The European Court of Justice ruled that Polish courts had erred in refusing to recognize the legitimacy of a same-sex couple’s marriage performed in Germany. Like Hungary and Slovakia, Poland does not allow same-sex marriage within its own borders, and the ECJ’s ruling does not require EU members to do so. However, if a same-sex […]
Congress Targets Sex Dolls
There are few issues on which Republicans and Democrats appear capable of working together, but one is support of the CREEPER Act (Curbing Realistic Exploitative Electronic Pedophilic Robots Act 2.0). A group of 34 lawmakers sent a letter to the online platform Shein, criticizing it for having failed to prevent the sale of childlike sex […]
America’s Latest Homophobic Antics
The Trump administration continues to target LGBTQ+ folks through a variety of public policy moves, such as its recent demotion of World Aids Day. The state department has directed its employees and funding recipients to “refrain from publicly promoting World Aids Day [December 1] through any communication channels, including social media, media engagements, speeches or […]
Social Media on the Chopping Block for Youth Around the World
Governments are growing increasingly concerned with the effects of social media on children. Heavy participation on social media platforms is being blamed for youths’ struggles with screen addiction and bullying, as well as identified as a conduit for inappropriate explicit (often sexual) content. Australia’s social media ban (the world’s first) for anyone under 16 goes […]
Protecting Rape Victims is Complicated
As we reported in our last edition, France recently legislated a major change to redefine rape as sex without clearly expressed consent. However, a similar proposal in Italy, supported by both Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her center-left rival Elly Schlein, has run into political obstacles due to objections from Meloni’s coalition partner, Deputy PM […]
Doug Ford Goes After “Diddlers”
Ontario’s populist premier Doug Ford has announced that his government will introduce new restrictions on people convicted of sex offenses in response to the Supreme Court decision striking down mandatory minimum sentences for possession of child pornography. Ford said, “Throw them in jail. Throw away the key. They can rot in there… They’re a bunch […]
Uganda Bill Criminalizes Identifying as LGBTQ+
Uganda, already one of the world’s harshest anti-gay regimes, is introducing a new bill which would impose up to 10 years in prison for simply identifying as LGBTQ. In 2023 the Ugandan president, Yoweri Museveni, signed into law the “Anti-Homosexuality Act” which brings the death penalty to anyone involved in “aggravated homosexuality”. Prior to that, […]
EU LGBTQ Legislative Trends
Despite the Netherlands electing its first openly gay prime minister (and its youngest yet) and the Church of Norway providing an apology for the harm and pain its caused LGBTQ+ folks in its history, not all of Europe is on the same page when it comes to protecting LGBTQ+ rights and freedoms. In late September […]
France Redefines Rape
In the wake of the sensational Gisèle Pelicot gang-rape trial, the French Senate unanimously approved a bill, previously approved by the National Assembly, to redefine rape as any sexual act without consent, defined as “freely given, informed, specific, prior, and revocable.” This makes rape easier to prove than the previous standard, which required an expression […]
IOC Moves to Ban Trans Women and Intersex Athletes with “Male Levels of Testosterone”
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is likely to introduce a new policy on trans athletes after its director of health, medicine, and science, Dr. Jane Thornton, gave a “science-based review” to its members showing permanent physical advantages to being born male. Thornton, a former Canadian rower, has referenced the use of SRY cheek-swab gene test […]