Last week, the High Court heard the case of Bonolo Selelo and Tsholofelo Kumile, whom the Department of Civil Registration refused to register and recognize their marriage. Supported by LEGABIBO as the third applicant, the applicants challenge the refusal to register their intended marriage and the constitutionality of provisions of the Marriage Act that exclude same-sex couples from civil marriage. 

The case raises questions about equality, dignity, nondiscrimination, and the extent to which the law can exclude people from a fundamental civil institution because of whom they love. The hearing highlighted a bigger struggle of religion, gender, reproduction, and who makes up a family in Botswana.  

But as I followed the proceedings and reflected on the arguments advanced, I kept returning to a question that goes beyond interpreting the Marriage Act. Why does the possibility of two women of age getting married consensually provoke such a strong response from people who are not being asked to marry them?

This is not a question about whether religious organizations are entitled to hold their beliefs. They are. It is about what happens when those beliefs determine the civil rights of people who do not share them and when religious arguments become the basis for deciding which families deserve recognition and protection under the law. For me, this is where the marriage equality case becomes much bigger than marriage. It becomes a conversation about power.

When marriage becomes a battleground

One thing that stood out in this case was the language used to defend what opponents describe as the proper or traditional understanding of marriage. The Evangelical Fellowship of Botswana, House of Prayer and Transformation, and the Dingwetsi Association of Botswana oppose recognizing same-sex marriages in Botswana. 

Their arguments are grounded in Christian beliefs, customary understandings of marriage and concerns about the implications of recognizing same-sex unions. The state has also argued that the existing legislation does not provide for marriage between people of the same sex. 

Marriage is presented as a “holy” institution that is under threat. The heterosexual family becomes something that must be protected. A particular Christian understanding of marriage is elevated into a standard that should govern everyone, including people who do not subscribe to Christianity. Suddenly, two adult women asking for access to civil marriage are no longer simply two people seeking legal recognition. They are portrayed as a “challenge” to religion, culture, tradition, procreation, and the African family values. We can even take it a step further to say that they are destabilizing the walls of patriarchy. 

What exactly is being threatened by allowing two consenting adults to enter into a civil marriage? How does recognizing their relationship prevent a heterosexual couple from marrying? Why should the legal recognition of one family require excluding another?

The argument is not merely that the Evangelical Fellowship of Botswana, House of Prayer and Transformation, and the Dingwetsi Association of Botswana believe same-sex marriage is inconsistent with their Christian faith. It is that this belief must affect the legal status of people outside that faith and the protections available to them as citizens. That is where the discussion shifts from religious conviction to this group’s exercise of public power over everyone. 

The politics of religion and the anti-gender movement

I have become increasingly interested in how opposition to LGBTIQ+ rights is connected to a wider set of anti-gender and anti-human rights narratives across Africa. The anti-rights actors are a group of globally coordinated actors pushing rollbacks on sexual and reproductive health rights, comprehensive sexual education, LGBTIQ+ rights and civic space across multiple countries at once. They frame these narratives as “protecting the African child and African family values,” “preserving African family sovereignty,” and “restoring the moral fabric of society.” These translate into restrictive laws, hate speech, misinformation, disinformation, and harassment of sexual and gender minorities. The language sounds familiar because it appeals to concerns that matter to people. But how these values are interpreted, who gets to define them, and whose rights matter in the process?

In anti-gender politics, the concept of gender is often presented as a threat to biological sex, the family and social order. Dr Haley McEwen’s article, “Nuclear power: the family in decolonial perspective and ‘pro-family’ politics in Africa,” published in “Development Southern Africa” in 2017, examines how the heteronormative nuclear family functions as a colonial and political construct. She writes that “in centering the importance of the ‘nuclear family’ model and heterosexuality, pro-family discourses exceptionalize the family as a social institution capable of carrying the lion’s share of responsibility for ensuring the (re)production and maintenance of healthy and prosperous societies. This discourse resonates with neoliberal efforts to deflect responsibility for social and economic policy away from the state and towards individuals. In positioning the heterosexual nuclear family unit as the custodian of a ‘moral,’ healthy and economically thriving society, the state is able to outsource its responsibility towards its citizenry.” In this framing, defending the family becomes a justification for restricting the rights of people whose relationships do not fit a prescribed model.

The marriage equality case in Botswana sits within this broader contest over who gets to define gender, sexuality, and family life. We should be careful not to assume that every religious objection is part of a coordinated anti-gender movement. Nor should we treat religious communities as a single political bloc. But we should recognize the overlap between arguments that defend one supposedly natural family structure and broader efforts to limit the recognition of sexual and gender diversity.

Perhaps one of the most revealing aspects of debates about marriage equality is the appeal to procreation and biological complementarity. This push seeks to redefine marriage, who it is for and its purpose. That marriage is between a man and a woman because their biological differences make reproduction possible. From this perspective, marriage’s purpose is closely tied to the possibility of producing children.

If the ability to reproduce is what makes a marriage legitimate, what happens to heterosexual couples who cannot have children? What about couples who are infertile, older couples or people who marry and decide not to have children? Are their marriages less deserving of legal recognition? Yet when same-sex couples seek marriage equality, reproduction is suddenly presented as the defining feature of the institution.

Marriage is also a legal relationship that creates rights, responsibilities, and protections between spouses. It provides a framework for property ownership, inheritance, maintenance, next-of-kin recognition, and family security. These protections matter whether a couple has biological children or not.

It takes a village

We must realize that reproduction is not the same thing as parenting and biological connection is not the only basis on which families are formed. In Botswana, children are commonly raised by grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, and the community. Some children grow up in households where one parent is absent. After all, it takes a village.

When religious arguments enter the courtroom

The Evangelical Fellowship of Botswana, House of Prayer and Transformation, and the Dingwetsi Association of Botswana’s presence in this case also raises an important question about the relationship between faith and the constitutional state. Religious organizations are entitled to participate in litigation, make arguments, and express their views. Their participation is not, in itself, evidence of wrongdoing. In a constitutional democracy, people must be free to disagree about difficult questions.

But participation in a legal process does not automatically mean a party’s arguments should determine the outcome. A court must consider the law, the Constitution, the rights at stake, and the arguments presented by all parties. It must distinguish between a religious conviction and a constitutional justification for restricting another person’s rights. That distinction matters because civil marriage and religious solemnization are not identical questions. 

Recognizing a same-sex civil marriage does not require every religious institution to change its doctrine. Nor does it require every person to approve of same-sex relationships. It asks whether the civil law should deny a couple the legal status and protections available to other couples because of the sex of the people they wish to marry. 

Bradley Fortuin is a human rights activist. This article was first published in The Botswana Guardian newspaper. 

La visita del papa León XIV a Sudamérica, prevista para noviembre, ofrece un contexto para abordar una cuestión que atraviesa el testimonio de la escritora venezolana Marisol Johana Díaz Reyes de Córdova: el lugar de las personas trans en las comunidades de fe.

Radicada en Uruguay, Díaz de Córdova reúne en su libro “Vida Trans: Porque la sociedad nos ha separado hasta de Dios” su experiencia como mujer trans y migrante, su participación política y su relación con la espiritualidad.

La Santa Sede anunció que León XIV visitará Uruguay del 6 al 8 de noviembre de 2026, antes de continuar por Argentina y Perú. El recorrido sudamericano está previsto del 6 al 17 de noviembre.

Ante ese horizonte, la autora reivindica el amor al prójimo y la fraternidad como fundamentos de una convivencia que reconozca la dignidad de las personas trans. Su planteamiento encuentra un antecedente en el mensaje del fallecido papa Francisco a las personas LGBTQ+.

En una respuesta escrita al sacerdote jesuita James Martin, publicada por Vatican News en mayo de 2022, Francisco afirmó: «Dios es Padre y no reniega de ninguno de sus hijos». En el mismo intercambio defendió una Iglesia que convocara a todos sus hijos y rechazó una concepción selectiva de la comunidad eclesial.

Díaz de Córdova relaciona ese mensaje con el mandamiento evangélico de amarse unos a otros. Desde su experiencia personal, sostiene que reconocerse como hermanos e hijos de Dios debe traducirse en respeto hacia quienes han vivido rechazo por su identidad.

Su obra ya ha generado debate público. La presentación de Vida Trans en un ámbito vinculado al Partido Nacional motivó un planteamiento del Consejo de Representatividad Evangélica del Uruguay ante las autoridades partidarias. CBN Nicaragua recogió el episodio en agosto.

La organización evangélica precisó que su preocupación se centraba en el contexto institucional de la actividad y que no cuestionaba el derecho de la autora a escribir, publicar o presentar el libro. Esa distinción permite situar el desacuerdo sin atribuirle una prohibición de la obra.

El recorrido de la escritora ofrece un punto de partida para un reportaje internacional sobre migración, diversidad y pertenencia religiosa. Su testimonio plantea cómo se vive la fe desde una identidad que puede convertirse en motivo de exclusión y qué respuestas encuentran esas experiencias dentro de las comunidades creyentes.

La próxima visita papal aporta el contexto de actualidad. La voz de Díaz de Córdova aporta la dimensión humana: una autora que escribe sobre su relación con Dios y reivindica que el reconocimiento de la dignidad alcance también a las personas trans.

LGBTQ+ elected officials around the world have welcomed the U.S. midterm election results.

New Hampshire Congressman Chris Pappas on Tuesday became the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate. He will join U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), who in 2012 became the first openly lesbian elected to the U.S. Senate, in the chamber once he takes office in January.

New York Congresswoman-elect Cait Conley, Michigan Congressman-elect Jeremy Moss, California Congresswoman Marni von Wilpert, and Indiana Congressman-elect J.D. Ford are among the 17 LGBTQ+ candidates who ran for federal office this year who won their races. Delaware Congresswoman Sarah McBride, who is the first openly transgender woman elected to Congress, won re-election.

“The U.S. election results remind us of a beautiful truth about democracy: power is borrowed, never owned — and voters occasionally demand it back with interest,” said Pornchai Witayalerdpan, who in 2024 became the first openly gay man elected to the Thai Senate. “Beyond the political shifts, I hope this signals a renewed commitment to accountability, decency, and common sense.”

Witayalerdpan described Pappas’s victory as “particularly heartening.”

“Becoming the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate is historic, but the greater triumph is that his identity is no longer a barrier to his ambition,” said Witayalerdpan. “Another glass ceiling has shattered, and the world is a little brighter for it.”

“I sincerely hope Senator-elect Pappas will champion a bold new chapter of LGBTQ+ equality, help reverse the setbacks of Trump’s second administration, and turn the promise of equal rights into lasting protections for all,” he added.

Alex Greenwich, a gay member of the New South Wales Parliament in Australia, echoed Witayalerdpan.

“The U.S. midterms have filled progressives in Australia with hope,” Greenwich told the Los Angeles Blade. “We are experiencing a rise in the far right ahead of our election season, but the message from the U.S. is clear: if you put forward policies and plans that matter to people, and the reject culture war games, hope will prevail.”

Paolo Rondelli in 2022 became the world’s first openly gay head of state when he became Captain Regent of San Marino. He was his country’s ambassador to the U.S. from 2007-2016.

Rondelli on Thursday told the Blade the elections “mark a major achievement for the queer community and for queer politics — a trend that runs counter to the actions taken over the last two years regarding LGBTQAI+ rights.”

“Queer candidates have shown that it is possible to be effective politicians and to consistently demonstrate one’s own merit,” he said. “Now is not the time to take a single step back; rather, we must show — even more clearly and effectively — what we are capable of achieving to ensure greater rights and well-being for everyone.”

Tamara Adrián in 2015 became the first openly trans person elected to the Venezuelan National Assembly.

She described the election results as “an excellent triumph of diversity and its best form.” Adrián added they are “proof that Americans are not sectarians and exclusionary as the Trump administration has sought to portray.”

Former Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in 2017 became his country’s first openly gay head of government.

He stepped down in 2020 after his center-right party, Fine Gael, lost parliamentary seats in that year’s general election. Varadkar was once again Ireland’s prime minister from 2022-2024.

Varadkar on Thursday said reaction to the U.S. election results in Europe “has been broadly positive.”

“It’s clear to us that most Americans do not support many of President Trump’s policies whether it’s the war in Iran which has driven up prices here too, trade tariffs, unconditional support for Israel or how far he has gone on immigration particularly the brutality of ICE,” he told the Blade. “There would be a concern that he might now double-down on foreign policy though given his party has lost control of Congress and not in a good way, more conflict than genuine peace initiatives.”  

“It’s also been heartening to see a rainbow wave of gay, lesbian, and trans lawmakers getting elected and an understanding that with Democrats in charge of Congress and so many states, the roll back on rights will stall,” added Varadkar.

The global LGBTQ+ and intersex rights movement since the Trump-Vance administration took office in January 2025 has lost more than an estimated $50 million in funding because of foreign aid cuts, the dismantlement of the U.S. Agency for International Development, and other actions.

The Blade has previously reported PEPFAR-funded programs in Kenya and other African countries have been forced to suspend services and even shut down. A report that Outright International released in September notes 90 percent of LGBTQ+ and intersex rights groups around the world have lost funding since the Trump-Vance administration entered the White House.

“Outright International works in more than 80 countries, and governments and movements around the world are watching what the United States does next,” Outright International Executive Director Maria Sjödin told the Blade on Thursday. “Renewed U.S. engagement with the United Nations and a foreign policy that puts human rights into practice would make a difference far beyond U.S. borders. One early test will be whether Congress helps restore funding for HIV prevention and treatment, including for trans people, gay and bisexual men, and others who already face barriers to care.”

Gui Molhallem is the executive director of VoteLGBT (Institute for Full Citizenship), a group that seeks to increase LGBTQ+ and intersex representation in Brazilian politics.

They pointed out to the Blade that Congresswoman-elect Thabatta Pimenta, a trans woman from Rio Grande do Norte state in northeastern Brazil, is among the 35 LGBTQ+ candidates who won their respective races in their country’s Oct. 4 election. Incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro in the second round of the Brazilian presidential election that took place on Oct. 25.

Molhallem said the U.S. election results for Brazilians “are a powerful reminder that the far right is not invincible, and that attacking LGBTQ+ people is not necessarily a winning electoral strategy.”

“Just weeks ago, Brazil elected a record 35 LGBTQ+ lawmakers,” they said. “Now, the U.S. has elected a record number of LGBTQ+ members of Congress. Across the Americas, we’re seeing something remarkable: our identities, once seen as political liabilities, are increasingly becoming electoral assets.”

“These victories also show that LGBTQ+ leaders can be unapologetically proud of who they are while building broad political coalitions around issues that affect everyone’s lives,” added Molhallem.

(Washington Blade video by Michael K. Lavers)

All Out Programs Director Mathias Wasik noted groups based in the U.S. for years “have exported anti-LGBT+ laws and talking points to Africa, Eastern Europe and beyond, selling the idea that America had turned against its LGBT+ citizens.”

“These (election) results tell a different story,” Wasik told the Blade. “American voters sent openly LGBT+ people to Congress, including the first openly gay man elected to the Senate. That matters to activists in Ghana, Uganda or Türkiye who are told that hostility toward LGBT+ people is the American way.”

Shadi Amin is the executive director of 6Rang | Iranian LGBT+ Network, an NGO that is incorporated in England and Wales. She told the Blade the U.S. election results are “truly historic.”

“Not only will the balance of power between political parties change, but the people representing Americans are also becoming much more diverse in terms of their backgrounds, sexual orientations, identities, and beliefs,” said Amin. “I think that’s incredibly important.”

Amin specifically celebrated Pappas’s election to the Senate, while adding she “would have loved to see a lesbian elected to such a position too.” (Baldwin has been in the U.S. Senate since 2013.)

“At the end of the day, as an Iranian, what matters most to me is that Americans can see the positive impact of their votes in their everyday lives and feel that their lives are getting better. We’re living through incredibly difficult times, and as an Iranian, I feel that very deeply,” said Amin. “But I also believe that now, more than ever, we need solidarity across borders and nationalities. We need a world where peace and security make it possible for people everywhere to live happy, fulfilling lives.”

Thomas Bradley on Sunday became Australia’s first openly gay state governor.

Bradley took office as Queensland’s premier at a ceremony that took place at Parliament House in Brisbane, the state’s capital.

The former Court of Appeal judge succeeded Jeannette Young, whose term as governor ended, after King Charles III approved his appointment. (Australia is a member of the Commonwealth.)

The Star Observer, an Australian LGBTQ newspaper, noted Bradley’s partner, Matthew Yoong, attended Sunday’s swearing in ceremony.

“His Excellency has dedicated his life to service in the courts, service in the community, and his new role is the next step in a lifetime of service for this great state,” said Queensland Premier David Crisafulli. “On behalf of the people of Queensland, I congratulate His Excellency and wish him every success as Queensland’s 28th governor.”

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Sunday defeated Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro in the second round of the country’s presidential election.

Lula beat Bolsonaro by a 51.79-48.21 percent margin with 100 percent of the votes counted. CNN Brasil declared Lula the winner shortly after 9 p.m. local time (5 p.m. PT.)

The runoff took place after neither man received a majority of votes in the first round that took place on Oct. 4.

Bolsonaro in the first round defeated Lula by a 47.03-45.16 percent margin. Several polls

The Brazilian Supreme Court on Sunday extended voting for two hours after voters in Bahia state in northeast Brazil had issues with public transportation that was to have taken them to their respective polling places and bad weather in the southern part of the country. Bolsonaro had called for them to be “annulled,” but later backtracked after his own right-wing Liberal Party acknowledged the results.

Congresswoman Erika Hilton, a travesti member of the leftist Socialism and Liberty (PSOL) party who won re-election on Oct. 4 with nearly 1.6 million votes, the most any female member of Congress has received in Brazilian history, was among those with Lula after he won the runoff. Natal Municipal Councilwoman Thabatta Pimenta, a member of the Green Party who became the first transgender woman from northeast Brazil elected to represent Rio Grande do Norte state in the country’s Chamber of Deputies on Oct. 4, and other LGBTQ+ elected officials also celebrated the incumbent president’s victory.

Bolsonaro’s father is former President Jair Bolsonaro.

Lula, who leads the Workers’ Party, in 2022 defeated Jair Bolsonaro in that year’s presidential election.

The Brazilian Supreme Court last year sentenced Jair Bolsonaro — who repeatedly targeted LGBTQ+ Brazilians and other groups while in office — to more than 27 years in prison for his role in an attempted coup that saw thousands of his supporters storm the Congress, presidential palace, and the Supreme Court itself on Jan. 8, 2023. Jair Bolsonaro is currently serving his sentence at his home in Brasília, the country’s capital, because of his poor health.

His son had pledged to pardon him if he were to become Brazil’s next president.

New Zealand’s High Court on Wednesday struck down regulations that banned new puberty blocker prescriptions for minors.

The Professional Association for Transgender Health Aotearoa Inc. challenged the Health Ministry over the regulations it adopted in 2025.

“The applicant successfully bought a claim for a breach of an obligation to consult under s 105 of the Medicines Act 1981 (Medicines Act),” says a press release that announced Justice Dale La Hood’s ruling. “The applicant was also successful in their claim that the minister unlawfully discriminated against young people with gender incongruence or gender dysphoria on the round of disability contrary to s 19 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 (Bill of Rights). The applicant’s claims that the minister abdicated his decision-making power to Cabinet and acted for an improper purpose were unsuccessful.”

“The court declined to separately determine the applicant’s claims that the minister made material mistakes of fact or that he reached an irrational decision,” added the press release. “The court also declined to determine whether there was discrimination on the basis of sex or whether the decision breached ss 8, 9 and 10 of the Bill of Rights.”

The Professional Association for Transgender Health Aotearoa welcomed the ruling.

“As clinicians, we see clearly the benefits of puberty blockers and the significant impact they have on the lives of young transgender people,” said Elizabeth McElrea, a doctor who is the advocacy group’s vice president, in a press release. “Decisions about this healthcare are best made by patients and their doctors. The removal of this regulation is crucial and puts that decision back in the consult room.”

“This judgment means that as clinicians we can continue to prescribe GnRH agonists in line with best practice and without fear of retribution for doing the right thing,” added McElrea.

The Los Angeles Blade on Monday spoke with Gui Molhallem, the executive director of VoteLGBT (Institute for Full Citizenship), a group that seeks to increase LGBTQ+ and intersex representation in Brazilian politics.

Molhallem pointed out 35 LGBTQ+ candidates won their respective races in the Oct. 4 election. They include Natal Municipal Councilwoman Thabatta Pimenta, a member of the Green Party who became the first transgender woman from northeast Brazil elected to represent Rio Grande do Norte state in the country’s Chamber of Deputies.

Congresswoman Erika Hilton, a travesti member of the leftist Socialism and Liberty (PSOL) party on Oct. 4 won re-election with nearly 1.6 million votes, the most any female member of Congress has received in Brazilian history. Guilherme Cortes, a bisexual PSOL member from São Paulo state, and Rick Azevedo, a gay PSOL member from Rio de Janeiro state, are among the candidates who won their respective Chamber of Deputies races.

Samanda de Lula, a lesbian member of the leftist Workers’ Party, will represent Rio Grande do Norte in the Brazilian Senate.

Molhallem pointed out there will be 14 openly LGBTQ+ members of Congress once the candidates who won their races on Oct. 4 take office in February. This number is the highest of any country in the Americas.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will face off against Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro in the second round of the presidential election on Sunday after neither man received at least 50 percent of the vote on Oct. 4.

Lula, who leads the Workers’ Party, in 2022 defeated Bolsonaro’s father, then-President Jair Bolsonaro, in that year’s presidential election.

The Brazilian Supreme Court last year sentenced Jair Bolsonaro — who repeatedly targeted LGBTQ+ Brazilians and other groups while in office — to more than 27 years in prison for his role in an attempted coup that saw thousands of his supporters storm the Congress, presidential palace, and the Supreme Court itself on Jan. 8, 2023. Jair Bolsonaro is currently serving his sentence at his home in Brasília, the country’s capital, because of his poor health.

His son has pledged to pardon him if he becomes the country’s next president.

(Video by Michael K. Lavers for the Washington Blade)

Hungarian lawmakers on Tuesday by a 139-51 vote margin approved a bill that would remove anti-LGBTQ+ provisions from a 2021 “child protection” law the country’s former prime minister championed.

“It shall be forbidden to make accessible to persons who have not attained the age of 18 years advertisement that depicts sexuality in a gratuitous manner or that propagates or portrays divergence from self-identity corresponding to sex at birth, sex change or homosexuality,” reads Act LXXIX of 2021 that MPs approved in 2021.

The European Commission in 2022 challenged the law. Sixteen EU countries eventually joined the lawsuit against it.

Then-Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government defended the law. The EU’s top court, the EU Court of Justice, earlier this year struck it down. The BBC reported the EU after Tuesday’s vote released €4.2 billion ($4.67 billion) in funds it froze while Orbán’s government was in office.

“We are very happy that this got adopted,” Tamás Dombos of the Háttér Society, a Hungarian LGBTQ+ rights group, told the BBC. “We’ve been fighting this so-called child protection law for five years. There have been problems with the bill submitted to parliament, but most of those problems have been fixed.”

Péter Magyar became the country’s prime minister in May after his center-right Tisza party defeated Orbán’s Fidesz-KDNP coalition in elections that took place on April 12.

The new Hungarian government in June allowed the annual Budapest Pride march to take place in the country’s capital without restrictions — MPs in 2025 passed a bill that banned Pride events, and amended the Hungarian constitution to prohibit public LGBTQ+ events.

Magyar last month announced his government would amend a law that essentially bans same-sex couples from adopting children.

Sept. 12 is a solemn day for the people of Turkey. It is the anniversary of the 1980 coup d’état — when members of the National Security Council, along with the armed forces, dissolved the Turkish parliament, arrested hundreds of thousands of people, and entered a three-year period of martial law. 

On Sept 12, the 46th anniversary of the 1980 coup, the country faced another wave of arrests; this time they targeted the LGBTQ+ community. The government launched the national “My Family Is Safe” campaign, which triggered mass raids and arrests of LGBTQ+ organization leaders, advocates, academics, and sexual health treatment centers for people with HIV. (These include EU-funded organizations launched by the Turkish government in 2005.) Since the nation has seen a decline in birthrate and a swelling economic crisis, this has allowed authoritarian President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and conservatives in Turkey to use the LGBTQ+ community as the ideal scapegoat. 

“This is the cruelest part. It was Erdoğan’s own party that made it easier to found NGOs in 2005 as an EU accession process, and that is how many LGBTI+ groups came to be officially registered.” Ali Yildiz, a linguistics graduate student at the University of Cologne in Germany, told the Los Angeles Blade. “Everything was legal, transparent and official. Now those same registrations are being used as arrest lists. The state is basically punishing those who trusted it. It sounds very much like the Nazis. They also used member lists of associations to persecute them later.” 

Yildiz has witnessed the oppression of the Turkish government firsthand: in 2024, he moved to Germany. As one of the board members of a grassroots NGO that focuses on sexual health, Yildiz was at risk of arrest and prosecution. 

As part of the “My Family Is Safe” operation on Sept. 12, police raided Yildiz’s family’s former home to find him. 

In the aftermath of these raids in Turkey’s major cities, protestors have gathered at Turkish embassies across Europe and the U.S.

A critical discourse has also emerged as a response to the crackdown across international queer media: how should the West cover oppressive regimes abroad? 

“From what I see, the Western reading of Turkey’s crackdown on LGBTI+ people usually goes: it’s a conservative, Muslim country, so this is what you’d expect. I believe that framing is incomplete, and it lets the people responsible off the hook. The Erdoğan regime is also heavily relying on this contextualization,” said Yildiz. “The government is not simply reacting to existing conservatism but is actively shaping it. Look at how operations are presented: raids on LGBTI+ organizations and activists come packaged with claims about drugs, obscenity, sex work, or organized crime on other groups in the news. The evil strategy is to link LGBTI+ people with criminality in the public mind.”

The LGBTQ+ community is not the only group that has been under the weight of oppression. Political opponents and descendants whom Erdoğan deems criminals are also charged with treason. 

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who is the leading candidate for the upcoming 2028 presidential elections for the opposition center-left Republican People’s Party, was arrested on terrorism charges in 2024. On the same day, he was nominated as the CHP’s presidential candidate.

For a while, X served as a platform to express discontent with the government, but that changed recently when Elon Musk blocked nearly 500 accounts in Turkey. The Turkish government also banned Grok after the AI system responded to a user’s question about Erdoğan, which government leaders found offensive. 

The visibility of these pages has decreased. With a VPN, citizens can still access the pages because they were banned only in Turkey, not internationally. 

Discontent with the government is increasing, but so is government oppression. 

Not only have LGBTQ+ pages been shut down, but many journalists and academics have also had their pages banned.

The Blade spoke to an anonymous academic living in Ankara, the Turkish capital, who said Erdoğan, U.S. President Donald Trump, and other authoritarian leaders are constantly learning from each other.

“These anti LGBTQ+ policies are being created in the name of preserving traditional family values and are not only a threat to Türkiye,” they said. “It is also a global issue that threatens people everywhere. It should be perceived as an international problem. That is why we LGBTQ+ people need to act in solidarity internationally.” 

Because of the compounding human rights crisis happening simultaneously around the globe, visibility has been advocates in Turkey’s main challenge. 

Since 2022 there have been a series of crackdowns against opposition parties, academics, labor unions, student organizations, journalist and advocates. Another anonymous academic in Istanbul told the Blade that after the 2022 crackdown, “people were intimidated, and most people did not feel encouraged to organize.” 

In the weeks following this recent crackdown, discontent with the Erdoğan government has increased along with inflation and unemployment, not helped by the war in Iran.

“Our leaders do not say anything about the financial crisis,” said the Istanbul academic.

High inflation, high unemployment rates, many factories, and businesses have left Türkiye and transferred their businesses to other countries. And because of the timing of these recent crackdowns, during this financial crisis, many people haven’t been paying attention.

Though for many queer and transgender Turks, post-Sept. 12 life has been radically different. 

“I stopped doing drag in order to protect myself, and many queer performance artist friends of mine have also given up this part of their lives,” said one source who asked the Blade to remain anonymous.

“Everybody is not scared, but they simply bring their fear with them to the march and march courageously, because they believe they are on the right side of history,” they added. “However, I think it is important that people in Turkey are not represented only through their experiences of victimization. There should also be spaces where artists, activists, journalists, and other queer people can express themselves in their own words.”

The justification for this crackdown has been preserving “traditional family and conservative values.” The Turkish government has persecuted these offenses with raids, trials, and arrests that have gone beyond just the LGBTQ+ community. It targeted last year musicians, performers, and artists whom they deemed obscene or offensive.

In September 2025, the K-pop-inspired girl band Manifest was investigated for three months. Footage from their shows was banned from the internet, and the remainder of their tour was canceled. All seven members of the group faced 3 1/2 months prison sentences before the charges were ultimately dropped. 

“I believe there is no pride for only some of us. Governments that attack LGBTQ+ rights learn from each other.” Yildiz tells the Blade, “Erdoğan borrows from Putin’s playbook, and parts of the Western right eagerly adopt the same rhetoric. This is a call for our community to see how important international solidarity is. People show up every single year for the Pride March, even though they know the police are going to attack. What I see in our community is pure courage.”

LGBTQ+ exclusion may be costing Japan as much as ¥16.42 trillion ($10.35 billion) annually, according to a new report by Open for Business, which argues that greater inclusion could help address the economic pressures facing a country with a shrinking population and workforce.

Japan’s population is projected to decline from 126.15 million in 2020 to about 87 million by 2070, according to the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research. As the country confronts a shrinking workforce; the economic stakes of retaining talent, improving productivity, and ensuring that LGBTQ+ people can participate fully in the economy are becoming increasingly significant.

Open for Business estimates that the costs extend beyond lost earnings. 

The organization attributes between $25.1 billion to $75.1 billion annually to the excess economic burden associated with depression, suicide and self-harm, cardiovascular disease and HIV/AIDS, and another $12.2 billion to $26.2 billion to lost earnings linked to the LGBTQ+ wage gap.

A 2026 survey by Dentsu Japan, the Japanese arm of global advertising and public relations company Dentsu Group, found that 10.6 percent of respondents aged 20-59 identified as LGBTQ+, up from 9.7 percent in 2023. The survey polled 46,658 people living in Japan.

The report argues that Japan already has the foundations for greater LGBTQ+ inclusion; pointing to public support, corporate leadership, and growing legal momentum. Progress on these fronts, it says, could reduce the economic costs of exclusion, strengthen workforce participation and help Japan remain competitive. 

“For Japan, LGBTQ inclusion is not simply a question of fairness. It is part of the country’s economic resilience,” the report states.

Japan does not legally recognize same-sex marriages at the national level, but partnership systems have spread across local governments. As of 2024, municipalities operating such systems covered nearly 93 percent of Japan’s population. The certificates can help couples access certain services, but they do not carry the same legal status as marriage, including in areas such as inheritance and medical decision-making.

The absence of marriage recognition can leave same-sex couples facing uncertainty over hospital access, medical decisions, and survivor benefits. It can also complicate employers’ decisions about spousal health coverage, relocation assistance and family leave, particularly when policies depend on a marriage recognized under Japanese law.

Japan’s PRIDE Index, administered by the nonprofit Work with Pride since 2016, evaluates corporate initiatives related to LGBTQ+ employees across five categories, awarding Bronze, Silver or Gold ratings. In 2025, 931 companies headquartered in Japan were assessed, with 80 percent receiving the highest, Gold rating.

Despite progress in corporate inclusion, workplace practices remain uneven. 

A 2026 workplace white paper by Nijiiro Diversity found that 55 percent of surveyed employees reported no concrete LGBTQ+ measures at their workplaces. A separate 2025 survey found that 30 percent of professionals had experienced workplace discrimination or bias based on sexual orientation, while 27 percent reported bias based on gender identity. Only about one-third said they felt comfortable disclosing their sexual orientation or gender identity at work.

The report also points to disparities in HIV and STI outcomes. 

Men who have sex with men accounted for an estimated 82 percent of newly diagnosed HIV cases in Japan, according to the report. In a separate study at a Japanese gender-affirming clinic, researchers screened 275 transgender and gender-diverse patients and found that 6.2 percent tested positive for HIV or another sexually transmitted infection. All were asymptomatic when tested.

The report also estimates substantial losses from the LGBTQ+ wage gap. 

It puts Japan’s total earned income at about $1.81 trillion, of which LGBTQ+ workers account for an estimated $175 billion, or 9.7 percent. Applying a wage gap of 7 to 15 percent, a range the report says is supported by OECD analysis, yields an estimated $12.3 billion to $26.3 billion in lost wages annually. Japanese research cited in the report also points to economic disparities among transgender workers, who are disproportionately represented in non-regular employment and lower-income groups.

“Public attitudes and many leading companies have moved considerably, but national frameworks and everyday workplace experience have not yet caught up. That creates both a challenge and an opportunity,” said Open for Business CEO Ken Janssens. “Japan’s population is projected to fall from roughly 125 million in 2020 to fewer than 87 million by 2070, while its working-age population is already contracting. The country ranks 14th globally for talent appeal but 55th for talent readiness, according to the report. In that context, Japan simply does not have talent to waste. Every worker who is less healthy, less productive, pushed into lower-paid work or unable to participate fully because of discrimination represents a cost that becomes harder to absorb as the labour force shrinks.”

Janssens further told the Los Angeles Blade that the report’s ultimate message is that LGBTQ+ inclusion is a question of fairness, but in Japan, it is increasingly a question of economic resilience as well. The foundations for further progress are already there. The challenge now is to convert visible corporate leadership and social momentum into consistent practice and clearer protections.

Akira Nishiyama, a spokesperson for the Japan Alliance for LGBT Legislation, told the Blade that Japan’s business sector has pushed for stronger legal protections for sexual and gender minorities. 

In 2017, the Japan Business Federation, known as Keidanren, announced a policy calling for nondiscrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Its chairperson also stressed the importance of legislation explicitly prohibiting such discrimination in 2023.

Nishiyama added Japan’s laws addressing workplace power harassment cover harassment based on sexual orientation and gender identity, outing someone without their consent, and forcing or pressuring someone to disclose or conceal their identity. Employers and local governments are required to take measures to prevent such harassment.

“While such legal frameworks and social momentum continue to advance, a law prohibiting discrimination based on SOGI has still not been enacted,” said Nishiyama. “In other words, legal measures to address discriminatory treatment, such as discriminatory hiring refusals, unreasonable transfers, and coerced resignations, are still insufficient. When legislations are needed to bridge this gap, I believe that initiatives promoted by the business sectors as well as the issuance of clear policies aimed at prohibiting discrimination, will serve as one of the major driving forces in this effort.”

Makiko Terahara, co-representative and leader of the business collaboration team at Marriage for All Japan, told the Blade that the figures are estimates and that the report does not claim legal reform alone would eliminate the economic losses.

“But the connection is real. Without marriage, same-sex couples have no spousal status for inheritance, tax, social security or medical decision-making. Without anti-discrimination legislation, employees have no clear legal remedy. This insecurity drives the concealment, stress and wage gaps that the report quantifies. So yes, I believe stronger legal protections would have a measurable impact on health, retention and Japan’s ability to attract talent,” she said.

Terahara also noted to the Blade the report cites a study finding that living in a municipality with a partnership system was not associated with better mental health. She said symbolic recognition without legal rights is not enough.

“The report confirms that Japanese society and business are already ahead of national law,” said Terahara. “Public opinion and leading companies have moved, and the remaining gap is in legislation. The report shows that marriage equality is not only a human rights issue but also an economic one, and that the cost of inaction is being paid now.”

The Open for Business report can be read here.