LGBTQ

The sport has been praised for its diversity. (Credit: LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images) Quidditch (yes, it’s a real sport) has officially changed its name to quadball, in an effort to distance itself from JK Rowling. The sport was inspired by the wizarding game of the same name in Rowling’s Harry Potter books. But in an effort to distance itself from the author, on Wednesday (20 July), the International Quidditch Association (IQA) made the announcement it would be adopting the name quadball. It comes after US Quidditch and Major League Quidditch...

A school counsellor at a Hwa Chong Institution school in Singapore made a presentation containing bigoted claims about the LGBTQ+ community. (Reddit/DAvengingAngels) A Singaporean school counsellor was suspended from giving lessons after alleging gay people have “intestinal worms” and other discriminatory claims during a presentation. The presentation by a Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) staffer drew backlash after slides that contained bigoted and unsubstantiated remarks against the LGBTQ+ community was uploaded online. The worker – who has not been named, but is understood to be a male school counsellor – delivered...

Microscope image of the monkeypox virus. (Getty/ Gado/ Smith Collection) Confirmed monkeypox cases have surged to more than 2,000 in England, officials have said, but isolation guidance for close contacts is being scrapped. As of Monday (18 July), there are now 2,137 confirmed monkeypox cases in the UK, with  2,050 detected in England. On the same day as the latest figures were released, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) announced that it had updated guidance for close contacts of confirmed cases. Until this week, category two and three close contacts were advised to...

Tom Tugendhat has become the latest leadership hopeful to be voted out. (Jonathan Hordle / ITV via Getty Images) Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt have continued their lead in the Conservative Party leadership contest as Tom Tugendhat is knocked out of the race to replace prime minister Boris Johnson. After the third round of voting among Tory MPs on Monday (18 July), only four candidates now remain in a contest that has been defined by hopefuls trying to outdo the other’s anti-trans remarks and policies. Former chancellor Sunak, trade minister...

Fallon Fox, a venerable mixed martial arts fighter, has accused the British press of having a 'transphobia' problem. (Rob Kim/Getty Images) Fallon Fox has condemned the “transphobic” British press after the BBC apologised for platforming her on a discussion about anti-trans sports bans. Fox, an American retired mixed martial artist, appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme in June to discuss the world governing body of swimming effectively banning trans women from the highest levels of women’s international competition. But Fair Play for Women, an anti-trans sports pressure group, took...

France's minister for territorial cohesion Caroline Cayeux. (AFP via Getty/ SAMEER AL-DOUMY) More than 100 public figures in France have called for the resignation of minister Caroline Cayeux after she reaffirmed her anti-LGBTQ+ views. Cayeux, who was appointed minister for territorial cohesion less than two weeks ago on 4 July when France formed its new government, was asked in an interview whether she stood by her opposition to same-sex marriage and adoption. In 2013, she described same-sex couples as “against nature” as France prepared to vote on legalising marriage equality. Asked...

Charles Barkley declared his love for the LGBTQ+ community. (Twitter) A clip has gone viral of former NBA star Charles Barkley, in which he expresses his love for queer folk and tells homophobes: “F**k you!” In the video, which has spread like wildfire across social media, Barkley can be seen on stage at a hotel and casino in Las Vegas, giving a frank message to bigots. He yells into a microphone: “I want to say this: If you’re gay and transgender, I love you! Hey and if anybody give you s**t, you...

Protesters at Trans Pride Brighton. (PinkNews) Trans Pride Brighton saw its largest turnout ever on Saturday (16 July), with around 20,000 protesters marching for trans liberation. Trans Pride Brighton, the first and largest trans Pride event outside of the US, has been running since 2013. This year, it finally returned in person, after two years of digital events due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Protesters gathered at LGBTQ+ community centre The Ledward Centre, before marching along the seafront. The march has reached the seaside 🏳️‍⚧️#TransPrideBrighton pic.twitter.com/zhFPrswQ8E — PinkNews (@PinkNews) July 16, 2022...

Martasia Richmond, a Black trans woman, was murdered in Chicago, becoming the 20th trans person to have been violently killed in the US this year. The Chicago Police Department (CPD) answered a domestic battery call at 11:46pm and found an individual later identified as Richmond with multiple stab wounds at the 5700 block of South Damien. She was taken to the University of Chicago Hospital, with authorities pronouncing her dead at approximately 12:14am on 12 July. Richmond was identified by her deadname through the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. According...

Anti-LGBTQ+ 'groomer' slur banned under Reddit hate speech rules (Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) Reddit has banned the anti-LGBTQ+ slur “groomer” under its hate speech policy, as well as any other reference to LGBTQ+ people as “paedophiles”. The vile slur, which conflates LGBTQ+ identities with paedophilia, has been increasing in use online, and has now been banned by Reddit as hate speech. Journalist Alejandra Caraballo explained on Twitter that the social media platform will now “enforce their hate speech policy on content that utilizes the groomer libel”, which means...

Sarah Osborne and Helen Arnold were told that they both can't be listed on their child's birth certificate because. (Supplied) A queer mother who was forced to adopt her own child after a registrar refused to put her on the birth certificate has won her legal battle. Sarah Osborne, 48, and Helen Arnold, 48, welcomed a child together via in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) in 2014. But they were told by the Cambridge Register Office that Osborne could not be listed on the child’s birth certificate as there “could only be one...

Several men claim they had sex with Jesse Lee Peterson, a virulently anti-LGBTQ+ pastor and online radio host. (Twitter/@JLPtalk) Several men have alleged they had sex with anti-LGBTQ+ pastor and conservative radio host Jesse Lee Peterson.  The allegations emerged after Church Militant – a far-right Catholic group and website – released an almost 30-minute video in June featuring interviews with men accusing Peterson of making sexual advances toward them.  ​​Patrick Rooney, one of the men in the video, claimed he had a sexual relationship with Peterson that he said lasted about 10...

Russell T Davies accepts It's a Sin's award for best TV drama at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards. (Instagram/ russelltdavies63) Russell T Davies described the Tory government as a “wounded, rabid dog” in his acceptance speech at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards. Davies’ acclaimed Channel 4 drama It’s a Sin won best TV drama at the ceremony, which was held at The Savoy hotel in London on Wednesday (13 July). While accepting the award, surrounded by the show’s cast members, Davies took the opportunity to hit out at...

Theresa May at the PinkNews Westminster Summer Reception. (PinkNews) Theresa May has warned that Britain is at risk of “sliding back” if the government does not ban trans conversion therapy. The former prime minister urged the government to legislate an inclusive ban at the PinkNews Westminster Summer Reception on Wednesday (13 July). Speaking exclusively to PinkNews, she said that the 2017 National LGBT Survey showed that “there were many people who felt more comfortable in being open about who they were”. “So we could see that the country had moved on,” May said. “But,...