There's a middle ground here. Just put sex and gender in our identity cards. I'd be behind that. Add details on our blood type too for good measure.

I know some of our local trans activists are fighting to remove religion from their identity cards because they are sick of being subjected to the discriminatory syariah laws. So the aforementioned demands would just be an extension of that.

Someone can enjoy cross-dressing and still identify as a man.

Oh okay. I thought you're citing your friend as the representative of trans community or somethign.

Let's recognise basic trans rights first in Malaysia and then we shall cross all these medical/legal/ethical bridges when we get to them.

Freedom of expression, right to work without being discriminated against, right to basic access to health care, etc... All of these are in line with SUHAKAM's focus area.

We should be. But apparently trans people in Malaysia still not treated the same as average Malaysians. The discirmination that they face has been well-documented by various NGOs throughout the years;

"... health workers ogled and commented on their bodies, refused to touch them, or touched their sexual organs unnecessarily, and that they were placed in male or female wards without regard for their gender identity."

"Most [transgender women] work on the streets as prostitutes because they don’t have any choices. Most are not highly educated. Most have been rejected from jobs. … "

Source: https://www.hrw.org/report/2014/09/24/im-sc...people-malaysia

I second on the proper documentation part. Not sure what you mean about real medically-proven transgender though.

🇺🇸 Lil Nas X's "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" Is Now The No. 1 Song In The US
Source: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/skbaer...-billboard-no-1



Lil Nas X has reached the top, again.

On Monday, the 21-year-old rapper's "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, just over a week after he released the highly anticipated song and music video. It's his second No. 1 single after he rocketed to fame with "Old Town Road," which led the charts for 19 weeks in 2019.

Lil Nas X reacted to the news on Twitter, reflecting on the last two years — and the people who dismissed him as a one-hit wonder.

"y'all told a 19 year old who had just escaped the lowest point of his life that he would never have a hit again. you told him to stop while he's ahead," the rapper wrote. "he could've gave up. but 4 multi platinum songs and 2 #1's later, he's still here."

He followed up with a few more lighthearted tweets.

When he released "Montero," which is the rapper's legal name, he posted a note to his 14-year-old self, who had not yet come out as gay, saying that he hoped the song would "open the doors for many other queer people to simply exist."

"you see this is very scary for me, people will be angry, they will say i'm pushing an agenda," he wrote. "but the truth is, i am. the agenda to make people stay the fuck out of other people's lives and stop dictating who they should be."

Since its release, the "Montero" music video has drawn criticism from some, including conservative politicians, for its satanic imagery and explicit sexual undertones, to which Lil Nas X has had no shortage of responses.

After landing on the top of the charts on Monday, he had a particular message to the haters: "i want your tears to fill my grammy cup."

🇲🇾 Focus on inclusion, not alienation, in dealing with LGBT, Putrajaya told
Source: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/...putrajaya-told/



PETALING JAYA: Suhakam has urged the government to reconsider its decision to impose heavier punishments for offences associated with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

Commissioner Hishamudin Yunus said the best approach in dealing with LGBT individuals was to “help integrate them into mainstream society” by respecting their constitutional rights to equality, privacy and a life of dignity.

Speaking to FMT, the former Court of Appeal judge said it should not be acceptable to discriminate against the community or to treat its members as criminals.

He noted that it was not an offence to be a transgender under any of the state shariah criminal enactments and also that crossdressing was no longer a shariah crime in all states except Kedah, Kelantan, Perlis and Sabah.

Crossdressing is an offence only when it is done for immoral purposes such as prostitution.

Hishamudin proposed that Putrajaya consider drafting a law to recognise the existence of a third gender “so that transgender persons can live with dignity and be protected from discrimination and hate crimes”.

On Tuesday, religious affairs minister Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri said Putrajaya would go ahead to increase sentencing limits in the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965.

Under the existing act, shariah courts are empowered to impose maximum penalties of three years’ jail, a fine of RM5,000 and six strokes of the rotan.

Zulkifli told reporters the amendments would likely be tabled at the next Parliament sitting. He said the idea was to combat LGBT culture, which he described as being “against Islamic law and human nature”.

Lawyers for Liberty coordinator Zaid Malek called the move an instance of “misplaced priority” and said the government should be concentrating its energies on addressing the woes caused by Covid-19 instead of on suppressing LGBT culture.

He said the decision to impose heavier penalties was unjustified and “simply a way” for politicians to garner votes in the next general election.

“This specific focus on the LGBT community is concerning because they are a vulnerable group and they pose no threats to society, safe for the personal morals of certain individuals,” he said.

Zaid said it was far more important for Putrajaya to look at policies related to employment and wages.

🇲🇾 PLHIV Shelter Homes

These are some of the active shelter homes for people living with HIV (PLHIV) to seek shelter in:



A little bit of kindness goes a long way. Do donate if you're feeling charitable or pass these info around.

Thank you.

🇭🇰 Support group shows Hong Kong parents struggling to accept that their children are LGBTQ, they are not alone
Source: https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society...ruggling-accept



Eric* recalls the day in 2009 when he received the long-distance phone call from his son as if it were yesterday.

James*, in his early 20s and working overseas for more than a year, told his father he was gay and in love with another man.

The news proved hard to bear for Eric, in his 50s at the time, and his wife. Although they had suspected their elder son might be gay, as he did not have a girlfriend, the confirmation stung.

“I became really unhappy,” recalled Eric, a professional at the time and who has since retired. “I felt it was some kind of punishment for me.”

Describing himself as a traditional person from a middle class background, Eric said that as it sank in that James would not marry or have children, he began to think his son was “abnormal”.

For months afterwards, he and his wife did not know who to turn to, and kept their secret to themselves.

“We were so dejected, both my wife and I cried,” he said.

It took almost a year before he found out about a support group for parents of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) children run by the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs Association (BGCA) of Hong Kong, a non-governmental organisation.

At its meetings, where parents expressed their feelings and supported one another, he learned to accept that James was gay, although it took two more years before he could show his son that he understood.

Eric’s experience in coming to terms with his son being gay was not an isolated case. The results of a survey released by the BGCA last month showed that nearly half the Hong Kong parents with LGBTQ children who were polled struggled too.

The NGO and researchers from Chinese University polled 146 parents between January 2018 and June last year.

While more than four fifths said they had hoped their children would come out to them, over 45 per cent said that when their children actually told them, their immediate reactions were unacceptance and rejection.

Almost two-thirds said they blamed themselves for their children’s sexual orientation, while 55 per cent said they had felt despair. More than a third felt anxious, including concerns that their children might face discrimination.

More than one in five parents polled said they considered sending their children for so-called conversion therapy to “cure” them of their sexual orientation.

The practice has been discredited by the World Psychiatric Association and is banned or partially banned in countries including Germany and Brazil, and in some parts of the United States, Canada and Australia.

Hong Kong has been relatively slow in promoting LGBTQ rights, with little or no progress in introducing anti-discrimination laws to protect sexual minorities.

To questions from the Post, an Equal Opportunities Commission spokesman said it would conduct research and draw up proposals on anti-discrimination laws for sexual minorities “where resources permit”, without providing a timeline for action.

The spokesman declined to say if the commission supported banning conversion therapy in Hong Kong, saying only that it believed the rights of the LGBTQ community “should not be denied because of their sexual orientation or gender identity”.

Professor Suen Yiu-tung, of Chinese University’s gender studies programme, who co-led the BGCA survey, said society’s increasing openness towards the LGBTQ community could help parents like Eric cope better.

“Parents’ worries can be understandable, given that unfriendliness still occurs within the community and workplace over people’s sexual orientation and gender identity … and existing laws cannot fully protect [the LGBTQ community],” he said.

Eric has never forgotten the turmoil he and his wife experienced after their son came out.

“We were so grateful when he graduated from university and found a stable job. Everything was going quite well when, all of a sudden, it seemed that those things were all gone,” he said.

Questions kept popping up in his head, including what to tell his friends and relatives, and whether life would become more difficult for James. But most were left unanswered.

He tried hypnotherapy, searched the internet to find out how other parents coped, and was dismayed to learn that some parents ended up driving their LGBTQ children away from home.

The confusion affected him at work too, before he found the support group.

It took years, but Eric said he now gets along well with his son, and his partner too.

* Names changed at the request of the interviewee.

🇺🇸 GOP lawmakers can't give examples of why states need anti-transgender sports bills
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/videos/politics/202...ek-in-politics/


"How many girls in Georgia had been denied opportunity because of transgender athletes participating in sports?"
"Obviously there's not a lot of statistics on that—"
"So there is none in Georgia. Thank you."

🇬🇧 First LGBT retirement home to be opened in London
Source: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/...ened-in-london/



LONDON: In a first for the UK, a dedicated retirement home for members of the LGBT community is set to open in 2021, thanks to support from the city of London.

The building for the new facility, which boasts a restaurant, bar and rooftop terrace, was designed by architect Norman Foster.

Breaking new ground in the UK, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has confirmed that the Greater London Authority’s Community Housing Fund will provide a loan of 5.7 million pounds sterling for the creation of a new retirement home that will be the first of its kind.

Located in the Vauxhall neighbourhood on the south bank of the Thames, the new facility will specifically cater to members of the LGBT community.

“London is an open, diverse, inclusive city, and I’m delighted to see these long-held plans come to fruition with the help of this loan, … Older Londoners deserve to be able to enjoy their later years in comfort and security,” declared Sadiq Khan.

The 19 units to be made available in the project designed by the renowned British architect Norman Foster will offer a choice of one or two bedrooms.

The new home will also provide high-end services, including a restaurant, bar, rooftop terrace and a “floating garden,” as well as round-the-clock access to medical care.

The first tenants are set to move in by mid-summer 2021.

Tonic Housing, the non-profit at the helm of the new project, was keen to voice its enthusiasm: “Tonic@Bankhouse will create a unique offering of housing with care that celebrates LGBT+ identities with the community at the very heart of their homes. Tonic will co-create events and activities with residents based on their interests, including collaborations with other LGBT+ organisations and support providers.”

Safety and special care

In France former retirement home director Stéphane Sauvé, is campaigning for a project similar to the one proposed by Tonic Housing, “La Maison des solidarités.”

“Working as a care-home manager, I was witness to discrimination against the gay community.” He notably cites an incident when no-one was willing to dance with Madame Martin, “an unabashed lesbian,” during a tea dance because she was viewed as “contagious.”

“If, through ignorance, I had not been confronted with this question, I wouldn’t want to wait until my final years to open my chakras. When you have moral values, you don’t want to change them at the end of your life,” explains Stéphane Sauvé.

Along with discrimination, the LGBT minority is also faced with health issues that are similar but also different to those commonly found in retirement homes.

“American studies have shown that they have more pre-existing conditions, more diabetes, more issues with addiction, anxiety and depression.

“And that is not to mention the section of this population that is HIV-positive or hormonal treatments for transgender retirees. We don’t know how they are going to grow old.”

End-of-life companionship

“I’m 49 years old, I’m gay, and I don’t have any children. Like everyone else, I wonder who will be there for me,” adds Stéphane Sauvé.

“Most members of the LGBT community do not have children, and thus are less likely to benefit from end-of-life help. They are a more isolated public.”

According to the former retirement home director, these reasons are more than sufficient to dismiss any accusation of communitarianism.

“All the more so because the LBGT environment will be straight-friendly.”

The development in London is not the first of its kind worldwide. Similar initiatives already exist in Canada, Spain, the United States and Australia.

In France, the cities of Nice, Lyon, Montreuil, Romainville and Paris have expressed an interest in the project.

🇲🇾 'Lesbian, pondan' - Netizens find more questionable articles on MOH education portal



After coming under fire for a victim-blaming article on sexual harassment, members of the public have highlighted more questionable write-ups - this time concerning homosexuality - on the Health Ministry’s public health portal.

One article in 2013 claims that women tend to become lesbian if they “prioritise their career”.

It also claims women who “further their studies” in a female-centric environment could turn into lesbians...

Full article at: https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/570635

---

Added on
Thankfully the article have been removed.




This post has been edited by internaldisputes: Apr 14 2021, 01:13 PM

🇩🇪 German Catholics plan huge blessing of gay unions on May 10
Source: https://cruxnow.com/church-in-europe/2021/0...ions-on-may-10/



ROME – Continuing to openly challenge the Vatican, several Catholic leaders in Germany are openly supporting the blessing of same-sex couples, with a massive blessing service scheduled for May 10, in direct opposition to Rome’s chief doctrinal office.

Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck of Essen said that the priests in his diocese will face no canonical consequence if they decide to bless gay and lesbian couples next month as part of the event called “Love wins, blessing service for lovers.”

However, the website organizing the campaign has no public blessings registered in his diocese to take place on May 10 or “around that date,” as the website reads.

His comments came in an interview with WDR earlier this week, and follow his comments on Easter, when he argued that there are “many blessings for gay couples” in Germany. He also said that the Catholic Church is not supposed to reject gay people but “find ways for homosexuals to be able to live together.”

Overbeck’s stance is in direct opposition to a statement released by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) March 15 with papal approval.

The document, technically an answer to a question posed to the CDF, argues that the Church cannot do so because “God does not bless sin.”

The Vatican never said who posed the original question.

The response caused division both among the faithful and the hierarchy, particularly in Germany, which is currently undergoing a synodal path to try to address the Church’s response to clerical sexual abuse, while at the same time reviewing Church teaching on human sexuality, priestly celibacy and the ban on ordaining women into the priesthood.

Among the German high-ranking prelates who support the CDF’s response are Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, Archbishop of Cologne; Bishop Stephan Burger of Freiburg; and Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg.

“Love wins. Love is a blessing,” says the website for May 10th blessing of same-sex couples. “People who love each other are blessed. On May 10th, 2021, we invite you to various places in Germany to blessing services. We don’t want to exclude anyone. We celebrate the diversity of people’s different life plans and love stories and ask for God’s blessings. Without any secrecy. On this page you will find the services that take place and you can register for a service and send us a blessing.”

Organizers also ask that on that day, Catholics in Germany use “creative symbols to make visible how many people in the Church perceive the colorful diversity of different life plans and love stories of people as an enrichment and a blessing.”

🌎 Disney Parks Are Going LGBTQ+ Inclusive
Source: https://www.out.com/lifestyle/2021/4/15/dis...lgbtq-inclusive



Disney Parks are reimagining themselves for a more diverse and inclusive magical kingdom. Visitors to any of the companies famed theme parks will be able to purchase a rainbow-colored version of the iconic Micky Mouse ears hat while employees will no longer be bound by binary-segmented rules on costuming, jewelry, hair, and nail choices. The new policies and rules are the result of Disney centering inclusion in the company’s guiding principles.

“This is just the beginning as we continue to work toward a world where we all belong – including a more diverse and inclusive Disney Parks, Experiences and Products,” Josh D’Amaro, chairman of the parks division, wrote in a blog post announcing the new policies. “There’s more to do, but we’re committed to listening, learning and making meaningful improvements.”

Disney polled its workers (or ‘cast members’ as they are known) and found inclusivity was a key area of concern. The company responded by addressing the issue from within their four guiding principles — safety, courtesy, show, and efficiency — which guided every decision made within the company. These principles were were now joined by inclusivity.

For guests, the change means they will see more LGBTQ+ inclusive products such as the rainbow-color mouse ears hat, while costumes will now be available for those guests using wheelchairs. For employees, the new key allows for a greater level of expression across the gender spectrum. In the past, cast members were guided by a binary-based dress code.

“Our new approach provides greater flexibility with respect to forms of personal expression surrounding gender-inclusive hairstyles, jewelry, nail styles, and costume choices; and allowing appropriate visible tattoos,” D’Amaro wrote. “We’re updating them to not only remain relevant in today’s workplace, but also enable our cast members to better express their cultures and individuality at work.

Activists hailed the decision.

“Disney’s move is a powerful example of a company that is walking the walk on inclusion and belonging,” Erin Uritus, president of Out and Equal, said in a statement. “With these changes, cast members can bring their full, authentic selves to their work. More Disney guests will be able to see themselves reflected in the diversity of people across all levels of the company.”

Disney Parks and programming are highly popular within the LGBTQ+ community, and the company has made efforts in the past to make their parks and products more welcoming to the community. In 2019, Years & Years out frontman Olly Alexander was chosen as one of the headliners for Disneyland Paris’s Magical Pride, the first-ever LGBTQ+ event hosted at a Disney park.

D’Amaro said the changes were designed to create “richer, more personal and more engaging experiences with our guests” by allowing cast members to more freely express their experiences and identities.

“I’m excited about where we’re headed, and we’ll have more to share soon,” he concluded. “Thank you for joining us on this journey.”

Makes sense. Hopefully decades down the road when people see me being successful career-wise and yet still single, people will just assume I'm gay. Save me from coming out.

🇮🇩🇹🇭 Indonesian trolls flood Thai gay wedding photos with death threats
Source: https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-cu...hai-couples-gay



When Suriya Koedsang uploaded photos of his wedding to Facebook on April 4, the 28-year-old Thai never could have imagined the hate his heartwarming post would soon receive from online trolls in Indonesia.

Within days, the pictures of Koedsang and his husband Bas’ April 3 marriage ceremony began attracting homophobic comments, ranging from rants about how homosexuality is “a sin” according to Islam, to posts listing various Indonesian words for the male reproductive organ.

As of Friday, the post had attracted more than 469,000 comments and been shared some 40,000 times.

Not all the messages were negative, however – the couple’s fellow Thais were quick to jump to their defence, creating something of a cross-cultural face-off in the comments section.

“So weird. They got married in Thailand but Indonesians have a problem with that. Why? Did they [get] married in your country? Why [do] you interfere?” wrote one Thai user named Nattaworada Imsamran, in an example of the messages of support the couple received.

By April 11, however, the negative comments had snowballed into death threats that were not only directed at the couple, but also Koedsang’s “parents, relatives, including the photographer”, he wrote in a follow-up Facebook post.

“I have never replied and only [thought] that they would stop in a few days. However, they are more severe in their comments, threatening, frightening us,” he said.

Indonesian Facebook users sent the couple “video of slaughter to terrify us”, Koedsang wrote, “why? We married in my warm house … [in our] own motherland. What is wrong with Indonesia and Indonesians? Why [do they] need to be that dramatic?”

He went on to say in his post that he “respects all religions” including Islam and that “religion never teaches you to hate others and look down on people.”

“When I studied in [the southern Thai province of] Pattani where most people are Muslim, I had no problems at all, nor even [a] difficult time,” he said.

Lawyer Ronnarong Kaewpetch, head of the Network of Campaigning for Justice in Thailand, came to the couple’s defence in the comments section under Koedsang’s April 11 post.

“Indonesian people, don’t think you guys are there, and I can’t do anything. Any day you enter Thailand, I’ll have police waiting with arrest warrants against you,” he was cited as saying by Coconuts Media.

Koedsang on Tuesday said that he intended to keep the comments open on his public Facebook posts so that he would have “evidence in legal action” - a threat Rachmat Budiman, Indonesia’s ambassador to Thailand, told local news portal Detik he thought was “excessive”.

Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah told Detik that he hopes “there is no bad impact from the incident”, adding that Bangkok had not lodged any official complaint about it. On Wednesday, Koedsang wrote on Facebook that he did not want to be interviewed by the media.

The incident has highlighted what some critics describe as as an “aggressive” culture of internet discourse in Indonesia.

Indonesians were ranked as Southeast Asia’s rudest internet users in tech giant Microsoft’s latest Digital Civility Index, published in February. The survey involved 16,000 respondents in 32 countries, with Indonesia ranking 29th – just ahead of Russia and South Africa. Among Southeast Asian countries, Singapore was found to have the most civil internet users, ranking fourth, while Malaysia came 10th, Thailand 19th and Vietnam 24th.

Microsoft was forced to turn off the comments on its official Instagram account for a few days in the wake of the report’s publication, after Indonesian social media users flocked to it to bash the company.

Other targets of Indonesian online mobs in recent months have included the Badminton World Federation, which limited comments on its Instagram posts after they were targeted by Indonesians angry at the fact that Indonesia’s national badminton team were forced to withdraw from the All England Open Championships because of Covid-19; British actor and comedian Stephen Fry, after he was mistaken for one of the umpires at that competition; and Filipino teen TikToker Reema Martin, who was reportedly bullied into leaving social media by Indonesian women who accused her of seducing their partners.

One group of Indonesian trolls has vowed to carry on their attacks on Koedsang and his husband after claiming some Thai commenters “insulted Islam” by posting religiously charged memes.

Not all Indonesians were as triggered by the couple’s wedding, however. The hashtag #IndonesiaSaySorryForThailand was trending worldwide on Twitter on Wednesday, with many saying that they felt ashamed of the attacks on the Thai couple.

“As an Indonesian and a part of LGBT, I am truly sorry for the mean comments and death threats. It is such a shame. Please forgive us,” said one user named Shara.

“Not my fault, but I feel ashamed. Hope that the relations between the two countries will be even better. Sorry,” wrote another.

Koedsang in his Wednesday Facebook post thanked those Indonesian social media users who had apologised for their compatriots’ hate-filled remarks, as well as his fellow Thais for defending him, adding that both his and his husband’s families had been deeply affected by the needlessly negative comments, which were still flooding in at the time of writing.

🇬🇧 LGBT homelessness: 'I had to pretend to be straight'
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56718978



For Sara, university was a ticket out of an abusive home.

Sara, who identifies as queer, says she was used to hiding her identity from her Muslim family and pretending to be straight when accessing services.

But her mental health worsened after spending holidays alone in empty student halls.

"I had a roof over my head but no-one else to talk to. My mental health got really bad and I ended up dropping out. I was going to be homeless so I ended up going back to my abusive household," she says.

"It was difficult - I was rotting away in a corner of our tiny flat while trying to look for places [to live]."

Sara, now 21, came out as bisexual to one of her parents and confronted them about the abuse, but they refused to accept what she was saying.

She says she became suicidal before a charity, the Albert Kennedy Trust (AKT), helped her to find a room at a women's shelter.

Sara's story is not unusual, says the Trust, which supports young LGBTQ people at risk of homelessness.

The pandemic means many have been unable to leave "toxic environments", says its director of services Lucy Bowyer.

"We've seen young people going back in the closet and feeling they have to go home, stay home and that they can't express themselves. Then people trying to access support have found it not welcoming and that has re-traumatised them."

Temporary housing options such as staying on a friend's sofa were no longer available as people became nervous about mixing with those outside their bubble, she says.

Joe, in Manchester, also had to move back in with his family after facing money troubles during the pandemic.

But he ended up homeless after a family member started to taunt and hit him.

"He was using my gayness and throwing it at me," Joe says.

His abuser paid the household bills, meaning other family members were reluctant to intervene.

Joe slept on the streets for two weeks before being helped to rent a flat by the charity.

More than six in 10 LGBTQ young people surveyed said they felt frightened or threatened by their family members before they became homeless, according to an AKT report, while more than half feared being evicted from the family home if they came out.

The report also claimed that six in 10 faced some form of discrimination or harassment while accessing services.

The research took place over six months to January and interviewed 161 LGBTQ people aged 16-25 who had experienced homelessness in the past five years.

Both Joe and Sara said they had faced barriers while accessing services that were linked to their sexuality, ranging from homophobia from landlords or other homeless people, to forms that didn't list their sexuality.

"My default is putting on a straight persona when accessing help," Sara says. "It is exhausting."

A scheme was introduced at the start of the pandemic to bring all rough sleepers indoors in England.

"Everyone In" took more than 37,000 people off the streets by January 2021, the government says.

But the impact has been patchy. In some areas, more than 80% of those helped are in longer-term accommodation, while in others it is less than 15%, according to figures obtained by the BBC.

Ms Bowyer said her clients' experience of the scheme had been "really varied".

"In London, one borough would help anybody who turned up, but in another borough, no-one would even answer our emails and our clients couldn't get hold of them."

The government says the Equalities Office is conducting research to help better understand LGBTQ people's experiences of homelessness, the challenges they face, and to enable tailored support to be provided.

Names have been changed