Instagram Faces Backlash For Censoring Gay Family Photo As ‘Graphic Content’

Instagram has faced backlash for censoring a photograph of two gay dads holding their newborn baby, labelling the image as ‘graphic’ and sensitive’ content. Men Having Babies, an international non-profit organisation aiding gay men in their journey to parenthood, shared a photo featuring Liverpool-based couple Sam and David (known as @scousedads on Instagram) alongside their newborn Jude […]

Award-winning transgender health care trailblazer shares journey

MADISON, Wis. — During Women’s History Month, Violet LaClair, a nursing assistant at UW Health, reflected on her journey towards acceptance and fulfillment in her career. LaClair’s role involved providing exceptional care to patients, especially those undergoing gender transition surgeries. “As the first person they see when they enter the room, I made sure they were comfortable,” […]

In rural China, elderly transgender Sister Liu longs for family life

GUANZHONG, China (Reuters) – Morning market shoppers look a little too long in Liu Peilin’s direction as she passes by in a red jacket and gray wig covered in red and pink clips, her cheeks rouged in bright pink and eyeshadow in a matching shade. The 63-year-old has become well-known not only in the little southern […]

In landmark ruling, Japan High Court terms ban on same-sex marriage ‘unconstitutional’

In a landmark ruling, the Japanese High Court said that the country’s lack of legal recognition of same-sex marriage is “unconstitutional,” the Japan Times reported. The move is likely to further mount pressure on the Japanese government to do more to protect sexual minorities. The Sapporo High Court upheld the lower court’s landmark verdict in […]

She should have left Ghana over anti-LGBT+ Bill threats

Former Ghanaian Ambassador to Serbia and Montenegro, Dr Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe, has accused the Ambassador of the United States of America to Ghana, Virginia Palmer, of interfering in the country’s internal affairs. According to Nyaho-Tamakloe, the recent comment, including threats, issued by the Ambassador in relation to the approval of a bill against same-sex activities in […]

Italy’s Meloni Becoming Force to Be Reckoned With in European Politics

Giorgia Meloni, the right-wing prime minister of Italy, could be set to shake up European politics in a big way. When Meloni and her Brothers of Italy party took power in October 2022, Europe’s political establishment went on high alert at the prospect of a major country being led by a party that openly opposes […]

Ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, Japan court rules

A Japanese high court made a landmark ruling on Thursday, saying the country’s lack of legal support for same-sex marriage violates the constitution. Key points: Responding to a case brought forth by three same-sex couples, the Sapporo High Court in Tokyo deemed denying same-sex marriage as a violation of the fundamental rights of LGBTQ+ couples, […]

New LGBTQ+ legislation is welcome, but not enough, says Dr Amanda Cohn

On Wednesday, the Attorney General tabled long-awaited legislation to ban harmful LGBTQIA+ conversion practices. The changes are “overdue” and “welcome”, says Dr Amanda Cohn, NSW Greens spokesperson for LGBTQIA+, but much more needs to be done. “This is the result of the hard work of victim survivors of conversion practices over many years … and […]

Bahrain: Continued Denial of Legal Gender Recognition and Gender-affirming Healthcare for Transgender People in the Name of Islamic Sharia

In a recent judgment from May 2023, a Bahraini lower court rejected a transman’s application to obtain legal gender recognition and access gender-affirming healthcare, citing Islamic Sharia. The plaintiff sought judicial approval to undergo gender-affirming healthcare and to obtain legal gender recognition afterwards. They requested to be examined by a medical committee from the Ministry […]

Kyrgyzstan: Parliament adopts contentious foreign agents law without debate

Lawmakers in Kyrgyzstan have, in a widely anticipated move, given their definitive backing to a bill that stands to cripple the work of nongovernmental organizations advocating for human rights and independent media. Fully 66 MPs registered as being present in the Jogorku Kenesh on March 14 voted in favor of the legislation in its third and […]

Taiwan gay marriage: Hundreds of couples tie the knot on historic day

Hundreds of gay couples in Taiwan have rushed to get married on Friday – the first day a landmark decision that legalised same-sex marriage took effect. Taiwan became the first country in Asia to allow same-sex marriage last week in a legislative vote on a cause that the island’s LGBT rights’ activists have championed for […]

French minister apologises to LGBTQ+ community for historic ‘repression’

Following the introduction of a bill that seeks to compensate the victims of past anti-gay laws, justice minister Eric Dupond-Moretti issued an apology “on behalf of the French Republic”. “Sorry to the people – the homosexual people of France – who, for 40 years, suffered this totally unfair repression,” he said. Homosexuality was decriminalised in France in […]

Florida’s parental rights movement’s power dwindles

Florida’s “parental rights” movement was dealt a blow this week when state education officials conceded that a law banning instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity does not bar classroom discussion of LGBTQ+ people, families or issues. Why it matters: The parental rights movement began in the early days of the pandemic — arguing against mask […]

Haiti: Port-au-Prince and its LGBT+ community face the risk of genocide

The situation in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, is worsening by the hour, a crisis that has been met with a staggering indifference on the part of many nations. The past week was characterised by threats of massive violence, as “Barbecue”, the leader of the capital’s main criminal gang, threatens the entire population of the coastal city with […]

Ugandan court backs government’s refusal to register LGBT organisation

KAMPALA, March 12 (Reuters) – A Ugandan court on Tuesday dismissed a petition by an LGBT advocacy group seeking to compel the government to register it, a lawyer for the petitioner said. Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) first filed the suit in the country’s high court in 2015 after the government’s registrar of companies refused to list […]

What Happens In LGBT ‘Conversion Therapy’ In Russia

Russians who underwent so-called LGBT “conversion therapy” in Russia have told RFE/RL about brutal treatment they experienced, amid an ongoing crackdown on sexual minorities in the country. One person who wanted to undergo gender confirmation surgery recalls being forced to castrate a pig. The interviews were recorded before the Russian authorities designated RFE/RL an “undesirable […]

Suspected Oslo LGBTQ festival shooter stands trial

The trial began Tuesday in Norway for a man accused of aggravated terrorism for the deadly shooting at an LGBTQ+ festival in Oslo’s nightlife district. Two people were killed and nine seriously wounded in the shooting at three locations, chiefly outside the London Pub, a popular gay bar, on June 25, 2022. Prosecutor Sturla Henriksbø […]

Uganda Court Rejects LGBTQ Group Registration Appeal

A Ugandan court on Tuesday dismissed an appeal by a gay rights group seeking government registration, ruling that it aimed to promote “unlawful” activities. The Court of Appeal said any registration of the group Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) was against the public interest and national policy. Its judges upheld a previous high court ruling that […]

Japan adopts LGBTQ awareness legislation

In June 2023, the ‘Act on the Promotion of Citizens’ Understanding of Diversity of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity’ was enacted by the Japanese legislature (the Diet). Japan’s legal system for protecting its LGBTQ minorities is considered insufficient compared to other developed countries. For this reason, LGBTQ persons and support groups have pushed for legislation […]

Poll shows US public support for LGBTQ+ protections falling for first time since 2015

Public support for same-sex marriage and nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ+ Americans has fallen, even as the overall share remains high, according to new findings by the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute. Broad majorities of Americans, regardless of political party or faith, continue to support LGBTQ+ rights and protections, the analysis found. But after years of […]

Notes from Lebanon toward (Queer) Liberatory Alternatives

During the first week of August 2023, Lebanon made international headlines for (a failed, performative) attempt to ban the movie Barbie by a (Muslim Shia) government minister in a country long lauded for its ‘freedoms’. The minister’s narrative focused on the movie’s proclaimed (yet, I would argue, deeply wanting) ‘homosexuality’ and consequent corruption of ‘moral […]

Australian soccer embraces Pride round despite teenage player’s anti-gay screed

The Pride Celebrations in Australia’s A-Leagues at the weekend were certainly colorful. They were also meaningful to many of the country’s top-flight soccer stars. The controversy surrounding Adelaide United teenage player Musa Toure’s anti-LGBTQ social media post was put to one side at Coopers Stadium. Instead, rainbow fireworks greeted the men’s team ahead of Saturday’s […]

Mumbai: In A First, GT Hospital Offers Voice Change Surgery To Transgender Persons

In yet another novel initiative, the GT Hospital has become the first state-run facility in the city to offer voice change surgery to transgender persons who have undergone gender reassignment procedure. Notably, the Hospital’s move comes after the provision of a separate ward for the third gender. The voice change surgery consultation will be done […]

Florida ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law upheld after settlement in federal court

The state of Florida settled a multi-year suit Monday against the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law, which limits how LGBTQ topics can be discussed and presented in schools. The settlement agreement clarifies language of the 2022 Parental Rights in Education Act, keeping it in place but toning down what LGBTQ advocates in the state warned […]

California City Passes Ban Preventing Government from Flying ‘Pride’ Flags

Voters in Huntington Beach, California voted on Thursday to only allow a list of acceptable flags the city can fly, effectively banning the “pride” flag from being flown on government property. The proposal, called Charter Amendment No. 2, asked voters if they would support allowing only certain flags to be flown on properties owned by the city. The […]

Panamanian LGBTQ Groups Urge Presidential Candidates to Support Same-Sex Marriage

Several LGBTQ groups in Panama asked presidential candidates on Thursday to commit to recognizing same-sex marriage, which was rejected a year ago by the Panamanian justice system. About fifteen groups are seeking for the candidates to sign a pact on March 27 in which they also commit to promoting laws against discrimination towards members of the […]