Botswana election results solidify LGBTQ rights in southern Africa
A landslide election victory has set the stage for LGBTQ rights supporter Duma Boko to become the next president of Botswana, where homosexuality was decriminalized in 2019. The election was decided on economic issues, not on LGBTQ rights. In the past, as an attorney, Boko has represented the Botswanan LGBTQ rights group Legabibo in its […]
Georgian ruling party stands firm against LGBT propaganda law
The ruling “Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia” party has reiterated its commitment to maintaining the law prohibiting LGBT propaganda, despite acknowledging that it may hinder the country’s integration into the European Union for several years. Executive Secretary Mamuka Mdinaradze emphasized that the party will not compromise on this stance, stating, “It is better to be […]
Germany brings in landmark law to cut red tape around changing gender
The Self-Determination Act was passed in the German parliament in April. It allows over-18s to change official records to reflect their preferred names and genders without the need for psychiatric assessments or court hearings. Under the legislation, anyone aged between 14 and 18 can ask for the changes to be made at a registry office […]
Global LGBTQ advocacy group suspends Israeli group
An influential global advocacy group for LGBTQ rights has suspended an Israeli member organization as part of a larger move to boycott Israel, angering queer Jews and their allies around the world. The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, known as ILGA World, announced Wednesday that it was no longer considering Tel Aviv as […]
Russia Stirs Up Anti-LGBTQ Prejudice In Moldova ‘Information War’
When two false bomb alerts targeted an LGBTQ festival in Chisinau this month, organiser Angelica Frolov was left scrambling to find an alternative venue at the last minute. Days ahead of key elections in which Moldova’s pro-EU President Maia Sandu hopes to win a second term, Frolov blamed Russia for the false alerts, accusing Moscow […]
JD Vance Roasted After Unbelievable Claim About “Normal Gay Guy Vote”
JD Vance claimed that he and Donald Trump could likely win the votes of “normal” gay men because they “just want to be left the hell alone.” Vance appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience for a three-hour interview released Thursday, discussing everything from Emily in Paris to him standing at his front door for an hour with […]
Marielle Franco’s killers sentenced to 78 and 59 years in jail
A Brazilian court on Thursday sentenced the two killers of iconic Black LGBTQ activist and councilwoman Marielle Franco to 78 and 59 years in jail, respectively, after a two-day trial over a crime that shocked the country. Ronnie Lessa and Elcio Queiroz, two former military police officers, had confessed to killing the Rio de Janeiro politician and her driver Anderson […]
Video: Gay Kamala Harris campaign volunteers in Pennsylvania verbally attacked by homophobe
Two gay men canvassing for Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign in rural Pennsylvania were verbally assaulted with homophobic slurs and violent threats on Saturday, an incident captured on video. Jason Bello and Justin Coniaris traveled from Washington, D.C., to Stewartstown, north of the Maryland state line, to volunteer for the campaign.
As homophobic influencers peddle lies and hatred, wave of assaults hits Ivory Coast
Anti-LGBT hatred is surging in the formerly somewhat safe West African nation of Ivory Coast, as this news site reported last month in the article “Ivory Coast: Human rights defenders seek to block wave of anti-LGBT hatred.” The New York Times followed last week with an in-depth article on the dangerous situation.
Brazil Trial Begins Over Murder Of Iconic Activist Franco
Two ex-police officers went on trial in Brazil on Wednesday over the 2018 assassination of charismatic black LGBT activist Marielle Franco, a Rio de Janeiro councilor who was gunned down in an attack that shocked the country. Franco, who grew up in a Rio slum and was an outspoken critic of police brutality and of […]
Uganda’s anti-LGBTQ+ law forces climate activist into exile: ‘I can’t stop now’
Climate activist Nyombi Morris became outspoken about LGBTQ+ rights after his sister was outed as a lesbian and expelled from school. Last year, Uganda passed a new law that imposes up to 20 years in prison for ‘recruitment, promotion and funding’ of same-sex ‘activities’, and life imprisonment or the death penalty for certain same-sex acts. […]
A Brissy LGBT Pub Kicked A Man Out For Wearing A Trump Hat & He Wants An Apology
A man who was kicked out of LGBTQIA+ venue The Wickham because wearing a Donald Trump ‘TRUMP 2024’ hat has asked for an apology. Robert Holt says that there was no “legitimate reason” for them to request he leave the Brisbane pub. Holt was attending an early Halloween event with his family at the beloved […]
A second high court rules that Japan’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional
A second Japanese high court ruled Wednesday that the government’s policy against same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, the latest in a series of decisions upholding plaintiffs’ demands for marriage equality. The Tokyo High Court called the ongoing ban “a groundless legal discrimination based on sexual orientation,” saying it violates the constitutional guarantee of right to equality, […]
England urged to follow Scotland on LGBT education in schools
England has been urged to follow Scotland in introducing an LGBTI action plan, with praise for inclusive education policies. In 2018 the UK Government published a comprehensive LGBT action plan taking in such areas as health, education, safety and the workplace. However, that ended the following year and the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance […]
Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation linked with worse HIV prevention
With more than 500 anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer (LGBTQ+) bills introduced in the United States in 2024 alone, understanding the public health impact of this legislation is essential. A recent study by researchers from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health found a clear association between discriminatory legislation at the state and […]
These LGBTQ+ dads are on a mission to build more queer families
After the birth of their daughter, Pat and Carlos Dolan want to normalize LGBTQ+ families and make the process more affordable.
2.1M Korean Christians attend joint worship service for repentance, resist LGBT ideology
In the afternoon of Reformation Sunday, some 2.1 million Christians gathered for a joint worship service to “unite for repentance, revival and restoration of holiness in our society.” According to organizers, an estimated 1.1 million joined onsite despite the bad weather with another 1 million joining online (although police estimated a lower figure for the […]
Owner of Siberian gay club charged with ‘extremism’ and placed under house arrest
An unnamed 22-year-old woman who owns a gay club that was raided by police in the Siberian city of Chita has been placed under house arrest after being charged with extremism and now faces up to 10 years behind bars, regional media outlet Chita.ru reported on Monday. According to far-right Russian blogger Vladislav Pozdnyakov, police […]
Academic in Bangladesh barred from teaching in response to anti-gay protesters
An assistant professor at Islamic University in Kushtia, Bangladesh, has been barred from teaching classes in response to pro-Islamist students’ protests that he is gay. Protesting students burned an effigy of Asst. Prof. Hafizul Islam at the main gate of the university and demanded his resignation. The LGBTQ rights advocacy group JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France […]
Christians demand Justin Welby’s resignation after gay sex comment
Christians across the United Kingdom are calling for Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby’s resignation following his comments supporting sexual intimacy in same-sex relationships. They argue that his statements represent a fundamental departure from the Church of England’s doctrine on marriage and sexual ethics. Welby stated in a recent podcast interview that sexual intimacy is morally acceptable […]
Germany’s transgender rights law to take effect
Starting Friday, people aged 18 and older will be able to change official records to alter their names and genders or have the gender marker removed altogether, under Germany’s new Self-Determination Act. There is a mandatory three-month wait between applying and making a personal declaration. Yet the requirement for two psychiatric assessments and a court hearing […]
Harris struggles to combat Trump’s anti-trans closing argument
Vice President Harris has struggled to combat former President Trump’s anti-transgender attacks, which are a major part of the Republican’s closing argument. The Trump campaign has flooded the airwaves with advertisements that paint Harris as extreme for her past support for trans-inclusive policies, including a response recorded on an American Civil Liberties Union candidate questionnaire during her 2019 […]
Georgia’s Parliament Enacts Controversial LGBTQ Rights Law Amid Growing Tensions
In a move echoing Russia’s restrictive legislation, the speaker of Georgia’s parliament signed into law a bill that severely limits the rights of LGBTQ individuals, igniting backlash from both human rights advocates and the European Union. This decision came just a day after pro-Western President Salome Zurabishvili, in a standoff with the ruling Georgian Dream party, […]
Denis Leontovich landed a government job in Russia, despite being openly gay. Then online harassment forced him to flee the country.
Twenty-three-year-old Denis Leontovich lived openly as a gay man in Russia. After discovering a passion for environmental education in college, he took a position in youth policy as a regional official in Samara, focusing on social projects. However, in the spring of 2024, he was forced to resign following a social media harassment campaign sparked […]
7 Disabled Intersex People Explain How They Embrace Their Identities
Each year on October 26, we celebrate Intersex Awareness Day. It is estimated that intersex people make up about 1.7% of the global population (about the same as natural redheads). Being intersex means that a person is born with variations in their sex traits and/or reproductive organs, such as their genitalia, chromosomes, hormones, or visible […]
Gay People Are Hunted Down and Beaten in a Country Once a Refuge
Ivory Coast had long been a haven for L.G.B.T.Q. people, even as they faced discrimination or persecution elsewhere in West Africa. But over the past two months, dozens of assaults, beatings and intimidation online and in the streets have shaken that sense of safety. Dozens of gay men and transgender people said in interviews and […]
Alberta legislature sitting to focus on rights bill, transgender policies
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s government is set to start its fall sitting with a focus on bills that the Opposition NDP says are aimed at catering to “fringe” elements of Smith’s United Conservative Party. Some of the proposed legislation would impose restrictions on transgender people and revamp the Alberta Bill of Rights. The sitting begins […]
More than 800 US veterans given honourable discharges after ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ review
The Pentagon has announced that more than 800 veterans who were thrown out of the US military over their sexual orientation will receive honourable discharges. Under a policy known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” that was in effect from 1994 to 2011, thousands of openly gay, lesbian and bisexual service members were separated from the military. […]
LGBTQ+ Georgians say health crisis looms as new laws hit services
BUCHAREST- Georgia could be on the verge of a health crisis if recent legislation targeting the LGBTQ+ community is not rolled back, activists say, adding that they are pinning their hopes for change on this month’s parliamentary election. Two laws passed this year have already curbed LGBTQ+ rights and activists fear that if the ruling Georgian Dream […]
Nobody to each other
When Alexey Bachinsky completed his journalism degree in 2011, he was already well aware that he could never work for Russian state television. Thankfully, at that time independent media still existed in the country, and so he found a position at independent news outlet Grani, before moving to socio-political comment and analysis site Kasparov.ru. A […]