Two Years in Prison for Gay Sex in Turkmenistan
In Turkmenistan, men who have sex with men continue to be arrested and imprisoned on sodomy charges. In mid-March independent media in the region reported the arrest of a popular entertainer as well as those of numerous other men who move in Turkmenistan’s show-business world. Some were able to secure their release. On May 7, […]
Zambian president pardons gay couple jailed for 15 years
Zambia’s president has pardoned a gay couple sentenced to 15 years in prison in November under colonial-era sodomy laws in a case that caused a diplomatic row with the United States. Japhet Chataba, 39, and Steven Sambo, 31, were among nearly 3,000 inmates pardoned by President Edgar Lungu last Friday to commemorate Africa Freedom Day, […]
Russia ‘Ready’ for New Comedy on Gay Activists’ 1970s Soviet Visit, Producer Says
Oscar-nominated Russian producer Alexander Rodnyansky has announced a new television series based on the real-life story of a group of LGBT activists who visited the Soviet Union on a mistaken invitation. The comedic series will portray the Homosexuelle Aktion Westberlin (HAW) activists’ 1978 trip to Moscow after a high-ranking Soviet official mistook their gay liberation […]
Costa Rica Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage
Costa Rica legalized same-sex marriage on Tuesday, becoming the first Central American country to do so and sparking an emotional response from rights campaigners as the first weddings were held overnight. Celebrations were canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but a special program about LGBT rights was broadcast on public television and online after a […]
University of the Philippines’ COVID-19 chatbot operates with ‘gay speak’ function
You can tell today’s technology is improving when it’s taking on uniquely human nuances. Case in point: the University of the Philippines (UP) today announced that its Facebook messenger pandemic response chatbot Yani, which gives information on COVID-19, can now speak in beki or Filipino gay lingo. “LGBT slang or the Beki language option is […]
Marie Cau: First transgender mayor elected in France
A trans woman in France has won election in her local commune to become the country’s first openly transgender mayor. The council in Tilloy-lez-Marchiennes in northeastern France chose Marie Cau as its new mayor on Saturday. The 55-year-old ran on a platform of ecological sustainability and building the local economy. Speaking to the AFP news […]
Anti-LGBT+ church sued over historic child sex abuse and ‘protecting abusers’
An anti-LGBT+ California church is being sued for allegedly failing to protect two young boys from sexual abuse more than 30 years ago. Carl Epperson and Larry Spencer are suing the anti-LGBT+ CrossPoint Community Church in Modesto, California, for failing to protect them from sexual abuse as children. The men claim they were abused by […]
Leaked Zoom call reveals homophobia of Azerbaijan opposition politicians
A series of Zoom calls between senior members of the National Council of Democratic Forces, representing opposition parties in the Azerbaijani National Assembly, has revealed strong homophobic sentiment within the group, according to a Mako news report. Leaked between May 13 and 17, four videos expose conversations that focus on the issue of LBGT rights, […]
China’s LGBT activists step up push for gay marriage after official rejects change
China’s LGBT activists have stepped up their campaign to have same-sex unions legalised after a parliamentary official said the country “insisted on heterosexual marriage” only and dismissed public comments on the issue. The legislature began its annual meeting in Beijing on Friday and is expected to enact the country’s first civil code. It had sought […]
U.K. Contact Tracing App Could Endanger LGBT Human Rights
Contact tracing is going to become an inevitable reality as the world leaves lockdown. But, the longterm human rights implications of that for LGBT people and minorities could be “incredible,” experts are warning. For LGBT people in South Korea linked to a recent outbreak, and gay Ugandans facing persecution under the guise of COVID-19 rules–this […]
‘It means that I’m not limiting myself’: Being agender means living outside the gender binary
What is agender? For this arts worker, its meaning comes down to “not limiting” yourself to the perceived gender binary. The definition of agender in the Merriam-Webster dictionary is: “A person who has an internal sense of being neither male nor female nor some combination of male and female, or being a person whose gender […]
Anti-LGBT+ hate crime soars by over a third in France
Homophobic and transphobic hate crime has risen by 36% in France last year, according to police figures. The new stats show a total of 1,870 victims of homophobic or transphobic crimes who went to the police in 2019. However, LGBT+ hate crime charity SOS Homophobie says the real numbers are higher as many victims don’t […]
K-Quarantine: The Condemnation or Resurgence of LGBTQ Rights in South Korea
The United States and South Korea sit on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to the successful containment of COVID-19. As South Korea enters its second wave of infections and the United States rides out a protest-ridden quarantine, a central debate has developed around public safety versus personal privacy, most notably in relation […]
Mexico City’s Casa Frida Offers Refuge to the LGBTQ Community During the Pandemic
Shelter-in-place measures limit coronavirus numbers, but they also expose the ugly side of staying at home. Calls to domestic violence hotlines have been up across the globe and in some places, LGBTQ individuals have reported family environments that are “psychologically damaging.” But in Mexico City, one group is working to ensure that its LGBTQ community […]
Christian Activist Calls For Violence Against Those Who Use Pandemic To Impose Socialism
Trump-loving radical right-wing activist Scott Lively warned listeners during an online Bible study yesterday that they need to establish a modern-day Underground Railroad for Christians to escape coming persecution and prepare to wage a violent revolution against those who seek to use the current COVID-19 pandemic to impose a socialist End Times “emerging Beast government” […]
Tanzania Opens To (Non-Gay) Tourists Without Conditions*
There are huge restrictions on international travel at the moment. Many countries have closed their borders altogether, other countries are restricting visitors from some countries, others are requiring a mandatory quarantine, etc. And then you have Tanzania. Tanzania’s President, John Magufuli, has announced plans to open to tourists effective immediately. There are no restrictions on […]
Australia: Grant to help LGBT conversion survivors
Researchers from La Trobe University have been awarded an Australian Research Council Linkage grant to improve the support provided to survivors of LGBT conversion practices. Dr Timothy Jones from the School of Humanities and Social Sciences will investigate the impact of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) conversion practices in Australia. “Previous research has shown […]
No medicine, no food: Coronavirus restrictions amplify health risks to LGBT+ people with HIV
It started with headaches then came nausea and diarrhea. Within two weeks, gay Ugandan barber Eric had became so weak without his HIV medication he could not walk and had to be hospitalised. “I was in the hospital for a week and four days. I nearly lost my life,” said Eric, 26, by phone from […]
Ireland made history by emphatically saying yes to same-sex marriage five years ago today
Five years ago today, people in Ireland went out in their droves and voted in favour of same-sex marriage. Ultimately, 62 per cent of the public voted in favour of amending the constitution to allow same-sex couples the right to marry, with 38 per cent voting against. It was a seismic moment for a country […]
Coronavirus claims San Francisco’s oldest gay bar
San Francisco’s oldest gay bar, The Stud, has fallen victim to the coronavirus. “We want to let you know that we are not reopening our location at 399 9th St.,” the bar said in a Facebook post on Wednesday night. One of the historic venue’s co-owners, Honey Mahogany, confirmed the closure in an email. The […]
Over half of LGBTQ Europeans are not out about their identities, report finds
Six in 10 gay and lesbian Europeans avoid holding hands with same-sex partners in public, and over half of LGBTQ people in Europe are almost never open about their sexual orientations or gender identities, according to a new survey. “The overarching finding was that not much has changed and there’s a long way to go,” […]
COVID-19 delayed a United Methodist schism. But it has left LGBT members in limbo.
Rebecca Bernstein says she wants to go to a United Methodist seminary. But her dreams of becoming an ordained Methodist minister are on hold for now. That’s in part because of COVID-19, which has disrupted plans at many graduate schools around the country. But also because of her sexuality. Bernstein, a youth minister at San […]
‘If I don’t have sex I’ll die of hunger’: Covid-19 crisis for Rio’s trans sex workers
Social distancing is keeping people off the streets of central Rio de Janeiro. And that has created serious challenges for its trans sex workers, who have seen their clientele, and their income, melt away. “You can see what it’s like: empty streets, shops closed, the fallen economy ” says Elba Tavares, 44, from Paraíba state […]
Virus pushes Pakistan’s transgender dancers out of their homes
Before the virus shutdown, dancer Adnan Ali had carved out a comfortable living performing at parties for newlyweds and newborns, avoiding the financial hardship faced by many in Pakistan’s transgender community. But the closure of wedding halls and scrapped celebrations where she would twist and twirl in front of applauding crowds have frozen her income, […]
Health care for SA’s LGBT+ community needs boost
South Africa’s LGBTI community continues to face extreme discrimination and inadequate health care. Every day, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people face violence, exclusion and discrimination in South Africa. To promote inclusivity, the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia took place on Sunday. Seoketsi, from Limpopo, was physically assaulted by a nurse. […]
‘Panic’ as Hungarian parliament bans trans people from changing gender on IDs
Hungary’s parliament voted Tuesday to ban transgender people from changing their gender on identity documents, in a move that LGBT+ advocates said was creating panic among trans people who feared an increase in discrimination and attacks. The legislature voted 133 to 57 to replace the Hungarian word “nem”, meaning sex or gender, with “sex at […]
Supreme Court Strikes Down Bigotry in Brazil’s Schools
Amid the public health crisis in the country, Brazil has recently achieved two significant victories for the right to education and the rights of women and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. On April 24, the Supreme Court unanimously struck down a 2015 law from Novo Gama, Goias state that banned learning materials with […]
Iraqi politicians call for expulsions after embassies fly LGBT flag
Iraqi political leaders have issued condemnations and called for the expulsion of diplomats following a decision by a number of foreign embassies in the country to fly the rainbow LGBT flag in honour of International Day Against Homophobia. The European Union, the World Bank and the Canadian and UK embassies all raised the flag on […]
Top Iranian aide apologises for ‘homosexual propaganda’ after sharing cartoon of loving lesbian and gay parents
On May 15 Shahindokht Molaverdi shared a poster to mark the International Day of Families on her Telegram account. Produced by the UN, the simple illustration depicted several families, including two same-sex couples with children. Beneath it the caption read: “The structure of family has changed in the past few decades, but the United Nations […]
How Mexico Can Keep LGBT Rights On Track
Mexico officially recognized the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia for the first time last year. On May 17, 2019, I spoke at President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s morning press conference on the progress Mexico has made supporting LGBT rights, and on all the work left to be done. A lot has happened since […]