LGBTQIA+ - The African Mirror

Feb

27

2021

LGBT+ Americans inch closer to ‘freedom’ as House passes Equality Act

LGBT+

MATTHEW LAVIETES LGBT+ Americans have moved a step closer to winning legal protection from discrimination as the U.S. House of Representatives passed a key civil rights bill backed by President Joe Biden. By a vote of 224 to 206, the House passed the landmark Equality Act, which amends the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes in addition to race, religion, sex and national origin. The vote closely followed party lines, with only three Republican lawmakers supporting the bill. "Without the Equality Act, this nation will never live up to its principles of…

Feb

24

2021

By The African Mirror

Anti-gay uproar shuts Ghana first LGBT+ centre

LGBT+

ANITA BHALLA ANTI-GAY outcry has forced Ghana's first LGBT+ community centre to temporarily close to protect its staff and visitors three weeks after it opened, its founder said yesterday. Church groups, politicians and anti-gay rights organisations have called on the government to shut down the centre, run by local charity LGBT+ Rights Ghana, and arrest and prosecute those involved. "We did not expect such an uproar," said Alex Kofi Donkor, director of LGBT+ Rights Ghana, which hosted an opening event on January 31 attended by European and Australian diplomats. "We expected some homophobic organisations would use the opportunity to exploit…

Feb

19

2021

By The African Mirror

Trans model Munroe Bergdorf urges social media giants to tackle abuse

LGBT+

RACHEL SAVAGE WITH online abuse pushing her to quit Twitter, transgender model Munroe Bergdorf has called for social media companies to act faster to tackle racism and transphobia on their platforms. The Black trans model, who said she regularly receives threats and waits hours for racist comments about her to be deleted, called on social media firms to invest in minorities to design algorithms to better protect themselves from abuse. "If you can censor a nipple and a picture gets taken down with a nipple on it straight away ... then why can't you develop an algorithm that targets transphobic…

Feb

12

2021

By The African Mirror

Black, gay and happy: is Hollywood ready for that?

LGBT+

HUGO GREENHALGH DIRECTOR Lee Daniels says he's "a little ghetto, a little homo" and worries the world might not be ready for his next big idea. "I really want to do a gay superhero movie," the Oscar-nominated director told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. And then a gay love story - only one that ends well, too. "I want the guy and guy to walk off happy at the end," the 61-year-old said via a video call from his home in Los Angeles. "I want it to end beautifully," he said. "Some of the major Hollywood gay love stories that have…

Jan

30

2021

By The African Mirror

LGBT+ funding seen lagging as COVID-19 stokes aid needs

LGBT+

HUGO GREENHALGH GLOBAL funding for LGBT+ issues is expected to lag demand for support as the coronavirus pandemic exacerbates the hardships and discrimination faced by gay, bisexual and transgender people, philanthropy researchers said on Thursday. A Global Philanthropy Project (GPP) survey of 24 major donors showed their funding for LGBT+ causes would rise to $90 million this year, up 20% from 2018 but unlikely enough to meet increased need during the COVID-19 crisis. "In terms of the human rights struggles and the new, significant demand of the humanitarian response – we don't see that will be met by the rate of growth…

Jan

23

2021

By The African Mirror

White House website adds gender-neutral pronouns as Biden meets LGBT+ demands

LGBT+

RACHEL SAVAGE PEOPLE can now select gender-neutral pronouns when contacting the U.S. government, as President Joe Biden signed a raft of executive actions on his first day in office, including an order tackling discrimination against LGBT+ people. People who identify as non-binary - neither male nor female - can now select the gender-neutral title "Mx" on the White House website's contact page, which also added a drop-down list of personal pronouns, including "they/them". The website update marks a departure from Donald Trump's administration, which banned transgender people from enlisting in the military and issued orders emphasising the importance of "biological sex"…

Dec

25

2020

By The African Mirror

From coronavirus crackdowns to court battles: 10 top LGBT+ stories in 2020

LGBT+

HUGO GREENHALGH, RACHEL SAVAGE and ANASTASIA MOLONEY CORONAVIRUS dominated news around the world in 2020, creating particular challenges for the LGBT+ community in terms of mental health, access to HIV medication and scapegoating by religious groups seeking to apportion blame for the virus. The year provided the backdrop for both victories and setbacks for LGBT+ people, with the lifting of gay sex bans in Bhutan and Gabon countered by a rise in the incidence of hate crimes and attacks and crackdowns in countries such as Uganda. Here are 10 stories from a year of change for LGBT+ people. 1. The…

Dec

21

2020

By The African Mirror

Soccer-Rapinoe questions her inclusion in FIFA team of year

LGBT+

WOMEN’S World Cup winner Megan Rapinoe has said her inclusion in FIFA’s “Women’s World11” team of the year despite playing so little is a sign that the women’s game needs more visibility and exposure. Rapinoe, who was named best player at the 2019 World Cup and finished top scorer, said she appreciated being included in the team of the year but pointed out she had not played since March when the coronavirus pandemic disrupted global sport. The winger said on Twitter she appreciated being chosen by her fellow professionals but other players deserved more recognition this year. “We have so…

Dec

17

2020

By The African Mirror

Desmond Tutu’s lesbian daughter calls for LGBT+ equality

LGBT+

HUGO GREENHALGH THE lesbian minister daughter of anti-apartheid leader Desmond Tutu has called for full LGBT+ equality as almost 400 religious figures backed a global ban on conversion therapy and an end to laws criminalising same-sex relations. Leaders from all the main religions signed the joint declaration - among them Mpho Tutu van Furth's father and Britain's Bishop of Liverpool, but she said the need for such a statement showed far more work was needed. "Religious leaders and religious structures all over the world have not yet arrived at the recognition that we are all fully human," Rev. Canon Tutu…

Dec

15

2020

By The African Mirror

New Zealand, Britain ease rules on blood donations by gay men

LGBT+

RACHEL SAVAGE NEW Zealand and Britain have become the latest countries to ease rules on blood donations by gay and bisexual men, as supply concerns caused by COVID-19 increase scrutiny of AIDS pandemic-era restrictions that LGBT+ rights advocates say are homophobic. New Zealand's government cut the celibacy period for gay and bisexual men to give blood from a year to three months, regardless of whether or not they had used condoms, the New Zealand Blood Service said on its website on Monday. In Britain, which previously had a three-month deferral period, a behaviour-based policy will be used from mid-2021, meaning…