Ghanaian LGBTQ+-rights advocate Ebenezer Peegah was among eight human-rights defenders honored by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Dec. 10, per Erasing 76 Crimes. The award stated, in part, “As the Executive Director of Rightify Ghana, an NGO advancing LGBTQ+ rights, Ebenezer has been at the forefront of numerous advocacy campaigns. With over a decade of experience in community organizing, he has become a prominent figure advocating for equality and justice. Ebenezer’s work extends beyond advocacy, as he actively documents and reports human rights violations faced by sexual and gender minorities, while also promoting their rights through media monitoring and engagement.” Other awardees were from such countries as Bolivia, Eswatini and Kuwait.
In Japan, the Fukuoka High Court ruled that Japan’s current policy against same-sex marriage is discriminatory and unconstitutional, Jurist noted. This marks the third time a High Court in the country has declared the ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional, and this ruling calls on the government to undertake necessary legal reforms. In this case, three couples living in Fukuoka and Kumamoto had same-sex marriage registrations that were rejected, and they wanted compensation from the government. Presiding Judge Okada Takeshi stressed the importance of legal recognition for same-sex couples, in light of the constitutional principles of individual dignity and gender equality.
Benjamin Cohen and husband Anthony James—the couple who run PinkNews, the world’s largest queer news website—have been accused by staff of incidents of sexual misconduct, the BBC reported. Several former staff members told the BBC they saw James, a director at the UK-based company, kissing and touching a junior colleague who appeared too drunk to consent. In addition, more than 30 current and former staff members said a culture of heavy drinking led to instances when Cohen and James behaved inappropriately toward younger male employees. As well as interviewing 33 people who worked at PinkNews between 2017 and 2024, the BBC has also seen evidence such as official written complaints, private emails and WhatsApp messages sharing staff members’ concerns as well as work-related medical records.
An LGBTQ+ group’s event has been added to the Vatican’s official 2025 calendar as the church has granted its request to participate in the upcoming Jubilee, The Advocate noted. La Tenda di Gionata (Jonathan’s Tent)—an Italian association for LGBTQ+ Christians—announced that it will perform a pilgrimage in September, marking one of the hundreds of events in the Jubilee next year. Jubilees usually occur once every 25 years, and usually involve a pilgrimage to a sacred site; those who travel to Rome can pass through “Holy Doors” that will be open at four basilicas in Rome. Vatican spokesperson Agnese Palmucci told Reuters that the group’s inclusion does not signify the church’s support, but that anyone can organize a pilgrimage.
Ex-soccer player-turned-far-right politician Mikheil Kavelashvili, 53, is set to become the new president of Georgia, the AP noted. He easily won, given the conservative Georgian Dream party’s control of a 300-seat electoral college that replaced direct presidential elections in 2017. Kavelashvili has made anti-LGBTQ+ comments as Georgian Dream has adopted Kremlin-type laws curbing the community’s rights, per The South China Morning Post; he has criticized the West for wanting “as many people as possible [to be] neutral and tolerant toward the LGBTQ ideology, which supposedly defends the weak but is, in fact, an act against humanity.” In the UK, he played for Manchester City during 1995-97, with later stints in Switzerland.
Following the United Kingdom’s Health Secretary Wes Streeting and the Department of Health and Social Care’s announcement that puberty blockers for the treatment of gender dysphoria in trans kids would be banned “indefinitely,” a group of trans youth activists established a temporary encampment outside Streeting’s office, according to Them. On Dec. 11, Trans Kids Deserve Better and the group’s supporters set up camp, staying there overnight until the following day. However, cisgender youth experiencing precocious puberty are still allowed to receive prescriptions for puberty blockers.
British military veterans who were discharged or suffered other forms of bias because of their sexual orientation or gender identity will receive up to 70,000 pounds ($89,300) under a government compensation program, per ABC News. Before 2000, service personnel who were discovered to be lesbian, gay or trans were forced to leave the military; many others were subjected to brutal investigations into allegations about their sexual orientation. Last year, now-former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak apologized for the past mistreatment of gay service members and accepted the recommendations of an independent review, including financial compensation.
The IGLTA Foundation—the philanthropic arm of the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA)—released a 15-page report titled Addressing LGBTQ+ Workplace Challenges in Tourism Within Asia, per a press release. The Leadership Think Tank identified five key areas for creating a more equitable and welcoming industry: visibility, commitment beyond policy, leading by example, the power of intersectionality and investing in the future. A couple of the key takeaways are that many LGBTQ+ employees in Asia are still hesitant to come out in the workplace; and that many forward-thinking Asian businesses are not waiting for federal mandates to provide equal benefits to their queer employees.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is reportedly considering stepping down amid a crisis that saw his own finance minister resign over Donald Trump’s threat to hike trade tariffs, The Independent noted, citing CTV News. Trudeau told his cabinet that he is considering either resignation or prorogation, which is the process of ending the parliamentary session. Some senior figures in Trudeau’s own party have called for the prime minister—whose approval rating has repeatedly dipped below 30% this year amid struggles over immigration, housing and the economy—to resign ahead of a general election due before October 2025.
QueerMuzeum—the first museum dedicated to the history of Poland’s queer community—opened in Warsaw this month, per The Washington Blade. It’s the first such museum in a post-communist country in Europe. “We are on Marszałkowska Street, in the heart of Warsaw,” said Miłosz Przepiórkowski, president of the Lambda Warsaw Association, which operates the museum. “This sends a message to politicians: ‘Look, we are opening the fifth queer museum in the world in a country with the worst legal situation for queer people in the EU.’” Key figures from Poland’s queer activist circles during the communist era in the 1980s—who donated items for QueerMuzeum—were on hand for the opening ceremony.
Kenyan photographer Jacktone Odhiambo was sentenced to 50 years in prison for murdering his housemate, LGBTQ+-rights activist Edwin Kiprotich Kipruto (popularly known as Edwin Chiloba) almost two years ago, the BBC reported. Judge Reuben Nyakundi said the decades-long sentence was based on the “diabolical manner” of the killing, noting that Odhiambo, 25, showed no remorse for the killing. Chiloba, a 25-year-old fashion designer, was smothered to death and his body was dumped in a metal box on a roadside; evidence also showed the suspect had sexually assaulted Chiloba before taking his life.
Australian authorities are investigating hate crimes against gay men who were lured through dating apps, according to The Advocate, citing The Sydney Morning Herald. “In each case, lone male victims [in Sydney] agreed to meet in public parks with someone from a dating app but were confronted by multiple teenagers,” the Herald reported. The men have been beaten, robbed and even forced to call themselves pedophiles on social media. There has been a similar series of attacks on gay men in Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city; the perpetrators reportedly meet their victims through Grindr.
Warner Bros. Discovery and the BBC have been accused of double standards on DEI initiatives after both organizations have stood by British Harry Potter writer J.K. Rowling amid her anti-trans rhetoric, per Deadline. Warner Bros. Discovery is working closely with Rowling on HBO’s Harry Potter series, while the BBC recently premiered season six of Strike, based on the author’s Robert Galbraith novels. The support for Rowling’s work has concerned members of the transgender community working in the media, who have noted how the writer’s language on trans issues has become more rougher over the past four years.
In Canada, Emo, Ontario Mayor Harold McQuaker had his bank account garnished after he announced he would refuse to pay court-ordered damages of $5,000 to a local Pride organization, the Los Angeles Blade noted. The drama started in 2020, when the small town of 5,000 people refused a request by Borderlands Pride to issue a proclamation declaring June Pride Month in the town and fly a rainbow flag for a week. Eventually, the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal ordered the town to pay Borderlands Pride C$10,000 (approximately $7,000) and McQuaker to pay C$5,000 (approximately $3,500), and take the province’s “Human Rights 101” one-day course.
Freestyle Digital Media and Attic Box Productions announced the Jan. 3 VOD debut of Lady Like, the debut feature from filmmaker Luke Willis, per a press release. Lady Like tells the story of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 14 runner-up Lady Camden; the 88-minute movie made its world premiere as the closing night film of the BFI Flare London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival. The award-winning film about the British drag icon has screened around the world, including Frameline, NewFest NYC, Roze Filmdagen in Amsterdam, Miami Film Festival, QFilms Long Beach and the Khashish Pride Film Festival in Bombay.
World of Wonder announced that Frankie Wonga was crowned as the winner of the third season of Drag Race Thailand, receiving a grand prize of ฿650,000, a year’s supply of products from Anastasia Beverly Hills and the title of Thailand’s Next Drag Superstar, a press release revealed. Tonga was crowned following a final lip sync for the crown against Zepee to the song “Pra Wut Sart,” by Christina Aguilar. Earlier in the episode, the final four queens—Wonga, Zepee, Gawdland and Spicy Sunshine—talked with host Pangina Heals and judge Sha about their emotional journeys to Drag Race Thailand and what they’ve learned during their time on the show.
To commemorate 40 years of “Last Christmas,” WHAM!, George Michael Entertainment and Sony Music released a Last Christmas 40th Anniversary EP, per a press release. The hit has reached its highest-ever chart position in North America on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number three and notably reaching seven times RIAA Platinum. Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan recently duetted the song on Carpenter’s A Nonsense Christmas on Netflix. The Backstreet Boys also covered the song for the NBC special Christmas at Rockefeller Center, during which WHAM!’s Andrew Ridgeley joined host Kelly Clarkson.
French luxury brand Chanel named out French-Belgian former Bottega Veneta creative boss Matthieu Blazy as its new artistic director—and it’s one of the biggest jobs in fashion, as Blazy will be tasked with finally turning the page on the Karl Lagerfeld era, Fortune noted. Chanel confirmed the appointment shortly after Bottega Veneta announced that Blazy was leaving the Italian firm to be replaced by British designer Louise Trotter. Chanel had been seeking a new creative chief since Virginie Viard, Lagerfeld’s longtime muse, announced her departure in June.
A documentary featuring retired Spanish tennis icon and LGBTQ+ ally Rafael Nadal is being aired on Netflix, per Deadline. The untitled series joins Break Point, which ran for two seasons on Netflix before it was canceled, as well as its upcoming Carlos Alcaraz: My Way series. The series will spotlight Nadal’s career as well as his life off the court, showcasing new material from Nadal’s personal archive and featuring full access with the star, his family, and his close circle of coaches and advisors. Nadal won 22 Grand Slam men’s singles titles, including a record 14 French Open singles titles; also, he is only one of three men (alongside Andre Agassi and Novak Djokovic) to win a Career Grand Slam—all four majors and an Olympic gold medal. Earlier this year, Nadal said he had no problems helping gay tennis players being accepted into his academy after an appointment as ambassador of the Saudi Tennis Federation, Sportskeeda noted.
Grammy winner and 2023 Polar Music Prize recipient Angélique Kidjo teamed with Afro-house DJ and fellow Beninese countryman AMÉMÉ for a new version of Kidjo’s seminal hit “Agolo” entitled “Agolo (Next Gen),” per a press release. KIdjo recently performed a new arrangement of the international hit “Jerusalema” at the grand reopening of the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, and released a recorded version of it with arrangements from her African Symphony collaborator, Derrick Hodge, featuring the Fame’s Project Orchestra.
The post WORLD Activist honored, Japanese court, PinkNews claims, Vatican appeared first on Windy City Times.