Government officials in China are cracking down on erotic fiction writers and their online distribution networks, according to multiple news reports and social media posts, with dozens of writers reportedly arrested in one province and facing years in prison.
Many of the writers specialize in danmei, a style depicting gay romance and sex similar to Japanese manga.
In December, Chinese news site Shuiping Jiyuan reported police had detained more than 50 writers in Anhui province, west of Shanghai, since June. Sentences have ranged up to four and a half years in prison.
At least 10 people have been sentenced for posting gay-themed erotica online, according to open records from the Jixi County People’s Court in Anhui, the South China Morning Post reports.
A “special task force” carried out the arrests of the writers, many of whom published on the Taiwan-based adult fiction website Haitang Literature, Hong Kong’s Sing Tao DailyNews and Taiwan’s Pacific Daily newspapers reported.
“One of my friends is an author, who was released on bail, called me from a new phone and told us to be prepared,” one writer posted to the gaming bulletin board NGA, cited by the AO3 fan-fiction site on Reddit.
“Later, others also reported that their friends had been affected,” the post recounted. “We compared details and confirmed that this is a nationwide crackdown. Moreover, the website’s [Chinese] distributor is indeed in trouble and can’t be reached.”
China’s state-controlled media haven’t reported on the arrests.
“Disseminating obscene electronic messages” has long been illegal under the authoritarian Chinese regime. A 1997 law defines obscene material as “publications, films, video and audio recordings, and images containing depictions of sexual acts.”
In 2010, a Chinese court ruling determined erotic material that gains more than 5,000 clicks can be deemed a criminal offense.
How the writers are sentenced under Chinese law depends on how much money they make. Those who earn more than 250,000 yuan (US$34,500) from selling erotic materials can face a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Sentences have been reduced, however, if the writers can pay back all or a portion of the money they’ve made selling their work online. Family members have posted to social media and crowdfunding sites in an effort to raise funds to get their loved ones an early release.
Erotic literature has long been a target in the Chinese government’s crusade defending “social morals” in the Communist country, despite the fact there is rarely an obvious victim in such cases, said Chen Zhaonan, a Guangdong-based lawyer. He argued against the government’s practice of basing sentencing on potentially inflated sales figures gleaned from the erotica websites.
In 2018, a woman using the pen name Tianyi was jailed for 10 and a half years for publishing a novel that was filled with “graphic depictions of male homosexual sex,” according to local media reports. It reportedly sold 7,000 copies.
It had been an important 12 months for LGBTQ+ rights around the world – in bad ways as well as good.
While steps in the right direction have been made in some countries, including Estonia legalising same-sex marriage, there’s been a drop in LGBTQ+ equality in other nations, such as Georgia, Kazakhstan, and even the US.
Russia, meanwhile, has continued to be one the most dangerous places for LGBTQ+ people.
Here are some of the countries that regressed on LGBTQ+ rights in 2024.
Georgia
Georgian president Salome Zourabichvili vetoed an anti-LGBTQ+ bill but it still passed into law. (Getty)
Georgia is one of the nations causing particular concern.
The country implemented a bill – despite president Salome Zourabichvili’s attempt to block it – banning changes to gender on official documents, outlawing gender-affirming care, and placing major restrictions on LGBTQ+ freedom of expression.
The legislation prompted various not-for-profit organisations, including Rainbow Migration, to demand that the UK take Georgia off of its list of safe countries.
Minesh Parekh, policy and public affairs manager at the nonprofit Rainbow Migration, said of Georgia: “There’s widespread evidence of the danger that LGBTQI+ people face in Georgia and the situation has only worsened in recent months.
“It is imperative that the UK government stops using ‘safe states’ designations and ensures people are not returned to unsafe conditions. We are currently supporting LGBTQI+ Georgians who are terrified at the prospect of being sent back to the danger they’ve fled.”
Parekh noted the non-profit’s efforts in supporting Noah, a gay man from Georgia whose family subjected him to abuse over his sexuality, including forcing him to take medication because they believed he “had a demon inside him.”
“Noah was luckily granted refugee status, but many other Georgians could face being sent back to life threatening situations – and we therefore urge the Government to repeal the cruel Illegal Migration Act introduced by the previous government, and guarantee LGBTQI+ people’s safety.”
USA
President Joe Biden has been fighting a losing battle. (Getty)
Despite efforts by the present administration to promote LGBTQ+ rights, including hosting one of the biggest Pride events in the White House, and Joe Biden becoming the first sitting president to be interviewed by an LGBTQ+ news publication, the continued onslaught of anti-LGBTQ+ bills tells a different story.
According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), at least 574 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been proposed in US legislatures across various states since the beginning of the year – 64 more than the reported number for 2023.
The bills, several of which have passed into law, include curriculum censorship, redefining gender to exclude trans people, and the banning of gender-affirming care for those under the age of 18.
Forty-six of bills have passed into law, while 67 have yet to be debated, and 62 are advancing through congress.
To make matters worse, Donald Trump’s re-election for a second term as president doesn’t bode well for LGBTQ+ people, and one of his top advisors, Elon Musk, has vowed to eradicate what he calls the woke mind virus – and reportedly even wants the ACLU to be “defunded”.
Bulgaria
President Rumen Radev followed in Russia’s footsteps. (Getty)
Bulgaria’s track record of LGBTQ+ rights over the past few years has been poor, and the government is continuing its efforts to make things harder for the community.
President Rumen Radev followed in Russia’s footsteps by signing into law a bill prohibiting so-called LGBT propaganda in schools. The legislation was approved by 135 votes to 57 in parliament and took effect in August.
Same-sex marriage, gender-affirming care and the right to legally change gender are all illegal.
Ghana
President Nana Akufo-Addo is stepping down. (Getty)
In February, the Ghanaian government approved a sweeping law that outlawed identifying as LGBTQ+ and campaigning for queer rights.
Dubbed the Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, the lawimposed a prison sentence of up to three years for those convicted, while anyone found guilty of LGBTQ+ advocacy campaigns aimed at under-18s could face 10 years in jail.
President Nana Akufo-Addo is due to step down following elections last week, having served his permitted two terms. He is set to be replaced by former president John Mahama, after rival, and vice-president,Mahamudu Bawumia conceded defeat.
The outlook for members of the LGBTQ+ community is unlikely to improve much, given that Mahama recently told clergymen that gay marriage and being transgender were against his religious beliefs.
“The faith I have will not allow me to accept a man marrying a man, and a woman marrying a woman,” he said, according to Reuters.
“I don’t believe anybody can get up and say I feel like a man although I was born a woman and so I will change and become a man,” he added.
However, he did not say whether he would sign the bill that would criminalise same-sex relations, being transgender and advocating for LGBTQ rights.
Kazakhstan
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a bill effectively preventing queer couple adopting. (Getty)
While same-sex sexual activity is legal in the central Asian country, LGBTQ+ people can donate blood, and there is an equal age of consent, gay marriages are not permitted and a large majority of the population don’t see homosexuality as justifiable.
And, in February, Kazakhstan president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed into lawa ban on adoption for anyone who does not adhere to a “non-traditional” sexual orientation, effectively making it impossible for queer couples to take in a child.
Iraq
President Abdul Latif Rashid oversaw a tightening of laws against LGBTQ+ people. (Getty)
Iraq has long been considered one of the worst countries for LGBTQ+ people. But things became worse this year when homosexuality was codified as illegal.
The law, ratified by president Abdul Latif Rashid in June, specifically criminalised any practice of homosexuality and transsexuality, with a maximum of 15 years in prison for those convicted. The government also made it illegal to change gender markers on documents and banned gender-affirming care.
Human Rights Watch researcher Sarah Sanbar described the law was a “horrific development [and an] attack on human rights”.
United Kingdom
Keir Starmer hasn’t made life any easier for trans people in the UK. (Getty)
Despite the removal of the transphobic Conservative government in July, LGBTQ+ rights in the UK have not improved.
This was nowhere better represented than in ILGA-Europe’s annual Rainbow Map, which showed that Britain had plummeted the best place in Europe for LGBTQ+ rights in 2015, to sixteenth place today.
That fall wasn’t helped by the new government’s continued animosity towards transgender people. This year, health secretary Wes Streeting, who has said he does not believe trans women are women, extended a ban on puberty blockers for transgender under-18s, despite there being no definitive evidence that they are harmful.
And prime minister Keir Starmer’s record on LGBTQ+ rights is somewhat chequered. Soon after entering Downing Street, he told The Times that women who have not undergone gender confirmation surgery should not be allowed in female-only spaces, including toilets.
“They don’t have that right. They shouldn’t. That’s why I’ve always said biological women’s spaces need to be protected,” he said.
And, according to The Independent, he has said: “I’m not in favour of ideology being taught in our schools on gender.”
This fall, security forces in Belarus — the former Soviet republic and staging ground for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine — raided the home of a gay couple in the Belarusian capital of Minsk and brutally beat them, according to reporting by the Associated Press.
The university students said the officers were transparent that the assault was inspired by similar treatment of the LGBTQ+ community in Russia.
“They slammed our heads against the door frame, threatened to report us to the university, and said that this was just the beginning,” said Andrei, 20, who asked to be identified only by his first name.
Security forces demanded that Andrei and his partner Sasha unlock their smartphones and reveal the names of “gays in Minsk and Moscow.”
“They wanted to expose an ‘underground network’ of gay people in Belarus, following the example of Russia,” Andrei said of the raid. “They openly told us that if it is banned in Russia, then it should be banned in Belarus, too.”
The state-sanctioned attack comes as the country’s authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko, pushes copycat legislation outlawing “LGBTQ+ propaganda” based on similar laws passed in Russia at Putin’s urging.
Like the Russian version of the law, the bill in Belarus will likely bar any endorsement of LGBTQ+ activities and “nontraditional” sexual relations.
Andrei and Sasha said if the bill becomes law, they’ll leave Minsk rather than “wait for a prison term.”
While Belarus decriminalized homosexuality in 1994 following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the deeply conservative country is in the throes of a violent backlash against the LGBTQ+ community at Putin’s urging, rights activists say.
Lukashenko “uses repressions against the LGBTQ+ community in order to gain some kind of praise from Russian authorities and shore up support among conservative residents of Belarus,” said Alisa Sarmant, coordinator for LGBTQ+ rights group TG House Belarus.
“To a large extent, it’s a carbon copy of what is happening in Russia, but in Belarus, all these discriminatory practices take on uglier and harsher forms,” Sarmant said.
At least 32 people have been detained and beaten in seven Belarusian cities in the last three months, according to rights organizations, including 10 transgender or nonbinary individuals and activists. Several remain in custody facing charges of “disseminating pornography,” punishable by up to four years in prison. Others were forced to emigrate.
The Belarusian dictator and his allies have made their enmity for the LGBTQ+ community clear in both words and deeds.
“We will also need to take similar measures,” said Natalya Kochanova, Lukashenko’s closest adviser and speaker of the upper chamber of parliament, speaking of Russia’s repressive laws.
“We have family values, traditions we pass from generation to generation — traditions of family, Orthodox Christianity,” she said, parroting Putin’s line of attack on the LGBTQ+ community.
Lukashenko, after Germany’s openly gay foreign minister called him “the last dictator in Europe” in 2012, replied, “Better to be a dictator than gay.”
“Intimidation, arrests, and blackmail have been used in Belarus for years to create a so-called ‘LGBTQ+ database’ and declare an entire social group dangerous,” according to Pavel Sapelka of the Viasna Center, a prominent rights group in the country.
In April, the Culture Ministry expanded its definition of pornography to include “nontraditional relations”; anyone possessing it faces criminal prosecution and a four-year prison term.
The balloting will be “a sham,” said exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya of the upcoming election.
LGBTQ+ activist Sarmant says the effect of Belarus’ crackdown has been felt acutely by transgender people, who face “catastrophic shortages” of hormonal treatments, humiliating medical procedures, and prosecutions on political grounds.
In the last year, the government rejected over 80% of applications for trans people seeking official authorization for prescriptive and surgical healthcare or a change to their gender marker in official documents. Remarkably, both are still legal in Belarus. In 2022, 10% to 15% of applications were rejected.
Belarus is one of the most repressive regimes in the world, with about 1,300 political dissidents in prison. Lukashenko redoubled his efforts to quash dissent following his reelection in 2020, in what rights groups called a stolen victory. Over 65,000 Belarusians have been arrested based on their political activity over the last four years.
Stephen Fry has received a knighthood in the 2025 New Year Honours list.
The actor and author, who recently described Stonewall’s current LGBTQ+ campaigning as “nonsensical”, has received the New Year honour alongside the likes of the mayor of London Sadiq Khan and former England manager Gareth Southgate.
The 67-year-old was recognised for “devoting much time and effort in generating awareness of bipolar disorder, using his public platform to speak candidly about his own journey, undermining the taboo that has prevented many from seeking support”.
However, the news comes after Fry recently appeared to revoke his support of LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall, which was established as a charity for lesbian, gay and bisexual people but expanded its remit to include trans people almost a decade ago.
British actor, broadcaster, writer and comedian Stephen Fry. (Getty)
He was challenged over his support of the charity by host Konstantin Kisin, who read out a letter from ex-Stonewall employee turned critic Levi Pay and asked him how he could support the LGBTQ+ charity “in all conscience.”
“Do I? I am not sure I do support them,” Fry responded. He said previously supported the charity’s efforts to equalise the age of consent and legalise same-sex marriage but has “no interest in supporting this current wave of nonsensical [policies].”
Fry went on to further disavow Stonewall, describing the organisation as “shameful and sad” and “stuck in a terrible, terrible quagmire.”
Members of the trans community have since expressed their disappointment and anger over Fry’s comments. However, his comments have not come as a surprise to some, given his prior refusal to criticise JK Rowling’s contentious views on trans people.
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Fry was also described in the honours list as “one of Britain’s most highly regarded public figures”. He was noted as being the president of the charity Mind, and his involvement with the Terrence Higgins Trust for “raising awareness and funds for people living with HIV and AIDS”.
The director of a Russian travel agency arrested last month on charges of international LGBT extremism died yesterday while in custody in Moscow, OVD-Info reports.
Andrei Kotov, 48, was found dead around 4 a.m. on Sunday at the Vodnik pretrial detention center, where he was awaiting trial on charges of supporting an international LGBT extremist terrorist movement. Leisan Mannapova, Kotov’s lawyer, confirmed her client died by suicide. His body was discovered in his cell covered in blood, and “cuts were found” on his body, an internal source told RIA Novosti.
Kotov ran Men Travel, a travel agency reportedly catering to gay men. He had recently concluded a cruise along the Volga River and was planning a trip to Egypt to ring in the New Year at the time of his arrest.
Security forces arrested Kotov on Nov. 28 but it was not made public until two days later. Video of the arrest posted to multiple Telegram channels shows the muscled Kotov shirtless with his hands cuffed behind his back. Kotov testified at a court hearing earlier this month that he was beaten and threatened with a stun gun if he did not confess his alleged crimes during the arrest.
“About 15 people came to me at night, they beat me, hit me in the face, on the legs, left bruises,” Kotov said at a detention hearing on Dec. 2, Zona Mediareported at the time. “I did not offer any resistance. I was extremely surprised by this procedure.”
He told the court he was beaten by two masked men who demanded he confess to LGBT extremism. Kostov said one man punched him in the face while the second man threatened him with a stun gun. When he insisted the tours were not LGBT-centric, Kostov said he was escorted to the kitchen where he was told to say hello to the man’s “brothers in the regiment.”
Kotov also claimed a television reporter and camera person were on hand to ask questions on video without his permission.
At court, Kotov continued to deny the tours were aimed at gay men. He instead claimed the Volga River cruise was mainly about fishing and sightseeing.
“Our only appeal was that there are interesting museums, interesting hotels,” Kotov testified. “All this information was only of a tourist nature.”
Judge Kristina Kostryukova denied release for Kotov over his lawyer’s objections, who noted he was a vegetarian with a high caloric intake.
The arrest and death of Kotov comes as part of a larger crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community by the Russian government under President Vladimir Putin.
Last month, Putin signed two new laws outlawing the promotion of non-traditional families and the adoption of Russian children by foreign nationals from countries that recognize a person’s right to gender-affirming care.
The adoption law effectively prohibits citizens of Australia, Austria, Argentina, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, and other countries from adopting children from Russia or taking guardianship over them. Citizens of the U.S. were banned from adopting Russian children in 2012.
The second law bans what it terms “childfree propaganda” that promotes non-traditional families as a positive environment for children. Media companies and social media sites will be required to monitor content to ensure compliance with the law. An exemption would be made for positive portrayals of a monastic life that included celibacy.
In December of 2022, Putin signed a law strengthening a ban on LGBTQ “propaganda” in Russia and making it illegal to promote same-sex sexual relations or suggest non-heterosexual attractions are “normal.” Individuals can be fined up to 400,000 rubles ($6,370) for “LGBT propaganda” and up to 200,000 rubles ($3,185) for “demonstrations of LGBT and information that encourages a change of gender among teenagers.” The fines increase to 5 million rubles ($80,000) and 4 million rubles ($64,000) respectively for legal entities.
“The help of such specialists is necessary if a person wants to recover from frigidity, impotence, or such violations of sexual behavior as fetishism, masochism, and sadism,” the Duma reported in its official newspaper at the time.
An employee of the Central Station gay bar said police raided Club Secret, Mono Bar, and Hunters Party in Moscow, the local group SOTA reported on its Telegram channel. A fourth establishment, an unidentified gay sauna, was also raided, according to Novaya Gazeta. Video posted to social media shows a strong police presence outside one of the venues.
If you or someone you know needs mental health resources and support, please call, text, or chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or visit988lifeline.org for 24/7 access to free and confidential services. Trans Lifeline, designed for transgender or gender-nonconforming people, can be reached at (877) 565-8860. The lifeline also provides resources to help with other crises, such as domestic violence situations. The Trevor Project Lifeline, for LGBTQ+ youth (ages 24 and younger), can be reached at (866) 488-7386. Users can also access chat services at TheTrevorProject.org/Help or text START to 678678.
A number of countries took steps to advance the rights of LGBTQ+ people this year.
From enacting bans on so-called conversion therapy to introducing reforms that facilitate easier changes to gender markers, here are some of the countries that did the right thing in 2024.
Honduras
Honduras. (AFP via Getty/ ORLANDO SIERRA/)
In November, the Central American nation struck down a ban on LGBTQ+ blood donations, meaning men who have sex with men are now able to give blood.
Germany
Germany. (Christian Ender/Getty Images)
Germany’s parliament passed the Self-Determination Act, making it easier for trans and non-binary people aged 14 and older to legally change their first name and gender by making a straightforward declaration to the registry office.
Curaçao
Curacao. (Getty)
Same-sex marriage has become legal in Curaçao, a Dutch Caribbean island, after the Netherlands’ supreme court ruled that queer couples had the right to marry.
Denmark
A Pride flag flies outside the Børsen, the old stock exchange in Denmark’s capitol city of Copenhagen. (BirgerNiss/Getty Images)
Denmark lifted its deferral period for blood donations from men who have sex with men, in July. In the past, they could not donate if they had had sex in the previous four months. Rules regarding donations now apply to everyone, regardless of sexual orientation.
Czechia
Prague Pride. (Matej Divizna/Getty Images)
In July, Czechia started allowing gay and bisexual men to donate blood.
Latvia
Latvian same-sex couples can now enter civil unions. (Getty)
Latvia’s law allowing same-sex couples to establish civil unions took effect on 1 July, in a first for the Baltic nation.
Couples in civil unions are afforded certain tax and social security benefits, as well regarding hospital visiting, although they still have fewer rights than married couples. Legally speaking, marriage is still defined as only between a man and a woman.
Namibia
Namibia (Getty)
Consensual same-sex activity became legal in Namibia after the High Court ruled that laws criminalising such intimacy were unconditional and invalid.
Mexico
An LGBTQ+ march in Mexico City. (AFP/Getty Images)
Conversion therapy was banned. Practitioners breaking the law face between two and six years in prison and fines. In addition, the Free and Sovereign State of Guerrero, on the country’s Pacific coast, classified the practice as a crime, with punishment of up to six years in jail.
The state of Tabasco legalised same-sex adoption in April, a month after the Congress of Yucatán unanimously approved a self-ID bill for trans nationals.
Same-sex adoption became legal in Baja California, and the first gay couple adopted in February.
Greenland
The Law on Equal Treatment and Anti-Discrimination, which was approved in May, made LGBTQ+ discrimination illegal. It bans discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and gender characteristics.
Peru
An LGBTQ+ rally in Peru. (Getty)
In May, the health ministry reiterated that doctors should not perform conversion therapy.
Bermuda
Bermuda. (Getty)
Blood donations by men who have sex with men became legal in May. Certain requirements need to be met, including not having had anal sex with a new partner, or more than one sexual partner, in the previous three months.
Dominica
Dominica’s High Court overturned the law criminalising same-sex relationships (Getty Images)
The Caribbean country’s High Court overturned a colonial-era ban on consensual same-sex activity, in April. It also legalised gay sex.
Lesotho
In Lesotho, in Southern Africa, The Labour Code banned discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation. The code also outlawed violence, harassment and sexual harassment based on gender identity.
Estonia
Estonia is the first former Soviet republic to legalise equal marriage. (Getty)
Estonia became the first former Soviet Republic to legalise same-sex marriage in 2023 and the legislation officially came into force on New Year’s Day. Same-sex adoption was legalised at the same time.
Blood donations from men who have sex with men has been legal since March.
Portugal
Participants display a bisexual pride flag during a 2019 pride parade in Lisbon, Portugal. (Horacio Villalobos/Corbis via Getty Images)
A bill banning conversion therapy that was passed by Portugal’s parliament signed into law by president Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa took effect on 1 March.
In January, serving openly in the military as trans and non-binary became legal.
Greece
Greece. (ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images)
LGBTQ+ discrimination became illegal this year, while same-sex adoption and same-sex marriage became legal.
The Netherlands
The Netherlands. (Getty Images/PinkNews)
Blood donations by men who have sex with men became legal at the beginning of the year.
LGBTQ+ veterans who were ejected from the military due to their sexuality will be able to receive up to £70,000 in compensation from today 13 December.
The ban on openly gay soldiers, which was lifted in 2000, had resulted in veterans being prohibited from serving in the armed forces due to their sexuality or gender identity.
Those who were discovered to be LGBTQ+ faced horrific treatment, including physical and sexual abuse, so-called ‘conversion therapy’ and blackmail, as well as dismissal from the service.
Now, veterans eligible for compensation can apply to receive a £50,000 payout under the LGBT Financial Recognition Scheme.
An additional £20,000 can be applied for by those who endured harassment or ill-treatment while serving in addition to being dismissed or discharged. All eligible veterans can also request to have their rank restored and discharge reason amended.
‘Moral stain on our nation’
Defence secretary, John Healey said: ”The historic treatment of LGBT veterans was a moral stain on our nation.
“Our government is determined to right the wrongs of the past and recognise the hurt that too many endured.”
Government modelling has estimated that the maximum number of impacted veterans is 4,000. It isn’t known how many will apply for compensation.
In September, LGBTQ+ veterans who were awarded a special badge of their service refused to wear it until they were paid compensation for the injustice they faced while in the UK’s armed forces.
In August, LGBTQ+ veterans charity, Fighting With Pride, was awarded a grant to help create the UK’s first memorial to LGBTQ+ veterans.
The charity, which campaigned to get justice for servicemen and women affected by the pre-2000 ban on homosexuality in the armed forces, was awarded a £350,000 government grant to create the memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.
The Fukuoka High Court of Japan has become the third of Japan’s eight high courts to rule that the government’s policy against same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. However, the court upheld a lower court ruling that dismissed three same-sex couples who had sought 1 million yen ($6,540) each for being denied their constitutional rights to gender and legal equality, individual dignity, and the pursuit of happiness.
The couples, who live in the southwestern cities of Fukuoka and Kumamoto, had their damage claims dismissed by the Fukuoka District Court in 2023 after the court ruled that the government wasn’t obliged to compensate them or legalize marriage equality legislation despite being in “state of unconstitutionality,” The Mainichi reported.
High Court Judge Takeshi Okada ruled that civil laws forbidding same-sex marriages violate the nation’s constitution, saying, “There is no longer any reason to not legally recognize marriage between same-sex couples.” However, he noted that any change in national marriage laws must be decided by Japan’s legislature, known as the National Diet.
As the judge read his ruling, a 35-year-old plaintiff identified in the media as Kosuke couldn’t stop crying. Despite this, his 37-year-old partner Masahiro said “[the judge] understood our suffering, and I felt very reassured.”
Opponents of marriage equality in Japan have noted that Article 24 of the Japanese constitution specifically states, “Marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes and it shall be maintained through mutual cooperation with the equal rights of husband and wife as a basis.”
However, marriage equality advocates have also pointed out that the constitution’s other articles state, “The people shall not be prevented from enjoying any of the fundamental human rights,” and, “All of the people are equal under the law and there shall be no discrimination in political, economic or social relations because of race, creed, sex, social status or family origin.”
Regardless, in October the Tokyo High Court ruled similarly, echoing another one made by the Sapporo High Court in March, which said that limiting marriage to couples of the opposite sex is “unconstitutional” and “discriminatory.” Despite the rulings, the country’s judiciary doesn’t have the power to overturn existing civil marriage codes.
Marriage equality has divided the country’s court system in opposing rulings over several years. Meanwhile, Japan’s conservative government lags behind increasingly supportive public opinion. Seventy percent of the Japanese public supports marriage equality, but it faces opposition from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
The party lost its parliamentary majority in last Sunday’s election and will likely have to compromise on more liberal policies pushed by the opposition parties, like marriage equality, the aforementioned publication noted.
Right now, Japan doesn’t offer national LGBTQ+ non-discrimination protections or same-sex marriage. As a result, LGBTQ+ people in Japan often face inequities in employment, housing, education, and health care.
More than 200 Japanese municipalities offer some form of recognition for same-sex couples. Such recognition can help same-sex couples rent apartments together, visit each other in city hospitals, and receive other services that married heterosexual couples enjoy.
Though several jurisdictions offer “partnership certificates,” they’re entirely symbolic and don’t offer federal benefits given to married heterosexual couples.
LGBTQ+ advocacy groups have pushed for a national bill that would enshrine equal civil rights and non-discrimination protections into law. However, the conservative party of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida helped defeat the effort in the lead-up to the 2021 Olympic Summer Games.
Japan remains the only country in the G7, a political and economic forum of seven of the world’s most advanced economies, that has not legalized marriage equality. Currently, the only Asian countries that have legalized same-sex marriage are Taiwan, Nepal, and Thailand.
This year, The International Conference on Stigma, held November 19–21 at Howard University’s Blackburn Center, provided a critical platform for addressing stigma’s impact on marginalized communities. This year’s theme, “Stigma No More… It’s 2024!”, encouraged bold conversations about health inequities, particularly those affecting Black women.
One pivotal panel, Spilling the Tea, Part III: Real Conversations between Cis and Trans Women, brought attention to the unique challenges Black cisgender and transgender women face in accessing HIV testing and treatment. Moderated by Shelley Turner, a seasoned advocate, the panel included voices like Diamond Phillips, Chasity Nicole Petty Carter, and Sahara Rivera—experts dedicated to inclusive healthcare and community health navigation.
HIV Among Black Women: An Overlooked Crisis
Black women represent 13% of the U.S. female population but accounted for 51% of new HIV diagnoses among women in 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) . Yet, public health narratives often portray HIV as primarily affecting men who have sex with men, leaving cisgender women underrepresented in prevention efforts.
Chasity Carter underscored this disconnect during the panel:
“We don’t see how Black women are being tested or catching HIV because it’s never shown. The conversation is often seen as only a gay disease, and that has to shift for cis women, queer or not, to view it as a possibility for them as well.”
The lack of representation perpetuates harmful stereotypes and deprives women of accurate information about prevention options, such as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis). The US HIV surveillance report of 2019 estimated PrEP coverage for cisgender women at risk of HIV was just under 10% compared with 27% for gay men and 32% for transgender women.
Trans Women of Color Face Dual Stigma
Transgender women of color experience some of the highest HIV prevalence rates globally, with 44% of Black trans women in the U.S. living with HIV according to the Human Rights Campaignand AIDSVu. Yet, as panelist Sahara Rivera, an advocate focused on specializing in HIV Prevention and Transgender Health, highlighted, systemic inequities force trans women to prioritize survival needs over testing and treatment:
“Is HIV testing the need they’re focused on when food, housing, money, and transportation are such high priorities to survive?”
And it’s a real question that many individuals have to consider daily when prioritizing certain factors in their day-to-day routines. Especially in an increasingly expensive economy. Efforts to reduce stigma and increase access to healthcare must address these intersecting social determinants or else we’re only scratching the surface of the problem. Programs like Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) and other wraparound services can mitigate these barriers but remain underfunded in many regions .
Urban vs. Rural Healthcare Disparities
Access to HIV testing and treatment often depends on geographic location. While urban centers typically offer more resources, rural areas lack adequate infrastructure, leaving many underserved. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 23% of Black Americans in rural areas report difficulty accessing healthcare, compared to 12% in urban areas .
Sahara Rivera noted the disparity:
“There’s a BIG gap. A lot of these centers are in major cities or downtown areas, making them inaccessible for rural communities. And rural centers that do exist often don’t receive enough resources to stay functional.”
This challenge is especially pronounced in Southern states, which have some of the highest rates of new HIV diagnoses but also the lowest Medicaid expansion rates, further limiting access to care.
Solidarity Between Cis and Trans Women
The panel emphasized the importance of solidarity between cisgender and transgender women to combat shared challenges. It’s essential in addressing HIV testing disparities, as shared experiences and mutual support can dismantle stigma and promote inclusive healthcare. Trans women, especially those of color, face unique barriers to HIV testing, including discrimination, economic instability, and a lack of culturally sensitive services. At the same time, cisgender women often underestimate their own risk, partly due to misconceptions about HIV as a “gay disease” and a lack of awareness about testing options like home tests or free screenings. For instance, many cisgender women assume annual OB-GYN visits cover comprehensive HIV testing, which is often not the case. Rivera stressed the need for more inclusive education:
“Cis women think, ‘I’ve got my tests done for the year,’ without realizing there’s more to testing and treatment than what’s covered in a typical OB-GYN visit.”
Building alliances across gender identities is crucial for dismantling stigma and fostering inclusive healthcare systems. It requires open dialogue and allyship between cis and trans communities, emphasizing shared health goals and access equity. Collaborative initiatives, such as peer-led education and community-based outreach programs, have shown success in increasing testing rates and fostering trust in healthcare systems.
Attendees at the International Conference on Stigma
A Path Forward
To reduce HIV stigma and improve healthcare outcomes for Black women, public health efforts must center on culturally competent care, expanded access to resources, and accurate representation in media campaigns. A 2022 report from the National HIV/AIDS Strategyemphasized the importance of addressing stigma at structural and interpersonal levels to achieve the goal of ending the HIV epidemic by 2030 .
As we move out of 2024 and into 2025, the fight against HIV stigma must intensify now more than ever, ensuring that no woman—cisgender or transgender—feels invisible in this battle. By fostering solidarity and prioritizing systemic change, we can create a future where stigma no longer hinders progress and every community has equitable access to care.
The United Kingdom on Wednesday indefinitely banned new prescriptions of puberty blockers to treat minors for gender dysphoria. The announcement comes a week after the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case involving state bans on puberty-suppressing medication and other forms of transition-related care for minors.
Puberty blockers are commonly prescribed to transgender children in countries throughout the Western world to delay the onset of puberty or pause it as it is transpiring. The medication is prescribed with the goal of giving children who are experiencing gender dysphoria more time to decide if they want to take more permanent steps to transition genders. Puberty resumes when the medication is no longer taken.
The indefinite ban on the medication in Britain comes several months after an independent study commissioned by England’s National Health Service concluded that the medical evidence around transition-related care for minors is “remarkably weak” and that more research is needed.
“Children’s healthcare must always be evidence-led,” British Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said in a press release. “The independent expert Commission on Human Medicines found that the current prescribing and care pathway for gender dysphoria and incongruence presents an unacceptable safety risk for children and young people.”
Dr. Hilary Cass, the author of the independent study, known as the “Cass report,” said she supported the ban, according to the same release.
“Puberty blockers are powerful drugs with unproven benefits and significant risks, and that is why I recommended that they should only be prescribed following a multi-disciplinary assessment and within a research protocol,” she said.
Transgender activists around the world condemned the ban.
“I wouldn’t wish medical negligence on my worst enemy. Labour activists just wished it on my entire community,” Iris Duane, a former candidate for Britain’s Parliament, wrote on X. “To friends, family and community, many of us will survive, and we will remind them that hell is calling.”
Trans minors in the U.K. who are already taking the medication can continue doing so, according to the government, and cisgender minors who experience puberty at an abnormally early age will still be able to receive new prescriptions for the medication.
A temporary ban on new puberty-blocker prescriptions for British minors experiencing gender dysphoria was already put in place over the summer. Wednesday’s announcement extends the ban indefinitely as the government begins clinical trials on the medications starting next year. The ban will be revisited in 2027.
The U.K. ban comes as the U.S. Supreme Court weighs the constitutionality of a Tennessee ban on gender-affirming care for minors. Tennessee is one of more than two dozen states that restrict such care in the U.S.
