Russia, and US Republicans, are making LGBT people disappear
Canada's anti-LGBT bigots also notch wins and losses
I wrote for Los Angeles Blade about a town in Alberta, Canada that will be holding a referendum in February to ban Pride flags from public spaces.
But there’s also some more news from the Great White North…
Canada: Also in Alberta, the far-right Premier Danielle Smith, fresh from an engagement speaking with disgraced former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, says she’ll introduce a new “parents’ rights” policy this week that will likely be a copycat of Saskatchewan’s policy that requires trans students to have their parents’ permission to be trans in school.
One province over, an attempt to force a recall election of British Columbia’s Minister of Education organized by people who are upset about BC’s inclusive sex ed curriculum has failed. Organizers needed to collect signatures from 40% of voters in her riding by Jan 29 to force the election, but only managed to collect about 11% (although those signatures have not been confirmed so that number is likely inflated).
Australia: Western Australia is the only state where surrogacy is illegal for same-sex couples, but the state government says it will introduce a bill to legalize altruistic surrogacy sometime this year (meaning women will not be allowed to receive pay to be a surrogate).
Spain: The Basque Region is the latest autonomous community to advance a trans rights bill aiming to eliminate discrimination based on gender identity and give minors a voice in their own medical treatment.
Portugal: President De Sousa has vetoed a law that allowed students to self-identify their gender in school, asking Parliament to reconsider affirming parental rights in the law. Since the law initially passed, the left wing has lost its parliamentary majority, and it may be difficult to get the law passed again.
Russia: Vice reports on how Russia is making LGBT people disappear from public life after the Supreme Court ruled that “the global LGBT movement” is an extremist organization last year.
Czechia: LGBT activists Jsme Fer have launched a new equal marriage campaign called “Children Are Waiting.” The campaign highlights that already existing children of same-sex couples are disadvantaged by current laws that don’t recognize them as complete families.
Meanwhile, the same activists are warning that a growing network of far-right organizations is campaigning against LGBT rights in Slavic countries, and their new boogeyman is fear of same-sex couples using surrogacy to have children.
Estonia: More than 50 same-sex couples have gotten married since it became legal on Jan 1. Congrats!
At the UN: Universal Periodic Reviews continue this week; thus far, Monaco, Belize, Congo, and Chad have come up for review. The only LGBT-specific recommendation was a call for Chad to decriminalize gay sex (it only became criminalized there in 2017, bucking both a global and African trend toward decriminalization). It’s odd that European neighbors didn’t call on Monaco to legalize same-sex marrige, or Belize to pass some sort of relationship recognition.
And in religion…
The Pope says that Africa is a “special case” when it comes to his directive to bless same-sex couples (but not their unions), owing to what he says is the continent’s antipathy toward homosexuality, but that he hopes the bishops there will eventually come around.
Meanwhile, in the States
Michigan and Ohio: Trans Reporter Erin Reed uncovered audio confirming that state Republicans have planned for bans on gender care for trans youth to eventually be extended to all people.
And the ACLU has announced that they plan to file suit over Ohio’s bans on gender care which now extend to all ages.
Florida: The state Department of Motor Vehicles has announced via a new policy that trans people will no longer be able to change their gender marker on driver’s licenses, that “gender” now means “biological sex” and that anyone claiming otherwise can be civilly or criminally charged with fraud.
West Virginia: State Republicans have filed a so-called “Women’s Bill of Rights” which bans recognition of trans and intersex people, and explicitly states that, “’Equal’ does not mean ‘same’ or ‘identical’ with regard to equality of the sexes.” So again, Republicans are showing that their true endgame is to chip away at equality for all women, not just trans women.
Iowa: Reminder that the state legislature will begin debating a bill to remove “gender identity” as a protected class under the state’s civil rights law tomorrow.
Georgia: State Republicans are pushing a bill that would require parental notification and permission ahead of “sexual orientation and gender identity instruction” in classrooms (whatever that means), as well as before a student can use a different name or pronoun in school.
Washington: Police and Liquor Officers raided gay bars in Seattle over the weekend, prompting some to wonder, “What Year is This?”