Teen with lesbian moms forced to listen to anti-LGBTQ “sermons” before school basketball practice
In a lawsuit filed earlier this month, two mothers in Tennessee allege that their son’s middle school basketball coach forced kids to attend his sermons in order to stay on the team. The lawsuit, filed by the mothers who identified themselves only as “K.K.” and “K.K.,” says that their son signed up for the school’s […]
Malaysian LGBT podcast hosts on being queer in a conservative society
“One episode that stands out to this day involved an interview with a person who participated in chemsex,” the Malaysian podcast host known as J says when asked about memorable moments from the Kunyit Squared podcast, which has now lasted for two seasons. “Hearing about their experiences was profound. It solidified my belief that while […]
Global LGBT organizations mobilize in face of pandemic
Global LGBT organizations are responding to the impact of the coronavirus as they work to protect some of the most vulnerable queer people. There have been 19,753 deaths around the world reported from coronavirus as of March 25, according to Worldometer. There have been 440,359 cases of people infected with the virus around the world. […]
Trump Cabinet’s Bible teacher says gays cause ‘God’s wrath’ in COVID-19 blog post
In a blog post titled “Is God Judging America Today?” a pastor who leads a weekly bible study group for members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet appeared to blame the coronavirus pandemic on several groups, including those who have “a proclivity toward lesbianism and homosexuality.” America “is experiencing the consequential wrath of God,” the Rev. […]
India’s ‘invisible’ trans community struggles as coronavirus shuts life down
India’s coronavirus lockdown leaves transgender people at heightened risk of poverty and ill health because they exist on the margins of society, eking out a living through sex work and begging, activists and community members said on Tuesday. The warning came as Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown in the country of […]
This mum is raging because kids in coronavirus isolation are displaying rainbows in their windows
Children’s drawings and paintings of rainbows have been springing up in windows across the UK after a heartwarming trend started online. Hundreds of schools encouraged their pupils to join in and “spread hope” to those unable to leave home during the pandemic, and the trend was spread further on social media with the hashtags #FromMyWindow […]
Mogadishu’s refugees ‘waiting for death’ as Covid-19 reaches Somalia
In the Nabadoon camp on the outskirts of Mogadishu, Asho Abdullahi Hassan, a 40-year-old mother of seven, has heard about the coronavirus on the radio. “I am very scared about this deadly virus. I only heard about it from the news. It is like we are waiting for death to come,” she says. The camp […]
Petition urges repeal of restrictions on gay donors amid blood shortage
LGBTQ advocates are calling on the U.S. government to allow gay and bisexual men to give lifesaving blood without restriction to address donation shortages amid the global outbreak of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Last week, the nationwide nonprofit GLAAD launched a petition claiming the current policy set in place by the Food […]
This lesbian artist faces six years jail for creating innocent pictures
A lesbian artist has spent months under house arrest and is facing fines and six years jail, just for publishing innocent images in Russia. Yulja Tsvetkova faces three separate trials. Under the first, Russia has charged her with ‘pornography’, with a penalty of up to six years in prison. Moreover, she also faces two trials […]
In são paulo, the cultural center is re-opened
A little more than a year after it was created as the Cultural Itaim, it will be re-opened by the mayor of Sao Paulo on Friday, the 29 with the new name of Centre for Cultural Diversity (CCD). Today, the museum works in a small space with exhibits in the Republic of the U-Bahn station. […]
Five Ways COVID-19 Impacts Global LGBTQ Advocacy
COVID-19 continues to disrupt everyday work life for a growing majority of Americans. As an advocate for global LGBTQ equality, that disruption feels even more acute, with the rapid spread of the virus to 159 countries and the ever-evolving restrictions on international travel and in-country movement. While connecting with people around the world today has […]
Andorra set to become latest nation to legalize gay marriage
Andorra, one of Europe’s smallest countries, is set to legalize gay marriage, highlighting that eastern European countries with anti-LGBT laws are “on the wrong side of history”, leading human rights specialists said on Monday. A bill presented by the ruling coalition of Andorra, a nation of 80,000 people on the border of France and Spain, […]
LGBT+ homeless fear violence, illness as coronavirus shuts U.S. shelters
The coronavirus is causing the closure of homeless centers across the United States, putting LGBT+ people without housing at increased risk of suicide, health complications or hate crimes, according to homelessness experts. Homeless centers said they have been forced to shut their doors in order to follow safety precautions over social distancing as enforced by […]
These South Korean women went abroad to get married. Then one spoke out at home, and the backlash began.
Kim Kyu-jin doesn’t describe herself as an activist. That’s a label that tends to scare people in South Korea’s conformist society. She sees herself as just a working woman who wanted to get married to the person she loves. Same-sex marriage is not recognized in South Korea, so Kim and her fiancee flew to New […]
AS PEOPLE SOCIALLY DISTANCE, AN EMOTIONAL SUPPORT APP SEES A BOOST IN LISTENERS
Adam Lippin is the founder of a peer emotional support app called HearMe. Lippin was inspired to create this app because of his own experience dealing with addiction and loneliness. He remembers growing up in New York as a gay man during the AIDS crisis and watching his peers “become so lonely.” Reflecting now, he […]
‘Unresolved grief’: coronavirus presents eerie parallels for many Aids advocates
Because of the coronavirus, the 7 million people who live in the San Francisco Bay Area have been one step shy of a full lockdown since Tuesday. Amid all the canceled plans, cratering small businesses and disruptions to everyday life, another poignant postponement stands out: The Names Project Aids Memorial Quilt’s return to Golden Gate […]
Pride in London has been postponed until further notice due to coronavirus
Pride in London has been postponed until further notice due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. Organisers announced the decision in a statement released today (March 23) in which they said the health and safety of the LGBT+ community was their “top priority”. The event, which was due to take place on June 27, typically […]
Ryan Murphy donates medical supplies left over from Pose to coronavirus effort
Ryan Murphy has donated medical supplies used during filming for Pose to a hospital treating coronavirus victims in the US. The screenwriter, 54, shared a photo of medical supplies used during hospital scenes in the third season of his FX series, about New York’s LGBT ballroom scene in the 1980s. Murphy – the screenwriter behind […]
Gay YouTuber takes aim at Indonesia’s ‘sexual deviant’ bill
An Indonesian YouTube star, whose videos about being gay and living with HIV have generated millions of views, is hoping his popular channel will help fight moves by lawmakers to clamp down on the country’s beleaguered LGBT+ community. In recent years, there has been a rise in anti-LGBT+ sentiment in the Southeast Asian nation, where […]
Do you need to take PrEP every day if you’re self-isolating because of coronavirus?
If coronavirus-related self-isolation means you won’t be getting any for a while, the advice is that it’s safe to alter your PrEP routine. Here’s how. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, government advice in the UK and many other countries is to practice social distancing for the foreseeable future. One of the side-effects of this is that […]
Scotland’s plans to reform gender-recognition laws could be ‘kicked into the long grass’ because of coronavirus
Scotland could put plans to reform gender recognition laws on hold because of the coronavirus crisis, according to The National. The reforms, which have been in the works since 2017, would make it simpler for transgender people to update the gender on their birth certificate in Scotland. A public consultation on the draft bill containing […]
Global Methodist conference in Minneapolis to address LGBT inclusion is postponed
A historic meeting of the global United Methodist Church — one in which its future position on LGBT clergy and marriage was expected to be determined — has been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Minneapolis Convention Center was going to be the epicenter of the debate, with up to 7,000 visitors from across […]
Egypt’s Denial of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
The Egyptian government is refusing to recognize the existence of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, flouting its responsibility to protect the rights of everyone. On March 12, during its third Universal Periodic Review (UPR), where members of the United Nations Human Rights Council weigh in on countries’ human rights records, Egypt rejected recommendations […]
How a 27-year-old queer Indian brought drag to their city
Patruni Sastry is a 27-year-old, gender-fluid drag performer from the south of India. And they have a surprising story to tell about bringing drag to the city of Hyderabad. They have been able to overcome initial nervousness and prejudice. And by doing so, they have played a key role in establishing a drag scene in […]
Over 140 LGBTQ couples marry in mass wedding in Mexico City
Ana Scarlett Vargas was assigned male at birth, but she said she knew she was a girl at just 7 years old. At 13, she started performing in drag shows, impersonating the Mexican actress Laura Leon, in the tourist city of Acapulco where she was raised. During one performance, she was shocked to find her […]
‘A weight off my shoulders’: Argentina’s first openly gay basketball star on coming out
Traveling Argentina and the world as a professional basketball player, Sebastian Vega was living his childhood dream. But carrying a secret deep within was a nightmare. “When I started to feel attracted to a man, I had a very bad time,” Vega recalled recently on the phone from his home in the southern city of […]
Rural, gay Americans have more children
For more than a decade, America’s most prominent gay family have lived on abc. Gay and lesbian television characters were once such a rare sight that glaad, an advocacy group, began an annual count, as if it were tracking an endangered species. Now millions tune in to “Modern Family” to see how Cam and Mitch […]
‘It’s not safe for them’: Coronavirus lockdowns putting LGBT+ people at risk across Middle East
Coronavirus-induced isolation and lockdowns are putting LGBT+ people in the Middle East at risk, campaigners have warned. Many individuals are – or, due to money worries, fear becoming – trapped with family members hostile to their sexuality or gender, LGBT+ groups say, with government measures to combat the pandemic compromising access to private or safe […]
VIRAL VIGILANTES ARE TURNING YOUTUBE AND TIKTOK INTO A WEAPON
The video begins with an accidental, amateurish lens flare against the window of a car, before the teen’s phone camera settles on a supposedly 35-year-old man who has clearly been caught off guard. His face is clearly visible. “What you doing, bro?” the cameraman asks, leading a group of at least five other teens. “You […]
White nationalist groups surge as they move online
A new report on hate groups in the United States detailed an increase in the number of white nationalist groups even as the overall number of hate groups declined slightly in 2019. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) report, titled, Year in Hate and Extremism, documents 155 active white nationalist hate groups, a 55 percent […]