Trump’s New Asylum Regulations Could Have Devastating Effects For LGBTQ People
In June, the Trump administration released a 161-page draft rule that many say would essentially shut down the United States asylum system. The regulations would impose harsh restrictions on who can qualify for asylum and could have severe effects on LGBTQ asylum seekers. Katie Sgarro and Hans How of AsylumConnect—which helps LGBTQ asylum seekers access […]
Netherlands plans to remove gender from ID cards entirely
The Netherlands will stop including any gender marker at all on identification cards. Several countries – including India, Australia, and Canada, as well as the Netherlands – already allow people to choose an “X” gender marker in the place of “M” or “F” if the latter two don’t fit them. But with this move the […]
Poland’s Duda narrowly beats Trzaskowski in presidential vote
Poland’s incumbent President Andrzej Duda has narrowly beaten challenger Rafal Trzaskowski in Sunday’s presidential vote. The National Electoral Commission said Mr Duda had won 51.2% of the votes. It is Poland’s slimmest presidential election victory since the end of communism in 1989. One of the major issues of the election was the future of the […]
Here’s Who Drives the Anti-LGBTQ Agenda in Poland Elections
The final round of Poland’s presidential election held Sunday was dominated by incumbent President Andrzej Duda’s efforts to mobilize voters against the country’s LGBTQ people. It was a very ugly campaign, with the groundwork carefully laid. Hubert Sobecki, who has been an activist for LGBTQ rights in Poland for more than a decade, says, “I […]
Turkish university student threatened with murder for LGBTQ+ rights lecture
A political sciences student at Ankara University in Turkey, Nazli Ikra Öztay, has been threatened with murder for organising an event about LGBTQ+ rights. Nazli organised an ‘LGBTI+ rights struggle on campus’ lecture, and announced the details on WhatsApp. However, Birgün reports that Nazli then faced death threats for the event. “I was confronted with […]
Facebook & Instagram Ban All Content Promoting So-Called “Ex-Gay” Conversion Therapy
On Friday, Facebook and Instagram announced a ban on all videos, images, and written content promoting so-called “ex-gay” conversion therapy or reparative therapy, a widely disavowed and debunked form of psychological torture that purports to change someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity. The social media giant which owns both platforms said that the ban was […]
Duda vs Trzaskowski: The fight for Poland’s future
Poland’s presidential election on Sunday will be crucial in shaping the country’s future and its strained relations with the EU for at least the next three years and perhaps beyond. If the incumbent President Andrzej Duda is re-elected for another five-year term, his allies, the nationalist Law and Justice-led government will continue their socially conservative […]
Supreme Court’s religious employer ruling could weaken LGBTQ protections
The Supreme Court’s ruling Wednesday in Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, which strengthened the legal protections that shield religious institutions from job discrimination lawsuits, could weaken LGBTQ worker protections, according to some legal experts and advocates. The case involved Roman Catholic schools in California that were sued after deciding not to renew contracts […]
UN Rights Expert Describes ‘Dire’ Situation In Belarus Ahead Of Presidential Vote
The UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Belarus says the country’s “already dire” human rights situation has deteriorated further over the last year, amid a widening crackdown on civil society ahead of a presidential election. “The systemic and systematic human rights violations remain, both in law and in practice,” Anais Marin said […]
US Scrabble bans racist and LGBTQ slurs from tournaments
North American Scrabble competitors will no longer be able to play racist and homophobic slurs from the “N-word” to “bumboy” and “poofs”, the head of the players’ association has said, in an 11th-hour ruling that went against his own advisory board. John Chew, chief executive of the North American Scrabble Players Association (NASPA), said he […]
Northern Ireland to get religious same-sex marriage
Same-sex religious marriages will be allowed in Northern Ireland, the British government said on Thursday, bowing to pressure from LGBT+ campaigners after the first secular lesbian wedding in February. Gay and lesbian couples in Northern Ireland will be able to have religious weddings from September, a British government spokeswoman said in an emailed statement, while […]
Kosovo LGBTI groups criticise civil partnership plans
Groups supporting LGBTI rights have labeled a special law allowing for the registration of same-sex civil partnerships in Kosovo that is set to be put before the Assembly as “discriminatory.” A letter signed by 49 civil society organizations, CSOs, states that such a law would deny members of the LGBTI community the same rights to […]
Baja California legislators push to codify same-sex marriage protections in law
Baja California state legislators on Tuesday approved a draft initiative that seeks to eliminate the costly and lengthy legal obstacles that gay and lesbian couples face when seeking a marriage license in the northern border state. The governance commission of the state Congress approved the draft measure with five votes in favor, zero opposed and […]
Norway will prioritise lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender refugees
Norway is to prioritise refugees who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, the government has confirmed. LGBT+ refugees will, for the first time, be given priority both as a group and individuals when Norway selects for transfers. Under previous guidelines, vulnerable women and children were given priority. The new rules will only apply for the […]
Gay rights: the taboo subject in Singapore’s election
Among a record eleven parties set to contest Singapore’s election on Friday, there has been virtual silence on one of the conservative city-state’s most controversial issues, gay rights. Advocacy groups have stepped up awareness campaigns with scorecards for politicians and online rallies in recent weeks over what they see as everyday discrimination that stems from […]
The Dutch are putting LGBT+ rights in Article 1 of their constitution
The Netherlands is planning a way to guarantee LGBT+ rights for generations to come by including them in Article 1 of its constitution. The 150-member House of Representatives, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, voted 124 in favor and 26 against the proposal. Dutch LGBT+ organization Cultuur en Ontspanningscentrum (COC) has campaigned for the […]
Brazil: Bolsonaro reportedly uses homophobic slur to mock masks
One day after announcing he had tested positive for coronavirus Jair Bolsonaro has come under fire for allegedly using homophobic language to mock the use of face masks. The Folha de São Paulo, a leading broadsheet, claimed Brazil’s far-right leader had baited presidential staff who were using protective masks, claiming such equipment was “coisa de […]
Thai cabinet backs bill allowing same-sex unions
Thailand’s cabinet approved a civil partnership bill on Wednesday that would recognise same-sex unions with almost the same legal rights as married couples, in one of the most liberal moves yet for a largely conservative nation known for its tolerance. If passed by parliament, the legislation would make Thailand only the second place in Asia […]
Nigerian’s First LGBTQ Movie, ‘Ife’, Set for Release
A Nigerian LGBTQ right advocate, Pamela Adie, is set to release the first-ever pro-lesbian movie in Nigeria titled ‘Ife’. The story revolves around two lesbian partners, Ife and Adaora, who fell in love and struggled through the challenges of being in a same-sex relationship in Nigeria. The movie directed by Uyai Ikpe-Etim is set to […]
First person ‘cured’ of HIV using medication alone, marking the most exciting breakthrough in years
In a major leap forward in the search for a HIV/AIDS cure, a person has been “cured” of HIV using a cocktail of medicines in what activists have dubbed a breakthrough as “exciting” as it was “unexpected”. HIV, known as human immunodeficiency virus, hobbles people’s immune systems leaving them more vulnerable to once everyday diseases. […]
Meet Malaysia’s LGBTQ punk rockers
Singing and playing guitar with her garage punk band TingTongKetz, trans musician Shika Corona is a striking mak nyah — Malay slang for a trans woman. Tall and charismatic, she and her two LGBTQ colleagues have carved out a niche following in Kuala Lumpur’s lively underground music scene. But they remain persecuted outsiders in Muslim-majority […]
57 Million Viewers Joined Virtual LGBT Pride Celebration Global Pride
More than 57 million people tuned in to the first-ever Global Pride. Global Pride replaced the annual LGBT Pride parades and festivals canceled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Headliners included former Vice President Joe Biden, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, actresses Laverne Cox and Olivia Newton-John, and singers Pabllo Vittar, Steve Grand, and […]
Germany to rehabilitate discriminated gay soldiers
Germany is planning to rehabilitate soldiers who were discriminated against in past years by being rejected for promotion or even fired from the army because of their homosexuality, the Defense Ministry announced. The ministry said it intends to present a draft bill in September to address the injustices done to those soldiers who had been […]
For Lesbians, TikTok Is ‘the Next Tinder’
Young women feeling alienated by dating apps and bar culture are finding love on their For You pages. On Feb. 3, Lauren Vlach received $8 on Venmo, spread across four $2 payments, from a girl she had never met. Each payment included a block of text; read together, they formed what Cas Stephens, who sent […]
Faltering AIDS battle risks 10-year setback from COVID-19, UN warns
The global fight against AIDS was faltering even before the COVID-19 pandemic, and this newly-emerged viral disease is now threatening to put progress against HIV back by 10 years or more, the United Nations said on Monday. “The global HIV targets set for 2020 will not be reached,” the U.N.’s AIDS agency said in a […]
Knife-edge Polish presidential race could slow the march of populism
As liberal Rafał Trzaskowski gains on rightwing Andrzej Duda, LGBT rights are among issues at stake in Poland and beyond. When Poland’s president, Andrzej Duda, goes up against his liberal challenger in a presidential run-off next Sunday, there will be more at stake than just the medium-term political trajectory of the country. The vote is […]
Protesters take to the streets amid concerns over Tory government’s alleged rollback of trans rights
More than a thousand people gathered in London’s Parliament Square yesterday (July 4) to protest against the government’s alleged abandonment of reforms to the Gender Recognition Act. The British government is reportedly planning to scrap reforms to the Act and will instead introduce a series of policies to “protect” single-sex spaces, the Sunday Times reported […]
Woman mocked on Twitter for asking Malaysians to boycott Ikea for selling Pride Month bags in the US
A Malaysian’s vow to boycott furniture brand Ikea for selling Pride Month rainbow bags in its United States store has been met with criticism and ridicule. Last weekend, a woman known as Ulya Azhari tried to call on her Twitter followers to show Ikea “Malaysians’ boycotting power” and tweeted a photo of a poster promoting […]
Facebook Urged to Do More to Stop LGBT+ Hate Speech in Arab Countries
LGBT+ rights groups urged Facebook on Tuesday to act on a rise in online hate speech after the death of an Egyptian activist jailed for waving the rainbow flag. The letter from activist groups in the Middle East and North Africa added to the pressure on Facebook to do more to block hate speech after […]
They Marched in America’s First Prides in 1970. They’re Still Out, Loud, and Proud.
The 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York City was marked in June 2019. This year saw the 50th anniversary of the city’s first Pride march, known as the Christopher Street Liberation Day March. But on June 27 and 28, 1970, one year after the riots, New York City wasn’t making history alone. […]