A U.S. activist allegedly accepted $300K from Russia to push anti-gay laws in Africa
A wide-ranging investigation by the Wall Street Journal has uncovered evidence linking Russian cash to an anti-LGBTQ+ U.S. activist who helped promote “Kill the Gays” laws in Uganda and across Africa. The publication found a large infusion of Russian cash helped fund an international conference in Uganda organized by Mormon anti-LGBTQ+ activist Sharon Slater and […]
Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles, the 1st LGBT mariachi group, celebrates 10 year anniversary
A local mariachi group is celebrating a decade of showcasing the best Mexican folk music with a welcoming flair. Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles, or Rainbow Mariachi of L.A., is an all-LGBT mariachi group, the first of its kind. At the helm is Carlos Samaniego, the group’s founder and director. “I’m an openly gay man […]
What’s at stake in Georgia’s October election?
The South Caucasus country of Georgia holds a parliamentary election on Oct. 26 that pits a government seen as leaning increasingly towards Russia against an opposition that champions integration with the West. Here’s what to look out for. HIGH STAKES POLLS The ruling party, Georgian Dream, is seeking a fourth term in office. A mountainous […]
Uganda: Activists Slam World Bank’s “Façade” Plan to Resume Loans
Activists are pushing back against the possibility of the World Bank resuming lending to Uganda despite the country’s continued oppression of LGBTQ+ people. In August 2023, the World Bank suspended new loans to Uganda due to the draconian Anti-Homosexuality Act, which was signed into law in May that year. The move followed pressure from more […]
LGBTQ advocates struggle for visibility in Eswatini
Eswatini Sexual and Gender Minorities, an LGBTQ advocacy group, was denied registration by authorities in 2019, and even after seeking relief from the Supreme Court, which had ruled the group must be registered, its efforts have been unsuccessful. Human rights lawyer Sibusiso Nhlabatsi said the harsh legal environment for LGBTQ individuals in the southern African […]
Formerly an anti-gay haven, Seychelles becomes a protector of its LGBTQ citizens
In eight years, the tiny African islands of Seychelles have changed from a country that threatened LGBTQ people with prison into a land that protects LGBTQ people from hate-fueled violence. Up until 2016, the law in Seychelles provided for prison sentences of up to 14 years for same-sex intimacy between men. Now a newly revised […]
At historic Belgian Catholic university, pope hears pleas for women’s ordination, LGBTQ acceptance
During a Sept. 27 visit to one of the Catholic Church’s most storied universities, Pope Francis heard pleas for the church to reconsider its stance against the ordination of women, become more welcoming to LGBTQ people and have a deeper reckoning with its history of clergy abuse and cover-up. “Why do we tolerate this considerable […]
More transgender teens attempted suicide after states passed anti-trans laws
Half of all states, including Texas, have passed some kind of law impacting transgender youth, from outlawing minors from accessing gender-affirming health care to banning transgender athletes from participating in school sports. Now, a first-of-its-kind study from the Trevor Project, a national LGBTQ youth suicide-prevention organization, says those laws increase suicide attempts among transgender and […]
Wave Of Arrests Targets LGBT Community In Belarus
At least eight transgender people have been arrested and around a dozen others were detained in Belarus since August, the transgender support organization TG House Belarus told RFE/RL on September 26. According to a representative of TG House Belarus, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the crackdown on the LGBT community began in late August and intensified in […]
World Bank Imposes Measures to Counter Uganda’s Anti-Gay Legislation Impact
The World Bank announced on Thursday new measures to ensure that recipients of fresh loans to Uganda will not face discrimination due to the country’s stringent anti-gay legislation. Uganda enacted the Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA) in May last year, leading to widespread Western condemnation and U.S. sanctions. The act criminalizes same-sex intercourse with life imprisonment and […]
More trans teens attempted suicide after states passed anti-trans laws
States that passed anti-transgender laws aimed at minors saw suicide attempts by transgender and gender nonconforming teenagers increase by as much as 72% in the following years, a new study by The Trevor Project says. The peer-reviewed study, published published Thursday in the journal Nature Human Behavior, looked at survey data from young people in 19 states, comparing rates […]
‘Monumental step’: Thai king signs same-sex marriage into law, a first in Southeast Asia
Thailand on Tuesday became the first country in Southeast Asia to legalise same-sex union after King Maha Vajiralongkorn signed a historic marriage equality law. Thai activists have been pushing for same-sex marriage rights for more than a decade, with their advocacy often stalled by political upheaval. Currently, only two other countries in Asia recognise same-sex […]
Namibia marks HIV/AIDS wins but stigma puts LGBTQ+ people at risk
When Friedel Dausab tested positive for HIV in 1999, treatment was both scarce and expensive in his home country of Namibia. He found medical care a decade later, when he was armed with the language, confidence and contacts being an activist brought him. Many others in Namibia still struggle to get the care they need […]
Guyana urged to repeal laws against same sex couples to capitalise on LGBT tourism
Guyana has been told that the tourism industry could bring US$1 billion in revenue annually if it repeals some of the “colonial” era laws that could be used to discriminate against same sex couples. President of the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG), Dee George, speaking at a Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD) […]
Russian lawmakers back adoption ban on ‘sick’ countries allowing gender reassignment
Russia’s parliament on Wednesday voted to back a bill banning the adoption of Russian children in countries that allow gender reassignment, the latest in a series of ultraconservative social measures. Moscow has long portrayed itself as a bulwark against liberal values, but that trend has hugely accelerated since the Kremlin launched its Ukraine offensive, further […]
South Australian Parliament Passes Ban On Conversion Practices
South Australia has officially passed legislation in Parliament that bans harmful conversion practices, following in the steps of Victoria, ACT and NSW. The bill, passed with 13 votes to 8 on Tuesday night, has been welcomed by survivors and advocacy organisations, who emphasise that it will save lives. Conversion practices, which seek to change or […]
Hate crimes, particularly against LGBTQ community, on the rise: FBI data
Hate crimes motivated by gender-identity and sexual orientation rose from 2022 to 2023, according to FBI data, sparking concern among LGBTQ advocates about the potential impact of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and legislation. “Today’s abysmal FBI report highlights that it is still dangerous to be LGBTQ+ in this country,” said Brian K. Bond, CEO of LGBTQ advocacy […]
Thai king signs same-sex marriage bill into law
Thailand’s king has signed a marriage equality bill into law, making the country the first in South East Asia to recognise same-sex unions. The bill cleared the Senate in June but required royal endorsement to become law. It was published in the Royal Gazette on Tuesday and will come into effect on 22 January next […]
LGBTQI+ people face increasing violence in Bangladesh
Anti-LGBTQI+ violence is rising in Bangladesh as conservative Islamists gain power, according to human rights organization Justice Makers Bangladesh in France (JMBF). After the fall of the Awami League government in early August and under the interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus, Islamist fundamentalist groups have intensified their violent and inhumane acts against sexual minorities, […]
Outwords brings LGBTQ preservation initiative to New York City
Outwords, a California-based non-profit organization dedicated to recording, preserving, and sharing stories of LGBTQ elders across America, made its first foray into New York City with a special event at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art on Sept. 19. Outwords’ New York City event, which also served as a fundraiser for the organization, was described as […]
Alberta premier blasts Trudeau’s ‘radical, extreme’ Senate appointments
Alberta’s premier criticized a newly appointed Alberta senator at a speech on Saturday, calling Kristopher Wells a “radical, extreme LGBT activist.” In a video from the Canada Strong and Free Network event in Red Deer, Alta., Danielle Smith made the comments while lamenting that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had chosen to appoint Wells and another […]
Taiwan will now recognize same-sex marriages of Taiwanese-Chinese couples
Taiwan officials have announced same-sex marriages between citizens of Taiwan and China will now be recognized in the breakaway republic. Taiwan was the first Asian country to recognize same-sex marriages in 2019. The move means that cross-strait same-sex couples can get married and their unions will be recognized in Taiwan. But like most things in […]
Hong Kong’s first transgender singer-songwriter seeks voice through music
Xavian Wu, Hong Kong’s first high-profile transgender singer-songwriter, sought to use the city’s annual LGBTQ Pink Dot HK carnival on Sunday to share his story through music. Wu, 30, who uses the stage name SY, debuted in February and has released three songs about his self-discovery journey, which he recounted at the festival on its […]
Religious freedom, LGBTQ rights collide in lawsuit over Colorado’s universal preschool program
At a time when the U.S. Supreme Court has opened the door to greater public funding for private religious schools, a lower court ruling in Colorado could have big implications for the separation of church and state in education. At the center of the case are two Catholic preschools in suburban Denver that want exemptions from […]
Painful experience of being an intersex in Kenya
Imagine growing up in a body that does not fit the standard norm of a girl or a boy. You were born with ambiguous genitalia – neither male nor female. Imagine growing up a girl, then realising, at adolescence, that you do not have a uterus or any reproductive structure that defines a woman. As […]
Transgender traffic police get the green light in India’s Telangana state
HONG KONG – Xavian Wu, Hong Kong’s first high-profile transgender singer-songwriter, sought to use the city’s annual LGBTQ Pink Dot HK carnival on Sunday to share his story through music. Wu, 30, who uses the stage name SY, debuted in February and has released three songs about his self-discovery journey, which he recounted at the festival […]
Michigan must face religious employers’ challenges to anti-bias laws, US court rules
A U.S. appeals court on Friday revived lawsuits by a Christian medical ministry and a Catholic school in Michigan seeking to block the state from enforcing anti-discrimination laws against them for seeking to hire and serve only members of their faiths. A unanimous three-judge panel, opens new tab of the Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court […]
Town’s Pride event returns for ‘amazing’ fourth year
Organisers of a town’s Pride event said it meant “an awful lot” to have been able to share it with the local community. Alsager Pride marked its fourth annual celebration on Saturday, and is among a growing network of Pride events in Cheshire – including those in Congleton and Sandbach. Sarah Dening, chair of Pride […]
Georgia LGBTQI+ refugees say Europe safe lists put them at risk
LGBTQI+ people who fled from Georgia because their sexual orientation or gender identity exposed them to death threats, abuse or curbs under new laws are at risk under European “safe states” lists which could see them deported back to danger, activists say. Lawyers and activists said Georgians may not have their asylum claims properly considered […]
Seychelles passes Penal Code Amendment Bill providing vital protection from violence for marginalised groups
The Seychelles National Assembly yesterday passed the groundbreaking Penal Code (Amendment) Bill – the first time in the country’s history that a law has been adopted to protect its citizens from crimes motivated by prejudice and identity-based hate. The Bill, approved by a majority of 18 votes to 8, safeguards Seychellois citizens, especially those from […]