“Ex-gay” pastor loses lawsuit against Vimeo for taking down videos promoting conversion therapy
A pastor who identifies as a “former homosexual” has officially lost his lawsuit attempting to force the video streaming service to host his videos promoting so-called conversion therapy. In a ruling issued this week, the court found that due to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, Vimeo was right to take down the videos […]
Israel Elections: Voters must take stock of LGBTQ-phobia in parties
Fighting for its political survival, with the polls pointing to it precariously hovering around the 3.25% electoral threshold, the last thing Meretz needed last week was for Ghaida Rinawie-Zoabi to alienate potential LGBT voters, one the key constituencies the candidate’s party represents. For as long as Meretz has been in existence, the promotion of equal […]
Indonesia’s LGBTQ community angry at rise of conversion therapies
Kai Mata found herself at the center of a homophobic storm last year when she posted a video of herself online denouncing a draft of bill that included articles on forcing LGBTQ people to undergo conversion therapy to “cure” their sexual orientation or gender identity. “I am Indonesian and LGBTQ+,” the caption of the video […]
Polish MEP complains of ‘psychological warfare’ after Europe is declared an LGBT+ freedom zone
Polish MEPs were up in arms after the European Union proclaimed itself an “LGBT+ freedom zone” in response to Poland‘s heinous “LGBT-free zones”. All 27 representatives from Poland’s homophobic ruling party PiS voted against the EU’s proclamation on Friday (12 March), which was passed by 492 votes to 141. The move came two years after […]
HOW SECTION 28’S PAINFUL LEGACY IS STILL BEING FELT THREE DECADES ON
In May 1988, Section 28, the most anti-gay piece of legislation of modern times, became law amid a tsunami of fear and hatred. By the mid 1980s, several years after the first reports of a disease then referred to as Gay Related Immune Deficiency Syndrome (GRID), because it was said to affect mainly gay and […]
Poland cracks down on loophole that let LGBT+ people adopt children
Same-sex couples are currently not allowed to adopt under Polish law – however, some couples were able to get around the discriminatory policy by getting one partner to adopt as a single person. The Law and Justice party, which has made its opposition to LGBT+ rights a cornerstone of its governance, has announced that it […]
Why is the government facing a backlash from its LGBT+ advisory panel?
Revealing the results of one of the world’s largest ever surveys of LGBT+ people almost three years ago, the British government laid out some stark – albeit unsurprising – findings: two-thirds of respondents said they had avoided holding their partner’s hand in public for fear of negative reaction. An even greater number said they had […]
Sponsors of North Dakota’s transgender athletes bill have ties to anti-LGBT organizations
When state Sen. Janne Myrdal testified before the North Dakota House Human Services Committee in support of HB 1298, she said she believes the bill has little to do with transgender people. “For me, it is 100% a Title IX issue,” said Myrdal, the bill’s co-sponsor. HB 1298 – which would bar trans athletes from […]
Gay men in a monogamous relationship can donate blood from September
Men in a monogamous same-sex relationship will be allowed to donate blood in the Netherlands from September 1, 2021, the Dutch government has announced. For years, gay men in countries around the world have been prevented from being able to donate blood because of the perceived increased risk of them carrying blood-borne infections. Not too […]
Transgender woman Martine Delaney recognised for service to Tasmanian community
LGBT rights advocate Martine Delaney has become the first Tasmanian transgender woman to be recognised on the Honour Roll of Women — an award given to those who have made an “outstanding contribution” to the state. Ms Delaney said it was “humbling” to have been recognised. “It’s not been something that transgender women in Tasmania […]
Boris Johnson says conversion ‘therapy’ is ‘complex’ to deal with – but government vows to ban it ‘shortly’
Boris Johnson has said addressing the issue of so-called conversion ‘therapy’ is “complex” – as his government said it would bring forward plans to ban it in the UK. The PM described the practice of trying to change someone’s sexuality as “repulsive” and “abhorrent” when asked about it on a trip to Belfast on Friday. […]
Hungary’s top court throws out retroactive gender change ban
Hungary’s Constitutional Court on Friday said it had thrown out a government bid to stop people who have changed gender being recognised in official documents, an issue that pitched the ruling conservative Fidesz party against liberal critics. Anyone beginning the transition after the May 2020 legislation remains unable to win recognition for the change, but […]
UK charity launches world’s first LGBT+ climate fund
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – A British charity on Thursday launched the world’s first fund to support LGBT+ people whose vulnerability to climate change is worsened by poverty and discrimination. The LGBTQI Climate Fund will give up to 5,000 pounds ($6,987) to campaigners advocating for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in climate-related emergencies, said […]
EU lawmakers declare bloc LGBT+ ‘freedom zone’
The European Parliament passed a resolution on Thursday declaring the European Union a “LGBTIQ freedom zone.” The measure seeks to ensure protections for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer communities across the bloc, while also pushing back against member states with anti-LGBT+ policies.” LGBTIQ rights are human rights,” the resolution reads. The measure […]
Colombia showcases its competitive advantages in sustainable tourism with Canadians
BOGOTA, Colombia, March 11, 2021 /CNW/ — During the first virtual “Annual Tourism Forum in Canada,” launched by ProColombia in February, it successfully facilitated 563 one-on-one meetings, bringing together 52 Colombian Tourism Suppliers and 33 Canadian tour operators. The event focused on highlighting meaningful travel experiences, sustainability, LGBT travel and purposeful meetings in Colombia through […]
Delhi High Court Grants Protection To Lesbian Woman Married Against Her Wishes, Directs Steps For Dissolution Of Marriage
In a major relief to a lesbian woman married against her wishes to a man of her family’s choice, a bench of Justice Mukta Gupta of the Delhi High Court today issued issued notice on the woman’s petition and directed the Delhi Police to ensure complete protection to the woman. Notably, taking a progressive stance […]
Romania: European Court to consider lack of implementation of freedom of movement law for same-sex spouses
In June 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued a landmark judgement, recognising that same-sex spouses are also spouses under EU freedom of movement laws. Almost three years later, Romania has still not respected the judgement by granting the male spouse of a Romanian man a residence permit in Romania. Together […]
Panama: Bill Bars Same-Sex Couples from Adoption
Panama’s National Assembly passed a bill on March 3, 2021, that includes a discriminatory prohibition on adoption by same-sex couples, Human Rights Watch said today. Bill No.120, which aims to protect children and adolescents from unnecessary separation from their biological family, allows for adoption by both single persons and married couples. However, not only are […]
China proposes teaching masculinity to boys as state is alarmed by changing gender roles
No one invited Bu Yunhao to be in their group for the annual class trip. The other fifth graders at Shanghai Shangde Experimental School made fun of the 11-year-old, calling him “too girly.” “I wanted to run away, right out of the classroom,” said Yunhao, now 13 and a first-year middle schooler in Shanghai, China’s […]
LGBT+ refugees call on U.N. for safe space after Kenya camp attacks
LGBT+ people living in a refugee camp in northwestern Kenya urged U.N. officials on Friday to move them to a safer area following a series of homophobic attacks by other residents and locals. The refugees, who come from countries including Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, said a section of the Kakuma camp […]
Uzbekistan: Draft Criminal Code Offers Little Meaningful Reform
Uzbekistan should ensure that its new Criminal Code does not just tinker with some problematic provisions, but reflects meaningful reform, Human Rights Watch said today. The new Criminal Code should seek in good faith to comply fully with international human rights treaties to which Tashkent is a party. While the draft law contains some moderate […]
Tunisia: Harassment, Arbitrary Detention of LGBT Rights Activist
A Tunisian court sentenced a prominent LGBT rights activist on March 4, 2021, to six months in prison and a fine for shouting outside a police station after officers refused to register her harassment complaint, Human Rights Watch said today. The activist, Rania Amdouni, 26, is in a women’s prison in Manouba, west of Tunis, […]
French minister says Poland stymied his visit to ‘LGBT-free’ zone
Since 2019, at least 100 municipalities across Poland have signed declarations saying they are free of “LGBT ideology”. Although they appear not to have been followed by legislation to discriminate against gay residents, they have fuelled concern in Brussels and beyond of a drift in Poland towards illiberalism. “Polish authorities recently told me they were […]
Italy court urges more rights for children of gay couples
Italy’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday said the country urgently needs a law on the rights of children of same-sex couples, in a step campaigners said did not go far enough. The court issued rulings in two separate cases, relating to a lesbian couple who had children using medically-assisted reproduction abroad, and to two men in […]
Belgian prime minster flies rainbow flag in response to gay man’s murder
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo flew the rainbow LGBTQ Pride flag outside his office on Tuesday in response to the fatal stabbing of a gay man in a park in Beveren, a city just outside of Antwerp. “In our country, there is no place for hatred. Love wins,” De Croo said in a tweet […]
LGBTQ Travel Safety in Croatia: 39th Most Popular Country in the World
March 9, 2021 – When it comes to traveling, Croatia has been known as a gay-friendly destination, even though not all Croatians in every part of the country are fond of accepting gay and lesbian couples. In a recent study, LGBTQ travel safety in Croatia ranks 39th on the list of 150 world’s most popular […]
Ghana’s emerging LGBT movement battles with hostility
When activists in Ghana opened a support centre for the local gay community, they expected some pushback in a religiously conservative West African country where homosexuality is illegal. But less than a month after its opening, the centre was forced to close and its founders driven were underground after a wave of homophobia swept the […]
Bangladesh’s first transgender news reader takes to the airwaves
To cheers from colleagues, Bangladesh’s first transgender news presenter broke down in tears , but only after her word-perfect debut was beamed to the nation and the cameras were off. Bangladesh is home to an estimated 1.5 million transgender people, who face rampant discrimination and violence and are often forced to live by begging, the […]
From Kyiv To Almaty, Marches For Rights On International Women’s Day
Women have marched across Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans, and Central Asia demanding governments do more to respect their rights as the world marks International Women’s Day. Thousands of activists in Kyiv marched through the city center on March 8 from the Mykhaylivska Square to the Poshtova Square holding posters with slogans like, “My Body-My […]
Meretz Candidate Under Fire for Flip-flopping on LGBTQ Rights Ahead of Election
Ghaida Rinawie Zoabi, the No. 4 candidate on the Meretz list, said in an interview in Arabic that she would abstain on a bill prohibiting so-called “conversion therapy,” then reversed herself and said she would support the bill, sponsored by Meretz chairman Nitzan Horowitz. Horowitz issued a statement saying Rinawie Zoabi’s comments “were made mistakenly.” […]