He fills seat left vacant by Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam who was found dead in April. Justice Paul Feinman made history today by becoming the first openly gay judge on New York’s highest court. Feinman was nominated by Governor Andrew Cuomo to serve on the Court of Appeals and was confirmed by the state’s Republican-led Senate,
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Governing coalition is divided on the issue and the lower house’s legal affairs committee has repeatedly deferred an official vote. Germany’s highest court has rejected an opposition party’s attempt to force a parliamentary vote on same-same marriage. The country has recognised civil partnerships for same-sex couples since 2001. While other countries have taken the next
On 20th June, 2017 the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia’s ‘anti-propaganda’ legislation is in breach with human rights. The federal law was adopted in 2013 and bans the “promotion” or “propaganda” of homosexuality, bisexuality and transgenderism. The Court found that the law breaches the right to freedom of expression (Article 10) and the
In November, she’ll face off against a Republican who has put forward numerous anti-LGBTI bills. Danica Roem may be the first openly transgender woman elected in Virginia. The 32-year-old journalist, stepmom, and heavy metal band member won the primary election for the Virginia House of Delegates District 13 on Tuesday 13 June. She is one
The road to approving same-sex marriage in the Faroe Islands has finally been completed. The islands have become the final Nordic country to legalise marriage equality. The archipelago known as the Faroe Islands, which is self-governing, voted to make it legal for same-sex couples to marry last year. However the legislation required a change in
Bringing together NGOs and official partners to tackle hate crime against LGBT persons – this is the aim of the transnational project Come Forward, implemented in 10 European countries by a group of 22 organizations. It is the largest international action focused on countering anti–LGBT hate crime to date. The project website has just been
In April and May, 2017 two Lithuanian transgender men successfully defended their right to legal gender recognition. On 7th April, 2017 the Vilnius City District Court obliged the Vilnius Civil Registry to change personal identification documents by applicant M.V. with the view of obtaining legal gender recognition without undergoing the compulsory gender reassignment surgery. On
Serbia has appointed its first ever LGBT prime minister. Openly lesbian politician Ana Brnabic was formally nominatedby President Aleksandar Vučić. Last year, Brnabic became the first gay cabinet minister when Vučić appointed her to be Minister for Public Administration. Now Vučić, leader of the right-wing Serbian Progressive Party, has effectively made her prime minister of
Many exciting events will take place during the festival, according to the organizers of the Baltic Pride 2017 festival in Tallinn (Estonia). The festival will commence on 6 July, in cinema Artis. Everybody is welcome to join for speeches, the opening of the exhibition ‘Who is this Wo/Man’, and the screening of Becoming Ann-Christine, a
On 15th June, 2017 the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania voted down a proposal by liberal MPs to amend the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania, aiming to recognize the legal status of both different-sex and same-sex couples. 29 members of the Lithuanian Parliament voted in favor of the proposal, 59 voted against,
Marija Aušrinė Pavilionienė and Dalia Kuodytė, former members of the Parliament of Republic of Lithuania, were honored with the Rainbow Days 2017 Awards. During the event at the local LGBT* community center, the representatives of the National LGBT* rights organization LGL presented the Rainbow Days 2017 Award for contributions to the LGBT* human rights movement
Children from grade 1 will learn that it is ok to be gay. The Cambodian government is planning to introduce a new school course to teach students about LGBTI issues, sexuality and gender. Called ‘Life Skills’ the course will be taught from grades 1 to 12, and coursework will be introduced from grade 5. The