New House speaker’s views on LGBTQ issues come under fresh scrutiny
The unexpected elevation of fourth-term Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana to speaker of the House on Wednesday swiftly prompted unforgiving criticism and fresh scrutiny on the once obscure representative’s views on LGBTQ rights. Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy group, said Johnson would be “the most anti-equality” speaker in […]
Japan’s Top Court Strikes Down Required Sterilization Surgery to Officially Change Gender
Japan’s Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that a law requiring transgender people to undergo sterilization surgery in order to officially change their gender is unconstitutional, a landmark verdict welcomed by advocates as a sign of growing acceptance of LGBTQ+ rights. The ruling by the top court’s 15-judge Grand Bench applies to the sterilization portion of the […]
Ukraine takes first steps to codify gay marriage
Ukraine’s justice ministry took the first steps towards codifying gay marriage by approving Bill No. 9103, titled “On the Institution of Registered Partnerships” on October 22. The ground-breaking bill would establish in law registered partnerships as a voluntary family union for two adult individuals, regardless of gender. Homophobia is widespread across all of the Former Soviet Union […]
India’s LGBTQ community battles same-sex marriage ‘heartbreak’ from court
New Delhi, India – In the summer of 2018, three bodies were recovered from the Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad, a sprawling city in western India’s Gujarat state. Two women – Asha Thakor, 30, and Bhavna Thakor, 28 – had died by suicide along with Asha’s three-year-old daughter. Before the two women jumped into the water, […]
New Niger regime worries about citizens visiting Europe, learning about LGBT rights
Officials in the West African nation of Niger are stirring up worries about citizens of Niger visiting Europe and learning about LGBT rights there. As leaders of the new Niger regime, they’re also fretting about local LGBT people, who they claim are behaving in ways “contrary to the laws and morals of Niger”. Niger does […]
Supportive housing development for LGBTQ youth opens in Central Harlem
Government officials and non-profit leaders held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Oct. 24 to celebrate the completion of a supportive housing development in Harlem with services for homeless LGBTQ youth and young adults between the ages of 18 and 25. So far, 49 out of 50 tenants have moved into fully-furnished studio apartments in the building, […]
China’s biggest gay dating app wants to beat Grindr
To Thitiwatt “Pete” Sirasjtakorn, the gay dating app Blued offers more than hookups. Struggling with depression, a recent breakup, and the stigma that came with his HIV diagnosis in 2016, he went live on Blued to show his everyday life — eating in a restaurant, shopping in a department store, or singing while driving his […]
Métis Nation of Ontario Hosts 2SLGBTQIA+ Climate Change Forum
The Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO) hosted a virtual Climate Change Forum on October 21, for Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+ Métis citizens, their families and allies. Featuring a speaker from the MNO’s new Two-Spirit Working Group, the forum addressed the disproportionate impact of climate change on this community and explored strategies for mitigation, relief and recovery. […]
Japan Court To Make Landmark Transgender Decision
Japan’s top court will decide Wednesday on the legality of requiring transgender people to be sterilised in order to change their legal gender. Under rules introduced in 2004, transgender people can only change their gender on legal documents if they appeal to a family court and meet criteria including gender confirmation surgery and having no […]
Sometimes it’s vote of conscience: CJI on judgement on queer couples
Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud on Monday said he stands by his minority judgement in favour of civil unions of queer couples, as sometimes it is a “vote of the conscience and a vote of the constitution”. CJI Chandrachud was speaking at the 3rd Comparative Constitutional Law discussion on the topic ‘Perspectives from […]
Nigeria: 76 people arrested for organising a “gay wedding
More than 70 young people were arrested on Saturday by security forces on charges of organising a gay wedding in north-east Nigeria, where such unions are criminalised and violence against the LGBT+ community is widespread. Same-sex marriage is illegal in Nigeria under a 2014 law, and punishable by 14 years in prison. “We apprehended 76 […]
Same-sex marriage remains banned in the Navajo Nation for now
Brennen Yonnie can imagine his future wedding. It takes place on a clear fall day on a mountain on the Navajo reservation, where he and the man he loves grew up. But he can only dream of this backdrop. Although same-sex marriage has been legal in all 50 states since a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court […]
The U.K. May Once Again Delay a Ban on Conversion Therapy
U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak looks poised to shelve plans for a nationwide conversion therapy ban once again, according to reports. Last week, The Times reported that Sunak would include the hypothetical legislation on November 7 in his upcoming King’s Speech, in which the government highlights its priorities for the upcoming months. However, on Saturday, […]
Growing number of Japan municipalities ban outing LGBT individuals
A growing number of Japanese municipalities have introduced ordinances banning the outing, or revealing, of a person’s sexual orientation or gender without their consent, researchers and officials said Sunday. The move highlights that some municipalities have made efforts to protect the human rights of LGBT people ahead of the central government as a law enacted in […]
Partner of fallen LGBTQ IDF soldier decries inequality, Knesset speaker intervenes
The tragic story of Captain (res.) Sagi Golan, a soldier in the special forces counter-terrorism unit who fell in the battle over kibbutz Be’eri, highlights the absurdity and discrimination that IDF troops from the LGBTQ community endure, not only during their service but also after their passing. On the fateful day of the massacre, Golan […]
Poland could now introduce civil partnerships, say LGBT activists, after shock election results
Bart Staszewski was sitting at home with his boyfriend last Sunday night when the first results of the Polish general election flashed across his computer. “I thought: ‘Is it real?’” he told i, on the phone from Warsaw. The ruling Law and Justice Party (Pis) had unexpectedly failed to secure a majority, enabling a coalition of three opposition […]
Georgia settles suit, agrees to pay for gender-affirming care for trans workers under state health plan
Georgia state employees and their families who are insured by the Georgia State Health Benefit Plan can access transgender-related health care after the state agreed to a $365,000 court settlement with three employees. “When I was able to get the medical treatment I needed, I finally felt whole,” said Benjamin Johnson, one of the plaintiffs in […]
Montenegrin Pride Organisers Urge Officials to Prevent Attacks on Community
Organizers of this year’s Montenegrin Pride, scheduled for Saturday, called on authorities to prevent attacks on the LGBT community in the country. The eleventh Montenegrin Pride will take place under the slogan, “Self-determination” [“Samoodređenje”], while the main event will be a walk in the capital, Podgorica, passing parliament, the government building and the city assembly. […]
Poland’s Tusk to travel to Brussels with eye on unblocking funds
Donald Tusk, the leader of Poland’s largest liberal opposition grouping Civic Coalition (KO) and a potential candidate to become prime minister, will likely travel to Brussels next week, a senior lawmaker from his party said on Thursday, as he tries to unblock funds frozen over rule-of-law concerns. Pro-European Union (EU) opposition parties won a majority […]
Rishi Sunak finally set to ban gay and trans conversion therapy after Tory backlash
Rishi Sunak is expected to bring in a long-promised ban on conversion therapy after a backlash from Conservative MPs. The PM is finally set to include a draft bill in the King’s Speech to prohibit attempts to change someone’s sexuality, amid growing anger over delays and uncertainty. The bill will also protect transgender people from […]
Fear the Walking Dead star is famed gay civil rights activist in first trailer for Rustin
The official trailer for Netflix’s eagerly-anticipated Bayard Rustin biopic starring Fear the Walking Dead‘s Colman Domingo has finally landed – and the civil rights activist’s identity as a gay Black man takes centre stage. The already acclaimed film – directed by Tony winner George C. Wolfe and executive produced by the Obamas charts events leading […]
LGBTQ+ Afghans plead with United Nations to investigate horrific Taliban abuses: ‘End the silence’
Rainbow Afghanistan, a grassroots organisation that campaigns for LGBTQ+ rights in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, has hit out at the UN and other human rights organisations for ignoring their community in a furious open letter. The group said it is aware of LGBTQ+ people who have been tortured and killed since the militant group seized power in […]
Hawai‘i Department of Health states commitment to transgender rights
In response to increasing attacks on transgender communities in the U.S., the Hawai‘i Department of Health recently released its “Statement on Transgender Rights and Public Health.” In alignment with the Department of Health’s mission, the statement denounces discrimination, including transphobia and transphobic action, which is recognized as a threat to public health. According to local […]
In Gaza, ‘Queering the Map’ Reveals Heartbreaking Notes of LGBT Love and Loss
These days, it’s not easy for anyone living in Gaza. Hardly any safe refuge can be found amid Israel’s unrelenting airstrikes of the territory in retaliation to Hamas’ terrorist attack on Oct. 7. But for LGBT Gazans, the specter of death from the Israel-Hamas war only compounds what was already a struggle to live freely […]
Jakim stand on LGBT community consistent, says Mohd Na’im
KUALA LUMPUR: The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) has been consistent on its stand about the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, says Datuk Dr Mohd Na’im Mokhtar. The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) told Dewan Rakyat about basic rights enshrined in the Federal Constitution, such as access to education, should […]
31 Commonwealth nations still have laws against gay sex
The following 31 Commonwealth nations still have anti-homosexuality laws — roughly three-fifths of the group’s total of 56 nations. Worldwide,66 countries still cling to such anti-homosexuality laws. About half of the world’s laws against same-sex intimacy can be traced back to laws that were imposed by the British on their colonies. Almost all Commonwealth countries formerly were part of […]
Kicking out the populists: how young voters helped swing Poland’s election
For eight years, the rightwing Law and Justice party (PiS) has ruled Poland, transforming civil society. It has overseen an increased politicisation of the judiciary and media as well as a near total ban on abortion, all of which has put it at odds with its European Union allies. On Sunday night, its vote collapsed. […]
After Defeating Voice, LGBTIQA+ Australians Are The Next Target Of No Campaigners
Empowered by the success of their fear-mongering and division-sowing, No campaigners will turn on us in an attempt to claw back the tolerance we won through marriage equality. We know this because they have told us. Jacinta Price has loudly said that after No wins she will move straight on to excluding trans kids from health care […]
Legal challenges to anti-LGBTQ laws are under way in at least 10 nations
Legal challenges to anti-LGBTQ laws are under way in Africa and in the Caribbean. In the map above, which shows the 66 nations with anti-homosexuality laws, the nations with active legal challenges that could decriminalize homosexuality there are shown in yellow. The sodomy laws of four small Caribbean island nations are being challenged in the Eastern […]
Marriage Equality Hits a Challenge in Nepal
Two lower courts in the Himalayan country of Nepal have defied the country’s Supreme Court and refused to issue a marriage license to a couple. The couple, a transgender woman and a cisgender man, is considering appealing the decision to the Supreme Court, according to Human Rights Watch. The case involves Maya Gurung, a trans woman who is recognized legally as […]