John, celebrate International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia

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Hi John, join us as we celebrate International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia

Today, on International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, we celebrate activists’ advocacy for equality around the world – as well as raising awareness of the threats and rights violations that LGBTQI+ communities continue to face.

In Uganda, LGBTQI+ people have come under fierce attack: from the government’s forced closure of the campaign group Sexual Minorities Uganda to parliament passing an anti-LGBTQI+ bill this spring that allows, in some cases, for the death penalty.

In Poland, from 2019 to 2021, authorities, politicians and state-run media launched a smear campaign against LGBTQI+ communities and demonstrations, and proposed a ban on ‘homosexual propaganda’.

Digital stop & search: How police scrape social data to persecute LGBT people

In Egypt, Lebanon, and Tunisia, law enforcement has used evidence illegally scraped from digital devices to identify, harass, and prosecute LGBTQI+ people – especially refugees, sex workers, and other multiply marginalised people.

Yet, in the face of these harrowing and sustained attacks, LGBTQI+ activists and allies around the globe continue to fight for equality and human rights with incredible resilience and courage.

‘LGBTQI+ equality and the right to freedom of expression are deeply intertwined. Government authorities, religious figures and society-at-large who are against LGBTQI+ rights overtly seek to silence the community, obstructing LGBTQI+ people from communicating with one another, banning books, prohibiting the sharing of information on sexual health, and beyond. It is critically important, now more than ever, to centre and amplify the voices of LGBTQI+ people.’

– Judy Taing, Head of Gender and Sexuality

#FreeToProtest episode 4 with Rita Nketiah and Marko Mihailović

ARTICLE 19's #FreeToProtest podcast heard from activists Rita Nketiah in Ghana and Marko Mihailović in Serbia, who spoke powerfully about not only the hostilities they encounter but also their commitment to making their voices heard.

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Listen on Spotify

Listen on Google Podcasts

Together with partners, we have worked with tech companies, including Grindr, Google, Meta, and Microsoft to encourage broader adoption of harm-reduction measures that protect LGBTQI+ people in repressive regimes. As a result, WhatsApp recently introduced new safety features to protect LGBTQI+ people.

To propel change in 2023 and beyond, ARTICLE 19 will continue to defend LGBTQI+ rights worldwide and to find unity within our movement’s rich diversity – for, as lesbian writer and activist Audre Lorde said:

‘It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.’

Find out more

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