As ILGA-World specifically states in its Press Release, the day marks the anniversary of the World Health Organization ‘s (WHO) decision in 1990 to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder.
Since its founding in 2004, IDAHOBIT has served as a vital platform for raising awareness about the discrimination and violence faced by LGBTQIA+ people worldwide .
Sixty-four (64) UN Member States continue to criminalize consensual sexual acts between individuals of the same sex. At least sixty-one (61) countries have restrictions on freedom of expression related to issues of sexual and gender diversity. While laws protecting individuals from hate crimes based on sexual orientation exist in sixty-three (63) UN Member States, only forty-one include gender identity, eleven gender expression and eight sex characteristics.
The past few months, in particular, have been filled with alarming, escalating threats to the lives and dignity of LGBTQIA+ people . Organizations around the world have been forced to suspend their activities due to aid freezes and funding cuts.
In the United Kingdom, the Supreme Court narrowed the definition of “woman” in the Equality Act. Hungary amended its Constitution to ban Pride and enshrine that “a person is either male or female.” Across the United States, bills and executive orders are helping to make life impossible for trans and intersex people under the false pretext of “defending women.”
Across the world, LGBTQIA+ communities – and especially women, transgender and intersex people – are facing an unprecedented wave of attacks from so-called anti-gender movements . Many political actors are complicit, stripping and depriving individuals of their bodily autonomy while denying them their very lives. Across the world, social justice movements continue to resist this backsliding, which increasingly undermines democracy as a whole.
Even in the midst of these grave crises, however, progress continues to be made – often as a result of the strength of communities uniting, organizing, resisting, holding each other accountable through hardship and brutal repression, and creating positive change. Over the past year, Dominica and Namibia decriminalized consensual same-sex sexual acts. Marriage equality became a reality in Thailand and Liechtenstein. The last “LGBT+ free zone” in Poland fell.
To date, seventeen (17) UN Member States have implemented a national ban on so-called “conversion therapies”, while nine (9) have introduced national restrictions on “normalization” procedures for intersex infants. In addition, eighteen (18) UN Member States allow legal gender recognition without restrictive conditions at the national level, and thirty-seven have legalized marriage equality. .
Amidst progress and backlash, this year’s IDAHOBIT is more important than ever . Its theme, “The Power of Communities,” highlights the vital role that connection, solidarity, and shared purpose play in driving change – both for individuals and for diverse social justice movements.
Visibility is not enough. Rights are being taken away and silence is complicity. This IDAHOBIT, stand with LGBTQIA+ communities. Defend your voices, show up, and fight.
Source: ILGA-World ( https://ilga.org/news/idahobit-may17-the-power-of-communities/ )
