the gender on your citizenship evidence or photo ID. You do not need to provide medical documentation to change your gender marker. Applying for the first time: Follow the steps to apply in person. Renewing as an adult: You may be eligible to renew by mail. Applying for a child under 16: Follow the steps for a child under age 16. Your new photo must look like your current appearance and meet our photo requirements. Use our Form Filler to fill out your form online and print it. If you are having technical issues with the Form Filler, download a PDF version of your form.
A screenshot of two paragraphs of an NBC News article. They say: Reed said she fell in love with Zephyr in part because she is so easy to talk to. When the pair first started dating, they wrote out a list of questions divided into four categories: sweet, silly, spicy and serious. They would roll a four-sided dice commonly used in a tabletop role-playing game they both love, Dungeons and Dragons, to determine which category they’d select a question from. They played the game for months until they ran out of questions, they told NBC News last year. “I’m a bit of a night owl, and my favorite times of the day were that midnight period where I was just laying in bed talking to her until we fell asleep,” Reed said last year. “I fell in love with just talking to her.”