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Cameroon: Lesbian love affair ends in death, but who was the killer?

The drama unfolded on July 30 in the city of Bertoua in eastern Cameroon when two young lesbians met in private at a family home. The women, identified here by the pseudonyms Jopa and Hifa, had been together romantically for quite a while without any disruptions. They met on July 30 in Hifa’s room where […]

How Latino dads are using TikTok to connect with their children

Wearing a sultry look on his face and a long, curly gray wig, Genaro Rangel pulled his fake hair out of a ponytail and whipped it dramatically over his shoulders. “¡Qué pasó!” exclaimed Rangel, a burly, mustachioed handyman, as he yanked off the wig in his Santa Ana dining room. “It’s me!” His daughter, Wendy, […]

El Salvador police sentenced in nation’s first trans murder convictions

A court in El Salvador has sentenced three police officers to 20-year prison sentences for the murder of a transgender woman, the nation’s first convictions in a homicide case involving a trans victim. The verdict was a welcome development in the conservative Central American country, where gay and trans people face rampant discrimination and abuse, […]

‘Don’t come back, they’ll kill you for being gay’

For years Mohamed’s family tried to make him more like other boys – tougher, more “masculine”. They even sent him to have a female spirit driven out with hallucinogenic drugs. Eventually, writes Layla Mahmood, they decided to kill him. The heat enveloped 20-year-old Mohamed, as he zig-zagged through the alleyways of Hargeisa. It was around […]

Sri Lankan poll candidate under fire for homophobic remarks

Rights activists have condemned a former Catholic parliamentarian and candidate for Sri Lanka’s Aug. 5 parliamentary election for his comments on the LGBT community. In an online interview on July 27, Kavinda Jayawardana said he is a Catholic and the Church strongly condemns homosexuality. He said homosexuality is a mental disorder and he does not […]

‘I wish they killed you’: trauma of Syrian LGBT+ rape survivors

Stigmatised gay, bisexual and transgender Syrian refugees who survived sexual violence in war are struggling to get medical or mental health care, human rights groups said on Wednesday. More than 40 LGBT+ survivors in Lebanon told Human Rights Watch that they were raped, sexually harassed and had their genitals burned by government forces and armed […]

Thai students rally over gender rights, uniforms and haircut rules

Dozens of students rallied in Thailand on Wednesday to demand from the government greater gender rights and an end to what they called outdated curriculum and discriminatory rules on uniforms and haircuts. Onlookers in Bangkok cheered and applauded as students of mixed ages carrying placards and banners and rainbow flags, fans and umbrellas marched to […]

Ugandan LGBT advocate wins HIV/AIDS global award

Susan Atuhura was honored for her study of the successes of community-based adherence clubs in reducing HIV levels and increasing the levels of self-care among for men who have sex with men (MSMs). Atahura is the monitoring and evaluation officer for the long-established Ugandan anti-AIDS and LGBTI rights group Spectrum Uganda Initiatives. Her honor — […]

Police launch investigation after homophobic comic books pushed through letterboxes

Officials are investigating after extreme anti-LGBT+ cartoons listing homosexuality alongside incest, bestiality and child sacrifice were pushed through letterboxes in the suburb of Redland and possibly other parts of the city on Saturday (July 18). “We have received a report about offensive material being distributed in the Redland area in recent days, an Avon and […]

Nigeria’s queer history told by those who lived through it

When Goodluck Jonathan, the former president of Nigeria, passed a bill into law that criminalised any active part of gayness in January 2014, he was lauded by many in the country for being a custodian of Nigerian culture. By others, namely international human rights activists, he was criticised, his actions were seen as a destructive […]

LGBT youths’ suicidal thoughts decline with community supports: study

Supportive communities and a progressive political climate can help combat LGBT teen suicides, especially among girls, new UBC school of nursing research shows. “Consistent evidence has indicated higher rates of suicidal behaviour among sexual minority youth than their heterosexual counterparts,” the report said. Data came from the 2013 British Columbia Adolescent Health Survey. The study […]

Moroccan women break through in rap scene dominated by men

In a rap scene dominated my men, women’s voices are starting to make waves in Morocco. Houda Abouz, a 24-year-old who majors in film studies at a university in the northern city of Tetouan, has long been fascinated by hip-hop, and, encouraged by friends, she picked up a mic and began to perform. In January […]

Italy opens historic debate on long-awaited bill to outlaw LGBT+ hate crime

Italy has been divided by debate over the country’s first law that would punish discrimination and hate crimes against LGBT+ people. The proposed legislation would bring Italy in line with its western European counterparts by explicitly recognising discrimination against LGBT+ people as well as women. As lawmakers begin debating the draft in parliament on Monday […]

Saudi Arabia: Yemeni Blogger Convicted for Supporting LGBT Rights

A Saudi court sentenced a Yemeni blogger to jail and then deportation to Yemen for a social media post supporting equal rights for all in Saudi Arabia, Human Rights Watch said today. After a trial in which he was provided no counsel, Mohamad al-Bokari, a Yemeni living in Riyadh, was sentenced on July 20, 2020 […]

On Screen, Normalizing Queer Love in the Philippines

Known primarily for his poetry and acting, Juan Miguel Severo announced his latest show this month, produced by Globe Studios, about same-sex love between two adolescent boys. “Gaya sa Pelikula” or “Just Like the Movies” is set to air in the last quarter of 2020. The plot revolves around a university romance and borrows motifs […]

Rideshare Profiles With LGBTQ Symbols Canceled More Often by Drivers

Racial and anti-LGBTQ+ bias persists in ridesharing services even though companies have taken steps to reduce it, according to a new study from Indiana University Bloomington’s Kelley School of Business — and the authors believe they’re the first to show that an indication of support for LGBTQ+ equality can trigger this bias. “Platforms such as […]

Haitian Christians protest new law providing protections for LGBT community

Several thousand members of Protestant churches demonstrated Sunday in Port-au-Prince against the country’s new criminal code, which they consider “immoral” because it penalizes discrimination based on sexual orientation. “If a pastor doesn’t want to marry two men together or two women, he will be arrested and at risk for one to three years in prison,“ […]

Poland to withdraw from European treaty aimed at preventing violence towards women

Poland’s right-wing government says it will withdraw from a European treaty aimed at preventing violence against women. The Istanbul Convention is the world’s first binding instrument to prevent violence against women but the Polish Justice Minister, Zbigniew Ziobro, described the text as “harmful” because it requires that schools teach children about gender from a sociological […]

Malaysia: Ignore criticisms by LGBT activists, says PAS MP

A PAS MP today said most of the criticisms levelled against the government’s policies on the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community were “biased” and urged the government not to entertain them. Describing the actions by LGBT activists against the government as “prejudiced”, Nik Mohamad Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz (PAS-Bachok) said these individuals were […]

‘We’re living in fear’: LGBT people in Italy pin hopes on new law

For 15 years, Marco and his boyfriend had lived together fairly peacefully in a town outside Rome. Then, in early June, a neighbour started harassing them. “It began quite lightly, with him being provocative whenever we met in the street,” the 38-year-old said. “Then he came to our home and forced his way in, calling […]

Thai LGBT activists raise pride flag in anti-government rally

Hundreds of Thai LGBT activists and allies raised rainbow flags on Saturday evening as they called for democracy and equal rights, the latest in a series of youth protests calling for the government to step down. Several youth-led demonstrations have sprung up across the country since last week, when thousands of Thai activists defied a […]

Mexico City just outlawed traumatising conversion therapy

Mexico City has become the first jurisdiction in Mexico to outlaw the damaging practice of conversion therapy, in a historic victory for the country’s LGBT+ community. According to The New York Times, the bill to criminalise conversion therapy, defined by Mexico City regional congress as any practices or treatments which aim to “nullify, hinder, modify […]

Germany reveals details of compensation plan for gay soldiers

German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer is working on a bill that would compensate soldiers in Germany’s Bundeswehr military who have been discriminated against because of their homosexuality, RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND) reported Saturday. Citing a draft of the bill from Kramp-Karrenbauer’s office, RND said the compensation would not take the form of social benefits. The new […]

Israeli diplomats buy 600 pounds of tahini to help Arab firm hit by LGBT boycott

The Arab-Israeli owner of a popular tahini brand facing a boycott for donating to an Israeli LGBTQ rights group has some friends in the Israeli diplomatic community. Dozens of Israeli diplomats in Israel and around the world have purchased more than 600 pounds of the tasty sesame paste to support Julia Zaher, who owns Al […]