(To Kell & Back: despatches from the front line) “you don’t have to live next to me Just give me my equality” Nina Simone, Mississippi Goddamn It is not the responsibility of trans people to thank you for showing up and being an ally. It is not our task to reward you for using the
Tag: LGBTQI+ rights
Queer without fear: repression fund in solidarity with LGBTQ+ people in Poland
As some of you may have heard, there were presidential elections in Poland on 12th July. They were narrowly won by the current president Andrzej Duda. Duda is a representative of Poland’s far right ruling party Prawo I Sprawiedliwość (Law and Justice, PiS). Previously Freedom reported on Andrzej Duda when, together with Polish PM, he
Russia: two activists sentenced for protest against the new law erasing trans people
Two Russian activists, Polina Simonenko and Mila Zemtsova were sentenced by the Tverskoy District Court in Moscow yesterday for attending a picket protesting a new draft law erasing the, already limited, rights of trans people in Russia. Simonenko was sentenced to 14 days arrest, while Zemtsova was ordered to pay a fine of 20,000 Russian
#ЗаЮлю and Social Media Activism: A Call Out for International Support
Russian activist Yulia Tsvetkova is facing criminal charges for posting body-positive and LGBT+ friendly art on social media. She has been accused of distributing pornography with criminal intent, and expects to be sentenced for up to 6 years in prison. Tsvetkova has previously been active in campaigns to promote cis and trans women’s rights, LGBT+
Introducing: Bi Pandas
A member of the bisexual activist group writes on how they set up and why it’s important for bi people to build their own voice in an increasingly corporate and hostile climate. London Bi Pandas are a collective of bi+ activists, supporters and allies. As a community group we are trying to create spaces for
Disturbing alliances: The Christian right’s long march
It has been more than two decades since Allan Carlson, a former member of the National Commission on Children during the Reagan administration, first met Russian scholars Anatoly Antonov and Victor Medkov. His visit in 1995 inspired the foundation of the World Congress of Families (WCF), a transnational network of far-right and religious fundamentalist groups
Poland: as government’s anti-LGBTQ+ campaign intensifies, homophobes bring bomb to Pride March
CW: bigotry According to media reports and the police, the Gay Pride march in Polish city Lublin could have potentially been a victim of a homemade bomb attack. Lublin city, located some 170 km southeast of Poland’s capital Warsaw, saw The Gay Pride march for the second consecutive year last Saturday. Around 1500 people took
Transgender women seeking asylum in the UK: shunned & sabotaged
In an era of Trump and the rise of the far-right across the globe, it’s easy to see how our attentions may be diverted from the UK’s tedious fixation on Brexit to the pressing acts of inhumanity occurring on the other side of the Atlantic. As Trump’s administration continues to subject migrants and asylum seekers
Some thoughts on Bristol University disciplinary action against trans student
CW: Transphobia The Univeristy of Bristol continue their prolonged harassment of trans student Nic Aaron, deciding to postpone – yet again – disciplinary proceedings that have already stretched on for over a year. Around 50 trans activists and allies rallied outside the University of Bristol last Wednesday to support Nic at what was their third
Canada: police and military to be banned from future events after protesters block Edmonton Pride Festival
Last Saturday Edmonton’s annual Pride Festival march was successfully blocked by protesters unhappy that the police and military are allowed to join. The blockade, organized by a coalition of queer and trans people of colour and allies, lasted for more than half and hour after around 30 protesters formed a human chain at a road junction