Living

State Department identifies LGBT abuses overseas

Report details findings from 194 countries

Published

14 years ago

April 8, 2011

Chris Johnson

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

The U.S. State Department published its annual report on Friday evaluating the state of human rights overseas and revealing that LGBT abuses continue to persist in many places abroad.

Introducing the findings in a media appearance Friday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the report “usually generates a great deal of interest” among those following human rights and said she hopes the new report will do so again this year.

“Societies flourish when they address human rights problems instead of suppressing them,” Clinton said. “And we hope that this report will give comfort to the activists, will shine a spotlight on the abuses, and convince those in government that there are other and better ways.”

The report details the status of human rights in 194 countries over the course of 2010 and marks the 35th year in which the State Department has produced the findings, which are required by congressional mandate.

Clinton drew particular attention to the report’s identification of abuses against LGBT people overseas and said monitoring this activity is a part of the mission for the State Department.

“Because I believe, and our government believes, that gay rights are human rights, we remain extremely concerned about state-sanctioned homophobia,” Clinton said.

In addition to unveiling the report, Clinton also announced the launch of a new State Department website: humanrights.gov. The site is set to assemble reports, statements and other updates from around the world and is intended to become a depository of global human rights information.

Mark Bromley, chair of the Council for Global Equality, commended the State Department for publishing the findings and said the LGBT reporting “continues to be robust.”

“The introduction to the report cites an escalation of violence, persecution and discrimination against LGBT persons as one of three alarming human rights trends in the world last year,” Bromley said. “They note that this also translates into a denial of economic opportunity for many LGBT individuals.”

Bromley added the report demonstrates Clinton has made LGBT rights one of the State Department’s top priorities and said he looks forward to this continued U.S. engagement.

“That is due to the secretary’s leadership, but also to the many committed human rights officers in the State Department and in U.S. embassies around the world who are now actually meeting and interacting with LGBT human rights activists on a regular basis,” Bromley said.

The State Department details the condition of LGBT people in the countries examined in the report under the heading “Societal Abuses, Discrimination, and Acts of Violence Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.”

Among the abuses against LGBT people that the State Department identifies take place in countries where hostility based on sexual orientation and gender identity is well known or has been previously reported by media outlets.

In Uganda, where homosexual acts are already illegal, legislation was pending that would have instituted the death penalty for gays, although the bill reportedly has been shelved. Still, the State Department finds continued discrimination and a lack of legal protections for LGBT people.

“LGBT persons were subject to societal harassment, discrimination, intimidation, and threats to their well-being during the year,” the report states. “Individuals openly threatened members of the LGBT community and their constitutional rights during several public events.”

For example, the report cites a march that Pastor Martin Ssempa led in April against homosexuality in which participants openly threatened LGBT people.

Additionally, the State Department notes that in October a local tabloid published the names, pictures, and, in some cases, places of residence of LGBT activists under the headline “Hang Them.” According to the report, the Uganda High Court on Nov. 1 issued an injunction blocking the tabloid from publishing further information on homosexuality until the resolution of pending litigation filed by LGBT activists.

The State Department also finds continued abuses against LGBT people in Iran, where the punishment for homosexual acts is death.

The report states the country censored all materials related to LGBT issues and the Special Protection Division, a volunteer unit of the judiciary, monitored and reported “moral crimes.”

“In some cases security forces raided houses and monitored Internet sites for information on LGBT individuals,” the report states. “Those accused of sodomy often faced summary trials, and evidentiary standards were not always met.”

According the State Department, gays in Iran are sometimes “pressured” to participate in reassignment surgery “to avoid legal and social persecutions in the country.” Conditions for transgender people in Iran are seen as more favorable than they are to gays — although transgender people still face hostility.

According to the State Department, police in April found a 24-year-old transgender woman known as Mahsa strangled in her apartment. Her two brothers confessed to killing her on moral grounds.

“Although the brothers were sentenced to prison time of eight years and three years, respectively, the sentences included suspended jail time, which reduced their actual sentence in prison to three years and one year, respectively,” the report states.

The report also finds abuses against LGBT people in countries where hostility toward the LGBT community is less reported.

For example, in Honduras, the State Department says that no discriminatory law exists based on sexual orientation, but “social discrimination against persons from sexual minority communities was widespread.”

“Representatives of NGOs focusing on sexual diversity rights asserted that throughout the year security forces killed and abused their members,” the report states. “The prosecutor often encountered serious difficulties in investigating suspicious deaths of LGBT persons because the victims had concealed their identity or sexual orientation.”

Still, the report states that LGBT people in Honduras have successfully organized demonstrations against discrimination in the country. Among the events was a demonstration in Tegucigalpa to raise awareness about homophobia and a government-authorized Pride celebration at San Pedro Sula. It was not known if the police provided sufficient protection for participants at these events.

The report also identifies human rights abuses against LGBT people in places where the rights of LGBT people are sometimes seen as higher than they in the United States — such as in Western Europe, where many countries allow same-sex marriage and nationwide relationship recognition is available to LGBT people.

In the United Kingdom, for example, the report finds LGBT people enjoy protections against human rights abuses and notes that the nation’s law prohibits discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation.

The report finds that dozens of Pride celebrations took place with no interference by the authorities and local police forces are more actively aware of bias-motivated crimes against LGBT people.

“The law encourages judges to impose a greater sentence in assault cases where the victim’s sexual orientation is a motive for the hostility, and many local police forces demonstrated an increasing awareness of the problem and trained officers to identify and moderate these attacks,” the report states.

But the report notes that LGBT people in the United Kingdom aren’t completely free from human rights abuses. The State Department cites an increase in the number of forced marriages of LGBT teenagers and a recent report stating that foreign gays seeking asylum experience “significant disadvantages” because of sexual orientation.

“[NGO] Stonewall claimed that, by ‘fast tracking’ these more complex cases and denying them quickly, UKBA staff did not give applicants time to talk openly about their sexual orientation,” the State Department states.

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Real Estate

Find a way to participate in the sharing economy

Earn extra cash by walking dogs, renting your car, and more

Published

5 days ago

March 30, 2025

Joseph Hudson

The Rover app allows you to find customers for your home dog walking business. (Photo by luckybusiness/Bigstock)

If you could turn back time, would you find a way to participate in the sharing economy? If you own a home, a car, or have other resources or skills, you may still be able to. So don’t fret, SNAP OUT OF IT! (Anyone getting the Cher references so far?)

Recently, companies like AirBnB, VRBO, Uber, Lyft, Couchsurfing, Upwork, TaskRabbit, LendingClub, Poshmark, Meowtel, Rover, and Neighborgoods (among others) are allowing people to share their resources. Goods and services such as cars, money, homes, couches, clothing, business skills, tech or maintenance, design, dog walking, financial and accounting help, graphic design, among other skills can be shared with others for a price. People are finding ways to use the underutilized resources of their time, possessions and knowledge to make extra money, pay down debt, pay off bills, finance vacations, or just pay for those expensive eggs.

For homeowners, these resources can help offset the costs of owning and financing a home or allow the bandwidth to finally take that three months abroad or six-month sabbatical they have been desiring. As with any investment of time or resources, you will have to assume some risk. If you are renting out your car or home, there will be wear and tear. If you are lending money, there is a risk of it not being returned. If you are selling gently used clothing online, the item could be returned, or the payment does not go through. These are risks one must take into consideration when starting any new enterprise. But as they say, without any risk, there can be no reward.

The sharing economy is based around peer-to-peer transactions. There is renewed emphasis on having experiences, less societal pressure for consumption, and embracing the access to experiences via online platforms. It’s not uncommon for many urban dwellers to own only one car, or not even own a car due to the access one has via the sharing economy. Vacations can be afforded via the peer-to-peer networks where a group of five people can stay in a luxurious setting at a favorite getaway destination for a fraction of the cost of a hotel and all meals out.

When one decides to venture into offering their home or car for these types of transactions, a wise tip to remember is that this is still operating a business. Customer service matters. Cleanliness, prompt attention and communication are key. It will require knowledge toward budgeting, setting competitive prices, creating memorable customer experiences, listening to constructive feedback, and using those customer service skills we all expect to see when we are dining out, staying at a hotel, or flying an airline.

If you would like to learn more about how to leverage your own resources to up your monthly income or free up your schedule, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I offer affordable seminars in creative thinking and digital marketing, to help people make use of their spare time, resources and energy.

Joseph Hudson is a referral agent with Metro Referrals. Reach him at 703-587-0597 or [email protected].

Autos

Green machines on the scene

It’s a good time to buy an electric vehicle

Published

2 weeks ago

March 24, 2025

Joe Phillips

Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium

Looking to roll into something new? With all the buzz about 25% tariffs, it’s the perfect time to grab a new ride before prices soar—especially for electric vehicles, which may soon wave goodbye to those oh-so-attractive federal tax credits. Whether you are an eco-conscious commuter or just need a chariot for weekend getaways, these three green machines offer some serious swagger.

FORD MUSTANG MACH-E PREMIUM

$42,000

Range: 250-300 miles (depending on battery pack)

0 to 60 mph: 5.2 seconds

Cargo space: 29.7 cu. ft.

PROS: Zippy. Sporty feel. Ample battery range.

CONS: Bit bumpy over potholes. Limited seat adjustments.

IN A NUTSHELL: With sleek curves and a design that’s hotter than a drag queen’s heels on the runway, the Ford Mustang Mach-E blends both power and flair. The exterior colors are vibrant and unapologetically bold, just like the rainbow after a storm. Three trim levels, but opt for the spiffy Premium version—which was what I drove and is a nice step up from the $37,000 base model. It also costs a lot less than the gutsy GT, which tops $55,000.

Inside, the Mach-E is like driving a chic lounge on wheels. Toggling through the 15.5-inch touchscreen feels like navigating through the latest TikTok trends. A panoramic glass roof and faux-leather upholstery come standard, but assorted add-ons—standard features with the Premium trim—include hands-free power liftgate, multicolor ambient lighting and 10-speaker Bang & Olufsen stereo. There’s also plenty of space for all the essentials: totes, coats and besties.

And let’s not forget about battery range—there’s enough juice here to take you through a whole day of driving without needing a recharge. With Ford’s fast-charging network, it’s easy to be powered up quicker than you can say, “Ride ‘em, cowboy!” Well, almost.

How popular is this EV, which looks more like a hot hatchback than an SUV? Last year, sales spiked 27% and outsold the iconic gas-powered Mustang. So yes, the Mach-E Premium isn’t just any vehicle—it’s an experience that’s, well, electric.

KIA SPORTAGE PHEV X-LINE PRESTIGE

$44,000

MPGe: 84 city/highway combined

0 to 60 mph: 7.1 seconds

Cargo space: 39.6 cu. ft.

PROS: Comfy. Comely cabin. Oodles of passenger room.

CONS: Clunky dual-use dashboard controls. Bit noisy interior.

IN A NUTSHELL: Next up: the 2025 Kia Sportage PHEV X-Line Prestige, a compact plug-in hybrid that combines style, strength and versatility into one dazzling package. If the Mach-E Premium is a glam EV star, I found the Sportage PHEV to be an SUV showstopper.

Under the hood, power comes from an electric motor and gas-powered backup, so you get the best of both worlds—whether cruising on green energy or unleashing your inner diva. The all-electric range is almost 35 miles, and all-wheel drive is standard—which helps keep things steady, no matter the weather.

Inside, it’s pure comfort. While there are two hybrid trim levels, even the base-model—the X-Line—is fairly loaded: LED headlights/taillights, dual-zone automatic climate control, remote start, power liftgate, nav system, wireless charging pad, smartphone integration and more.

For my weeklong test vehicle, I was spoiled with the X-Line Prestige, which is full of a ridiculous number of amenities and safety gear. Let’s just say the clever cabin design would make the folks at Ferrari blush. Oh, and thanks to the pristine acoustics from the Harmon Kardon audio, I could have sworn the cast of “Hamilton” was right there with me belting out each tune. “Blow Us All Away,” indeed.

MERCEDES AMG C 63 S E

$87,000

MPGe: 40 city/highway combined

0 to 60 mph: 3.3 seconds

Cargo space: 11.6 cu. ft.

PROS: Snazzy. Lightning fast. Haute handling.

CONS: Pricey. Quirky steering-wheel controls.

IN A NUTSHELL: Jonesing for an exciting, eco-friendly sedan? Then look no further than the Mercedes AMG C 63 S E plug-in hybrid, which gets the adrenaline pumping each time you slip behind the wheel.

Under the hood, there’s a staggering 671 horsepower—enough to leave competitors in the dust and make them more than a little jealous. This AMG-tuned Mercedes—the quickest C-Class ever—blasts from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.3 seconds, faster than your heart rate when seeing your next crush at a circuit party. And that’s not even the best part—the shapely contours of this sportster are as chiseled as Luke Evans’ check bones.

Inside, the cockpit is like a designer outfit made for a fab night out—high-quality material everywhere, as well as branded sport seats with top-tier upholstery and stitching. One downside: the steering-wheel controls, which look tasteful but can be a tad too touch-sensitive at times.

Still, this elegant ride exudes more than enough bells and whistles to maintain a constant state of euphoria.

Real Estate

Buying a home as an LGBTQ couple

What you need to know

Published

2 weeks ago

March 23, 2025

Jeff Hammerberg and Scott Helms

For LGBTQ couples, homeownership represents a statement of stability.

For LGBTQ couples, homeownership represents more than just a financial investment — it is a statement of stability, security, and equality. However, navigating the home-buying process can present unique legal and financial challenges. Whether you are buying your first home together or upgrading to your dream house, understanding your rights, responsibilities, and potential pitfalls is essential.

Here’s what LGBTQ couples need to know when purchasing a home in 2025.

Legal Considerations: How Should You Hold Title?

One of the most crucial decisions LGBTQ+ couples face when buying a home is how to hold title, as this impacts legal rights, inheritance, and financial obligations. Here are the three main options:

Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship – Both partners own the property equally, and if one passes away, the other automatically inherits full ownership.
Tenants in Common – Each partner owns a percentage of the property (e.g., 50/50 or 70/30). If one partner dies, their share goes to their estate, instead of automatically transferring to the surviving partner.
Sole Ownership – If only one person is on the title, they hold full legal ownership. This may be beneficial for credit or financing reasons, but it leaves the non-owner partner vulnerable.

LGBTQ+ couples should have a conversation with their gay real estate agent, and/or consult a real estate attorney to determine the best ownership structure based on their relationship and long-term goals.

Financing: Getting Approved for a Mortgage

While same-sex marriage is legally recognized in the U.S., LGBTQ+ couples still experience higher rates of mortgage denials than their heterosexual counterparts. Here’s how to strengthen your loan application:

Check Your Credit Scores – Both applicants should review their credit reports and address any discrepancies before applying.
Compare Lenders – Some mortgage lenders are more LGBTQ+-friendly than others. Ask for a referral from your LGBTQ+ real estate professional.
Consider a Joint or Individual Application – If one partner has significantly better credit or a higher income, it might be beneficial to apply individually for a more favorable interest rate.

Work with an LGBTQ+-friendly lender who understands your financial needs and ensures fair treatment.

Protecting Your Property and Rights

Even if you are legally married, it may be wise to put additional protections in place to avoid potential legal or financial disputes down the road:

Co-Ownership Agreement – If you are not married or want to clarify ownership percentages, a co-ownership agreement outlines each person’s rights and responsibilities.
Estate Planning – LGBTQ+ couples should have a will or trust to specify what happens to the property in the event of death. Even with joint tenancy, a will can clarify intentions and prevent family disputes.
Power of Attorney – In case of emergency, granting each other power of attorney ensures that one partner can make legal or financial decisions on behalf of the other.

Estate planning is not just for the wealthy – having legal documents in place protects your home and loved ones.

Finding an LGBTQ+-Friendly Real Estate Agent

Working with a real estate professional who understands the needs of LGBTQ+ homebuyers can make the process much smoother. Here’s how to find the right agent:

Look for Experience – Seek agents who specialize in working with LGBTQ+ clients and have knowledge of local housing protections.
Avoid Discrimination – While the Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination based on sex (interpreted to include sexual orientation and gender identity), biases still exist. Choose an agent who prioritizes inclusivity and fairness.
Use LGBTQ+ Real Estate Networks – The best way to find a trusted LGBTQ+-friendly real estate agent is through GayRealEstate.com, the Nation’s Oldest and Largest Free Database of LGBTQ+ Real Estate Agents Worldwide. Since its founding, GayRealEstate.com has helped thousands of LGBTQ+ buyers and sellers connect with agents who are not only professional and experienced, but also 100% committed to equality and inclusivity.

Using an agent from GayRealEstate.com ensures that you are working with someone who values fairness, understands LGBTQ+ housing concerns, and is dedicated to finding you the perfect home in a welcoming community.

Choosing an LGBTQ+-Friendly Neighborhood

Finding a home is about more than just the property itself – it is about the community. Consider these factors when searching for the perfect neighborhood:

LGBTQ+ Inclusivity – Look for cities with nondiscrimination laws, pride events, and visible LGBTQ+ communities.
Safety – Research crime rates and local laws to ensure your new neighborhood is a safe and welcoming environment.
Community Support – Some cities have LGBTQ+ resource centers, social groups, and advocacy organizations that make settling in easier.

Tools like the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index rank cities based on LGBTQ+ inclusivity and protections.

Homeownership is an Empowering Step

Buying a home as an LGBTQ+ couple is a milestone worth celebrating. While challenges still exist, being informed and proactive can help you avoid pitfalls, protect your rights, and make smart financial decisions. By working with LGBTQ+-friendly professionals, understanding your legal options, and securing financial protections, you will set yourself up for long-term success and stability.

Whether you are buying your first home or upgrading to your forever house, the key is to be prepared, protected, and empowered throughout the process.

Jeff Hammerberg and Scott Helms are with GayRealEstate.com, the nation’s leading online platform connecting LGBTQ homebuyers and sellers with LGBTQ-friendly real estate agents, ensuring a safe and supportive experience. To find an agent or learn more, visit GayRealEstate.com or call 1-888-420-MOVE.