Victorian MPs vote to allow trans and gender-diverse to change sex recorded on birth certificate
On Tuesday in Victoria, Australia, a new law was passed to allow trans and gender-diverse people to change their recorded sex on their birth cirtificates. Following much heated debate with reservations from independent members of parliament, the Victorian legislative council overwhelmingly voted in favour of the bill, 26 to 14. The centre-right Liberal Party opposed the […]
How will the LGBT issue influence the Polish election?
The LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) issue has been one of the main sources of political controversy in Poland over the summer months, and is potentially one of the most important and consequential since the collapse of communism in 1989. Some commentators have accused the ruling right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party of trying […]
China’s Parliament Says No to Marriage Equality
Barely three months after Taiwan solidified same-sex marriage rights, political leaders in Beijing are shutting down any discussion of extending those rights to the Chinese mainland. Zang Tiewei, a spokesperson for China’s Parliament, told reporters during a recent press conference that Chinese law only allows for marriage between a man and a woman. The discussion […]
Poland’s Populist Government Has Declared War on the LGBTQ Community
There were drag queens and rainbow flags, dancing and chants of “Love everyone.” But the first ever Pride March in the Polish city of Bialystok last month wound up being more of a pogrom than a party. The thousands of onlookers who thronged along the parade route on July 20 weren’t LGBTQ allies, but rather […]
India’s Chand confident of making Olympic cut
Dutee Chand, India’s first openly gay sports star, has fought many battles off the track in recent years but for the next 12 months the sprinter is hoping to focus entirely on her running as she builds towards the Tokyo Olympics. From her battle against the IAAF gender testing rules to coming out as a […]
Shining a light on lesbian experiences in Nigeria
“If you haven’t come out to yourself, it’s difficult to come out to [other] people … At first, it might look like a difficult task, like something that’ll never end or something that’ll keep going on but once you get over it, you’ll see that you have your whole life ahead of you.” Pamela Adie’s […]
An Exploration of LGBTQ Jamaican Identity—and Lots of Food
A giant wall of Chinese takeout boxes was the background to an array of smiling, brown, queer faces — their hands darting to and from trays of tropical fruit and perfectly encrusted coconut shrimp. It was J’ouvert, a special nighttime event by Brooklyn’s Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD) meant to put the spotlight on […]
Kentucky clerk who refused same-sex marriage licenses can be sued
The Kentucky county clerk who in 2015 gained widespread attention for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples may be sued for damages by two of those couples, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday. In a 3-0 decision, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati said Kim Davis can be sued […]
Israeli Arabs indicted for attempted honor killing of gay teen
Three Israeli Arab men from northern Israel were indicted in Tel Aviv Sunday in connection with the stabbing of a gay teenager in Tel Aviv last month, in what was an apparent attempted honor killing. Last month, a 16-year-old Israeli Arab boy was stabbed and seriously wounded just outside of the Beit Dror gay youth […]
Meet Kerala, India’s First “Married” Gay Couple
A gay couple in India is getting mass attention for their love. And now, the couple are being referred to as the first “married” gay couple in the state of Kerala. On July 4, 2018, Businessman Nikesh Usha Pushkaran and tech expert Sonu MS, who met on a dating app, held a secret ring exchange […]
Transgender Refugee Fears Death for Being Deported to Syria
Alarming stories of terror and heartbreak continue to surface amid Turkey’s ruthless campaign to deport thousands of refugees back to Syria’s Idlib province, which faces a deadly daily bombardment of airstrikes by Russian and regime forces. Among them is the uncertain fate of a transgender woman deported from Istanbul despite living there legally with the […]
How children became the target in a rightwing culture war over gender
Evie is like many 14-year-old girls. After school she likes to hang out with her friends, or go home and watch Netflix. She says she would like to focus on her studies, but almost every day she has to fill out bullying reports. At the age of nine she transitioned, saying she always knew she […]
‘Queer Olympix’ Banned In Istanbul
Authorities in Istanbul have banned the “Queer Olympix”, organisers said Saturday, becoming the latest pro-LGBT event to be cancelled in Turkey. Some 130 participants were to compete in the third annual Queer Olympix this weekend in sports including football, beach volleyball and long jump, volunteer organiser Elif Kaya said. However when they went to start […]
Weekend of Celebration for LGBT Community in Saint Lucia
This weekend is a big one for the LGBTQI community in Saint Lucia. Starting Saturday, August 24, 2019, the group will host a knowledge and health fair in the William Peter Boulevard, an event supported by other civic-minded groups like United and Strong, the Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality, the advocacy group Raise […]
WORLD Australians ‘overwhelmingly’ believe religious groups should not have the right to discriminate against LGBT people
The Galaxy/YouGov poll, commissioned by PFLAG Australia, showed that 63 percent of people in Australia disagreed with religious discrimination against groups like unmarried mothers or people who are divorced, as well as the LGBT+ population, according to Q News. When same-sex marriage was legalised in Australia in 2017, conservatives in the country called for “religious […]
Sheffield’s LGBT-only halls were called a ghetto – but a year on, they’re thriving
A year ago, the University of Sheffield made headlines when we became the first UK university to launch LGBT-only flats in our accommodation. Much of the coverage was based on untruths and exaggeration, conjuring images of huge rainbow-clad buildings where all gay students were forced to stay. The reality was far less dramatic: 32 students […]
‘It’s not legal’: UN stands by as Turkey deports vulnerable Syrians
When summer began, Ward’s* biggest worry was her sick boyfriend. A Syrian with a gentle voice, and all her identity documents in order, Ward thought she could convince doctors in Istanbul, where she lived, to see her boyfriend, another refugee, without papers. Instead, the hospital alerted the police, who came and arrested them both. Days […]
All Out: The campaign against homophobia in Poland
A global LGBT+ rights group, All Out, has launched a campaign in Poland in response to the recent wave of attacks against the country’s LGBT+ community. Mathias Wasik, the director of programmes at All Out, told Emerging Europe that the organisation has been working in Poland since 2016, crowdfunding a campaign to fund shelters for […]
Bosnian party asks activists to cancel Gay Pride march
A Bosnian political party on Friday urged LGBT activists to scrap plans for Sarajevo’s first ever pride parade next month, warning it could “escalate” political tensions and trigger “negative consequences”. The centre-right “Narod i Pravda” party, which is part of the ruling coalition in the Sarajevo canton, said it feared the parade would “deteriorate the […]
‘I-95’ serial killer who murdered six gay men in 1994 executed in Florida
Serial killer Gary Ray Bowles also known as the “I-95” killer was pronounced dead on Thursday, August 22 at age 57, after receiving a lethal injection, according to the Florida Department of Corrections. The execution came after the US Supreme Court rejected a last-ditch appeal yesterday from Bowles’ legal team, who argued that he was not […]
Lesbian PM Or Not, Serbia Blocks Gays’ Path To Parenthood
When the gay partner of Serbia’s prime minister gave birth to a son in February, reportedly via artificial insemination, it was seen by LGBT rights activists everywhere as a historic milestone. Not only was Ana Brnabic one of the world’s first openly gay heads of government. She became the first prime minister to have a […]
New school transgender rules fire debate in Portugal
New rules on gender identity at schools are causing a stir in Portugal, where some parents are expressing alarm that transgender children will be able to choose which bathroom they use. Right-of-center opposition politicians chided the center-left Socialist government for the rules on Thursday, with some disproving lawmakers asking the Constitutional Court to intervene. An […]
US fundamentalists deliver homophobic leaflets across Birmingham
A US Christian fundamentalist group have been dropping ‘homophobic and transphobic’ leaflets into homes across Birmingham. Singer Janique James, 23, was shocked to receive the Tradition, Family, Property Association pamphlet entitled ‘Gender Theory or 2st Century Totalitarianism?’. Inside it advertises a book to be used as a ‘tool against gender theory’ and says activists are […]
‘Hunted for my sexuality’: How social media is fuelling homophobic attacks in Mali
The film is grainy but the viewer can make out shadows looming over a woman cowering in fear. Men are shouting, hitting and demanding that their victim admits she is gay. A few neighbours walk past. They carry on as if nothing is happening. The woman struggles to regain her balance, arms protecting her head […]
Duterte expressed full support for LGBTQ community in Palace meet Monday
President Rodrigo Duterte has expressed his full support to the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer/questioning) community, neophyte Senator Christopher Lawrence ‘’Bong’’ T. Go said on Tuesday. Go, a former Special Assistant to the President (SAP), said President Duterte expressed this support when he met LGBTQ advocates in a meeting at Malacanang that he […]
Palestinian Authority Bans Activities by Gay Rights Group
A Palestinian gay and transgender rights group vowed on Monday to continue its activities after the Palestinian Authority police barred the group from holding events in the West Bank and threatened to arrest participants. The Palestinian Authority police, who exercise control in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, announced the ban over the weekend. A […]
American-Georgian lawyer seeks prosecution of anti-gay hate leader
The bullying of Georgia’s gay community has at times taken on a medieval air: A local “knight” and his loyal legion of thugs have for years sought to smite any attempt by LGBTQ Georgians to gather publicly in Tbilisi. Now, a U.S. lawyer-turned-Georgian citizen is bringing the struggle into the realm of contemporary law. Theodore […]
How American Evangelicals Helped Stop Same-Sex Marriage in Cuba
Earlier this year, Cuban psychologist Dachelys Valdés Moreno and her American-born wife, Hope, welcomed their baby boy into the world. Although they live in Havana, they opted to give birth—as well as, nine months earlier, undergo the process of IVF—in the U.S. They couldn’t do it at home: The Cuban government still doesn’t recognize same-sex […]
Four teenagers deny harassing two women in a homophobic attack on London bus
Four teenagers have denied harassing two women in a homophobic attack on a night bus in London. Melania Geymonat, 28, and her partner Chris Hannigan were on the bus in Camden, North London on 30 May when they were allegedly targeted by a group of four teenagers, Two 17-year-olds, a 16-year-old and a 15-year-old allegedly. Once the […]
Trump administration says transgender workers aren’t protected by civil rights
President Trump’s administration has told the Supreme Court that transgender workers are not protected by federal civil rights law and can be fired because of their gender. The US government is arguing workers should only be protected from discrimination based on their “biological sex”. A Supreme Court ruling in favour of the administration’s position would set a legal […]