LGBTQIA+ - The African Mirror

Apr

15

2021

LGBT persecution on the rise in Cameroon, Human Rights Watch says

LGBT+

CAMEROON security forces have arrested, threatened or assaulted at least 24 people since February in a ramped-up crackdown on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT+) people, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said yesterday. The rights group said recent documented accounts of abuse, including that of a 17-year old boy, point to an overall rise of police action against LGBT+ people in Cameroon, where same-sex relations are criminalised. Cameroon authorities did not respond to Reuters requests for comments. HRW said it shared its report with Cameroon's justice, and defence ministries, and the head of police. It received no response to a March…

Mar

26

2021

By The African Mirror

FACTBOX-Transgender politicians and government officials around the world

LGBT+

RACHEL SAVAGE RACHEL Levine made history this week as the first openly transgender person confirmed in a top government job by the U.S. Senate, with senators voting 52-48 to approve her appointment as assistant health secretary in Joe Biden's administration. A professor of paediatrics and psychiatry at Penn State College of Medicine, Levine led Pennsylvania's response to coronavirus pandemic as the state's top health official. As LGBT+ rights become more accepted, gay and trans politicians have gained greater prominence in recent years around the world - with Pauline Ngarmpring becoming Thailand's first trans candidate for prime minister last year. Here…

Mar

25

2021

By The African Mirror

U.S. soccer star Rapinoe renews call for gender pay equity in House testimony

LGBT+

AMY TENNERY U.S. women's national soccer team star Megan Rapinoe renewed her call for gender pay equity on Wednesday, appearing before a congressional panel and pledging to "carry this torch" alongside her teammates. Rapinoe told the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, the World Cup winners had exceeded the accomplishments of their male counterparts but received inadequate compensation and playing conditions, two years after she and her teammates filed a landmark gender discrimination lawsuit against U.S. Soccer. U.S. Soccer did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It argued in 2019 that the women's team had been compensated more…

Mar

24

2021

By The African Mirror

LGBT+ refugees call on U.N. for safe space after Kenya camp attacks

LGBT+

NITA BHALLA LGBT+ people living in a refugee camp in northwestern Kenya urged U.N. officials on Friday to move them to a safer area following a series of homophobic attacks by other residents and locals. The refugees, who come from countries including Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, said a section of the Kakuma camp occupied by 135 LGBT+ refugees had been attacked at least five times since the start of the year. In one incident last month, three gay men needed hospital treatment for burns after attackers set their bedding alight as they slept. LGBT+ refugees have…

Mar

17

2021

By The African Mirror

‘Juno’ actor Elliot Page becomes first trans man to star on Time magazine cover

LGBT+

HUGO GREENHALGH OSCAR-NOMINATED actor Elliot Page will become the first transgender man to star on the front cover of Time when the magazine's latest edition goes on sale on Friday. Page, 34, who was nominated for various awards for Oscar-winning 2007 independent film "Juno" and plays a leading role in the current Netflix hit "The Umbrella Academy", announced he was trans in December. The actor wrote on Instagram at the time that he could not "begin to express how remarkable it feels to finally love who I am enough to pursue my authentic self". Page follows in the footsteps of…

Mar

10

2021

By The African Mirror

Ghana MPs plan law criminalising promotion of LGBT+ rights

LGBT+

NITA BHALLA A group of lawmakers in Ghana want to criminalise the promotion of LGBT+ rights, a move that comes weeks after a community centre for sexual minorities was shut down following strong opposition from politicians and church organisations. Parliamentarian Samuel Nartey George from the opposition National Democratic Congress said he and seven other MPs hoped their private members' bill to ban LGBT+ advocacy would be passed before the parliamentary session ends on March 31. "We owe it to ourselves and the people of Ghana to uphold that which gives us our identity as a people ... May we unite…

Mar

09

2021

By The African Mirror

Anchorwoman: Bangladesh’s first trans newsreader hopes to foster acceptance

LGBT+

NAIMUL KARIM BANGLADESH'S first transgender news anchor hopes her regular appearances on national television will help other trans people gain greater acceptance in a country where they often face discrimination and live in poverty. Tashnuva Anan, a rights activist who previously worked with NGOs supporting transgender people and migrants, read her first daily news bulletin for a private television channel on Monday, International Women's Day. "This could be revolutionary and create a new dimension in people's thinking," said Anan, 29, who received several weeks of intensive training at Boishakhi TV after being selected for the job in auditions. "The biggest…

Mar

02

2021

By The African Mirror

Idris Elba, Naomi Campbell stand up for Ghana LGBT+ community

LGBT+

HUGO GREENHALGH ACTOR Idris Elba and model Naomi Campbell have joined 65 other British celebrities, designers and politicians in calling for Ghana's president to engage with the country's LGBT+ community in an open letter published on social media. A public outcry last week forced the country's first LGBT+ community centre to temporarily close to protect its staff and visitors, just three weeks after it had opened. Church groups, politicians and anti-gay rights organisations have called on the government to shut the centre, run by local charity LGBT+ Rights Ghana, and arrest and prosecute those involved. "We see you and we…

Mar

02

2021

By The African Mirror

In Myanmar, LGBT+ people join anti-coup protests with rainbow flags

LGBT+

GROWING up in rural Myanmar, Du Wun shunned the jewellery his mother pressed him to wear and dreaded ceremonies where he had to dress in a traditional htamein, a sarong-like garment for women. Du Wun, a transgender man, was bullied as a teenager and disowned by his parents. He only began to accept his gender identity when he connected with other LGBT+ people - a lifeline he fears is under threat following a Feb. 1 military coup. "I was intimidated and ashamed about my identity," said Du Wun, 26, who decided to quit his job as a teacher in 2016…

Mar

01

2021

By RACHEL SAVAGE and ENRIQUE ANARTE

LGBT+ Pride marches plan comeback as COVID-19 vaccinations gather pace

LGBT+

SOME of Europe's biggest LGBT+ Pride marches are being planned for later this year as mass COVID-19 vaccination drives raise hopes of a post-pandemic return to the streets, organisers have said. In Britain, where the government said a ban on big events would be lifted in June if cases fall sufficiently, Pride organisers in Birmingham, Manchester and London announced plans this week to stage their marches in August and September. Elsewhere, World Pride in Copenhagen hopes half a million people will attend in mid-August. "Nothing can replace that feeling that you get of being among your own people, taking over…