Not My Fault That I Was Born Gay, 20-YO Wrote In Emotional Note Before Committing Suicide
Despite the Supreme Court of India scrapping Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalised gay sex in September 2018, the society has largely remained the same, when it comes to treating people from the LGBTQ community. They are still looked down and scorned by a large section of the society, while some parents […]
Georgian Opposition Demonstrators Confronted By Antigay, Pro-Russian Protesters
Demonstrators demanding the resignation of Georgian Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia have been confronted by antigay and pro-Russian activists on the 20th day of protests in Tbilisi. The rival demonstrators spent the night on Tbilisi’s Rustaveli Avenue on July 8-9. Dozens of antigay activists gathered near the parliament to protest against an LGBT-pride parade that was […]
Polish bishops accuse Ikea of ‘LGBT indoctrination’
Polish bishops on Saturday denounced Swedish furniture giant Ikea for what they called “LGBT indoctrination” after an employee was sacked for refusing to take down a homophobic comment he posted on the firm’s internal website. “From the point of view of the law and above all of propriety and common sense, it is unacceptable to […]
PCUP initiates programs for LGBT community in Davao City
The Presidential Commission for Urban Poor (PCUP) has initiated livelihood programs for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) community. Most recently, 30 members of an LGBT community group were provided with the three-day training for Sustainable Livelihood Program from the DSWD in Davao City through the initiatives of the PCUP. The PCUP provided assistance to […]
Delhi HC dismisses plea seeking rules for LGBT marriage
The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking directions to the government to frame family laws for LGBT relationships and form a committee to look into these issues. A division bench presided by Chief Justice D.N. Patel and Justice C. Harishankar turned down the plea filed by Tajinder Singh after […]
Georgian LGBT community calls off Tbilisi action due to threats
An action planned by the Georgian LGBT community near the Interior Ministry’s building in Tbilisi on Monday has been called off, Tbilisi Pride co-leader Giorgi Tabagari told the press. “We will not hold our action near the Interior Ministry’s building due to threats to members of our organization,” Tabagari said. “Yet we will not cancel […]
IKEA SUED BY WORKER FIRED FOR POSTING ANTI-GAY BIBLE QUOTES
Ikea is being sued by a former employee who claims he was fired for refusing to take down anti-gay comments from the company’s intranet. On May 16, International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, the Swedish furniture maker posted an article on its internal website, underscoring support for the LGBT community. The post also encouraged employees […]
‘A Space Where You Could Be Free’: Puerto Rico’s L.G.B.T. Groups Rebuild After a Hurricane
Puerto Ricans mourned so many losses after Hurricane Maria that the closing of a beloved tiki bar in San Juan might have seemed of little consequence, another casualty of the battered post-storm economy. But the bar — El Escondite, or the Hideaway — was not just a place for a strong screwdriver cocktail. It was […]
Male, female…other?’ Japan form-makers consider possible LGBT discrimination in their terminology
The term “sexual minority” in Japanese refers to anyone who falls under the LGBT+ umbrella, and while lesbian and gay people have been fighting hard for equality as of late there is still a long, long way to go. Transgender individuals in Japan face an especially high risk of discrimination, regardless of the gender they […]
Cologne celebrates Germany’s largest LGBT+ pride parade
Hundreds of thousands of members of the LGBT+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community and their allies flocked to Cologne on Sunday to take part in one of Europe’s largest pride parades. The attendance for this year’s Christopher Street Day parade, which marks the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York, is expected […]
Should white members of the LGBT+ community be allowed to attend UK Black Pride?
This weekend, as part of one of the most anticipated celebrations of the summer, thousands of people have made the trek to the capital for Pride. But the parade didn’t end yesterday. Today, UK Black Pride, one of the most significant Pride events in the country, will be held in Hackney’s Haggerston Park for the […]
Madrid Gay Pride parade dedicated to LGBT+ pioneers
Thousands turned out on the streets of Madrid Saturday for a Gay Pride parade dedicated this year to pioneers of the LGBT+ cause, amid growing fears of fresh repression with the rise of the far-right in Europe. Several thousand people converged on the Spanish capital’s main Atocha train station for the start of the march. […]
South Korea lags behind Taiwan on LGBT rights
Taiwan’s recent same-sex marriage legalization may indicate a global trend towards greater LGBT tolerance, especially among developed democracies. South Korea, however, remains an outlier in this trend in spite of its vibrant democracy. Pro-LGBT organizations in South Korea were unable to register as charities as of 2015. The South Korean Court has only granted LGBT […]
Costa Rica education minister resigns under Evangelical fire for LGBTQ policy
Costa Rica’s education minister Edgar Mora resigned on Monday following protests against policies including his support for gender-neutral bathrooms, in a sign the cultural issues that dominated last year’s presidential election remain divisive. Protesters included members of the Pentecostal Christian-aligned opposition party, as well as transportation and education groups. They criticized Mora on multiple fronts, […]
Cambodia: Government urged to draft LGBT laws
Government officials and members of the LGBT community met on Thursday to discuss the drafting or revision of laws and policies in order to facilitate their rights. The meeting was held during a dialogue on “Legal and Public Policies to Protect LGBTIQ People in Cambodia”, held in Phnom Penh. Ly Pisey, coordinator of Rainbow Community […]
Four LGBT Syrian refugees arrive in UK in time for Pride
Four newly arrived LGBT Syrian refugees will be able to openly express their sexual identity when they join the Pride celebrations in central London on Saturday. They arrived in London on Thursday after waiting for more than two years to be airlifted to safety. Their situation was resolved after the Guardian highlighted the plight of […]
Botswana seeks to overturn ruling that legalized gay sex
Botswana’s government will appeal a high court ruling that decriminalized homosexuality, potentially resuscitating a law that punished gay sex by up to seven years in prison. Last month’s landmark court ruling, which was praised by international organizations and activists, meant Botswana joined a handful of African countries that have legalized same-sex relationships. But Attorney General […]
High heels run defies gravity, homophobia in Madrid
Dozens of men and a few women in stiletto heels raced through the center of the Spanish capital on Thursday, defying gravity, the heat and attempts by the far-right party Vox to curtail their Gay Pride celebrations this year. The race in Chueca, a gay-friendly neighborhood in central Madrid, draws competitors from abroad and is […]
Taiwan’s marriage law brings frustration and hope for LGBT China
It was a landmark moment for LGBT rights. When Taiwan passed a law allowing same-sex couples to marry, crowds in Taipei erupted into cheers, chanting: “First in Asia”. For those watching from across the Taiwan strait in China, where gay couples do not have that right, the moment was heartening but also profoundly sad. Matthew, […]
UK government defends failing to pass equal marriage in Northern Ireland
The UK’s capital is about to host its biggest Pride weekend tomorrow (6 July), but same-sex couples do not have the right to marry in Northern Ireland. The government revealed its progress on their LGBT Action Plan, a 75-point plan, yesterday (4 July). Not every same-sex couple has the right to marry in every part […]
Venezuela’s transgender community fears hormone shortages
André Bellorín has fought a long battle for the body that matches his identity. He has been through two operations, a bitter conflict with his mother and an expensive course of hormone treatment in his hometown, Caracas, Venezuela. But now he fears he may lose all the progress he has made. “My beard has stopped […]
UK ordered to return lesbian after wrongly deporting her back to Uganda
The UK is ordered to return a gay woman after wrongly deporting her to Uganda. The 25-year-old, who was deported five years ago, was told she could return in a landmark court ruling. Some suggest this could open the door to thousands of similar challenges, according to the Independent. The lesbian, who arrived in 2011 […]
Jamaica could see its first trans Member of Parliament
A 29-year-old activist in Jamaica is vying to become the first openly trans Member of Parliament (MP) to sit in the country’s House of Representatives. Rich Richards has said he will run as an independent candidate in the Saint Andrew Eastern Constituency in the next general election, due in 2021. In a country where tolerance […]
Is lesbian kiss in Crimean play ‘gay propaganda’?
A play in Crimea has created a stir on Russian social media after a video clip emerged of a scene which featured women kissing. The production was staged by the Gogol School theatre lab during the Tavrida Festival, an annual art event organised by Russian state youth agency Rosmolodyozh. Reaction has been mixed, with some […]
Japan grants refugee status for homophobic persecution for first time ever
Japan has granted asylum to an LGBT+ refugee on the grounds of homophobic persecution in their home country for the first time. Details including the refugee’s home country and gender have been withheld for protection. Japanese site Asahi reported: “According to the Immigration Control Agency, the applicant was arrested by police in his home country […]
The nations where it’s still criminal to be gay (as India marks an awkward anniversary)
Tuesday marks 10 years since India decriminalised gay sex, but it’s unlikely the milestone will be celebrated. That’s because the 2009 lower court ruling was short-lived; overturned within a few years by the nation’s Supreme Court. Their 2012 judgment effectively re-established the British colonial-era law Section 377, which saw gay sex punished by up to […]
New York Pride: Bumper crowds attend LGBT march
Around 150,000 people took part in the march, 50 years on from the Stonewall riots, with many more watching. The riots, after a police raid on the Stonewall Inn, helped to energise the fight for gay equality. This year’s march started outside the inn. It was billed as the biggest Pride march in history. LGBT […]
LGBTI Asia: From Myanmar tragedy to Pakistan progress
Homophobic bullying in Myanmar. Rainbow socks in Singapore. A first for trans people in Pakistan. This is a brief roundup of LGBTI news from countries that have anti-gay laws or are recovering from them. A Myanmar librarian died by suicide after homophobic bullying. Bullied librarian posted heartbreaking note before dying by suicide. Myanmar university investigates […]
More than 200 companies tell Supreme Court to apply job discrimination laws to sexual orientation, gender identity
More than 200 companies urged the Supreme Court on Tuesday to apply the nation’s job discrimination laws to sexual orientation and gender identity. In three major civil rights cases the justices will hear when they return to the bench in October, the companies – which together employ more than 7 million workers and have more […]
First Gay Parade in North Macedonia
A rainbow of colors filled the streets of Skopje on Saturday when North Macedonia held its first gay parade. Demonstrators in the largely conservative Balkan region have called for the cessation of discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people (LGBT). Hundreds joined a march with whistles, a huge flag with rainbow colors and posters. […]