On July 21, Chile's Senate approved an equal-marriage bill, DW.com reported. The regulations were presented during the second government of the socialist Michelle Bachelet (2014-2018) and last June 1, during his annual public account, right-wing president Sebastian Pinera surprisingly announced that he was going to request their urgent processing in Congress. The Senate approved the initiative 28-14. Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay and Ecuador are other South American countries that have approved same-sex marriage.
The founders of a website exposing LGBTQ discrimination in Poland are being sued by a legal association, DW.com reported. The Ordo Iuris Institute, in Warsaw, was recently slated to open the first of at least six lawsuits against four LGBTQ activists: Kuba Gawron, Kamil Maczuga, Paulina Pajak and Pawel Preneta. The lawsuit accuses the founders of The Atlas of Hate website of slander for falsely accusing municipalities of LGBTQ discrimination over their so-called Family Rights Charters.
A University of Toronto study is focusing on how the city's LGBTQ community is being disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to UToronto.ca. Early results from the Queer COVID-TO study suggests people who self-identify with 2SLGBTQIA+ communities are concerned that businesses near Church and Wellesley streets, an LGBTQ enclave, were at risk of closing during the pandemic. In particular, they worry that businesses dedicated to women, trans and non-binary people have been disproportionally affected compared to spaces that cater to gay men.
Also in Toronto, the investigation into the death of Alloura Wells, a transgender woman found in Toronto's Rosedale Ravine in 2017, was plagued by a "series of mistakes," the city's interim police chief conceded, according to CBC.ca. Among said mistakes were a failure to follow protocol, paperwork not filed, a person of interest not interviewed and a community never notified. Toronto Police Service interim Chief James Ramer said neglect of duty charges would have been filed against one officer had he not retired.
The first "Reclaim Pride" march occurred in the United Kingdom to bring Pride events back to their roots, Gay Times Magazine noted. The march took place throughout central London and went through landmark areas like Parliament Square and 10 Downing Street. Demonstrators also tackled the lack of rights and protections for the trans community as well as the paucity of racial diversity at the commercialized annual Pride events.
Transgender Team New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard was cleared to compete in the Summer Games, as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) upheld its rules—while committing to re-evaluate the policy in the future, People Magazine noted. "The rules for qualification have been established by the International Weightlifting Federation before the qualifications started," said IOC President Thomas Bach during a news conference. "These rules apply, and you cannot change rules during ongoing competitions."
In Australia, more than a dozen LGBTQIA+ organizations took up residence in a groundbreaking new community center that will host essential groups and services for LGBTQIA+ people across Melbourne, ABC.net .au reported. The Pride Centre is the first of its kind in Australia—built to connect the queer community with essential services, including health, legal, financial and entertainment providers. The state government and the City of Port Phillip joined forces to get the $50 million hub up and running, with the council donating the land and the state government making substantial investments.
Argentina President Alberto Fernandez announced a new National Identity Document (DNI) for non-binary people, CNN.com noted. "There are other identities besides man and woman that must be respected," Fernandez said during a news conference from the Casa Rosada Museum, in Buenos Aires. Minister of Women, Gender and Diversity Elizabeth Gomez Alcorta, Interior Minister Eduardo De Pedro and Fernandez delivered the first three non-binary documents during the event.
Leaked draft legislation in Ghana, described as the "most homophobic document the world has ever seen," could bring in harsh prison sentences for queer folk and LGBTQ+ allies, PinkNews reported. Although same-sex sexual relations are already illegal in Ghana, and punishable with up to three years in prison, the new bill will criminalize everything from sex toys to trans medical care to LGBTQ+ allyship.
Hungary announced plans to call a referendum on child-protection issues to combat pressure from the European Union over legislation that the bloc says discriminates against LGBTQ people, france24.com reported. Prime Minister Viktor Orban accused the EU executive of abusing its powers in challenging recent amendments to Hungary's education and child-protection laws—changes that are anti-LGBTQ. An anti-LGBTQ law, which came into force this month, bans the use of materials seen as promoting homosexuality and gender change at schools.
My Transsexual Date, a leading dating site for trans women, has altered its brand name to My Transgender Date, per a press release. My Trangender Date was founded in 2013 by French entrepreneur Cyril Mazur and Filipino beauty queen Maki Gingoyon. My Transgender Date is available in 11 languages, with members in 190 countries.
Actress Sharon Stone urged the Vatican Curia to listen to what, in her view, is Pope Francis' push for the inclusion of LGBTQ Catholics, ReligionNews.com noted. "On gay marriage, on adoptions for singles, on various fronts, I want to say: Listen to your pope and respect him!" Stone told the Italian daily La Stampa, while attending the Cannes Film Festival in France.
Scientists in Japan have discovered a new species of freshwater algae that's naturally evolved to have three different sexes, including one they've described as "bisexual," a PinkNews item noted. Found by the University of Tokyo in a Japanese river, Pleodornia starri (P. starrii) is the first case of algae or fungi to have three distinct sexes—all of which can breed in pairs with each other. The three sexes are male, female, and a third sex researchers call "bisexual" in reference to the fact that it can produce male and female sex cells in a single genotype.
Andrew Lloyd Webber announced the indefinite closure of his new London musical Cinderella a day before its official opening due to what the composer angrily called "the blunt instrument that is the Government's isolation guidance" regarding COVID-19, Deadline noted. "Cinderella was ready to go," the composer concluded. "My sadness for our cast and crew, our loyal audience and the industry I have been fighting for is impossible to put into words. Freedom Day has turned into closure day." The musical was set to officially open July 20.
The Tokyo Olympic organizing committee fired the director of the opening ceremony because of a Holocaust joke he made during a comedy show in 1998, ESPN.com noted. Organizing committee president Seiko Hashimoto said a day ahead of the opening ceremony that director Kentaro Kobayashi has been dismissed. Kobayashi used a joke about the Holocaust in his comedy act, including the phrase "Let's play Holocaust."
Brazil soccer legends Marta and Formiga created Olympic history in their opening match of the 2020 Tokyo Games, CNN.com noted. Marta, a 35-year-old widely regarded as one of the greatest female players of all time, became the first player to score in five straight Olympics after netting in her country's 5-0 win against China. (After her second goal, Marta formed a "T" shape with her arms and held it up to the television cameras in celebration, a dedication to her fiancee and Orlando Pride teammate Toni Pressley, the Orlando Sentinel noted.) Formiga, 43, became the first women's player to take part in seven Olympic Games after playing 72 minutes against China.
Also at the Olympics, a judoka competitor from Algeria was suspended and sent home after withdrawing from the games by refusing to face an Israeli, Deadline noted. Fethi Nourine, of Algeria, was scheduled to face Israeli Tohar Butbul in the second round of a division if he won against Mohamed Abdalrasool, of Sudan. However, he decided to withdraw before those matches, citing his support for Palestine.
A24's The Green Knight, David Lowery's fantasy epic starring Dev Patel, has been taken out of its UK theatrical release slot just two weeks before it was due to hit theaters, according to Deadline. The move was made due to the UK's coronavirus situation. The U.S. release is going ahead as planned, on July 30.
