Chrissy Lee Polis, the trans woman beaten inside a Maryland McDonalds (YouTube)

DISPATCHES from last night's vigil for Chrissy Lee Polis, the trans woman beaten inside of a Rosedale, Md. McDonalds last week: ''It shows that the community does care, and people are willing to step up and stand up and make a difference. This is, I believe the beginning,'' Maryland trans activist Dana Beyer said. ''I think our legislators, they always ask, 'What's the need for this legislation? There's only a dozen of you. Why do we have to pass civil rights legislation?' And the response to that is if there is one person, you still need to pass legislation. . . . But this shows that we are a very large community. Family and friends are willing to stand up with us to protest violence, hate and injustice . . . I hope that Chrissy is going to know that she's got even more friends than she knows she has.''

PLUS: The Baltimore Sun interviews the woman who stepped in to break up the beating.

AFTER THE JUMP: Ohio's contribution to the abortion debates; President Obama nixes promising to the gay community; Rachel Maddow weighs in on outing anchors:

VANITY SIZING: A scourge on the women of the world.

BLIND ITEM! Rachel Maddow urges LGBT television anchors to come out of the closet, viewers run wild with speculation over the target of her comment. Anderson? Maddow clarifies: Cooper "literally was never discussed during the interview at all—even implicitly.” So, Shep, then?

PROMISES, PROMISES: White House Press Secretary Jay Carney says President Obama is unlikely to repeat his 2008 campaign strategy of issuing a list of promises to the gay community. The Washington Blade holds Obama to account: "In 2008, Obama published an open letter to the LGBT community for the month of Pride listing the objectives he would advocate for on behalf of the LGBT community upon election," writes Chris Johnson. "Some promises in the letter have come to fruition. For example, then-Democratic presidential nominee Obama said he would 'place the weight' of his administration behind passage of hate crimes protections legislation. Congress enacted such a statute in 2009 as part of the fiscal year 2010 defense authorization bill. Additionally, Obama has signed legislation allowing for 'Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell' repeal, although certification implementing open service has yet to take place. . . . But other promises in the 2008 letter remain unfulfilled. Obama pledged to work to pass an Employment Non-Discrimination Act to provide protections in the U.S. workforce on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, but Congress has yet to pass such a statute. The president also said he would seek complete repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, but the anti-gay law remains on the books."

DECONSTRUCTING Ross Douthat's Hell.

OHIO ON ABORTION: "Ohio just might be the most ordinary state in America," writes Ohio-raised Sady Doyle in In These Times. "It’s neither Republican nor Democrat, and neither especially poor nor especially affluent. It is, in all respects, average. But, in recent months, it’s been the battleground for a remarkably extreme and extraordinary fight. . . . Ohio’s 'Heartbeat Bill' is part of a barrage of anti-choice legislation designed to circumvent the fact that abortion is legal by making it nearly impossible to obtain one."