Are the Olympics ‘dangerous’ for LGBTQ people? One group says they are
Are the Olympic Games a net-positive or net-negative for the LGBTQ community? On the one hand, no sports event regularly features more out LGBTQ athletes, elevating their profiles and building exposure and acceptance of the community. In 2016 there were at least 56 out athletes in Rio, and the next Summer Olympics will have more […]
Conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices lean toward Catholic agency in LGBT dispute
Conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices on Wednesday appeared sympathetic to religious rights claims against Philadelphia brought by a Catholic Church-affiliated agency after the city refused to use the group in its foster care program because it would not accept same-sex couples as prospective foster parents. The almost two-hour argument via teleconference was the first major […]
Activists hail bill to make violence against LGBT people a hate crime in Italy
Activists in Italy have hailed a vote in the lower house of parliament to pass a bill that would make violence against LGBT people and disabled people, as well as misogyny, a hate crime. The bill, which passed successfully despite months of protests from far-right and Catholic groups, now needs approval from the upper house, […]
Isko Moreno signs Manila anti-discrimination ordinance
Gender discrimination is now banned in the national capital. On Thursday, October 29, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno signed Ordinance No. 8695 or the Manila LGBTQI Protection Ordinance of 2020. The ordinance bans discrimination on the basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE). It defined discrimination as: “Any distinction, exclusion, restriction, or other differential […]
Supreme Court takes up religious freedom, anti-gay discrimination laws in Philadelphia foster care case
A legal battle over the reach of religious freedom returns to the Supreme Court on Wednesday, requiring the justices to consider whether the Constitution allows a religious freedom exception to anti-discrimination laws. The dispute, between the city of Philadelphia and a Catholic charity that refuses to place children in foster care with same sex-couples, is […]
Conservative Mexican state of Puebla legalizes same-sex marriage
The Congress of the Mexican state of Puebla voted to legalize same-sex marriages by an overwhelming majority on Tuesday, marking a step forward for LGBT rights in the predominantly Roman Catholic Latin American country. Long one of the more conservative regions in Mexico, Puebla joins the majority of Mexico’s 32 states in recognizing same-sex marriages […]
Hungary’s former HoD thinks costs and attitudes toward LGBT people led to withdrawal
He’s the former Head of Delegation who took the singer-songwriter Joci Pápai and metalcore band AWS to Eurovision. Now, after leaving the Hungarian broadcaster following ESC 2019, Lőrinc Bubnó has given an in-depth interview about the challenges he faced and given his assessment of Hungary’s withdrawal from the contest. Bubnó made his remarks when speaking […]
Pope’s Support for Same-Sex Civil Unions Jolts Efforts for Change in Philippines
A bill aiming to give same-sex couples in the Philippines spousal and property rights has languished in the House of Representatives for three years due to strong opposition from the country’s influential Catholic Church. But after Pope Francis’ stunning endorsement of same-sex civil unions last month, the lawmaker who first submitted the legislation is optimistic […]
Egypt detains two men on ‘suspicion’ over their sexual orientation: HRW
Egyptian authorities have unlawfully detained two men, citing “suspicion” over their sexual orientation and under the pretext of investigation into a high-profile gang-rape case, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Monday. The rights group called for the immediate release of 21-year-old Seif Bedour and 40-year-old Ahmed al-Ganzoury, who were arrested separately in August and are […]
New Zealand’s Ardern taps LGBT, Maori MPs for trailblazing cabinet
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern unveiled what she called an “incredibly diverse” cabinet Monday that includes New Zealand’s first openly gay deputy prime minister and a foreign minister with a Maori facial tattoo. The centre-left leader revamped her ministerial line-up in the wake of a landslide election victory, saying her second-term priorities were responding to Covid-19 […]
Nigeria’s first LGBTQ online streaming platform launches
With the country’s anti-gay laws in place, pro-LGBT media contents especially films, are often censored and banned, making it difficult for members of the community to see their realities mirrored on screen. So, to bridge this gap, Equality Hub has just launched EhTv Network, an online streaming platform for premium on-demand Nigerian LGBTQ-themed content. Similar […]
New Zealand’s new deputy leader first gay man to hold role
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand’s new Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson will be the country’s first openly gay man to hold the role and is among a team of top lawmakers announced Monday that is remarkable for its diversity. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced her new Cabinet lineup after her liberal Labour Party […]
16 LGBTQ+ Candidates to Watch on Election Night
All eyes are on whether voters will oust Donald Trump this week and whether Democrats can claw back their majority in the Senate. There are also thousands of other races happening this cycle, with over 550 LGBTQ+ candidates vying for election. The Victory Fund, an organization that works to elect out candidates, is endorsing 311 […]
Venezuela inches closer to marriage equality after Pope’s remarks about civil unions
The pontiff expressed his support in an interview shown in an Italian documentary, saying, “What we have to create is a civil union law. That way they are legally covered.” The Vatican has since attempted to walk back Francis’s remarks. But before they could, Maduro met with leaders of the ruling Socialist Party before upcoming […]
China’s stance on homosexuality has changed. Its textbooks haven’t.
Early in college, Ou Jiayong had already learned two things. One, textbooks can be wrong. And two, it can be hard to change them — especially on topics as sensitive in China as homosexuality. In 2016, during her first year at South China Agricultural University in her hometown, Guangzhou, she stumbled across a psychology textbook […]
Trans News, an online magazine for transgenders, launched
The first edition of Trans News, an online magazine for transgender people, was launched at the Transgender Resource Centre here on Sunday. C. Shanmuga Sundaram, senior manager of Hi-Tech Arai; R.K. Vikrama Karna Pazhuvettarayar, writer and historian; Deepa Nagarani, writer; and C. Kavitha, Assistant Professor with Sri Meenakshi Government Arts College for Women, were the […]
‘Corona-freed’ Taiwan celebrates gay pride
Rainbow-masked revelers paraded through Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, Saturday, celebrating equality gains since it allowed same-sex marriages last year, despite objections from religious conservatives. President Tsai Ing-wen, re-elected to a second term last January, urged the country via social media Saturday to embrace “love, tolerance and a better Taiwan.” The mingling went ahead after 200 days […]
True colours: the dating app giving gay men in China a new sense of freedom
Like many gay Chinese growing up at the turn of the millennium, Duan Shuai began his long, deliberate process of coming out online. After school, he would visit the newly opened internet cafe in his hometown, Xinzhou, a small city in Shanxi Province bounded by a veil of mountains. He would pick a desktop facing […]
De Blasio Team Open but Noncommital to Intersex Outreach Bill
Intersex advocates who joined a City Council hearing on October 28 made impassioned pleas in favor of a bill to establish an educational and outreach campaign directed at doctors and parents of intersex children in the face of widespread medical mistreatment. But even as the de Blasio administration’s health department voiced positive words about the […]
UK government finally admits it trained and equipped Nigeria’s homophobic SARS unit
The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) has a long record of horrifying abuses, including the routine intimidation, harassment and attacks of peaceful protesters. It has also been accused by Amnesty International of torture, extrajudicial executions and many other human rights violations. After previously denying any ties to the brutal unit, the UK minister for Africa James […]
Estonia’s Parliament Likely to Debate Same Sex Marriage by Public Demand
The Estonian Green Party is celebrating after its petition calling for same-sex marriage broke all records.The party posted the petition on the official parliamentary site. Petitions on the site which gather over 1,000 signatures are debated in the Riigikogu, Estonia’s parliament. In this case, the petition has now secured over 30,000 signatures – making it […]
Poland’s ‘LGBT-free zones’ energize some activists, prompt others to leave
When he took up a yearlong writing residency in Berlin earlier this year, novelist Jacek Dehnel judged the chances he’d return to Poland afterward as 50-50. His home country already did not feel like a place where one could live comfortably as a gay man. More than 100 towns and cities had passed resolutions declaring […]
National prayer breakfast canceled following spat over LGBT remark
The annual National Prayer Breakfast in Taiwan will be canceled this year, the first time in 20 years, following controversy over a recent social media post by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) supporting the LGBT community. In a statement issued Thursday evening, the event’s preparatory committee said in order to prevent further disputes and misunderstandings between […]
A mother told Biden about her transgender child. Then came the attacks.
In Joe Biden’s town hall earlier this month, one of the questions came from a woman named Mieke Haeck, a 42-year-old physical therapist from State College, Pa. “I’m the proud mom of two girls, 8 and 10,” Haeck said at the televised event in Philadelphia, while her husband and children watched from their living room. […]
Queer Japan Shows the Asian Nation’s ‘LGBT Boom’ in New Trailer
A new documentary, directed by Graham Kolbeins, explores the LGBTQ+ culture in Tokyo and other regions through the eyes of its leading out figures. Kolbeins, along with producers Hiromi Iida and Anne Ishii, created Queer Japan over a five-year journey with over 100 interviews. The documentary features drag queen Vivienne Sato, erotic manga artist Gengoroh […]
CHRISTIAN GROUP SUING UK VENUES FOR AXING ANTI-LGBTQ PREACHER FRANKLIN GRAHAM’S EVENTS
An evangelical Christian group is reportedly suing a string of UK entertainment venues and city councils after they axed public appearances by anti-LGBTQ preacher Franklin Graham. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) is taking legal action against venues in Manchester, Sheffield, Birmingham and Wales, openDemocracy reports. BGEA had planned eight events in the UK between […]
Advocates fear Barrett will strip away gay rights. It could begin next week.
Amy Coney Barrett has been fueling the fears of LGBTQ advocacy groups since President Donald Trump first nominated her to the federal bench in 2017. Now, with Barrett officially confirmed as an associate justice of the Supreme Court, advocates worry that she and the court’s five other conservatives could start stripping away gay rights imminently. […]
Greens’ same-sex marriage petition most signed in portal’s history
The Estonian Greens’ petition in support of same-sex marriage hosted on the Citizen Initiative Portal rahvaalgatus.ee is the most-signed in the website’s history. As of noon on Tuesday, the petition has gathered more than 30,000 signatures. The petition launched by the non-parliamentary Estonian Greens party is calling for the Family Act to be amended to […]
In conservative Mexico, ‘Muxes’ soccer team tackles outdated LGBT stereotypes
A soccer team in Mexico’s capital is shooting for greater inclusion for the LGBT community by relying on the widespread love of Latin America’s most popular sport. Mexico City’s “Muxes”, named after the indigenous transgender women who have been part of southern Mexican communities for centuries, offer a unique space for LGBT people in a […]
Trump-linked groups spending millions campaigning against LGBT and women’s rights in Europe
Right-wing US groups, some with links to Donald Trump, are spending millions of pounds campaigning against LGBT and women’s rights in Europe, it has been revealed An investigation by the website OpenDemocracy probed 28 different groups linked to the American right and found they had pushed campaigns including “LGBT-free zones” and restrictions on abortion. The […]