LGBT organisations navigate political and paternalistic homophobia An anti-LGBT briefing at an Indonesian air base in December 2024. (Photo courtesy of New Mandala and the Indonesian Air Force) Below is a report from the website New Mandala, “LGBT organisations navigate Indonesia’s two homophobias“: By Shaan Amin Despite the widely-covered crackdown on LGBT life since 2016, Indonesian official homophobia is not …

I’m a queer, gender non-conforming person in a relationship with a straight man. Our love doesn’t fit neatly into a category, but that doesn’t make it any less true. By Maverique Z On an unassuming day in October 2022, I met my current partner. At the time, I mistook him for someone else and called him the wrong name, yet …

Sexual violence and family expulsion among the challenges facing African LBQ women  Photo illustration courtesy of Chapter Four Uganda. A new African Human Rights Coalition (AHRC) report reveals how lesbian, bisexual, and queer women experience systematic violence that begins within families and communities and continues through displacement, detention, and so-called host countries. Authored by Melanie Nathan, From Home to Hostile …

Kenya’s ambitious new integration plan arouses hopes and worries Illustration combines the Kenyan flag and strands of rainbow colors. (Illustration by Rex Opara courtesy of Minority Africa) As Kenya launches an ambitious effort to turn refugee camps into open villages, LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, long targeted by violence, wonder whether the promise of safety, mobility, and legal status will finally reach …

Returning after 23 years, Jann Halexander considers what’s possible in Gabon Jann Halexander Gabonese-French singer, actor and director Jann Halexander wrote the following essay on his return to Gabon after a 23-year absence from his homeland. While he was away, Gabon passed a law against homosexual activity in 2019, then repealed it in 2020. Being Homosexual in Gabon Émèno ka …

Young queer Nigerians reflect on coming out in their conservative nation. The challenge of coming out in Nigeria. (Illustration courtesy of Minority Africa) By Rabi Madaki In his sophomore year of college, 21-year-old Alex came out as gay to his middle-aged conservative Yoruba mother. He had gotten tired of the hetero-normative ideals his mother forced on him. “She was always …

Patrons were subjected to humiliation, violence, and degrading treatment Graphic from the Azerbaijan LGBTQ organization Qiy Vaar states, “Get Out of Our Lives.” Azerbaijan police raided an LGBTQ-friendly nightclub on Dec 27, detaining more than 100 patrons who reported physical violence, humiliation, and demands for bribes. Detainees allege hair cutting, broken teeth, and sexual violence, with one stating that police …

Queer spaces have always existed in Nigeria, but only on the margins Black queer figures dancing in an underground rave. (Illustration by Rex Opara courtesy of Minority Africa) Queer communities helped shape Lagos’s underground party scene. Now, as alté culture moves into the mainstream, the people who built it are being pushed to the margins – again.   In a …

The lessons of 2025 should shape LGBTQ rights strategies for 2026 and beyond “When the United States suddenly withdrew from its role as a leader in global LGBTQ+ advocacy, it left a huge void.” (David Becker photo courtesy of Reuters) COMMENTARY In this commentary, Fabrice Houdart, the  executive director of the Association of LGBTQ+ Corporate Directors, discusses what LGBTQ rights …

Three months after the West African nation of Burkina Faso enacted a law against gay sex, it military-dominated government has sentenced the first man for violating that law and sentenced him to two years in prison. By Melanie Nathan The African Human Rights Coalition (AHRC) has received confirmation of a case in Burkina Faso in which a foreign national was convicted …