2025 LGBTQ rights update: African activists resist growing repression

North Africa

Morocco: Morocco has been under a long-term project to revise its legal system, and this year published reforms to the code of criminal procedure that ought to at least make the justice system more fair and limit pre-trial detention. Then again, we’ve also heard reports this year of continued crackdowns on queer people for pro-LGBT expression on the internet. [See “Coalition demands release of Morocco LGBT activist after 100 days in prison” (November 2025)]

Morocco also intends to revise its penal code, and some campaigners have been pushing to delete its sodomy and extramarital sex provisions when that happens, but no progress was made this year. I think the likelihood Morocco actually deletes its sodomy law is very slim.

Meanwhile, in October, the UN Security Council backed Morocco’s plan to resolve the dispute over the Western Sahara/Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which would make it autonomous under Moroccan rule. The UN called on both sides to negotiate an actual settlement, but this seems like a big step toward eliminating an entire country from the map (which would decrease by one the number of states that criminalize homosexuality).

Tunisia: Multiple mass arrests of queer people were reported this year. [For example, “Tunisia steps up anti-LGBTI crackdown with wave of arrests” (February 2025), “Queer people suffer double punishment in Tunisian prisons” (June 2025), “Tunisia and Malaysia arrest dozens of queer people in escalating crackdowns” (July 2025), and “More than 70 arrested in Tunisia’s anti-LGBT crackdown” (November 2025).]

Chad: The government launched a commission on reinstating the death penalty, which was abolished in 2020.

West Africa

Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger: These three states run by military juntas following coups over the past half-decade took steps to deepen their integration into the Alliance of Sahel States (yes, the ASS), which is something between a supranational organization and a proto-state in its own right. They all withdrew from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and they announced their intention to withdraw from the International Criminal Court. The states are motivated in part by antipathy to France and the West, Islamic faith, and support for and from Russia, all of which is exemplified in their pursuit of anti-LGBT policies.

Mali criminalized gay sex and promoting homosexuality in 2024, and Burkina Faso followed up in 2025. Niger has promised to enact a similar law but has not done so yet. Notably, as former French colonies, none previously had a sodomy law on the books.

Burkina Faso is also considering reinstating the death penalty as it overhauls its penal code, which ought to be a worrying sign. The new code also includes a crime of “promotion of homosexual practices and similar acts.”

Niger held a national conference that voted to extend the junta’s rule by five years and also to oppose any effort to legalize same-sex marriage.

Worryingly, some other neighbors, Chad and Togo (which both criminalize gay sex) have publicly mused about joined the ASS and have even taken some steps to integrate with them.

Of course, if the ASS ever does replace these three to five states, it would at least reduce the number of criminalizing states on the chart.

Ghana: A draconian anti-LGBTQ bill modelled after Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act was reintroduced to parliament after a previous version lapsed without the president’s signature before the end of the term. This one is sponsored by a group of opposition MPs, but the government has said it intends to introduce its own version at some point. The current president has strongly suggested he will sign it.

Ghana also ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

The Trump administration used Ghana and Togo as places to deport asylum seekers, including at least one who was seeking asylum due to his sexual orientation.

The constitution review committee proposed an amendment to specifically bar the use of the death penalty. Ghana abolished the penalty in 2023 for ordinary crimes only, and the repeal was not retroactive, so those on death row still face execution.

Liberia: The government undertook a review of its laws for gender discriminatory effects – particularly around marriage, citizenship, rape, and children’s rights – but the review did not take sexual orientation or gender identity into account. I haven’t heard of further action being taken on this file.

The government intervened in the United Methodist Church over its support of same-sex marriage, including a senate investigation and even police detention. The local church has made clear its opposition to same-sex marriage.

A lawmaker was removed from a session of parliament after he disruptively attempted to introduce an anti-LGBT bill that would have imposed criminal penalties on same-sex marriage. Watch out for this to come back.

Nigeria: In a climate of regular violence against queer people, the governor of Kano state submitted a bill to the legislature to criminalize same-sex marriage. It’s already criminalized federally.

The senate was also considering a bill to expand the use of the death penalty.

Senegal: The government forced the UN and the Dutch embassy to cancel a planned film screening and discussion of LGBT issues. [Dozens of LGBTI Senegalese were arrested in police crackdowns as 2025 drew to a close.]

Cameroon: Erasing 76 Crimes reported on numerous cases of men being jailed for homosexuality. The government also accused the country’s most prominent human rights lawyer of money laundering and terrorism.

Gabon: A constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, passed in 2024, took effect in 2025.

Eastern Africa

Kenya: In August, the high court directed the government to protect transgender peoples’ rights, including recognition of their chosen gender and dignified treatment in government custody. The court ordered the government enact a specific Transgender Protection Rights Act or add amendments to that effect to the Intersex Persons Act.

Meanwhile, an MP vowed to bring forward a bill to criminalize LGBTQ advocacy, but he hasn’t done so yet. Parliament was also considering a bill to abolish the death penalty.

Uganda: The World Bank has ended its suspension of lending to Uganda, which was imposed in 2023 after the passage of the Anti-Homosexuality Act. The Bank now claims it has put in place mitigation measures to ensure its funds won’t be used to discriminate, which, frankly doesn’t make a lot of sense.

Erasing 76 Crimes filed multiple reports on attacks and human rights violations against queer Ugandans during 2025

Tanzania: The government has announced it is moving forward with toughening existing criminal laws banning same-sex intercourse to further ban same-sex relationships and marriages, but I haven’t actually seen legislation come forward yet.

Rwanda: Parliament passed a new health care law that specifically excludes same-sex couples from accessing surrogacy and assisted reproduction.

Mauritius: The UK and Mauritius finalized and published a treaty on the handover of the British Indian Ocean Territory, with the UK maintaining sovereignty over the military base on Diego Garcia. While the treaty hasn’t yet been ratified, once it does the BIOT will cease to exist as a separate jurisdiction where same-sex marriage is legal – unless the UK recreates it in some form to cover Diego Garcia only.

Comoros: Joined the Biological Weapons Convention.

Eritrea: Ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Southern Africa

Botswana: A lesbian couple filed a constitutional challenge seeking the right to marry, saying the current ban violates various sections of the constitution guaranteeing the right to equality. The high court struck down Botswana’s sodomy law in 2019, in part after finding that the constitutional prohibition on sex discrimination included sexual orientation discrimination, a decision that was upheld by the court of appeal in 2021.

Namibia: We’re still waiting on a ruling from the supreme court on the government’s appeal of 2024’s lower court decision decriminalizing sodomy.

The former president officially vetoed a bill that aimed to criminalize same-sex marriage and LGBT advocacy before leaving office (he signed a different bill late in 2024 that banned same-sex marriage, however). His successor – the country’s first female president – says she’ll fight for equality for everyone but has avoided saying anything about LGBT people. Meanwhile, Equal Namibia was seeking couples who want to challenge the country’s ban on same-sex marriage.

South Africa: The government continued to work on a unified marriage act which will combine several marriage laws for different religious communities and the same-sex Civil Union Act into a single law. It has not yet cleared parliament.

Eswatini: The leading LGBT advocacy group Eswatini Sexual and Gender Minorities went back to court to challenge the government’s decision to deny them a company registration. The supreme court had ordered the government to reconsider their application back in 2023, but the minister’s decision remained the same.

Malawi: The Minister of Justice said the country is committed to abolishing the death penalty, having already completed public consultations, but no bill has been brought forward yet.

Zambia: The constitutional court dismissed a challenge to the country’s sodomy laws, ruling that the court lacked jurisdiction as the challenge needed to be filed before the country’s high court first. The Zambia Civil Liberties Union says they will refile the case.

Zimbabwe: In July, the government launched a legal reform process to recognize the rights of intersex people. We’ll see what comes of this.

The ruling party’s national conference also vowed to intensify and enforce laws banning homosexuality in late 2024, though no new legislation has been put forward.

January 7, 2026 0

2025 LGBTQ rights update: Many bright spots in Asia amid the gloom

East and Southeast Asia

Japan: The long slow march to eventual same-sex marriage continued in Japan in 2025, with resolution still looking a year or more away. Three more high courts ruled on the constitutionality of the same-sex marriage ban. Those in Nagoya and Osaka found the ban unconstitutional, but a Tokyo high court ruled it constitutional. Together with three other courts that found the ban unconstitutional, that creates a circuit split that will have to be resolved by the supreme court, where a case has already been filed.

A further case has also been filed to the supreme court by a transgender woman who is seeking to have her legal gender changed without ending her marriage to her wife. Lower courts in Kyoto and Osaka ruled against her this year.

In what’s perhaps a bad sign for all this, the supreme court ruled against a married binational same-sex couple who were seeking a residence visa for the non-Japanese partner.

But that hasn’t stopped other progress on relationship recognition. Following last year’s supreme court ruling that same-sex partners should be entitled to surviving family benefits for victims of crime, the government announced in January that dozens of laws that applied to common-law couples would now apply to same-sex couples. These included domestic violence laws, leases and rents, and disaster support, but excluded over 120 laws such as social security and pensions. And the government proposed an assisted reproduction bill that specifically excludes same-sex couples and bans surrogacy.

And Okinawa prefecture enacted a same-sex partnership registry in 2025, while Nagasaki has announced plans to introduce one in 2026. That’ll bring the total to 32/47 prefectures and more than 500 municipalities representing more than 90% of the population.

Japan elected its first female prime minister this year, and she’s a conservative hardliner who has expressed strong opposition to same-sex marriage, so the odds of legislative advancements look slim for the next few years.

China: The government’s attitude toward the LGBTQ community turned icy again this year, with a deepening crackdown on queer expression, including ordering the removal of gay networking apps from app stores, censorship of foreign films to remove queer characters, and arrests of gay erotica writers.

In Hong Kong, the government failed to meet a court-imposed deadline to enact a civil partnership bill, after the legislature voted down the government’s very weak bill in September by a 71-14 margin. It’s unclear what couples can do from here.

Earlier in the year, a Hong Kong court ruled that banning trans people from using gender appropriate toilets was unconstitutional.

Taiwan: The government introduced bills that would open assisted reproduction to single women and same-sex couples, although it does not include surrogacy, which it says will be considered later.

A lawsuit was filed challenging the surgery requirement to change legal gender.

Taiwan was supposed to host WorldPride this year, but it withdrew back in 2022 when WorldPride ordered that it should not use the name “Taiwan” in the event name. The event was instead held in Washington, DC.

South Korea: A life partnership bill was proposed but has not advanced at all in the legislature. Meanwhile, two couples filed a case at the supreme court seeking same-sex marriage rights. And the government announced it would count same-sex couples as “spouses” in its next census.

The newly appointed minister for gender equality said she would make passing a long-stalled anti-discrimination bill, with protections for LGBT people, a priority. So far, no news on that front.

Thailand: Last year’s same-sex marriage and adoption law came into effect in January 2025, making Thailand the first place in southeast Asia to legalize it. Still, married couples continue to face legal discrimination when it comes to accessing surrogacy and residency permits for binational couples.

But a promised gender recognition law never materialized.

Vietnam: The government cracked down on some gay events this year, following a change in leadership of the Communist Party. Talk of expanding LGBT rights and possible same-sex marriage is likely dead for a while.

A long-stalled gender affirmation bill did not advance in 2025.

The government reduced the number of crimes that are eligible for the death penalty from 18 to 10, which it is explicitly pitching as a step toward abolition.

Indonesia: Multiple raids took plays on gay events and gay bars, in what looks like a deepening crackdown on queer people. A bill was also introduced that would ban LGBTQ behavior online.

Indonesia’s new criminal code moves the death penalty from the primary form of punishment to an alternative punishment, which is a baby step toward abolition.

Malaysia: You guessed it, crackdowns on gay events here, too.

Kelantan state amended its shariah-based criminal code to remove sections on sodomy, which the constitutional court said were redundant considering it’s already covered under federal law.

One bright spot – the government is beginning a study in the new year on full abolition of the death penalty. It took a step toward this in 2023 by abolishing mandatory death penalties from its criminal code.

Singapore: Parliament passed a workplace discrimination law that specifically excludes protections for LGBTQ people.

The high court dismissed an appeal seeking abolition of mandatory death penalties from the criminal code, but plaintiffs have said they will appeal.

Philippines: The supreme court ruled that homosexuality was grounds for annulment of a marriage.

Aklan province passed a non-discrimination ordinance.

Timor-Leste: The country joined the ASEAN bloc, and also the Southeast Asian Nuclear Weapons Free Zone.

Central and South Asia

Kazakhstan: The nation enacted a Russia-inspired “LGBT propaganda” law, which includes punishments of a fine and ten days in prison.

Krygyzstan: The government attempted to reintroduce the death penalty for sex crimes involving children this year – which seems to me like a common pretext for a witch hunt against queer people. Fortunately, the president submitted the proposed constitutional amendments to the constitutional court, which ruled that they were unconstitutional, as the current constitution explicitly prohibits reintroducing the death penalty, and doing so would violate Kyrgyzstan’s obligations under international treaties it has signed.

Kyrgyzstan also signed, but has not ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Afghanistan: In July, the International Criminal Court issued warrants for two Taliban leaders for their alleged crimes against women, girls, and the LGBTQ community – the first time the ICC has sought warrants for crimes against LGBTQ people.

Pakistan: The government introduced a bill to eliminate the death penalty for two crimes, part of an association agreement with the European Union.

India: The central government took steps to ensure equality for same-sex couples under a number of laws and programs – though it still opposes same-sex marriage. The government was ordered to review all laws and promote equality when the supreme court shot down a marriage case in 2023. The court also considered and refused a petition to revisit that decision this year. Still, lots of other laws are being challenged in the courts by queer couples, including a domestic violence law which is phrased such that it only applies to husband-and-wife pairs, and equal income tax treatment.

Also this year, the court directed the government to review how it is implementing rights for trans people and to review sex education to ensure it is inclusive. A separate case was filed at the supreme court seeking distinct legal recognition for intersex people, as apart from transgender people. The high court of Andra Pradesh state ruled that transgender women are women under domestic violence law. The Kerala high court ruled that the state must issue a birth certificate to a child of a trans person that identifies its parents as “parents,” not “mother and father.” A judge in Madras ruled that same-sex couples have a right to a family life together, and cannot be forcibly separated by disapproving parents.

Karnataka state passed a hate crime and hate speech law that includes protections for LGBT people, and issued new regulations banning anti-LGBTQ discrimination in child protection services. Tamil Nadu state has made LGBTQ sensitivity training mandatory for all doctors.

Bangladesh: I must’ve edited a dozen or more stories about violent attacks on queer people in Bangladesh at 76crimes.com this year.

Bhutan: The government issued a set of film regulations that includes a prohibition on incitement to hatred or violence based on sexual orientation or gender.

Nepal: We still haven’t gotten a final decision from the supreme court on same-sex marriage, but the leading LGBT organization has counted 17 same-sex couples who’ve gotten married in the country since the 2023 ruling legalized it. Nevertheless, Wikipedia editors continue to claim that Nepal is not a same-sex marriage country.

The first gender-affirming surgery was performed in the country in June, and it is now considered available there.

Sri Lanka: There has been no progress on a bill to decriminalize gay sex – and the local Catholic bishop is whipping up conspiracy-based opposition to it. Last year, the island passed a Women Empowerment Act that included a prohibition on discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Middle East

Israel: Well, at least the war in Gaza has mostly cooled down this year, although it’s clear that the suffering continues and it looks like we’ve just reached a pause in hostilities rather than a cessation.

On LGBT issues, Israel registered its first adoption by a same-sex couple in January. Same-sex adoption had been legal on paper for years, but in practice, the administration threw up so many roadblocks, it couldn’t happen until a supreme court ruling last year ordered the government to stop putting same-sex couples at the back of the adoption queue.

The opposition brought a bill to create civil (secular) marriage (including same-sex marriage) and a couples registry to a vote in the Knesset last week, but despite getting some cross-party support, it failed to pass.

Israel is expected to go to vote on a new Knesset by October 2026, and polling is currently very tight between the government and opposition blocs, but ten months is a long time in Israeli politics. While we can all hope that Netanyahu and his allies are given a thumping defeat next year – anything would be better than this government’s record on Palestinian and LGBTQ rights – the opposition may not be able to deliver same-sex marriage, as its current leading figure has stated his opposition to it in the past.

Lebanon: The state ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Oman: The country ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, effective Feb 2026. This is a pretty major development, as international jurisprudence holds that the ICCPR requires decriminalization of sodomy.

January 5, 2026 0

2025 LGBTQ rights update: Progress and backsliding in Latin America and Caribbean

Central America

Costa Rica: The constitutional court recognized the right of same-sex couples to share maternity leave, just like heterosexual couples can.

The government has proposed a gender recognition bill, but the state Social Security Fund rejected a part of it that would require it to cover sex reassignment surgery. It’s still being debated.

The ministry of education announced it was eliminating sex education and policies around homophobic bullying in schools, and also eliminating the position of LGBTI commissioner.

Honduras: The country emerged as another locus of far-right drift after US President Trump intervened in the presidential election to declare his preferred candidate. The close election still hasn’t declared a winner nearly a month later. Whoever is ultimately declared winner will be further to the right of outgoing president Xiomara Castro, who had vocally supported LGBTQ rights (though didn’t accomplish much in the face of a hostile congress).

El Salvador: The country’s dictator has gotten cozy with Trump, hosting the CECOT detention and torture center where America is deporting its undesirable migrants.

Caribbean

St. Lucia: The biggest positive development in the region was the court ruling that decriminalized gay sex in Saint Lucia. This court case was part of a coordinated strategy by Caribbean LGBTQ activists who filed simultaneous cases in five states challenging their sodomy laws, and this was the fourth positive ruling. Unlike other rulings in this series, the court did not find that the constitution specifically bars sexual orientation discrimination. We’re still waiting on a ruling from Grenada, which could come any day now. Or a year from now. Look, the court operates on Caribbean time.

An unrelated sodomy case in St. Vincent and the Grenadines failed in 2024, and I have not heard anything about an appeal. And another unrelated case…

Trinidad & Tobago: And the shock negative development of 2025. In March, the court of appeal overturned a 2018 ruling that decriminalized sodomy in the country. Caribbean time is Caribbean time, but overturning a seven-year-old decision is crazy. The case is now headed to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London for a final ruling, and it’s really unclear how it’ll rule.

The case turns on the “savings clause” in the constitution, which insulates pre-independence laws from court scrutiny, and whether it applies. The plaintiff said it didn’t apply, since the legislature had repealed the pre-independence sodomy law with a stronger one in 1986 and 2000. The court found that the savings clause applied, but reverted the law to the pre-independence version, which sounds like pure legislating from the bench to me!

The Privy Council has been pretty strongly in favor of upholding savings clauses in the recent past, but this one is quite a pretzel. They ought to also be bound by international treaty obligations (of both the UK and Trinidad) to decriminalize sodomy. In all likelihood, we won’t see a ruling until 2027 or later, fully a decade after the original case was filed.

Cuba: The National Assembly passed a law allowing gender change by self-identification, and also recognized common-law marriage for the first time.

Dominican Republic: The biggest news was that the Constitutional Court struck down laws that criminalized police officers and military personnel who have gay sex. The ruling also clearly established for the first time that the Dominican constitution bans discrimination based on sexual orientation, both in government services and in employment. It’s likely that over time this will become a foundational ruling to assert further LGBTQ rights in the country.

This is also fortunate, because congress also passed a new penal code this year over the objections of civil society groups, because it failed to include prohibitions on discrimination and hate crimes, and didn’t decriminalize abortion.

The court ruling also prompted me to do a bit of a Wikipedia dive updating entries on LGBTQ rights in numerous Caribbean countries, to clarify or update that they no longer bar gay servicemembers in their laws.

Dutch Territories: Sint Maarten is the last Netherlands territory where same-sex marriage is not yet legal, after the constitutional court made it legal in Aruba and Curacao last year. It seems like all it will take is a court challenge to bring equal marriage to Sint Maarten, but I don’t believe one has been filed yet.

UK Territories: Gays scored a surprise win in Turks and Caicos Islands, where a binational couple won a court of appeal ruling that the government must recognize overseas same-sex marriages for the purposes of immigration. The court explicitly did not rule on whether same-sex marriage must be legalized or recognized – the constitution specifically restricts it.

In the Cayman Islands, the UK Privy Council upheld the territory’s civil partnership law, which was imposed by the governor in 2020 after a similar bill failed in the legislature by one vote.

A long-threatened referendum on banning same-sex marriage in the UK Virgin Islands’ constitution failed to materialize. The territory is in the process of overhauling its constitution, and it may eventually emerge as part of a reform package.

None of Britain’s Caribbean territories recognize same-sex marriage.

South America

Argentina: The country’s far-right drift continued with the encouragement of the US President. In February, President Javier Milei banned gender care for minors by decree, but the federal court overturned the ban two months later. Legislators have since proposed an omnibus anti-trans bill, which we should watch out for in 2026.

Earlier this month, the government introduced a bill that would stiffen penalties for anti-LGBT hate crimes as part of a broader crime reform bill.

Brazil: The superior court of justice ruled in favor of a nonbinary person who wished to have their gender recorded as such in the civil registry. The decision was limited to the individual plaintiff, but ought to form a precedent for future cases. Brazil already allows a X marker on passports.

The supreme court also invalidated local laws that banned discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in schools, and ruled that a domestic violence law that was originally drafted to only apply to women in heterosexual couples also applies to same-sex couples and trans women.

Meanwhile, the federal council of medicine issued a regulation banning gender-affirming care for minors, but simultaneously lowering the minimum age for genital surgery from 25 to 21. The regulation is being appealed.

Congress is also very slowly debating a bill that would finally codify same-sex marriage and adoption into federal law, following the supreme court ruling on the issue way back in 2013. Look for this to come to a vote in late 2026/27.

Chile: Another country that’s fallen to the extreme right-wing regional drift following presidential elections last month.

But before that happened, outgoing President Boric signed a new adoption law that finally ends discrimination against same-sex couples and couples in civil unions in adoptions. Previously, married heterosexual couples were given priority in adoptions.

Congress defunded the Gender Identity Support Program over the objections of the President Boric. It’ll continue for now under the Ministry of Health, but is a likely target of incoming President Kast, whose objections to LGBTQ rights are well documented. The constitutional court ruled in favor of the mother of a 10-year-old trans girl who wanted to update her daughter’s legal identity, although the law only allows that after age 14. The ruling was limited to the specific case.

Colombia: Congress failed again to pass a conversion therapy ban, though a new bill is pending.

Guyana: LGBTQ issues became a surprise issue in national elections this year, with nearly all parties pledging to repeal the country’s sodomy law. Reelected President Ali pledged to work with the local queer advocacy group on repealing the law and improving laws for the community, though same-sex marriage appears off the table for now. One to watch in 2026.

Guyana has become an incredibly rich nation basically overnight due to the new exploitation of off-shore oil fields, which has led to an influx of visitors, investors, and tourism, which may be helping drive some of this – not to mention the string of successful court challenges to sodomy laws in the near Caribbean. But that attention also came with a threat of annexation by neighboring Venezuela earlier in the year, though that appears to have subsided amidst ongoing threats of a US invasion of that country.

Peru: Bills seeking civil unions or same-sex marriage failed to advance in congress in 2025, but an administrative court for the first time recognized a same-sex marriage for the purposes of dividing property. About eleven cases are pending in courts across the country seeking same-sex marriage or recognition of foreign marriages.

Congress passed a bill that eliminates the concept of “gender” from law and replaces it with biological sex only. The law also eliminates the goal of “gender equality” and replaces it with “equity” and “equality of opportunity.” The law has been roundly condemned by the international community as retrograde and endangering the rights of women and girls.

Congress was also working on a bill to ban trans women from public bathrooms.

Suriname: In February, a review panel overturned a 2023 ruling by the constitutional court and ordered the government to record two same-sex couples who’d married overseas into the civil registry, essentially requiring recognition of same-sex marriage. The ruling also ordered the government to amend legislation to allow it, although a new civil code that came into effect in May specifically bans same-sex marriage. For now, the ruling only applies to the two couples, but others can sue for the right to be registered as well. The decision can still be appealed, but I haven’t seen any news on it since.

January 3, 2026 0

NYC to distribute $2 million in emergency funding to organizations serving transgender people

The new challenges obtaining SNAP benefits for LGBTQ+ recipients

Kazakhstan bans so-called LGBTQ+ propaganda

LGBTQI+ refugees seeking asylum in Canada

Canada has a proud history of providing protection to and helping resettle those most in need. That includes those in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and additional sexually and gender diverse (LGBTQI+) community.

Read more about the asylum program on Canada’s official website.

December 29, 2025 0

Aetna to Cover IVF Treatments for Same-Sex Couples After $2M National Settlement

California Policy on Disclosing Student Gender Identity Blocked by Judge

Why It Matters

The ruling stems from a 2023 lawsuit filed by Escondido Unified School District teachers Elizabeth Mirabelli and Lori Ann West, who challenged a district policy requiring staff to keep a student’s gender identity confidential from parents. The pair, represented by the Thomas More Society, a religious liberty law firm, argued that the rule forced them to violate their faith and the trust of parents.

The ruling directly conflicts with California’s Safety Act (AB 1955), signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2024, which banned schools from disclosing students’ gender identity or pronouns to parents without the students’ consent.

What To Know

In a 40-page opinion, Benitez said the rules “place a communication barrier between parents and teachers” and “harm the child who needs parental guidance.” He added that such policies deprive parents of their 14th Amendment right to direct the care and upbringing of their children and infringe upon teachers’ First Amendment rights.

“Parental involvement is essential to the healthy maturation of schoolchildren,” Benitez wrote, according to Courthouse News Service. “California’s public school system parental exclusion policies place a communication barrier between parents and teachers… That, this court will not do.”

Benitez’s ruling also issued a permanent injunction, blocking school districts from reinstating similar “gender secrecy” policies. He acknowledged the state’s intent to protect LGBTQ youth from possible abuse or rejection at home but concluded that the policy was overly broad and not narrowly tailored to that goal.

“When the state drops an elephant in the middle of its classrooms,” he wrote, “it is not a defense to say that the elephants are too heavy to move.”

In his order, Benitez framed the issue as a constitutional matter rather than a cultural one.

“Historically, school teachers informed parents of physical injuries or questions about a student’s health and well-being,” he wrote. “But for something as significant as a student’s expressed change of gender, California public school parents end up left in the dark.”

The decision intensifies a legal and political struggle over how schools handle issues of gender identity. Supporters of the Safety Act cited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data showing that about 25 percent of transgender youth attempted suicide in 2023, underscoring the risks of forced disclosure. LGBTQ groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union and Equality California, have argued that involuntary outing can lead to family rejection, homelessness or self-harm.

Conservative lawmakers and parental rights groups have opposed such secrecy policies. Tech executive Elon Musk also criticized California’s gender identity disclosure law, saying it was among the reasons he decided to move the headquarters of SpaceX and X (formerly Twitter) from California to Texas.

What People Are Saying

Elizabeth Mirabelli and Lori West, in a joint statement shared on Monday: “We are profoundly grateful for today’s ruling. This has been a long and difficult journey, and we are humbled by the support we’ve received along the way. We want to extend our deepest thanks to Thomas More Society and to everyone who stood by us, prayed for us, and encouraged us from the very beginning.”

California State Senator Scott Wiener, on X days before the ruling: “I’ve passed some of the strongest protections for trans people in the country—from safeguarding gender-affirming care to protecting youth and families fleeing hostile states. As the federal government ramps up its attacks, I will always stand between trans people and harm.”

What Happens Next

The California Attorney General’s Office has not said whether it will appeal the ruling to the Ninth Circuit. For now, the court’s decision halts enforcement of policies that restrict teachers from sharing students’ gender information with parents across California’s public schools.

December 25, 2025 0

Malaysia’s LGBTQ Community Lives In Fear As Raids Drive Them Underground

‘Shells of people’

Police later released the men who were rounded up in Kuala Lumpur, saying they had found no evidence of exploitation, coercion or “abnormal sexual activity”. Muslim detainees remained under investigation by Islamic authorities, however.

In Penang, the spa owner was fined 8,000 ringgit (US$1,960) after pleading guilty to owning obscene material and exposing others to HIV. Several other men were charged with offences ranging from gross indecency to possessing pornography.

For the community, the raids came as a shock. “People are now more afraid to go out,” Erina said. “Honestly, we’re not asking for special treatment … we’re asking to live without fear.”

Community groups rallied in support of the detainees. Members of Jejaka – a network supporting gay and bisexual men in Malaysia – gathered outside the police station in Kuala Lumpur where the men were being held, joined by volunteers, lawyers and family members calling for their release. They also pooled resources to provide legal aid, food and temporary housing.

In a statement, the group condemned the raids, arguing that the law used to justify them was “a relic of colonial morality” wielded to “target, stigmatise and endanger LGBTQ communities”.

“People are hiding,” said Pang Khee Teik, co-founder of LGBTQ organisation Seksualiti Merdeka (Sexuality Independence). Discriminatory laws had reduced members of the community to “shells” of people who “are navigating life with constant vigilance”, he said.

“It’s very sad to see that this is what we have done to our fellow Malaysians in the name of protecting ‘morality’.”

Amir*, a gay man in his twenties, remembers the brief sense of liberation he felt dancing in a club before what he called “the infamous raid”.

“It felt empowering,” he told This Week in Asia. “For a moment, I forgot I was in Malaysia. That’s how free it felt.”

Now, such gatherings are invite-only, with locations shared selectively through personal networks, often at the last minute. Amir says he has stopped going after the raids.

“This is Malaysia,” he said. “Hatred towards the LGBTQ community isn’t just normalised, it’s encouraged.”

Upholding morality

Authorities insist enforcement actions are necessary to uphold public morality. Days after the raids, members of the Malay nationalist group Pekida gathered outside one spa, plastering stickers and planting banners describing the venues as “immoral”.

Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail later said Malaysia might “revisit” certain provisions of its Penal Code, but only in ways consistent with “religious and moral values”.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has ruled out legal recognition of LGBTQ rights during his tenure.

Advocates say the result of the crackdown has been a deepening atmosphere of fear. In June, police raided what NGOs said was an HIV awareness event in Kelantan, calling it a “gay sex party”. Authorities have also cracked down on cultural symbols, seizing rainbow-themed Swatch watches and banning books deemed to “promote” LGBTQ lifestyles.

Through it all, Amy keeps walking her route through Chow Kit, never knowing when the next knock on a clinic door might provoke suspicion, or when a familiar face might vanish for weeks.

*Name changed to protect interviewee’s identity

December 22, 2025 0