World
Out in the World: LGBTQ news from Europe and Asia
Thai lawmakers approve marriage equality bill
PORTUGAL
The Portuguese Parliament passed the final draft of a bill this past week, which was first introduced last May by the Bloco de Esquerda, the populist democratic socialist political party, that outlaws “any practice aimed at the forced conversion of sexual orientation, identity or gender expression.”
Joined in a coalition with the Livre and PAN parties, the new law incorporates into the country’s penal code that “whoever subjects another person to this type of treatment, including the performance or promotion of medical-surgical procedures, practices with pharmacological, psychotherapeutic or other psychological or behavioral resources, will be punished with a prison sentence of up to three years or a fine.”
During the parliamentary debate in the Constitutional Affairs, Rights, Freedoms and Guarantees, the College of Physicians Committee issued a statement in which it criticized this type of therapy for “not having proven its effectiveness nor respecting the ethical and deontological standards of medical practice.” The organization highlighted that “diversity in sexual orientation and gender identity represents normal expressions, which cannot be considered diseases.”
The law now heads to President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa for his signature.
Passage of the law by Parliament brings Portugal into alignment with other European Union nations. Malta was the first European country to ban the practice followed by Germany, Greece, Albania, France and Belgium.
SPAIN
The Assembly of Madrid, the unicameral autonomous legislature which governs the region around Spain’s capital city, voted this past week to rollback protections for transgender people. The measure was passed by the conservative People’s Party.
The measure also contained a proviso that guidelines preventing harassment of LGBTQ students in schools is eliminated, all content aimed at showing the LGBTQ community and the training of teachers in this matter are removed from the study plans.
The bill amended a regional trans rights law and an LGBTQ rights law, both of which were passed in 2016. The decision makes Madrid the first Spanish region to roll back such legislation. The anti-trans bill stripped the previous law of its fundamental pillar: The concept of “gender self-determination” or “freely expressed gender identification.”
The PP’s new law replaced the terms “trans people” and “gender identity” with “transsexuals” and “transsexuality,” terms which activists say are demeaning.
The Standard, a British news outlet, reported the move by the PP party sparked outcry from the opposition in Madrid and LGBTQ activists.
Carla Antonelli, an assembly member for the left-wing Mas Madrid party who is trans, wore red gloves symbolizing bloodied hands during the raucous debate preceding the vote. She called the bill an “abomination” and compared it to the actions of Nazi SS doctor Josef Mengele, who “also spoke of science to exterminate Jews and LGTBQ people.”
“When you press that button to vote for this infamy … you will all have blood on your hands,” Antonelli said adding: “This is terrorism towards trans people. You won’t be able to wash your dirty conscience because we will remind you of it every day.”
The Standard also noted that in December 2022, Spain passed a nationwide bill allowing trans people aged 14 and over to change their legal gender without the need for psychological or other medical evaluation, though those aged 14-16 would still need parental or guardians’ agreement.
Fourteen other Spanish regions out of the country’s 17 have laws for the protection of trans rights, LGBTQ rights, or both, on the books.
GREECE
The spokesperson for Greece’s center-right government announced Dec. 21 that legislation legalizing same-sex marriage will be brought to the Hellenic Parliament before its current term expires in 2027.
Pavlos Marinakis noted this action would take place despite facing staunch opposition from the country’s influential Orthodox Church, which the church’s governing Holy Synod had submitted late on Dec. 20, expressing strong opposition to legalizing same-sex marriage.
The Greek City Times reported that the church’s stance drew significant attention from the Greek news media, sparking a lively debate within the country. Opinion polls indicate that Greeks are evenly divided on the issue of same-sex marriage but generally oppose granting full parental rights to gay couples.
“The position of the Church of Greece remains that children have an innate need and therefore a right to grow up with a male father and a female mother. No amount of social modernization and no amount of political correctness can bypass (this),” the church document said.
“Children are not companion pets for those who wish to feel like a guardian, and are not ‘accessories’ to formalize or make same-sex cohabitation socially acceptable,” it added.
The Associated Press noted that Greece’s left-wing opposition leader, Stefanos Kasselakis, married his male partner in New York in October, several weeks after winning a party leadership election.
Greece legalized same-sex civil partnerships in 2015.
HUNGARY
In a press conference on Dec. 21, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán accused the European Commission of blackmailing his country over its anti-LGBTQ laws and other rule-of-law concerns.
“In our view, Hungary fulfils all the qualities of the rule of law, and when the European Commission has specific needs, we implement everything from them, and we are also cooperative,” Orbán told reporters. “You cannot blame me for doing everything I can to promote Hungary’s interests in such a blackmailed situation.”
Orbán has been embroiled in a long-standing dispute with the governing body of the EU, the European Commission, which has frozen billions of funds intended for Hungary over concerns about human rights and the rule of law in the country.
The government of the conservative ruling party of the prime minister has been feuding with the EU since passage of Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ education law in June 2021.
Orbán, who has publicly proclaimed that he is a “defender of traditional family Catholic values,” has been criticised by international human rights groups as discriminating against LGBTQ+ people with this law which European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called a “disgrace.”
The European Commission, the ruling body of the EU, referred Hungary to the EU Court of Justice over the anti-LGBT law in mid-2022. The commission has said it considers that the law violates the EU’s internal market rules, the fundamental rights of individuals and EU values.
UNITED KINGDOM
A Manchester Crown jury found a pair of teenagers guilty in the murder of Brianna Ghey, a 16 year old trans girl and TikTok creator who was brutally stabbed to death in a park in Culcheth, Warrington, in February 2023.
The jury unanimously ruled the teens, known only as Girl X and Boy Y, guilty after deliberating for over four hours. The judge said she would have to impose a life sentence, with the official sentencing to take place next year.
Ghey, who lived in Birchwood, Cheshire, and was a junior at Birchwood Community High School had been bullied for her trans identity according to comments left on social media posts by friends and fellow students.
Her friends alleged she had been bullied and gang beaten at Birchwood Community High School for several years over the “simple reason of being trans.”
The gruesome details came out during the trial in Manchester, where the jury heard testimony that the pair, a male and a female, both 16 had a “thirst for killing” and were fascinated by torture.
PinkNewsUK reported a “murder plan” was later discovered in the female’s bedroom, and investigators discovered that they had put together a “kill list” made up of five children before they settled on making Ghey their first target. The jury also heard that male had referred to Ghey as “it” rather than “she,” which he said was a “joke” between himself and his female accomplice.
The Judge, Amanda Louise Yip, noted that she would have to impose a life sentence for both defendants. She explained that she will now have to decide what the “minimum amount of time you will be required to serve before you might be considered for release” should be.
Yip, after the jury’s verdict was delivered, announced there was a public interest in lifting restrictions on reporting the teenagers’ names, which because of their ages had not been disclosed. However she said the welfare of the defendants could be put at risk if supports were not put in place, BBC News reported.
The judge acknowledged that naming Ghey’s murderers would “cause distress to their families,” and she noted that they had already faced threats and harassment due to their children’s actions.
“I believe the appropriate balance can be achieved by directing that the order may be lifted but placing a [delay] upon it until the date of sentencing,” she said.
The Tory government’s Department for Education released a set of much-feared school policies and guidance concerning transgender students on Dec. 18. LGBTQ advocacy groups responded, describing the government’s draft guidance for trans schoolchildren proposals as “chilling” and “actively dangerous.”
PinkNewsUK reported the long-delayed guidance on how to support trans and non-binary pupils at school lays out steps to approach a range of issues, from social transition, to changing names and pronouns, to access to single-sex spaces.
The non-statutory guidance explicitly states that primary school-aged children “should not have different pronouns to their sex-based pronouns used about them,” and that if a child wishes to socially transition, parents should be engaged.
The plan further outlined policies that would forcibly out trans youth to their parents, ban pronouns for all primary school trans youth, prevent trans youth from using restrooms that align with their gender identity and could even lead to forced haircuts and clothing choices.
Journalist Erin Reed noted the policies even allow schools to enforce uniform policies based on a student’s assigned sex at birth, explicitly stating that trans students should follow the “hairstyle rules” of their assigned sex at birth. This would lead to trans girls being forced, for instance, to cut their hair short. You can see the policies here:
Social transition bans are, of course, seen and being promoted in other countries as well. New Zealand’s “Resist Gender Education” calls for the government to ban all social transition in schools, “even with parental consent.” In a statement to PinkNewsUK, Mermaids, a group that advocates for trans youth, added that the government’s guidance is “out-of-touch” and “absurd”.
“It is difficult to understand how aspects of this draft guidance, including automatically excluding trans pupils from facilities, sport bans or allowing students to be misgendered are compatible with existing equalities law,” the charity said.
“The overwhelming majority of teachers and parents believe trans pupils should be safe at school and will disregard these discriminatory guidelines, which will be non-compulsory.”
NEW ZEALAND
A new government policy will yank millions of dollars of public funding from New Zealand sports organizations as the government of newly elected Prime Minister Christopher Luxon sets out its agenda to “ensure publicly funded sporting bodies support fair competition that is not compromised by rules relating to gender.”
Andy Foster, a spokesperson for the populist and nationalist political New Zealand First party says it is “about fairness and safety in sport for women,” the NZ Herald reported.
Trans athlete and two-time national champion mountain biker Kate Weatherly told the Herald she fears it will lead to athletes being forced into men’s competitions or sidelined completely. Given the minimal number of trans women competing in amateur sports, Weatherly fears it could lead to their exclusion from the grassroots arena, she added.
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop was uncomfortable discussing the coalition agreement. “New Zealand First are very keen to make sure we have an inclusive environment and atmosphere for everybody — and that rules relating to gender don’t get in the way of that,” Bishop told the Herald.
“It is a tricky one, a thorny issue. There’s strong views on both sides of the debate. I’ll work through that with the relevant sporting bodies. Ultimately it’s got to go over to sporting bodies to make sure that we have fair competition.”
THAILAND
On Dec. 21, the Thai House of Representatives passed four draft bills regarding legalizing same-sex marriages in this Southeast Asia nation which has one of the more open cultures in that part of the world in acceptance of LGBTQ people.
Amnesty International Thailand Researcher Chanatip Tatiyakaroonwong noted in a statement:
“By potentially becoming the third place in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage, Thailand has the opportunity to set a bold example for LGBTI people’s rights in this region. These bills and the debates in Parliament over them represent a moment of hope for LGBTI people’s rights in Asia, even though there is still much to be done for their full protection.
The final version of this draft legislation must not water down calls for the full spectrum of the right to family life, including access to adoption and inheritance for LGBTI couples, as well as the legal recognition of same-sex couples as ‘spouses’ on an equal footing with different-sex couples.
As LGBTI activists have systematically demonstrated, efforts to broaden rights for LGBTI people don’t go nearly far enough to ensure equal rights guaranteed under international law. These bills set Thailand on a new path that could right those wrongs.
If legislation passes on first reading, Thailand’s Parliament should build on the momentum and prioritize the immediate adoption of this law, taking note of the celebratory reaction as a sign that the country is hungry for equality. Lawmakers in Parliament should continue to demonstrate to Thailand’s LGBTI community that they are listening and valuing their voices, wishes and perspectives.
Guaranteeing full marriage equality in law not only sends a message to the rest of the region but to the rest of the world, at a time when countries all over the globe are changing outdated laws and building more inclusive societies.”
Reuters reported that Deputy Prime Minister Somsak Thepsuthin told Parliament, referring to the government’s draft bill.
“In principle, this draft law is for the amendment of some provisions in the civic codes to open the way for lovers, regardless of their gender, to engage and get married. This will provide rights, responsibilities and family status as equal to the marriage between a man and a woman presently in all aspects,” he said.
Somsak said a government survey conducted between Oct. 31-Nov. 14 showed 96.6 percent public support for the draft bill.
Additional reporting from Esquerda News Lisbon, The Standard UK, Greek City Times, The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, 24.HU News, PinkNewsUK, The BBC, Erin Reed, The New Zealand Herald and Reuters.
Uganda
LGBTQ Ugandans targeted ahead of country’s elections
President Yoweri Museveni won 7th term in disputed Jan. 15 vote
Barely a week after Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni secured a 7th term in an election marred by state violence, intimidation, and allegations of fraud, the country’s queer community spoke about how the election environment impacted it.
The LGBTQ lobby groups who spoke with the Washington Blade noted that, besides government institutions’ failure to create a safe and inclusive environment for civic participation by all Ugandans, authorities weaponized the Anti-Homosexuality Act to silence dissent and discourage queer voter engagement.
The rights groups note that candidates aligned with Museveni’s ruling National Resistance Movement — including Parliament Speaker Anita Among — during the campaigns accused their rivals of “promoting homosexuality” to discredit them while wooing conservative voters.
Queer people and LGBTQ rights organizations as a result were largely excluded from the formal political processes for the election as voters, mobilizers, or civic actors due to fear of exposure, stigma, violence, and legal reprisals.
“This homophobic rhetoric fueled public hostility and emboldened vigilante violence, forcing many queer Ugandans into deeper hiding during the election period,” Uganda Minority Shelters Consortium Coordinator John Grace stated.
Some queer people had expressed an interest in running for local council seats, but none of them formally registered as candidates or campaigned openly because of safety concerns and local electoral bodies’ discriminatory vetting of candidates.
“UMSC documented at least three incidents of election-related violence or intimidation targeting LGBTQ+ individuals and activists,” Grace noted. “These included harassment, arbitrary detentions, extortions by state and non-state actors, digital cat-fishing, and threats of outing.”
Amid such a militarized and repressive election environment, Let’s Walk Uganda Executive Director Edward Mutebi noted queer-led and allied organizations engaged in the election process through restricted informal voter education, community discussions, and documenting human rights violations.
“Fear of backlash limited visibility and direct participation throughout the election cycle,” Mutebi said. “But despite the hostile environment of work, Let’s Walk Uganda was able to organize a successful transgender and gender diverse youth training on electoral security and safety.”
Museveni’s government escalated its repressive actions during the Jan. 15 elections by shutting down the internet and suspending nine civil society organizations, including Chapter Four Uganda and the National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders, for allegedly engaging in activities that are prejudicial to the security and laws of the country.
The suspension of the rights organizations remains in force, an action both Mutebi and Grace condemn. They say it prevents queer Ugandans from accessing urgent services from the affected groups.
“For the LGBTQ community, the impact has been immediate and deeply harmful. Many of the suspended organizations, like Chapter Four Uganda, were critical partners in providing legal representation, emergency response, and documentation of rights violations,” Grace said.
This has compelled UMSC and its other partners to handle increased caseloads with limited resources, while navigating heightened scrutiny and operational risk.
“The suspension has disrupted referral pathways, delayed urgent interventions, and weakened collective advocacy for marginalized groups and minority rights defenders, which calls for urgent international solidarity, flexible funding, and protection mechanisms to safeguard the work of grassroots organizations operating under threat,” Grace stated.
Mutebi warned that such repressive actions are tyrannical and are indicative of shrinking civic space, which undermines democratic accountability as the promotion and protection of human rights is ignored.
With Museveni, 81, extending his tenure at State House from a landslide win of 72 percent, UMSC and LWU consider a bleak future in the protection of rights for queer Ugandans and other minority groups.
“Without significant political and legal shifts, LGBTQ persons will face continued criminalization, reduced civic space, and heightened insecurity, making sustained advocacy and international solidarity more critical than ever,” Mutebi said. “ It is unimaginable how it feels to live in a country with no hope.”
Grace, however, affirmed the resistance by local queer lobby groups will continue through underground networks, regional solidarity, and digital organizing.
The duo noted that a win by Museveni’s main challenger and rapper, Bobi Wine, who only managed 24 percent of the total votes cast, could have enabled the opening up of civil space and human rights protections in Uganda.
Wine, for his part, spoke in favor of the respect for the rule of law and human rights during his campaign.
“While Bobi Wine’s past stance on LGBTQ rights was inconsistent, his recent shift toward more inclusive rhetoric and international engagement suggested a potential opening for dialogue,” Grace said. “A win might have created space for policy reform or at least reduced state-sponsored homophobia, though structural change would still require sustained pressure and coalition-building.”
Mutebi stated that a change in Uganda’s leadership to a youthful leader like Wine could have offered an opening, but not a guarantee for progress on inclusion and human rights. Mutebi added existing institutionalized and societal homophobia remain in place.
World
Companies participate in ‘Pride on the Promenade’ at World Economic Forum
GLAAD co-organized initiative
A dozen companies that are participating in the World Economic Forum on Wednesday lit up their venues on the Davos promenade in rainbow colors.
Amazon, Axios, Bloomberg, Circle, Cisco, Cloudflare, Edelman Trust House, Hub Culture, Salesforce, SAP, Snowflake, and Workday participated in the “Pride on the Promenade” that GLAAD, Open for Business, and the Partnership for Global LGBTIQ+ Equality organized. It is the fourth year the organizations have organized the initiative during the World Economic Forum.
The annual event is taking place this week in the Swiss ski resort town of Davos.
GLAAD CEO Sarah Kate Ellis on Wednesday moderated a panel in which Open for Business CEO Ken Janssens and Iris Bohnet, co-director of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Women and Public Policy Program, among others, participated. President Donald Trump earlier in the day spoke at the World Economic Forum.
“World leaders, corporate executives, and global media are discussing new ways to evolve inclusion and social issues, but leaders in those institutions and our community as a whole need to do more to support LGBTQ people globally,” said Ellis in a statement that GLAAD sent to the Washington Blade on Thursday. “At a time when decades-old alliances are being challenged, the importance of this visible show of solidarity at the largest convening of global decision makers cannot be understated. Inclusion remains a necessary business practice and companies that demonstrate shared values of family and freedom know this helps grow the bottom line.”
Iran
LGBTQ Iranians join anti-government protests
Nationwide demonstrations over economy began Dec. 28
Protests erupted across Iran on Dec. 28 as public anger over the country’s collapsing country spilled into the streets. Members of the LGBTQ community are among those who have participated in them.
What began as demonstrations over rising living costs soon expanded into broader political dissent, with protesters chanting anti-government slogans and, in some cases, directly criticizing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Authorities later imposed internet restrictions and launched a nationwide crackdown, according to human rights groups.
According to Reuters, an Iranian official said authorities have verified at least 5,000 deaths linked to the unrest, including about 500 members of the security forces. The official blamed what the government described as “terrorists and armed rioters” for the killings, a characterization that could not be independently verified due to severe restrictions on media access and internet connectivity.
The same official told Reuters that the final death toll was not expected to rise significantly. The official also alleged that Israel and armed groups outside Iran had supported and supplied those involved in the protests, claims that could not be independently verified.
Multiple sources told the Washington Blade that LGBTQ Iranians have taken part in the protests against the government, despite the heightened risks they face under the country’s strict laws that criminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations.
Arsham Parsi, founder and executive director of International Railroad for Queer Refugees, is from Shiraz, a city in southern Iran. He fled the country in 2005.
Parsi told the Blade a widespread demand for dignity and freedom is driving the uprising.
“It is important to say clearly: LGBTQ people are part of Iranian society, and they are part of this protest,” said Parsi. “Many are participating directly, despite facing risks that are often even greater than others — because in Iran they are already criminalized and targeted simply for who they are.”
“For LGBTQ Iranians, showing up — whether publicly or in underground ways — can carry life-and-death consequences,” he added.
Parsi told the Blade that members of the LGBTQ community with whom he has been in contact described a mix of fear, exhaustion, grief, and determination. He added that many of them feel this moment differs from previous waves of protest in Iran.
“The scope, the persistence, and the public rejection of fear feel qualitatively different — and for that reason, many Iranians inside and outside the country are hopeful that this will lead to real transformation, including regime change, and that Iranians will finally regain their freedom,” said Parsi. “Freedom is not free, and Iranians are paying its cost with their blood.”
Parsi said the government’s response to the protests has been severe; citing widespread blackouts, internet shutdowns, telephone disruptions, and heavy security presence on the streets. He said the communication restrictions have made it increasingly difficult to document abuses, locate missing people, coordinate medical assistance or verify information, warning that such conditions can allow violence to occur beyond public view.
Parsi said his organization, along with other trusted groups, has been sharing harm-reduction guidance whenever possible, particularly on digital safety, avoiding identification and minimizing risk. He added, however, there is no fully safe way to protest under a system that criminalizes identity and treats dissent as an enemy, noting LGBTQ people, women, students, labor activists, and ethnic and religious minorities are among those facing the greatest danger.
“I also want to be very clear about what kind of international involvement we are calling for. We are against foreign military intervention. Iranians must determine Iran’s future. But we do need international aid and serious diplomatic engagement that is grounded in human rights — not convenience,” said Parsi. “In the past, too often, when Iranians rose up, parts of the international community were distracted by negotiations, ‘promises’ from the Islamic Republic, or short-term deals, and the momentum for human rights was abandoned.”
“We hope this time no one is fooled,” he added. “The regime is desperately trying to manipulate the narrative through state media and misinformation — to change the course of events and confuse the international community. The world must be smart, vigilant, and principled: do not reward repression with legitimacy, and do not trade away Iranian rights for empty assurances.”
Parsi said the unrest should also be viewed within a broader regional context, noting Iran’s actions beyond its borders have long drawn criticism from governments and analysts who accuse the country of supporting armed groups and contributing to conflicts that have harmed civilians across the Middle East. He said a future Iran that respects human rights domestically and pursues less confrontational policies abroad could have implications not only for Iranians, but for regional and global stability as well, adding many within the country continue to protest despite the personal risks involved.
Soudeh Rad, co-founder and executive director of Spectrum, a France-based NGO that works with Farsi-speaking communities on gender equality and LGBTQ issues, noted to the Blade the latest wave of large-scale protests began in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar. They said LGBTQ people, like other marginalized and underrepresented communities, often suffer disproportionate burden under systems of entrenched discrimination.
“Images and testimonials prove the fact that protestors are from all classes, ages, communities, ethnicities, genders, and even with different abilities. This is not a higher-class protest. Obviously, our LGBTQIA+ siblings, of all political tendencies and belongings,” said Rad. “As we can imagine, if their SOGIESC (sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and sex characteristics) identity is revealed at the detention centers and prisons, they will be subject to a higher and more intense torture. Police and militia have not hesitated a moment to shoot protestors to kill them. Snipers have been spotted targeting people. Reported numbers of killed and injured people go as high as thousands.”
Rad said recent protest movements have produced gradual social changes in Iran even without formal legal reforms. They cited the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement, noting observers report growing noncompliance with compulsory hijab rules and increased solidarity among ethnic and long-marginalized communities that include Baluchis, Kurds, and Azeris. Rad described the current unrest as part of an ongoing process of social transformation.
Shadi Amin, a director at the LGBTQ rights group 6Rang, said the full impact of the crackdown on LGBTQ activists remains unknown, citing internet shutdowns and limited access to detention centers that have hindered documentation. She said LGBTQ people often face additional barriers to recognition as victims of human rights abuses, because discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity are frequently sidelined during periods of unrest. This omission leaves many cases unacknowledged or erased from public narratives.
Amin also pointed to Iran’s legal framework, under which consensual same-sex sexual relations remain punishable by death, as a key factor contributing to the long-standing invisibility of LGBTQ people.
She said the absence of official data makes it impossible to determine how many LGBTQ individuals may have been killed, detained or subjected to abuse during the protests, adding that this lack of recognition has persisted for decades. Amin told the Blade the internet shutdown has also severed regular communication between advocacy groups and LGBTQ people inside Iran, cutting off counseling services and daily contact that had previously provided limited insight into conditions on the ground. She said the loss of communication has made it increasingly difficult to assess the safety of individuals or confirm who remains in detention or has gone missing.
“I have spent almost my entire life fighting for freedom and democracy. Even if we have not yet achieved our ultimate goal, we have made life harder for our oppressors and safer for our community—and that in itself matters,” Amin noted to the Blade. “We seek change and have called for international intervention to uphold the responsibility to stop crimes against humanity, including through Responsibility to Protect (a U.N. principle adopted in 2005); however, top-down regime change or foreign military intervention would silence the movement.”
“In times of war, weapons — not people — have the final word, and social movements are pushed aside. This is one of our core concerns,” she added. “Another is the risk that even if the current regime is overthrown, it could be replaced by another form of dictatorship — such as a monarchic project represented by the son of the former shah, who has lived in the United States for nearly five decades and lacks democratic legitimacy.”
Amin said LGBTQ activists fear being overlooked amid the broader unrest, emphasizing concerns that ongoing repression and communication blackouts risk pushing LGBTQ experiences further out of public view. She said maintaining international attention remains critical for communities that are often forced into invisibility during periods of crisis.
Matt Forouzandy, president of the 30-Morg Queer Liberation Committee, an NGO focused on LGBTQ issues affecting Iranians inside the country and in the diaspora, confirmed LGBTQ Iranians have participated in the protests since they began.
He said some queer Iranians publicly expressed support for Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi on social media, sharing posts alongside Iran’s lion and sun flag, while acknowledging the risks they faced before joining demonstrations.
Pahlavi is the son of Iran’s last monarch, Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, who was overthrown during the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Living in exile, he has in recent years emerged as a symbolic opposition figure for some Iranians abroad, though his role and influence inside the country remain contested.
Forouzandy said LGBTQ people inside Iran have, in some cases, participated more openly in the protests than many observers might expect, citing years of compounded repression under the regime. He said many queer activists use their real names and photographs on X and other social media platforms, rather than operating anonymously. Forouzandy added LGBTQ participants across different regions of the country have publicly expressed opposition to the current system.
Forouzandy said the future legal and civil status of LGBTQ people in Iran would depend on the political direction taken if the current system were to change, including whether outcomes reflect domestic demands or outside influence. He said some protesters have expressed support for a return to monarchical rule, arguing that such a shift could affect prospects for civil rights, though the outcome remains uncertain.
“Iranians in the diaspora — including LGBTQ+ individuals — are doing everything within their capacity to support those inside the country,” said Forouzandy. “However, the most decisive force remains the people inside Iran themselves. Their courage, determination, and collective will are what ultimately shape the outcome.”
“This is especially true for LGBTQ+ Iranians, who are fighting simultaneously for the liberation of their homeland and for full and equal civil rights within a future free Iran,” he added.
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