Ugandan figure Nicholas Opiyo—a renowned human-rights attorney and founder of Chapter Four Uganda—is stepping down from being the organization’s executive director, a position he held since 2013, according to Erasing 76 Crimes. The organization’s board appointed Anthony Masake, a long-serving staffer at Chapter Four Uganda, as the new leader.
On X, Masake said, “After a decade of service and learning, I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to lead the incredible team at Chapter Four Uganda. Having big shoes to fill presents challenges, but also great opportunities. I am confident that together, we’ll build on the exceptional leadership and success of my predecessor, @nickopiyo, for a fairer and more just country.” Under Opiyo, Chapter Four played a crucial role in the legal battle that led to the nullification of Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA) in 2014 and remains instrumental in pushing for the nullification of AHA 2023.
A new report from various European medical organizations emphasizes the importance of gender-affirming care for transgender youth while also criticizing the UK’s controversial Cass Review that claimed gender-affirming care is dangerous for young people, LGBTQ Nation noted. The 400-page report, written in German, included 26 medical and psychotherapeutic professional organizations from Germany, Switzerland and Austria. According to an analysis and translation by transgender journalist Erin Reed, the guidelines recommend puberty blockers for trans youth, as well as individualized care. Reed said the new guidelines from Germany, Switzerland, and Austria “mark a significant advancement for transgender healthcare in those countries, reinforcing a growing trend in Europe toward expanding, not restricting, access to gender-affirming care.”
Hungarian lawmakers passed a law (by a vote of 136-27) banning Pride events and allowing authorities to use facial recognition software to identify attendees, News 10 reported. The law, supported by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party and their minority coalition partner the Christian Democrats, was pushed through parliament in an accelerated procedure after being submitted only a day earlier. The statute amends Hungary’s law on assembly to make it an offense to hold or attend events that violate Hungary’s contentious “child protection” legislation, which bars the “depiction or promotion” of homosexuality to minors under 18. Attending a prohibited event will now carry fines up to 200,000 Hungarian forints ($546), which the state must forward to “child protection,” according to the law.
Former King’s University College David Malloy is suing the London school for wrongful dismissal, claiming he was terminated for his liberal values and association with the LGBTQ+ community, per The London Free Press. In a statement, Malloy is suing Western University’s Catholic affiliate for $1.6 million for breach of contract and $50,000 for damages for what the lawsuit alleges was the discriminatory termination of his employment and for injury to dignity, feelings and self-respect. Malloy’s second five-year term as president began in July 2024 (with an annual salary of more than $300,000) and was supposed to end in 2029; however, he was terminated by the board of directors on Aug. 31, 2024, without cause, according to the statement of claim. Asked about the departure, the school’s faculty association declined comment.
Recently, more than 10,000 people, many of them painted in glitter makeup, and 180 floats rolled down a packed Oxford Street during the LGBTQ+ event known as Sydney Mardi Gras, according to France24. Mardi Gras is a highlight of the city’s social calendar, with this year’s theme—“free to be”—celebrating freedom, authenticity and the right to live openly and proudly, organizers said. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who has marched in Mardi Gras for almost 40 years, said the event “shows a commitment to respect people for who they are.” Dozens of motorbikes carrying women and rainbow flags, or “Dykes on Bikes”, kicked off the parade, followed by the First Nations Community Float and the 78ers—a group of activists who marched in Sydney’s first Mardi Gras event in 1978.
Two men in Indonesia’s Aceh province were publicly caned after an Islamic Sharia court convicted them for having consensual gay sex, VOA noted. The men, 24 and 18, were whipped across the back dozens of times by a team of five enforcers wearing robes and hoods; they were given a break to drink after 20 strokes and their wounds were treated. The men were arrested in November after residents suspected them of being gay and broke into their rented room—where the men were caught naked and hugging each other—and took them to Sharia police. An authority figure, who only gave his name as Ridwan said the public caning was to help prevent “violations of Islamic sharia.”
The Vatican clarified its position on gender-affirming care, with a dicastery head stating last month that individual situations warrant special consideration for exceptions to the current blanket ban, New Ways Ministry noted. Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández—prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF)—presented a paper in mid-February to offer “some clarifications” about the document he penned on human dignity, Dignitas Infinita, which included a condemnation of medical gender transitioning. In part, he said, “There are cases outside the norm, such as strong dysphorias that can lead to an unbearable existence or even suicide. These exceptional situations must be evaluated with great care.”
Queer British producer/screenwriter Russell T Davies has said that LGBTQ+ society is in the “greatest danger I have ever seen” since the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president in November, The Guardian reported. Speaking with the outlet at the Gaydio Pride awards in Manchester, he said, “As a gay man, I feel like a wave of anger, and violence, and resentment is heading towards us on a vast scale. I’ve literally seen a difference in the way I’m spoken to as a gay man since that November election, and that’s a few months of weaponizing hate speech, and the hate speech creeps into the real world.” Davies also used his keynote speech at the awards ceremony—which rewards the efforts made to improve the lives of LGBTQ+ people in the UK—to criticize Trump and his ally Elon Musk.
It turns out that former Drag Race UK winner The Vivienne (aka James Lee Williams) died from a cardiac arrest caused by the effects of taking ketamine, according to Deadline. The drag queen’s family told the BBC they felt it was important to share the circumstances of the TV personality’s death prior to the inquest that will take place in June. “Ketamine is an extremely dangerous drug that is becoming more and more prevalent in the UK,” The Vivienne’s sister Chanel Williams said to the BBC. “If we can help raise awareness of the dangers of this drug and help people who may be dealing with ketamine addiction then something positive will come from this complete tragedy.”
The Girls Spot, a women’s-only gym opening soon in London, is facing backlash after its owner walked back trans inclusivity, per Out. Natalee Barnett is a 25-year-old fitness influencer from the UK and is planning to open The Girls Spot gym this spring. She originally announced her plans in 2021 and shared a GoFundMe that she launched on Jan. 25, 2021; during the fundraising stage, she posted a tweet promising that transgender women would be welcome at the gym. However, on March 9, 2025, Barnett announced that The Girls Spot would not welcome trans women after all. “Reimburse those who helped pay. You lied,” someone replied online. “You’re saying the exact same thing and it doesn’t make it any less transphobic,” posted another.
In India, a man working in Bengaluru lost money to online scammers after falling for a trap on an LGBTQ+ dating app, according to the Hindustan Times, citing The Times of India. According to the report, the victim created an account on Grindr a few months ago. In January this year, he connected with a person named “Randy Armstrong,” who claimed to be a U.S.-based cardiologist. Caught in a web of lies regarding detained travel to visit him, among other things, the victim took out loans and borrowed from friends. A police officer handling the case told the publication that by the time the complaint was lodged, the money had already been transferred to mule accounts and withdrawn by the fraudsters. A case has been filed under the Information Technology Act.
A Pakistani sex offender convicted of sexually assaulting a woman has been allowed to stay in Britain after claiming to be gay, according to NDTV, citing The Telegraph. The 53-year-old man, only known as MR, had been living illegally in the UK for 11 years. Despite pleading guilty to the sexual assault, he claimed in his asylum application that he was innocent and that he was gay—involved in a relationship with a Mr K since 2019. His case will now be reheard after an upper immigration tribunal backed a second challenge to the Pakistani’s asylum claim by the Home Office.
The BBC unveiled the cast and first-look images of What It Feels Like For A Girl, the adaptation of the memoir by transgender trailblazer Paris Lees, according to Deadline. The eight-part series will run on BBC3 and iPlayer later this year, featuring a cast led by Ellis Howard, who plays Byron, a working-class school kid who escapes a small town for Nottingham and discovers a whole new world.
Rosie O’Donnell confirmed her move to Ireland, adding on TikTok that “I’m trying to find a home here in this beautiful country and when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America, that’s when we will consider coming back,” according to People. She said that she’s “in the process” of getting Irish citizenship as her grandparents are from the country. O’Donnell said that everyone in Dublin, where she’s currently living, has been “friendly.” She also said she’s “met a bunch of people” in the nearly two months since she moved, but felt a need to share the news with her fans as she was “sorry for those of you who were worried and who missed me.”
A simple image of French soccer star Benjamin Pavard wearing a tight-fitting white tank top set off a viral uproar, according to Instinct Magazine. Pavard’s post quickly became the object of ridicule from some of his France national team teammates, including Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé. However, for others, it opened the door to a much darker, homophobic conversation that has long plagued French soccer. It’s not the first time Pavard has been at the center of this kind of homophobic controversy; with his chiseled good looks and open personality, he’s long been the subject of rumors about his sexuality.
Australian music icon Kylie Minogue announced North American dates for her “Tension Tour” for 2025, which will see the global icon perform in cities across the world and is set to be Kylie’s biggest tour since 2011, a press release noted. The North American leg will begin in Toronto on March 29 at Scotiabank Arena and go on to make stops in NYC’s Madison Square Garden, Austin’s Moody Center, Miami’s Kaseya Center, Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena, Chicago’s/Rosemont’s Allstate Arena and more. After opening in Kylie’s home country, Australia, the world tour heads into Asia and reaches the UK in May.
Coexistence, My Ass!—a film about Israeli comedian Noam Shuster-Eliassi, who advocates for peaceful coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians—won the Golden Alexander at the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival in Greece, Deadline noted. Winning the Golden Alexander automatically qualifies Coexistence, My Ass! for consideration as Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards. Free Leonard Peltier—the documentary about the Native American activist who served almost 50 years in prison for the alleged murder of two FBI agents in 1975—won three awards, including the FIPRESCI critics prize as the best film in International Competition and the International Amnesty Award. On his last day in office, President Joe Biden commuted Peltier’s sentence.
The Cannes Film Festival will announce the Official Selection for its 78th edition, running May 13-24, on April 10 in Paris, according to Deadline. The festival’s 2024 selections—including Anora, Emilia Pérez, Flow and The Substance—took nine Oscars between them. Cannes Delegate General Thierry Frémaux and President Iris Knobloch, recently confirmed for a second three-year term in the role until 2027, will preside over the press conference.
Global singer, songwriter and dance-music legend Crystal Waters returns with “You & Me”—a collaboration with Stockholm- and London-based duo ManyFew, per a press release. Waters (known for hits such as “100% Pure Love”) said, “I’ve been working on my album for the past year, and I’m excited to present my first single! Working with ManyFew has given me the sound and direction I so wanted this project to take. It has some of the classic house sounds but with a new modern edge.”