Search Results for: sexual orientation discrimination

Polish President Andrzej Duda sent a bill to the Constitutional Tribunal Thursday for review, seeking to expand on hate crimes provisions by adding sexual orientation, gender and other categories to the list of protected groups. The tribunal will consider whether the bill violates the constitutional right to free speech. The current Polish Penal Code includes [...]

The US Department of Education (DOE) announced Friday its plan to terminate the Maine Department of Education’s (MDOE) federal K-12 education funding for its noncompliance with US President Trump’s executive orders attacking “gender ideology” and gender-affirming educational practices. The DOE concluded that MDOE has endorsed or allowed school policies allowing males to compete in female [...]

Amnesty International voiced its support on Friday for a report issued by the UN Intergovernmental Working Group on the Effective Implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (DDPA), stating that it “fully supports” a more detailed draft UN declaration seeking to address the “respect, protection and fulfilment” of human rights for people of [...]

The Osaka High Court held that Japan’s lack of recognition of same-sex marriage is unconstitutional on Tuesday. The Osaka High Court is the fifth court to rule that the ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional after similar rulings in the high courts of Sapporo, Tokyo, Fukuoka and Nagoya. While Presiding Judge Kumiko Honda upheld the [...]

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Friday urged Hungary to repeal the anti-LGBTQ+ legislation passed on Tuesday. OHCHR describes the legislation as a severe violation of basic rights for LGBTQ+ individuals. According to OHCHR, the legislation undermines the rights to freedom of expression and non-discrimination. It specifically targets educational [...]

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds on Friday signed into law a bill that removes gender identity as a protected class under Iowa civil rights law. Reynolds stated that the state’s “Civil Rights Code blurred the biological lines between the sexes” in an unacceptable manner, and that the new law will strengthen the state’s efforts to protect [...]

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments that could change how employment discrimination claims work for people in majority groups. In Ames v. Department of Ohio Youth Services, an Ohio woman whose “reverse discrimination” claim was dismissed by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in on [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday urged South African authorities to thoroughly investigate the assassination of an openly gay imam last week, demanding the country determine whether the killing was a hate crime and uphold its commitment to protecting all residents, including the LGBTQ+ community. HRW stated: South African authorities should intensify efforts to bridge [...]

Twenty-three human rights organizations and individuals, including Amnesty International, raised concerns about sex-based violence on Thursday. The report, titled “Forms of Sex-Based Violence Against Women and Girls: New Frontiers and Emerging Issues,” comes after the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls called for input in the upcoming 59th session of the UN [...]

Amnesty International denounced Tunisian authorities’ increased arrests of LGBTI individuals on Thursday. The organization reported that at least 84 individuals, mostly gay men and transgender women, have been arrested since September 2024. The wave of arrests began after a homophobic and transphobic online campaign gained traction. Many individuals involved in the campaign were supporters of [...]