Category Archives: Sexual + Gender Minorities

Sexual + Gender Minorities
Judge strikes down Guam’s law against same-sex marriage, paving the way for couples to be married beginning next week.
  • Because Guam, a U.S. territory, falls under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Chief Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood ruled Guam must follow its 2014 ruling striking down same-sex marriage bans.
  • Governor Eddie Calvo’s defense acknowledged the inevitability of the outcome given the earlier ruling.
  • Plaintiffs Loretta Pangelinan and Kathleen Aguero hope to be able to file for a marriage license next Tuesday, when Chief Judge Tydingo-Gatewood’s ruling is expected to go in effect.

“It’s a battle we shouldn’t have had to fight…I mean, it’s love and love must win, so we’re just grateful.”

More on this story at Pacific Daily News.

(Image Credit: Rick Cruz/Pacific Daily News)

Sexual + Gender Minorities

News

Ugandan LGBT activist remains skeptical of the effectiveness of U.S. sanctions against Uganda for its anti-homosexuality laws.
  • The U.S. imposed sanctions ranging from financial divestment to visa restrictions a year ago.
  • Celebrated activist Pepe Onziema shares that conditions on the ground have changed little: fear still permeates his daily life as the threat of violence follows him wherever he goes.
  • Activists have filed suit against Scott Lively, the American pastor widely viewed as having contributed to the creation of Uganda’s anti-gay laws.

“Le gouvernement est devenu encore plus arrogant à notre égard…Cela signifie que le but recherché par les sanctions n’a pas été atteint, surtout pour la communauté LGBT. Cela a peut-être permis un meilleur dialogue entre les gouvernements, mais pour nous sur le terrain, nous en avons subi les conséquences.”

Translation: “The government has become more arrogant with regard to us…That means that the goal sought by sanctions hasn’t been achieved, above all for the LGBT community.  That has perhaps allowed for a better dialogue between the [U.S. and Ugandan] governments, but for us on the ground, we have suffered the consequences of it.”

More on this story at RFI (in French).

(Image Credit: Mike Coppola/Getty Images for GLAAD/AFP, via RFI)

Sexual + Gender Minorities
Although same-sex marriage is not recognized in Northern Ireland, the Belfast City Council votes in support of changing the law.
  • Councillors vote 38-13 in favor of legalization.
  • Though the vote doesn’t have any legal effects, supporters hope it will help spur the Northern Ireland Assembly to become the last country in the British Isles to legalize the union.
  • Homosexuality was decriminalized in Northern Ireland in 1982, a decade before the Republic of Ireland, where same-sex marriage is now legal.

More on this story at Belfast Telegraph.

Sexual + Gender Minorities
Man assaults transgender woman with plastic bottle before pushing her onto the subway tracks in possible hate crime in New York.
  • Onlookers pulled the woman from the tracks before a train entered the station.
  • The New York Police Department’s Hate Crimes Task Force is searching for a man identified in surveillance video.
  • Homicides against transwomen have been high across the U.S. for the first half of 2015.

More on this story at BuzzFeed.

Sexual + Gender Minorities
Slovak NGOs push for legal partnership recognition for same-sex and unmarried heterosexual couples.
  • Initiative Inakost is coordinating efforts to get “Life Partnership” status recognized by government, bestowing rights and protections upon same-sex and unmarried heterosexual couples.
  • Slovakian Ombudswoman Dubovcová supports the creation of the status.
  • The initative is also pushing for same-sex couple adoption rights.

More on this story at The Slovak Spectator.

Image Source: SME

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Turkey sees its first openly gay candidate run for political office as provincial candidate for the pro-Kurdish, minority-friendly HDP (People’s Democratic Party).  More from PinkNews.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

In advance of Pride Month, President Obama releases statement reflecting on political victories and unfinished LGBT rights work. More from Washington Blade.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Ghanaian doctor charged with having sex with a minor and “unnatural carnal knowledge,” under which homosexual relations fall. More from DailyGuide.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Mozambique’s new penal code which removes “vices against nature” to come in effect in June, effectively de-criminalizing homosexuality. More from PinkNews.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Polish Parliament votes against debating civil partnerships legislation, shelving attempt to formalize same-sex unions. More from Radio Poland.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Ireland’s Equality Minister works to secure LGBT employment anti-discrimination legislation for schools and hospitals before the start of the new school year. More from The Irish Times.