Displaying items by tag: LGBTQ

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for two senior Taliban figures - supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and chief justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani - accusing them of crimes against humanity through systematic gender-based persecution. Since the Taliban's return to power in August 2021, girls have been banned from education beyond sixth grade, women forced into veiling and isolation, and LGBTQ individuals have also been targeted. This is the first time an international tribunal has legally recognised LGBTQ people as victims of gender-based crimes against humanity. Though the Taliban dismissed the warrants as fuelled by ‘enmity and hatred for the pure religion of Islam’, international rights groups have praised the move as a historic and necessary step toward accountability and justice for the victims of ongoing gender-based oppression in Afghanistan. The decision came the day after the UN General Assembly expressed ‘serious concern about the widespread and systematic oppression of all women and girls in Afghanistan’, and called for the Taliban to ‘swiftly reverse these policies’.

Lorie Smith, who runs a design agency, took Colorado state to court so that she could refuse working on anything promoting gay marriage without being prosecuted. She won her case against an act that includes sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes. We can praise God for the First Amendment that gives everyone the freedom to think and speak as they wish without coercion. The Supreme Court ruling was disappointing for LGBTQ people - but for those who’ve left the LGBTQ lifestyle to follow Jesus, it was marked by a night of worship and prayer hosted by a Spirit-filled church in Georgia. The service was livestreamed across the nation as people humbly cried out to God for the salvation and transformation of 100,000 men and women out of LGBTQ lifestyles and into Christ’s purposes for their lives.

In July furious parents stormed a Drag Queen Story Hour for three- to 11-year-olds in Reading central library, the first venue in a UK-wide two month library tour. The event descended into chaos after the parents broke in and screamed abuse in front of the children. As they threatened to perform a ‘citizens’ arrest’ and accused the drag queen of paedophilia, the police had to step in to bring calm. The final story hour, in Cardiff, was also targeted by protesters with placards and banners, saying it was inappropriate for children. Many people came to support the event, wearing clothes adorned with the rainbow flag. Sab (drag character Aida H Dee) says the stories provide a positive experience about queer culture and deliver a positive role model for people to look up to. Sab moved to Cardiff to capitalise on its flourishing LGBTQ community. and thinks it wouldn’t have thrived without the support Wales gives to that community. Cardiff councillors received 143 letters of complaints about these story times.