Election results indicated that 38-year-old Rob Jetten will be the Netherlands’ first openly gay prime minister, the BBC noted. Dutch news agency ANP projected Jetten, a centrist, to win because populist Geert Wilders cannot catch him. Jetten (who is engaged to Argentine hockey player Nicolás Keenan) has not made his private life part of his political identity; however, five years ago he posted a video in which he read out a long list of homophobic messages from his phone to prove why an international day against homophobia was important.
Katholisch.de interviewed German journalist/cradle Catholic Georgine Kellermann about her being a transgender woman in her faith, New Ways Ministry noted. Kellermann—who lived for more than 60 years as Georg (English: George)—said that although she experienced societal pressure to conform to gender norms in her youth, she was very comfortable in the Catholic Church despite her trans identity. And when asked if she chose her gender, Kellermann responded, “of course not.” She also stated that more scientists than ever are affirming that “gender isn’t located between the legs, but between the ears,” meaning in the brain.
German Auxiliary Bishop Ludger Schepers—the German Bishops’ Conference’s (DBK) queer affairs officer—criticized a “Prayer of Reparation” offered by an international group of bishops in response to September’s LGBTQ+ Jubilee pilgrimage in Rome, according to New Ways Ministry. Schepers called the event “shameful” and “a scandalous sign of ecclesiastical narrow-mindedness.” In October, four bishops who opposed the LGBTQ+ Jubilee pilgrimage held the prayer event to “atone” for what they called a “desecration” of St. Peter’s Basilica because of the presence of the queer pilgrims walking through the Holy Door.
The funds that Equality for All Foundation Jamaica is raising through the Rustin Fund for Global Equality will go toward helping victims of Hurricane Melissa, The Washington Blade reported. “Hurricane Melissa has caused extensive devastation across Jamaica, leaving many families and communities struggling to recover,” said Equality for All Foundation Jamaica on social media. “Among those affected are LGBTQI+ Jamaicans, many of whom already experience homelessness, displacement, and further barriers to accessing public relief and safe shelter due to fear or past experiences of discrimination.” Melissa—a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 185 mph when it hit Jamaica—killed at least 28 people, per the BBC.
Turkey’s government is drafting a measure that would impose prison sentences on people who publicly promote or depict gender identities or expressions deemed to be “against public morals,” per The Stockholm Center for Freedom, citing T24. The proposal, called the 11th Judicial Package, would amend Article 225 of the Turkish Penal Code, which covers public indecency. Under the draft, anyone who “acts against their biological sex” or “encourages or praises such behavior” could face one to three years in prison. Another article would criminalize same-sex engagement or marriage ceremonies.
In Sweden, four men went on trial; they’re accused of hate crimes and attacking immigrants in a case that has revealed the growing trend of white supremacists banding together in fitness clubs, according to Yahoo! News. Prosecutors say the four suspects were members of an “Active Club”—a loosely structured group that meets in gyms and aims to promote white nationalist ideology. Members are encouraged to use violence outside the gym against targets including immigrants, feminists, Jews and the queer community, the Swedish anti-racism watchdog Expo has stated.
Past Big Brother UK winner Cameron Cole reported that his birthday celebrations were marred by homophobic attacks that left him with a black eye and multiple facial wounds, per LGBTQ Nation. Cole, who won the show in 2018 at age 19, posted, “I had a beautiful birthday surrounded by love, yet still came face-to-face with people who chose hate and violence!” In his original Instagram post and in a follow-up post the following day, in which he thanked people for their support, Cole highlighted the challenges that LGBTQ+ people and other minorities face in Britain.
Recently in South Africa, the Equality Court at the Gauteng High Court on Sept. 12 reserved judgment for a case brought by Nthabiseng Mokoena, a trans woman inmate at the Johannesburg Correctional Center (Sun City Prison) against the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) and other officials, The Washington Blade noted. Mokoena has claimed that the DCS commits systemic discrimination against trans inmates by refusing to recognize their gender identity and denying them basic gender-affirming rights; she also said there is no recourse for her and other trans people when they are victimized.
LGBTQ+ icon Jodie Foster will be among those receiving tributes at the Marrakech International Film Festival, per Deadline. Foster’s career will be honored with a gala screening of her latest film, Rebecca Zlotowski’s French-language murder mystery A Private Life, as well as screenings of a film she directed, The Beaver, with Mel Gibson; David Fincher’s Panic Room and Jonathan Demme’s The Silence of the Lambs will also be seen. Other honorees will include director/producer Guillermo del Toro, Egyptian actor Hussein Fahmi and Moroccan star Raouya.
In Scotland, LGBTQ+ actor Alan Cumming has launched a queer arts festival called Out in the Hills, per Instinct. The event will take place Jan. 16-18 at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre, where Cumming is artistic director. He told PinkNews, “I want there to be something in the news about queer and trans people that’s not negative and horrid.”
Openly lesbian women’s soccer coach Pia Sundhage will not lead Switzerland to the 2027 Women’s World Cup despite a successful European Championship, ESPN noted. Sundhage confirmed that the Swiss Football Association decided not to renew her contract, which expires in December. A two-time Olympic champion and 2011 World Cup finalist coaching the United States, Sundhage led the host Swiss team to the quarterfinals of Euro 2025 in July; it was a spot the Swiss had never reached before.
At Greece’s premier film event, the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, trans actress Indya Moore delivered a passionate speech while introducing the Jim Jarmusch movie Father Mother Sister Brother, Deadline noted. Moore—who stars in the film alongside Cate Blanchett, Tom Waits, Adam Driver, Mayim Bialik, Charlotte Rampling and others—said, in part, “These past three years, we have witnessed an atrocity that we thought we would never see happen to fathers, mothers, sisters, and brothers. And I grieve with the entirety of our human diaspora as we spiral into some mysterious space of self-destruction. But it’s film and TV and storytelling in general that help us remember the ways that we are not just individuals, but we exist as a collective.” The festival runs through Nov. 9.
Breaking Glass Pictures announced that the upcoming U.S. release of Sauna, the drama from Danish director Mathias Broe, will arrive on digital platforms on Nov. 18, per a press release. Sauna tells the story of Johan, a gay man enjoying Copenhagen’s nightlife scene whose life takes an unexpected turn when he meets William, a transgender man. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, earning a Grand Jury Prize nomination (World Cinema – Dramatic); and screened at the Göteborg Film Festival, receiving critical acclaim.
It turns out that UK’s Manchester Pride owes £1.3 million (or $1.7 million US) to suppliers, organizations and performers, including this year’s headline act, Nelly Furtado, PinkNews noted. In October, the organization’s leaders confirmed that it had entered voluntary liquidation due it no longer being “financially viable.” Performer Olly Alexander and the venue, Mayfield Depot, are among the others who are owed.
Congressman Esteban Paulón, a longtime queer-rights activist, lost his bid for Argentina’s Senate, per The Washington Blade. He ran to represent Buenos Aires, the country’s capital, as a member of the Movimiento de Jublidaos y Juventud or “Movement of Young People and Retirees” party. The elections took place two years after anti-LGBTQ+ President Javier Milei took office.
Also in Argentina, thousands gathered in Buenos Aires for the country’s 34th annual LGBTQ+ Pride march, demonstrating both solidarity and resistance to right-wing President Javier Milei, according to France 24. Marching under the slogan “Against hate and violence: more pride and unity,” participants walked from the Plaza de Mayo, the city’s main square, to the National Congress.
RuPaul’s Drag Race alum BenDeLaCreme will host burlesque queen Dita Von Teese’s Nocturnelle 2026 UK & Europe tour, a press release noted. Before she became a global touring sensation and breakout star on two seasons of Drag Race, DeLa got her start as a drag and burlesque performer while she pursued a BFA at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Nocturnelle—which will hit cities such as London, Amsterdam, Berlin and Oslo—follows Von Teese’s record-breaking Glamonatrix tour, which remains the biggest touring burlesque show of all-time.King Charles officially removed all royal titles, including prince, from his brother Andrew, per Yahoo! The former Prince Andrew will no longer be known as a prince or the Duke of York, Buckingham Palace announced; instead, he will be Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. The news comes after Andrew announced that he would relinquish the use of his royal titles and other titles and honors amid renewed interest in his relationship to Jeffrey Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal conspiracy and sex-trafficking charges.