World
Fighting for LGBTQ rights in the Global South
Activists in Thailand and Lebanon forge ahead
The Global South presents unique challenges for LGBTQ activists and advocacy groups.
The Human Rights Campaign notes 29 countries have extended marriage rights to same-sex couples, and the majority of them are located in the Global North that comprises more developed countries in the Americas and Europe. Less than a handful of these countries ā such as South Africa and Brazil ā are in the Global South. Countries in the Global North, as a result, are more likely to harbor LGBTQ-friendly public sentiments compared to the Global South, which is rife with restrictive anti-LGBTQ laws.
This reality not only makes life tumultuous for both openly and closeted queer individuals in the Global South, the chances of encountering LGBTQ-friendly sentiments in these regions are also close to non-existent. Ensuring the fundamental human rights of the queer people who live in these regions are guaranteed is imperative for activists.
The Washington Blade recently spoke with activists from Thailand and Lebanon about their advocacy work and also how they celebrated Pride in countries where LGBTQ identity is not widely acknowledged.
Thailand
Midnight Poonkasetwattana is the executive director of the Asian Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health (APCOM), a non-profit organization located in Bangkok. The organizationās work centers on addressing sexual health-related issues by collecting data on gay men and men who have sex with men in 35 countries across Asia and the Pacific.
āWhat we do in general is empowering communities on the ground to be able to speak their truth, and also participate meaningfully in country, regional, and global fora so they can have their voices and actually articulate what is it the needs of communities on the ground are,ā says Poonkasetwattana.
APCOM, by giving these communities the ability to articulate their concerns, creates and facilitates an environment where LGBTQ peopleās sexual and mental health needs are met, even though discrimination remains a barrier to accessing these services.
APCOMās work does not come without its challenges because of the prevalence of anti-LGBTQ laws in many Asian countries. Their work, however, usually continues undeterred because of their ability to work with local community organizations in the public health sector.
āThere are some opportunities to work under public health, and we’ve been able to do that in certain places [like Afghanistan] where itās still difficult to talk about equality,ā says Poonkasetwattana. āWhen we talk about ensuring that those who are marginalized and most at risk to [contract] HIV are able to get prevention and treatment, [we focus on working] with community-based organizations.ā
APCOM, as a result, has been able to facilitate important conversations around HIV/AIDS, with the specific information about the use of necessary and appropriate language in web programming that recognizes peopleās different sexual identities and encourages direct conversations around drug use and sex work.
APCOM, in order to commemorate Asiaās LGBTQ communityās tenacity, began Pride month with a virtual discussion that the Australian Embassy in Thailand sponsored. The event, titled āCelebrating Pride Month 2021: LGBTQI Inclusion and the Effect of COVID-19,ā had two sessions.
The first session, āVoices from Thai LGBTQI: Launch of Khormoon Report,ā discussed COVID-19ās impact in Thailand. The second, āCOVID-19 Recovery and LGBTQI Inclusion: A Perspective from the Business Sector,ā focused on how Thailandās business sector practiced inclusion and how it will further propel LGBTQ advocacy.
As APCOM prepares to ease back into normalcy as the pandemic wanes, Poonkasetwattana will begin to prepare for the organizationās HERO Awards (HIV, Equality and Rights), a fundraising gala that honors outstanding LGBTQ activists, HIV/AIDS service providers and allies from across Asia and the Pacific and also raises money for the HIV prevention and human rights work of APCOM.
Lebanon
Helem, whose executive director is Tarek Zeidan, is an LGBTQ advocacy organization in Beirut, Lebanon. Founded in 2001, this non-governmental entity works to improve the legal and social status of LGTBQ people in the Middle East and North Africa.
Lebanon is what Zeidan describes as a slightly safer place for queer people. Lebanon, compared to Egypt and Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East, has emerged as a more inclusive and liberal place despite it being anything but a safe haven for queer people.
āWhen it comes to LGBTQ rights, Lebanon packs a punch way above its weight,ā says Zeidan. āBecause, in a region which is notorious for LGBTQ rights violations, Lebanon has enjoyed, and here I use the word enjoy very loosely, a relatively safer and more inclusive sort of experience.ā
Helem in its many incarnations throughout its 21-year history has always had one main goal: React to whatever priorities and needs that queer people in the Middle East have.
Helem is structurally divided into three parts.
The first is the services department which does a lot of work to protect and assist LGBTQ people in crisis.
āWe [offer] emergency intervention, case management, emergency cash, free mental health support, free medical aid, everything,ā says Zeidan. āFood security [also] acts primarily as the hub in which we gather a lot of data, particularly data on the locale, density, and type of human rights violations, as well as demographic information.ā
The second part of the organization is its community department.
Helem runs the largest non-commercial queer space in the Arab world that serves as a community center. This space is where the Zeidan guides localization work, community building, power building work, capacity building and vocational training.
āThat’s where we do our family support, youth outreach, and all of that sort of community building and integration time work,ā says Zeidan.
The final leg is the advocacy part or ābureauā that anchors on policy work, procedure, cultural change, public awareness, and legislation. Helemās advocacy work also focuses on criminalization that Zeidan describes as āgetting more attention,ā even though it is not a central focus.
āIn addition, criminalization, which is something we always do gets a lot of attention, but it’s really not the central thing that we engage with,ā says Zeidan. āThere are multiple ways in which you can guarantee LGBTQ rights and inclusion that don’t necessarily pass through Parliament, or the Supreme Court, especially when those two are blocked. So in a nutshell, the central question that we ask is, what can we do in order to improve institutions to become LGBTQ inclusive? How do we improve the lives of LGBTQ people?ā
Zeidan further mentions that this strategy makes way for avenues that are not necessarily within the traditional human rights view by extracting opportunities from both development and human rights frameworks.
When tackling the lack of employment within Arab LGBTQ communities, for example, Helem doesnāt approach corporations that are more likely to be LGBTQ-inclusive. It instead identifies the industries that target LGBTQ people.
āWe are more interested in targeting small and medium enterprises as locales for employment rather than big banks, because that’s where most of the working class and low income queer people are, and that’s where they get most of their livelihoods,ā says Zeidan.
Zeidan says he anticipates even more engagement with LGBTQ activism in the Middle East in the future.
āWeāre really excited about deciphering the question: What does regional activism really look like in the Middle East,ā says Zeidan. āThis is a very complicated question.ā
He further mentions this goal is complicated because the Middle East does not have a regional organization to which they can turn for advocacy. Africa, for example, has the African Commission on Human and Peopleās Rights, but the Middle East does not have such a body.
Helemās modus operandi will therefore be engorged in trying to make sense of how to best liberate queer Arabs.
Australia
Australian LGBTQ rights group issues US travel advisory
Equality Australia warns transgender, nonbinary people of ‘serious risks’
An LGBTQ rights group in Australia has issued a travel advisory for transgender and nonbinary people who plan to visit the U.S.
Equality Australia on April 14 posted the advisory to its website that states the U.S. government’s policy on visas and Electronic System for Travel Authorization or ESTA “appears to be” the following:
ā¢ To use the term ābiological sexā
ā¢ To only use the gender marker recorded at a personās birth, even if this differs from their gender
ā¢ That valid foreign passports with an ‘X’ gender marker and a valid visa (if needed) may continue to be admitted, however this is contingent upon satisfying inspection of their admissibility by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer at the port of entry
ā¢ That any previously issued, valid visa may remain current until its expiration date and the visa holder does not need to apply for a new visa with an amended gender marker until the current visa expires (it is unclear whether this applies to ESTAs)
ā¢ That new visas will only be issued under the gender marker recorded for the applicant at birth (it is unclear whether this applies to ESTA applications, although only ‘M’ and ‘F’ gender marker options are available for ESTA applications)
ā¢ That if consular officers assessing visa applications become aware an application does not contain the gender marker recorded at the applicantās birth, they should assess additional evidence (such as previous travel records, although the scope is unclear), and/or conduct interviews and
ā¢ That where individuals are not using the gender marker recorded at their birth, consular officers should consider classifying the application as procuring a visa through material misrepresentation or fraud, which results in a lifetime bar from the U.S.
President Donald Trump shortly after he took office on Jan. 20 issued an executive order that bans the State Department from issuing passports with āXā gender markers. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in response to directive ordered State Department personnel to āsuspend any application requesting an āXā sex marker and do not take any further action pending additional guidance from the department.ā A federal judge in Boston on April 18 issued a temporary injunction against the Trump-Vance administration’s directive.
Equality Australia says its advisory is “relevant if you are traveling to the U.S.” and fall under the following criteria:
ā¢ Hold a passport with a gender ‘X’ marker
ā¢ Have identity documents with gender markers different to those assigned to you at birth, or where other relevant details (such as your name) have been changed
ā¢ Have gender markers in your identity documents that do not match your gender expression
ā¢ Have a track record of LGBTIQ+ activism or other political activity.
“Travel to the U.S. carries serious risks that should be considered before planning any travel, particularly if you fall under one of the above categories,” reads the advisory.
Germany, Denmark, Finland, and the Netherlands are among the countries that have issued travel advisories for trans and nonbinary people who plan to visit the U.S.
WorldPride is scheduled to take place in D.C. from May 17-June 8.
InterPride, the organization that coordinates WorldPride events, on March 12 issued its own travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who want to travel to the U.S. Egale Canada, one of Canadaās largest LGBTQ advocacy organizations, in February announced its members will not attend WorldPride and any other event in the U.S. because of the Trump-Vance administrationās policies.
Pope Francis died on Monday at his official residence at the Vatican. He was 88.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, said Francis passed away at Casa Santa Marta at 7:35 a.m. local time (1:35 a.m. ET.)
“His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of his church,” said Farrell. “He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and most marginalized. With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the one and triune God.”
Francis, a Jesuit who was previously known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was born in Buenos Aires to Italian immigrant parents in 1936. He became archbishop of the Argentine capital in 1998.
Pope John Paul II in 2001 appointed him cardinal. The College of Cardinals in 2013 elected Francis to succeed Pope Benedict XVI after he resigned.
Francis vehemently opposed Argentina’s marriage equality law that then-President Cristina FernĆ”ndez de Kirchner signed in 2010. Francis as pope backed civil unions for gays and lesbians and in 2023 said priests can bless same-sex couples.
Francis in 2023 said laws that criminalize homosexuality are “unjust.” He appointed Robert McElroy, an LGBTQ-friendly cardinal from San Diego, as the new archbishop of Washington.
The pontiff in 2015 met with a group of gay, transgender, and HIV-positive prisoners in the Italian city of Naples. A Vatican charity in 2020 gave money to a group of trans sex workers in Italy who were struggling to survive during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Francis last October met with a group of trans and intersex Catholics and LGBTQ allies at the Vatican. GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis and Juan Carlos Cruz, a gay Chilean man who is a clergy sex abuse survivor, are among those who also met with Francis during his papacy.
Church teachings on homosexuality and gender identity, however, did not change.
“From the early months of his papacy when he uttered the now-iconic ‘Who am I to judge?’ in response to a question about accepting gay priests, through numerous affirming pastoral messages to individual LGBTQ+ people, to his support for civil unions, and his condemnation of criminalization laws, Pope Francis has changed the church irreversibly by allowing people to see how their Catholic faith requires acceptance and equality,” said Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministry, a Mount Rainier, Md., based LGBTQ Catholic advocacy organization, in a statement.
DignityUSA Executive Director Marianne Duddy-Burke met Francis in 2023.
The group in a statement acknowledged the pontiff’s “legacy on LGBTQ+ issues is complicated,” noting “even with the recognition of so many positive words and actions, church teachings and even some recent Vatican documents remain problematic.ā DignityUSA President Meli Barber nevertheless praised Francis.
āWe also recognize that Pope Francis has raised awareness of LGBTQ+ issues in our church in truly unprecedented ways,” said Barber. “He spoke about us using our own terms and made a point of being seen meeting with LGBTQ+ people frequently. This sent a message of recognition and inclusion we never experienced from the Vatican before.ā
Pope’s legacy is ‘mixed’
Activists in Argentina and around the world also mourned Francis.
“We mourn his death and embrace the people who are suffering today because of his passing,” LGBT Federation of Argentina President MarĆa Rachid told the Washington Blade.
Dindi Tan, national president of LGBT Pilipinas in the Philippines, on her Facebook page wrote Francis “was unafraid to challenge age-old dogmas and to ‘rattle’ the cage.” Pedro Julio Serrano, president of the Puerto Rico LGBTQ+ Federation, said Francis was an “ally of equity, humanity and dignity of LGBTQ+ people, not only during his pontificate, but throughout his life.”
Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, in a statement acknowledged Francis’s “more compassionate tone towards sexual minorities” that includes blessings for same-sex couples. Tatchell, nevertheless, pointed out the Vatican under Francis’s papacy continued to oppose marriage equality and trans rights.
“The Catholic Church remains a force for discrimination and suffering,” said Tatchell. “Under his leadership, the Vatican continued to oppose same-sex marriage and trans rights. Catholic bishops lobbied against the decriminalization of homosexuality in many parts of the world. The Vatican still upholds the homophobic edicts of the Catechism, which denounces the sexual expression of same-sex love as a ‘grave depravity’ and ‘intrinsically disordered.’ Francis’s legacy is, therefore, a mixed one ā offering some progress but leaving deep-rooted inequalities largely intact.”
Vance met with Francis on Easter Sunday
Francis earlier this year spent more than a month in a Rome hospital after he developed double pneumonia.
He met with Vice President JD Vance at the Vatican on Easter Sunday, hours before his death.
The pope had previously criticized the Trump-Vance administration over its immigration policies.
“I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis,” said Vance on X after the Vatican announced Francis’s death. “My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him.”
I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis. My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him.
I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill. But Iāll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early daysā¦
ā JD Vance (@JDVance) April 21, 2025
Argentine President Javier Milei, who previously criticized Francis, mourned him in a statement he posted to X. Milei also announced Argentina will observe seven days of mourning.
“It is with profound sorrow that I learned this sad morning that Pope Francis, Jorge Bergoglio, passed away today and is now resting in peace,” said Milei. “Despite differences that seem minor today, having been able to know him in his goodness and wisdom was a true honor for me.”
“As president, as an Argentine, and, fundamentally, as a man of faith, I bid farewell to the Holy Father and stand with all of us who meet today with this sad news,” he added.
ADIĆS
Con profundo dolor me entero esta triste maƱana que el Papa Francisco, Jorge Bergoglio, falleciĆ³ hoy y ya se encuentra descansando en paz. A pesar de diferencias que hoy resultan menores, haber podido conocerlo en su bondad y sabidurĆa fue un verdadero honor para mĆ.ā¦ pic.twitter.com/3dPPFoNWBr— Javier Milei (@JMilei) April 21, 2025
Mexico
Gay couple claims Puerto Vallarta wedding venue discriminated against them
Jeremy Alexander and Ryan Sheepwash wanted to get married at Sheraton hotel
A gay couple claims a hotel in a Mexican resort city that is popular with LGBTQ travelers discriminated against them when they tried to book their wedding.
Jeremy Alexander and Ryan Sheepwash in a TikTok video said they contacted the Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center in Puerto Vallarta about holding their wedding at the property.
The couple, who live in Vernon, British Columbia, provided the Washington Blade with an invoice that Gabriela Espinoza, a wedding planner at the property, sent them on Jan. 17, 2025.
The invoice said 25 “deluxe ocean view room ā all inclusive” rooms cost $970 a night. The total cost for the 25 rooms was $72,750.
Alexander in the TikTok video said it took Espinoza three months to send them the quote. The property, according to Alexander, requested a $36,000 deposit for half of the rooms.
“It’s not reasonable,” he said. “No one can afford that.”
Alexander said Espinoza told him and Sheepwash that the earliest they could have their wedding at the property was March 2027. Alexander in the TikTok video said he and Sheepwash asked a straight friend to “request a quote just to see apples to apples what it looks like.”
Ximena Esparza, another wedding planner at the property, on Feb. 7, 2025, sent the friend a quote for 25 rooms for a hypothetical wedding that was to have taken place from Feb. 19-26, 2026.
The quote for a “deluxe package” for 50 people was $8,500 and required a 20 percent deposit of $1,700.
“We just feel defeated,” said Sheepwash in the TikTok video. “It’s not fair because we love each other and we really want to get married, and we want to make it special and we want to make it perfect.”
@illuminaughtytriangle So disappointed that my fiancĆ©e and I got discriminated against by #Sheraton in #puertovallarta ā¬ original sound – Jeremy Alexander
The Blade in 2019 reported the Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center refused to allow Josh Rimer, a gay Canadian vlogger and television host who is also Mr. Gay Canada 2019, and his then-fiancƩ to hold their wedding at the property.
The invoice that Espinoza sent to Alexander and Sheepwash notes the hotel is “operated under license from Marriott International, Inc., or one of its affiliates.”
A spokesperson for Marriott, which is based in Bethesda, Md., and is Sheraton’s parent company, in response to Rimer’s allegation said the corporation reached out to him to express “our sincerest apologies for his experience.”
āWe are troubled and greatly concerned about the experience reported by Mr. Rimer. Marriott has long been committed to providing an environment where all are welcome including our LGBTQ guests and their loved ones,ā said the spokesperson. āIn addition, we are looking further into the matter to better understand what happened and do what we can to prevent hurtful experiences like this from happening again.ā
A Marriot spokesperson on Thursday told the Blade the company has “reached out to Mr. Sheepwash and Mr. Alexander to learn more about their experience and are working with the property to offer a solution.”
“The Sheraton Buganvilias has been active in the LGBTQ+ community in Puerto Vallarta for years, hosting LGBTQ+ weddings and groups and also supporting Pride events in Puerto Vallarta,” said the spokesperson. “Marriott remains steadfast in our commitment to ensure guests are treated with respect and understanding.”
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