Tag Archives: LGBTQ rights

Haaretz reports: Likud Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu said in private talks on Friday that “There will be no harm to pride parades nor to the status-quo on LGBTQ rights,” following statements made by lawmakers from the Religious Zionism slate that they intend to work to cancel pride parades around the country. Sources in Likud said Thursday the party intends to cancel …

The New York Times reports: Russia’s Parliament is set to pass a legislative package that would ban all “gay propaganda,” signaling an even more difficult period ahead for a stigmatized segment of society. The laws would prohibit representation of L.G.B.T.Q. relationships in any media — streaming services, social platforms, books, music, posters, billboards and films — and, activists fear, in …

The Associated Press reports: Serious, standing upright and dressed in long gala dresses – despite the midday Cuban heat – Lisset and Liusba quietly walk up the ten steps of the notary office, their hands clenched and shaking. Less than a few feet ahead walk their two young daughters. Nearly an hour later, when they walked out of the doors, …

The Military Times reports: Same-sex spouses who were in long-term relationships with a veteran but were not legally able to marry before 2015 may now qualify for survivor benefits under a policy change announced by the Department of Veterans Affairs. The change applies to survivors who — because of bans before a Supreme Court ruling that year making gay marriage …

Via press release: GLAAD, the world’s largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization, is releasing two urgent new ads about the stakes for LGBTQ Americans in the upcoming midterm elections, including the threat to marriage equality, to urge LGBTQ people and allies to vote. GLAAD created the 30-second spot “Marriage Threat” in collaboration with Family Equality. The ads premiere October 12th with …

The Gainesville Sun reports: In his first visit to campus as the sole finalist to be University of Florida president, U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse faced questions Monday on his conservative political positions — along with a protest that disrupted a question-and-answer session and ended with him speeding off in a police vehicle. UF announced last week that a presidential search …

Variety reports: Popular stand-up comic Judy Tenuta, known to her fans as “The Love Goddess” and “Aphrodite of the Accordion,” died of ovarian cancer on Thursday afternoon in Los Angeles. She was 72. Known for her acerbic humor, expletive-laden jokes, raspy voice and accordion, she was among the performers who fueled the popularity of live comedy in clubs, including the …

Changing America reports: Senators that don’t support the Respect for Marriage Act or are undecided on the bill could find themselves in a tough spot come November, with voters in key battleground states more likely to support candidates that have backed the measure to codify same-sex and interracial marriage. Majorities of voters in nine states – Alaska, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, …

Reuters reports: The LGBT community has “very real fears” after a conservative bloc dominated by the far-right won Italy’s general election, a leading gay rights campaigner told Reuters. The nationalist Brothers of Italy group, led by Giorgia Meloni, emerged as the largest party in the ballot and will lead the most right-wing government in Rome since World War Two. Meloni, …

The BBC reports: Cuba has voted to legalise same-sex marriage in a national referendum. About two-thirds of the population voted to approve reforms in a new Family Code, which will also allow surrogate pregnancies and give gay couples the right to adopt children. It marks a big moment for Cuba, which saw gay people persecuted and sent to work camps …

Reuters reports: Cubans will cast ballots this Sunday on whether to approve a new ‘family code’ that would legalize gay marriage and boost women’s rights, with the government urging citizens to vote “yes” despite anger over the worst economic crisis in decades. The Communist-run government – long the vanguard of Latin America’s left – has in the last week flooded …

The Associated Press reports: FIFA came under pressure Wednesday from several European soccer federations who want their captains to wear an armband with a rainbow heart design during World Cup games in Qatar to campaign against discrimination. France and Germany, the last two World Cup champions, were among eight of the 13 European soccer teams going to Qatar who joined …

CNN reports: The Supreme Court in a 5-4 vote declined on Wednesday a request from Yeshiva University to block a lower court order that requires the New York university to recognize a “Pride Alliance” LGBTQ student club. In an unsigned order, the Supreme Court noted that the New York state courts had yet to issue a final order in the …

Politico reports: The leaders of Agenda PAC, who shared their plans first with POLITICO, said they are forming in large part because Roe v. Wade was overturned and Justice Clarence Thomas said in a concurring opinion that the Supreme Court should “reconsider” its ruling on same-sex marriage. “Thomas’ concurring opinion on Dobbs really changed everything,” said Agenda PAC board chair …

Reuters reports: A Caribbean regional court has ruled that a Saint Kitts and Nevis prohibition on gay sex is unconstitutional because it violates the right to privacy, striking down one of a handful of bans on same-sex intercourse that still exist in the region. The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court ruled against two portions of the Offences Against the Person Act, …

The BBC reports: Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has said September’s EuroPride parade in Belgrade will not go ahead. Mr Vucic’s announcement comes after thousands of people marched in protest against the event earlier this month. The president said he was not happy with the decision, but that Serbia had to concentrate on other issues, including trouble in Kosovo. The parade …

Human Rights Watch reports: Vietnam’s Health Ministry officially confirmed that same-sex attraction and being transgender are not mental health conditions, Human Rights Watch said today. The decision brings Vietnam’s health policy in line with global health and human rights standards. Vietnam’s new directive states that “the American Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization (WHO) have confirmed that homosexuality is …

CNN reports: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has opened the door to legalizing same-sex civil partnerships in the country, in response to a petition that called for equal marriage to be introduced in the war-ravaged nation. In a written reply online, Zelensky explained that it would be impossible to legalize same-sex marriages while the country remained at war, because it would …

Changing America reports: The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), one of the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ rights groups, is suing the Tennessee Department of Education and its commissioner over the enforcement of a state law barring transgender students from using school facilities like restrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity. The lawsuit filed Thursday in federal court alleges that the …

Reuters reports: The European Commission decided on Friday to sue Hungary over an anti-LGBT law and its refusal to renew the license of Klubradio, a broadcaster critical of the government, in the latest clash over values that risks damaging the European Union’s cohesion. The two lawsuits add to a long list of increasingly bitter standoffs between Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister …