A woman fighting a landmark LGBTQ+ custody battle in China said she “still has faith for the future” after winning the right to make monthly visits to her daughter, The Guardian reported. In July, Didi, who lives in Shanghai, travelled to Beijing to visit her 7-year-old daughter, who lives in the capital with Didi’s estranged wife and their other child; it was the first time Didi and her daughter had seen each other in four years. The visitation agreement from Beijing Fengtai people’s court is the first time that a court in China has recognized that a child can have two legal mothers, and pro-LGBTQ+ activists have lauded the decision. However, Didi has not been granted contact with her son, the girl’s brother.
In South Africa, 29-year-old gay cross-dresser Clement Hadebe was shot nine times at a Johannesburg B&B on Aug. 10, The Washington Blade noted. Local media reports indicated Hadebe, from the KwaZulu-Natal province, was at a popular outing area in Johannesburg with a friend when they began to interact with the alleged male shooter who was showing interest in them, particularly Hadebe. Sibonelo Ncanana—civil society engagement officer for OUT LGBT Well-being, an LGBTQ advocacy group—said in a statement that the organization “is appalled by the murder of Clement as well as the queerphobic victim-blaming sensationalism surrounding his death.” Hadebe reportedly did not follow his friend’s advice to disclose he was a gay cross-dresser to the alleged suspect.
In India, the Delhi High Court directed the country’s government to clarify its position on non-consensual sexual offenses against LGBTQ+ people and men under the country’s revised penal code, per The Washington Blade. The court’s order has highlighted the gaps in the legal framework, urging the government to address the protection of these vulnerable groups within the new statute. The petitioner who approached the Delhi High Court, lawyer Gantavya Gulati, said the omission of protections in the new law could have unforeseen consequences. In 2018, the Supreme Court struck down Section 377 of the country’s colonial-era penal code that criminalized consensual same-sex sexual relations. The court invalidated the law for consensual acts, but it retained provisions that concern non-consensual sex to protect trans people and other vulnerable communities.
In England, a Lego mosaic of a popular entertainer described as an “icon” of Manchester drag was displayed ahead of the city’s Pride festival, the BBC noted. Almost 10,000 bricks were used to create likeness of Frank Pearson’s drag persona, Foo Foo Lamar, which has been unveiled at the Legoland Discovery Center in the Trafford Center. The Manchester-born artist died in 2003.
The Wales-based Iris Prize LGBTQ Film Festival announced the 35 short films that have made the cut for the prestigious international Iris Prize, a press release noted. This year’s shortlist features films from 17 countries, including two from the UK, one from Ireland and 10 from the United States (such as Alok, Alex Hedison’s piece on non-binary poet/speaker/activist Alok Vaid-Menon). This year, the 18th edition of the festival runs Oct. 8-13 and the box office opens for general sales on Sept. 9 (members have priority booking from Sept. 2), with full festival passes, day admission and weekend passes already available. The prize for the winning filmmaker is £30,000 (approximately $39,000 U.S.).
In Canada, an anti-Israeli statement issued in early August by Ottawa-based Capital Pride has sparked a major controversy and a rift among local progressives, according to VOZ. Some of the groups that had intended to participate in that organization’s events at next year’s Pride march, scheduled for May 25, have decided not to do so. In the statement, Capital Pride expressed concern about the “rising tide of antisemitism and Islamophobia” in Canada, and condemned the Oct. 7 massacre; however, it also criticized the Israeli counteroffensive against the genocidal terrorists in Gaza. The Liberal Party of Canada—which includes Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau—informed CBC that it won’t participate in Capital Pride events, and Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said in a statement that he plans to not participate, either.
In Australia, Minister for Equality Harriet Shing has announced Joe Ball as Victoria’s third Commissioner for LGBTIQA+ Communities, according to Q News. A transgender man and longstanding LGBTIQA+ advocate, Ball said, “I am here because of those who fought for generations so that LGBTIQA+ people could not only exist but thrive. There is a lot of work still to be done. The hard-won achievements of my [forebears], activists and advocates who have come before me need to be protected and built upon.”
Also in Australia, queer award-winning journalist Hamish Macdonald—who co-hosts Global Roaming on ABC Radio National and The Project on Channel Ten—has joined the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation (BGF) as a new patron, Q News noted. “Their work is so important and I look forward to contributing to their mission and helping to amplify the voices and stories of those affected by HIV,” Macdonald said. Founded in 1984, the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation is Australia’s oldest HIV-related charity; It is holding its annual The Red Ball Gala in Sydney’s Town Hall on Friday, Oct. 18, to raise funds for people living with HIV.
Sweden confirmed its first case of the viral infection mpox, CNN noted. It was also the first case outside Africa—and it was mentioned a day after the WHO declared the disease a global public health emergency for the second time in two years.The person was infected while staying in a part of Africa where there was a large outbreak of the disease. “We have now also during the afternoon had confirmation that we have one case in Sweden of the more grave type of mpox, the one called Clade I,” Health and Social Affairs Minister Jakob Forssmed said at a press conference.
In Canada, John Banks—an LGBTQ+-rights pioneer who organized and took part in Montreal’s first Pride march—passed away recently at age 80, per Yahoo! News Canada. On June 16, 1979, Banks was among approximately 50 people who gathered and marched from Square Saint-Louis to La Fontaine Park in the city’s Plateau-Mont-Royal borough. In 2019, Banks became the first recipient of a Pride Montréal award named after him that recognizes people who have made an outstanding contribution to the creation and development of 2SLGBTQ+ communities.
In England, Stephen Ireland—the founder and former director of Pride in Surrey—has been charged with multiple counts of sexual abuse against children, the BBC reported. Ireland, 40, and David Sutton, 26, both from Addlestone, were arrested. Ireland and Sutton face charges including six counts of conspiracy to sexually assault a child, conspiracy to kidnap a child, voyeurism and arranging the commission of a child sex offense. In addition, Ireland is facing 22 more charges, including rape of a child under 13, sexual assault, making indecent photographs of children and possession of an extreme pornographic image.
With exactly one year to go until host England kicks off the opening match of the Women’s Rugby World Cup England 2025, World Rugby announced an exclusive UK broadcast rights partnership with the BBC, per a press release. The multi-platform deal reflects the tournament’s ambition to broaden the relevance, reach and impact of the biggest-ever women’s rugby event and its stars. BBC Sport will broadcast live coverage of the tournament across linear channels, with every match also available to watch live on BBC iPlayer and the Sport website and app.
In Australia, a penguin who inspired a 2021 Mardi Gras float after making international headlines for his same-sex relationship has died at age 11, ABC.net.au reported. Sphen shot to fame in 2018 after partnering with fellow gentoo penguin Magic at Sea Life Sydney Aquarium. The couple, who spent six years together, successfully fostered two chicks—Sphengic (Lara) in 2018 and Clancy in 2020, in what was described as an Australian first. Normally, penguins would only raise one chick in the wild, according to staffers.
LGBTQ+ acting legend Sir Ian McKellen shared an update on his health following his dramatic fall off the stage in London’s West End, PinkNews noted. Speaking with Saga magazine, McKellen said, “I’ve relived that fall I don’t know how many times. It was horrible,” adding that his foot got “caught in a chair” and he slipped on newspapers on the stage during the production Player Kings, as if he was “on a skateboard.” “My chipped vertebrae and fractured wrist are not yet mended,” he added. “I don’t go out because I get nervous in case someone bangs into me, and I’ve got agonizing pains in my shoulders to do with my whole frame having been jolted.”
Queer Australian-American alt-R&B artist Forest Claudette has released the & Stone Between EP, per a press release. This three-track collection includes the single “Press on Me.” The release of & Stone Between comes on the heels of Claudette’s announcement of their North American headlining tour, that will kick off on Sept. 11 in Atlanta, with subsequent stops in Toronto, Chicago, LA, Oslo, Amsterdam, Paris and London, among other cities.
Iconic British duo Pet Shop Boys released their new single and video, “Feel,” from their latest album, Nonetheless, which debuted in April, according to a press release. The single is available now as a five-track digital bundle that includes the radio edit of “Feel,” the previously unreleased song “Everybody will dance” and a German demo version of “The schlager hit parade,” from Nonetheless, sung by Chris Lowe. The video for “Feel” features emerging UK actors Sam Bottomley and Tareq Al-Jeddal.
Following her elimination from Canada’s Drag Race: Canada vs. the World, longtime RuPaul’s Drag Race star Eureka O’Hara does not intend to return to compete any time soon, Out noted. She posted on X (formerly Twitter), “3 mugs and 3 looks still safe! I’m done competing. I’m ready to live!” This was the drag star’s fourth time competing in a series in the Drag Race universe; her first time competing on the iconic show was in 2017 on season 9, then again on season 10 and then more recently on All Stars 6.
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