SCOTUS drops several stink bombs on Pride weekend
Canada to count LGBT people on next year's census
Canada: The 2026 census will for the first time include a question about sexual orientation. The survey will also try to measure the trans population by asking about sex at birth and current gender.
Meanwhile, the Canadian charity Rainbow Railroad, which helps LGBTQ refugees resettle in Canada and other western countries, says it will no longer settle refugees in the USA.
Mexico: The Hidalgo state congress has established a commission on sexual diversity. An activist has also called on the state congress to pass a bill banning conversion therapy under state law (it’s already banned federally).
A legislator has proposed a comprehensive LGBTQ rights bill in Jalisco. The bill would create a special prosecutor for anti-LGBTQ crimes, and create processes to ensure that LGBTQ people are treated equally in civil services, particularly around family services.
Meanwhile, two bills that would have banned conversion therapy and codified same-sex marriage into state law in Guanajuato have been delayed by the governing PAN to the September sitting of the state congress.
President Schienbaum reiterated her support for LGBTQ+ rights ahead of this weekend’s Pride festival in Mexico City.
Hungary: PM Orban is threatening “legal consequences” for anyone attending Budapest Pride this weekend. The festival has been banned by national law this year, although organizers and Budapest’s mayor have vowed to go forward.
Philippines: Hundreds demonstrated in Manilla calling for congress to finally pass the SOGIE nondiscrimination bill and also calling for same-sex marriage.
Uganda: The World Bank has ended its suspension of lending to Uganda, which was imposed in 2023 after the passage of the Anti-Homosexuality Act. The Bank now claims it has put in place mitigation measures to ensure its funds won’t be used to discriminate, which, frankly doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Ghana: A South African gay influencer couple has sparked controversy for a campaign where they posted pictures of them posing and kissing in front of national landmarks while visiting Ghana, where a severe anti-LGBT bill is under debate in Parliament. The campaign seems… ill thought-out.
Vietnam: The National Assembly has removed the death penalty from eight crimes, nearly half the total. This may be a step to full abolition.
Meanwhile in the States
It’s the 10-year anniversary of Obergefell, the Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. NPR has a good look back at the history, including a map of what bans were in place at the time. Axios has a better map of the bans that remain on the books now, and could snap back in if SCOTUS ever rescinds its decision.
But don’t let that anniversary let you think the Court is lightening up. It ended this year’s session with a bunch of controversial rulings, including: allowing states to ban use of Medicaid funds at Planned Parenthood for non-abortion services, blocking lower courts from imposing nationwide injunctions and thereby allowing Trump’s ban on birthright citizenship to go into effect in most of the country, allowing Texas to require porn websites to use age verification, and requiring schools to allow parents to opt their children out of classes where books with LGBTQ characters are read. On the plus side, the court also upheld the Obamacare rule that insurers must provide preventive care, including access to PrEP.
The Senate Parliamentarian has stripped provisions banning the use of Medicaid or CHIP funds for gender care from the Republicans reconciliation budget bill, ruling that they’re not directly related to the budget.
Senators Warren and Collins have introduced (technically) bipartisan legislation that would improve tax fairness for married same-sex couples by allowing them to file amended returns for years when the federal government didn’t recognize their state-approved marriages (essentially for the handful of states where it was legal from 2004-2013).
Ohio: The Republicans’ final state budget bill includes several anti-LGBTQ provisions, including one restricting recognition of sexes to male and female only, and censoring LGBTQ books in public libraries.
Virginia: The openly gay Republican nominee for Lieutenant Governor opposes the proposed amendment to delete Virginia’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, saying it ought to include protections for those who disagree with same-sex marriage. The Republican nominee for Governor also opposes the amendment.
Kansas: The Republican Attorney-General is warning the Dept of Education to remove language barring gender identity discrimination from its lunch provider contracts. The language was added by the Democratic Governor in 2019.
Pennsylvania: A reminder that Republican leadership is blocking a bipartisan effort to repeal the state’s defunct laws banning same-sex marriage.
Michigan: The Attorney-General would like to see a ballot question in 2026 to repeal the state’s defunct constitutional same-sex marriage ban – that will have to come from a petition drive, as Democrats don’t have the votes to pass it through the legislature.
Vermont: The state has erected a historical marker honoring a 19th-century lesbian couple who ran a tailoring business together.