Canada warns queers not to travel to the US
Nigeria and Uganda say "hold my beer"
Still writing to from bed with the flu – hey, if anyone wants to buy me a pho, please consider buying a paid subscription!
Canada has issued a travel advisory to its 2SLGBTQI+ citizens about entering the United States, given the recent spate of anti-trans and anti-LGBT legislation being passed in Republican-led states. This is a very large step for Canada to take, and it likely wasn’t made lightly, given that the US is Canada’s largest trading partner and largest source of tourists. The possibility of an economic backfire had to be weighed. But given the risk to queer travelers in certain states, it was probably the right call. Still, you can’t help but feel there’s a bit of politics involved, given that this notice is coming just as Canada’s conservative parties are suddenly going down the anti-trans path. The federal Liberals are always happy to draw comparisons between the Conservatives and the US Republicans.
Still, there are worse places queer Canadians could find themselves…
There’s still lots of news about the raid on the alleged same-sex wedding in Nigeria that saw 67 people arrested. This report has some details on how the police came to find out about the supposed wedding, including the detail that among the items seized at the scene were “three cups of refined Canadian loud,” which is apparently an illicit CBD oil product that has become popular in Nigeria.
Police in Uganda arrested the first person to be charged under the new “aggravated homosexuality” offence that was passed by Parliament in May. The charge carries a possible death sentence.
Nearly 20 years after Massachusetts became the first US State to allow same-sex marriage, the city of Boston has removed gender markers from its marriage certificates.