Asexual Perspective: When Violence is as Invisible as Orientation

Delving into the issue of domestic and dating violence against lesbians, bisexual women and transwomen, we have decided to talk to a member of the Lithuanian LGBT* community, whose orientation falls under the so called “asterisk” of the community. The orientation we are speaking about is asexuality. Since some members of the Lithuanian LGBT* community

Two men arrested in Morocco after video of their kiss goes viral

Two Moroccan men have been arrested after a video of them kissing caused outrage online.     The strong reaction to the video – which quickly went viral – led to authorities to arrest the men on Friday (January 7). The video – which shows two unidentified silhouettes kissing inside a classroom – was filmed in the

On January 8th, 2016 the National LGBT* rights organization LGL visited the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman’s Office of the Republic of Lithuania to host a training “Protection against Discrimination on the Grounds of Gender Identity and Gender Expression: Luxury or Necessity?” for the Office’s lawyers and staff. During the training in the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman’s Office

Pope Francis explains his phrase ‘who am I to judge?’

In 2013, Pope Francis made waves when in a press conference he said ‘who am I to judge’  when asked how he deals with LGBTI people. In the upcoming book The Name of God is Mercy, the pontiff offers a fuller explanation of his comment. ‘On that occasion I said this: If a person is gay

Chilean officials oppose intersex children ‘normalization’ surgery

The Chilean government has urged doctors in the South American country to no longer perform surgeries that “normalize” the sex of intersex children. Undersecretary of Health Jaime Burrows and Undersecretary of Assistance Networks Gisela Alarcón in a document the Chilean Ministry of Health released last week expressed its opposition to “unnecessary ‘normalization’ treatments of intersex

There are still 8 US states that ban discussion of gay issues in school

While same-sex marriage is now legal in all 50 US states there ares still some remaining anti-LGBTI laws functioning at a state level in the United States and the worst of these may be so-called ‘No Promo Homo’ state laws that ban discussion of LGBTI issues in public schools. Alabama, Arizona, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma,

Washington state quietly adopts pro-trans policy on bathroom use

Washington state has enacted a pro-trans policy on bathroom use, officials announced this week. Under the new rules, quietly adopted by the state human rights commission on 26 December, all buildings open to the public – including schools – must allow people to use restrooms, showers and locker rooms corresponding with their gender identity. ‘Transgender

China’s first marriage equality case accepted by court

China’s first marriage equality has been accepted by a court in Hunan province. Sun Wenlin, 26, sued a civil affairs bureau in Changsha last month for rejecting his marriage application – in what has been hailed as the first gay marriage case in the communist country. Sun received notification from Furong district court that his

Twitter will now ban accounts that tweet homophobic abuse

Twitter will now be banning accounts that tweet abuse or threats that use homophobic or transphobic language.   The social media giant has opened up and clarified the sort of ‘hateful conduct’ that will now prompt accounts to be deleted. ‘As always, we embrace and encourage diverse opinions and beliefs, but we will continue to

UK MP: All passports, driving licenses should be ‘degendered’

All passports and driving licenses should be ‘degendered’ to avoid causing problems for transgender people, a senior Conservative politician has said. Maria Miller, chair of the newly formed women and equalities committee, said ‘male’ and ‘female’ tick-boxes should also be removed from official documents and job applications unless absolutely necessary. ‘As a society and a

India politician launches petition to end anti-gay law

An Indian politician has launched a Change.org petition to end his country’s anti-gay law. Shashi Tharoor, an MP for the opposition Indian National Congress party, introduced a private members bill to repeal the statute that criminalizes gay sex earlier this month. But the lower house of India’s parliament voted 71-24 against it. ‘The Indian government is reluctant

The European Parliament voted its annual report on human rights in the world. The report takes account of the situation of human rights, including of LGBTI people, and makes recommendations accordingly. The report starts off by stating that “in order to maintain credibility and consistency in its external human rights policy”, the EU and its