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Transgender Gen Zer dies by suicide after wait on U.K. healthcare system list

Alice Litman’s parents said daughter could not access gender-affirming care

Published

4 years ago

on

Alice Litman (Family photo)

Alice Litman was a high school junior when she told her family she wanted to live as a woman. Barely for years later at age 20 she died by suicide. According to her parents Peter and Caroline Litman, she died partly because of the inaccessibility of gender-affirming healthcare in the U.K. 

The BBC reported that an inquest is to be held into the death of Litman, who died by suicide while on a National Health Service waiting list for almost three years for gender-affirming healthcare. She had been referred to the NHS Gender Identity Development Service in August 2019, but was still waiting for an initial assessment when she died by suicide at the age of 20.

BBC News reported that the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, where the gender-identity clinic is based, as saying it was “deeply saddened” by Litman’s death but it was “not appropriate to comment while the inquest is ongoing.”

The clinic’s website, which currently only shows data from the same month that Litman died, reveals the waiting list to be 11,407 people long.

Assistant coroner Sarah Clarke will examine issues relating to her death in the coroner’s inquest due to take place this upcoming September.

Peter and Caroline Litman (Screenshot/BBC South East)

Peter and Caroline Litman hope lessons will be learned from their daughter’s death the couple told the BBC. They said in a statement: “We believe that Alice died partly because of the inaccessibility of gender-affirming healthcare in the U.K.”

“We want the inquest to examine this to ensure we can get justice for Alice, and change for all the trans people who are facing the same issues.”

“It’s not just Alice. It’s too late for her. There are lots of other young transgender people out there and they need our help.”

Last month PinkNewsUK journalist Patrick Kelleher reported LGBTQ people already face disproportionately worse healthcare outcomes in the U.K. — and that’s without an NHS in crisis.

The crisis is a dangerous threat to everybody who relies on free healthcare, reports PinkNewsUK.

For LGBTQ people specifically, it’s compounded by existing barriers — the NHS has acknowledged that outcomes are disproportionately poor for the queer community.

In the government’s 2017 National LGBT Survey, 16 percent of LGBTQ people said they had a negative experience when accessing public health services because of their sexual orientation, while 38 percent had a bad experience on the basis of their gender identity. More than half (51 percent) faced waits for mental health care, while years-long waiting lists for gender-affirming care are well-documented.

Cleo Madeleine, communications officer for trans charity Gendered Intelligence, told PinkNewsUK:

“LGBT+ people already have worse access to healthcare than the general population, with both physical and mental health outcomes falling across the board. Some of this stems from a lack of education on LGBT+ people or an excess of stigma around specific needs like sexual health and gender identity services.

“Elsewhere we find that LGBT+ people — as many as 25 percent — avoid seeking necessary care because they fear reprisal, or because they have been denied healthcare because of their identity before.” 

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Grindr settles UK lawsuit over claims it shared users’ personal information

Plaintiffs allege gay hookup company disclosed HIV status to third parties

Published

2 weeks ago

on

September 9, 2026

By

(Bigstock photo)

Grindr has agreed to pay £26 million ($35.24 million) to settle a lawsuit in the UK over allegations it shared users’ HIV status and other personal information with third parties.

The BBC on Monday reported a lawsuit was filed in the High Court of England and Wales in 2024. A class action lawsuit with more than 11,000 plaintiffs was later filed in the U.S.

Grindr in a U.S. Security and Exchange Commission filing notes the California-headquartered company as part of the settlement it reached on Sept. 2 will pay £13.0 million ($17.62 million) “to the counterparties” by Dec. 31, 2026, and another £13.0 million ($17.62 million) by March 31, 2027.

“As previously disclosed, in April 2025, Grindr Inc. and Grindr LLC, its indirect and wholly-owned operating subsidiary (collectively, ‘Grindr’), were served with proceedings in the High Court of England and Wales, which proceedings were originally issued in April 2024, brought on behalf of UK Grindr users from a period up to early 2020 alleging violations of UK privacy laws,” reads the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission filing.

“On Sept. 2, 2026, Grindr resolved the above-described UK group action related to historical data practices before 2020, when Grindr was owned and controlled by the Chinese conglomerate Kunlun,” it continues. “The settlement includes no findings or admission of liability. While Grindr disputes the allegations, it recognizes and acknowledges the distress and loss of trust expressed by some of its UK users regarding that pre-2020 period.”

The filing further notes Grindr in 2020 “was sold to new owners and appointed new management” and in 2022 became a publicly listed company on the New York Stock Exchange.

“Since 2020 Grindr has overhauled its privacy program with a keen focus on the unique needs of its community,” reads the filing. “Grindr is and remains a safe space for users, committed to transparency, user control, and responsible data practices.”

A Grindr spokesperson in the UK on Tuesday referred the Washington Blade to the filing for comment on the settlement.

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United Kingdom

Queen Camilla meets with JK Rowling

Edinburgh meeting took place on last day of Pride month

Published

3 months ago

on

July 2, 2026

By

(Photo via The Royal Family/X)

Queen Camilla on Tuesday met with JK Rowling.

The Royal Family on X said the meeting took place at Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. The post included a picture of Camilla and Rowling together.

“With a shared passion for books and a deep commitment to children reading for pleasure, The queen and author JK Rowling have met at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh,” it reads. “Her Majesty and Ms. Rowling discussed the importance of ensuring that young people have access to books and the vital part reading plays in opening doors for future generations.”

Rowling over the last decade has emerged as a vocal opponent of transgender rights. Her meeting with Camilla took place on the last day of Pride month.

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United Kingdom

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to resign

Announcement comes after Labour Party election loses, ambassador scandal

Published

3 months ago

on

June 22, 2026

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British Prime Minister Kier Starmer announces his resignation on June 22, 2026. (Screen capture via The Telegraph/YouTube)

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday announced he will step down once his party chooses his successor.

Starmer succeeded Rishi Sunak of the Conservative Party in No. 10 Downing St. in 2024.

The Labour Party included a ban on so-called conversion therapy in England and Wales in its elections manifesto. King Charles III in last month’s King Speech that he delivered in the British House of Lords said a transgender-inclusive ban is among the British government’s legislative priorities.

Charles delivered his King’s Speech days after the Labour lost more than 1,000 council seats in local and regional elections. The May 7 vote took place against the backdrop of widespread criticism over Starmer’s decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the U.S., despite his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

Former Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is seen as the frontrunner to become Labour’s new leader — and the UK’s next prime minister. Burnham was sworn in as an MP in the House of Commons hours after Starmer announced his resignation.

Starmer in his resignation announcement said he expects his successor will be in place before MPs return from their summer recess on Sept. 1.

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