Moroccan advocacy groups have criticized continued attacks and unequal treatment against the country's LGBTQ+ community, The Washington Blade reported. On Nov. 15, a minor was sentenced to six months in prison for being gay and fined close to $200. According to TALAY'AN NGO, the young boy from Ouarzazate endured a traumatizing assault and rape for more than three years at the hands of a muezzin, an authority figure in a mosque. The adult was found guilty of indecent assault and rape of a minor and received an eight-year sentence—but the minor also received prison time (six months).
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that the lack of legal recognition and protection for same-sex couples in Poland violates the European Convention on Human Rights, PinkNews reported. The Dec. 12 decision was linked to five same-sex couples whose applications to wed were rejected by Polish authorities. Poland has often attracted criticism for its anti-LGBTQ+ laws, with same-sex marriage and adoption still illegal.
A court found in favor of the UK government blocking Scotland's landmark gender law reforms, PinkNews reported. The Scottish government lodged a court case against Westminster for using a Section 35 order to block its Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill. The legislation would make it easier for trans Scots to change the gender markers on their official documents as well as open the legal transition process to 16- and 17-year-olds for the first time. It is likely the Scottish government will appeal the case and the legal battle will end up in the Supreme Court.
An asylum-seeker housed on board the UK's Bibby Stockholm barge has died, PinkNews reported. The Home Office has confirmed that it is aware of an incident involving an asylum seeker on board the controversial three-story barge, described by critics as a "floating prison" and which is being used to house up to 500 migrants. The use of the barge to accommodate migrants was strongly opposed by critics, with LGBTQ+ charities explaining that queer and trans people seeking asylum are particularly at risk of harm.
Also, a Russian LGBTQ+ asylum-seeker died outside a Dutch refugee camp, Global Voices noted. On Nov. 29, LGBT World Beside—a European organization supporting LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and refugees from post-Soviet countries—posted on Instagram, "With deep regret, we announce the loss of another member of our community, Mikhail, a seeker of asylum from Russia. This is the third loss this year, and we express sincere condolences to Mikhail's family and friends. Deaths in refugee camps, especially among the LGBTQIA+ community, are becoming a troubling trend."
Rwanda's government said LGBTQ+ people "may face some discrimination" in that country—but it insisted that the African nation will be safe for asylum-seekers, The Isle of Wight Country Press noted. The government has faced criticism over the plan, with opponents expressing concern about safety of asylum seekers under President Paul Kagame's administration, which some have branded authoritarian.
Following the decision of the Russian Supreme Court to declare the "international LGBT social movement" extremist, Germany will consider granting asylum to gay people from Russia, TVP World noted, citing German media outlet DW. German Justice Ministry spokesman Maximilian Kall said the ban on the LGBTQ+ promotion in Russia will be taken into account in the process of considering applications from Russian citizens.
Out gay Australian singer Troye Sivan attended GQ Australia's 2023 Men of the Year Awards in Sydney, and accepted the honor of Man of the Year, according to a Yahoo! Life item. In his speech, Sivan said, "It's not lost on me the irony of me winning 'man' of the year when I did drag for the first time this year. I feel more in touch with my femininity than ever, and I think it speaks to a point I'd really like to make: which is that my relationship with masculinity has been very strange my entire life." Some of the other honorees included nonbinary actor Zoe Terakes (Actor of the Year), Dion Lee (Creative Force of the Year), Eddie Benjamin (Breakthrough Musician of the Year), James Parr (Model of the Year) and Adam Briggs (Australian Icon).
Canada's federal government says it supports listing Black and LGBTQ+ people among groups facing systemic workplace barriers under the Employment Equity Act, CBC News reported. The Liberal government is backing the legislative change after a task force report recommended the move. Among other things, the task-force report says LGBTQ+ workers have endured a "disturbingly recent history" of persecution; people were demoted or forced to resign for engaging in same-sex relationships.
Japan's health ministry reported the country's first fatality from mpox, Reuters noted. The patient was a man in his 30s with a prior infection with HIV and no travel history, the ministry said in a statement. Mpox was formerly known as monkeypox but renamed due to concerns about racism and stigmatization, The Hindustan Times added. Japan's first case of mpox was confirmed in July 2022.
Carla Antonelli is Spain's first openly transgender senator, according to a PinkNews profile. The LGBTQ+-rights activist is not only one of the most famous queer rights campaigners in the country, but she's also one of the main trailblazers behind the groundbreaking self-ID laws. Passed in February 2023, the landmark ruling allowed trans people older than 16 to change their gender markers on official documents, including birth certificates, without medical documentation.
Czech soccer player Jakub Jankto talked with ESPN about coming out as gay. "The first reason for coming out was myself, then maybe to help someone going through the same," Jankto said. "Maybe it is new in football, but it's not something bad, I think it's normal, and I think I gave a really good example, a great example, and now maybe people see that there is no reason to hide. I think it benefits a lot of people." He added that his relationship with ex-girlfriend Marketa Ottomansks, with whom he has a son, is "not easy, but you keep talking. What matters is our son, him growing up; everything we do, we do for him."
The BBC received more than 100 complaints from Doctor Who viewers who claimed the inclusion of Yasmin Finney's transgender character, Rose, was "inappropriate," according to Deadline. Some said Heartstopper star Finney's character was "anti-male," while others said it was an "inappropriate inclusion of [a] transgender character."
Out British actor and All of Us Strangers co-star Andrew Scott has lined up his next big role—and it's an iconic gay character, according to Out. Vanity Fair has the first look at the upcoming series Ripley, starring Andrew Scott as Patricia Highsmith's legendary gay grifter and murderer, Tom Ripley. Highsmith—also known for writing novels like The Price of Salt (adapted into Todd Hayne's acclaimed 2015 film Carol) and Strangers on a Train—wrote five books about Ripley, beginning with The Talented Mr. Ripley in 1955. For more, see https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/awards-insider-ripley-first-look.
Following the leaked information that actor Amaury Lorenzo won the Globo award for Breakout Actor of the Year and the anticipation of his same-sex kissing scene on the Brazilian drama Terra e Paixao (that aired Dec. 12), he took to social media to expose the despicable comments and death threats that he's been receiving, according to Out. On Instagram Stories, he wrote, "All of this ... because of an award. Last night, this morning and this afternoon were all difficult. Hell-ish. That's why I've been absent from social media. However, as an artist, I emanate love. And people who follow me also emanate love. Not death." Lorenzo and kissing co-star Diego Martins have both come out as being LGBTQ+.
LGBTQ+ actor Ncuti Gatwa talked about the differences between filming Doctor Who and Sex Education, claiming that out showrunner Russell T Davies once had to tell him off, per The Independent. "The only time I've ever gotten in trouble for anything was when I swore [while wearing] a Doctor Who costume," he said in the Radio Times' Christmas issue. The most recent Doctor Who episodes celebrated the 60th anniversary of the program, and saw the Doctor regenerate from David Tennant to Gatwa.
Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o will head the competition jury at the 2024 Berlin Film Festival, which will run Feb. 15-25, Deadline noted. The daughter of Kenyan parents, Nyong'o was born in Mexico City and grew up in Kenya. She then studied Film and Theatre Studies at Hampshire College (USA) and initially worked on various film productions in the United States. After further studies at the Yale School of Drama, she began her acting career and is best known for her breakout performance in Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave, for which she picked up the Best Supporting Actress Oscar.
Barbie director Greta Gerwig will become the first female U.S. director to be jury president at the 77th Cannes Film Festival next May, according to Deadline. The festival made the announcement, describing Gerwig as "a heroine of modern our times" who had shaken the "status quo." She stated, "I am stunned and thrilled and humbled to be serving as the president of the Cannes Film Festival Jury. I cannot wait to see what journeys are in store for all of us."
In Beijing, 19-year-old U.S. competitor Ilia Malinin became the first figure skater to land a quadruple axel in a short program, took the lead at the Grand Prix Final—and he ended up winning the whole event in men's singles, edging Japan's Uno Shoma, the defending champion, CNN noted. During the free skate, he then fell attempting to land the quad axel again, but brushed off the error to register a career-best score of 207.76 and win the title.
More than 100 parents wrote to the Andrew Lloyd Webber-backed drama school ArtsEd to express their horror at bullying and misconduct allegations uncovered in a Deadline investigation. ArtsEd—a UK institution that has had people such as Julie Andrews and Catherine Zeta-Jones attend it—has strongly refuted the claims against principal Julie Spencer and denied it has a "toxic" culture that has put students at risk. However, a leaked recording revealed that Spencer called students "snakes" and appeared to threaten them with legal action after being accused of favoritism; ArtsEd said it was "surprised and disappointed" by the audio.
Emmanuelle Debever—a French actress who was the first to accuse actor Gerard Depardieu of sexual assault—has died by suicide aged 60, Deadline reported. She passed away on Dec. 7 after jumping into the Seine river. Her death came on the same day that a TV series documenting multiple sexual-assault allegations against Depardieu was shown.
