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TOPIC: gender

LGBTQ Plus

New Study Finds High Levels Of Anti-LGBTQ+ Discrimination In Buddhism

We tend to think of Buddhism as a religion devoid of commandments, and therefore generally more accepting than others. The author, an Australian researcher — and "genderqueer, non-binary Buddhist" themself — suggests that it is far from being the case.

More than half of Australia’s LGBTQIA+ Buddhists feel reluctant to “come out” to their Buddhist communities and nearly one in six have been told directly that being LGBTQIA+ isn’t in keeping with the Buddha’s teachings.

These are some of the findings from my research looking at the experiences of LGBTQIA+ Buddhists in Australia.

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I’m a genderqueer, non-binary Buddhist myself and I was curious about others’ experiences in Australia since there has been no research done on our community before. So, in 2020, I surveyed 82 LGBTQIA+ Buddhists and have since followed this up with 29 face-to-face interviews.

Some people may think Buddhism would be quite accepting of LGBTQIA+ people. There are, after all, no religious laws, commandments or punishments in Buddhism. My research indicates, however, this is not always true.

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A Gym's Urinal Shaped Like A Woman's Mouth: Extreme Sexism Or Upside-Down Art?

In the Italian city of Turin, a gym has installed urinals that appear to be shaped like a woman's open mouth. From Duchamp to Warhol to Mick Jagger, everything we see is in the eyes of the beholder.

-Analysis-

TURIN — A photo posted online last week has sparked outrage and debate in Italy. The now infamous image from inside the men's bathrooms of the McFit gym in Turin shows urinals that are shaped like a woman's open mouth. While some are denouncing it as sexist, others are calling it art, or simply a joke — posing the broader question of why it's so important to discuss objectification?

The problem lies in the starting point, in the gaze that conditions all what we see, every perception we have of this country, every single prejudice.

Who said that large red lips, with a hint of teeth from a toothpaste commercial's perfect smile, are inherently feminine? Yes, there's lipstick, the heart-shaped line, but they are objects of fantasy, a creative design that doesn't belong to a specific gender: in this case, urinals that a chain of gyms has hung in its bathrooms in an attempt to use art for an easy laugh.

But our point of view changes, the game collapses, and since the game is always the same, it's time to dismantle it. And it's quite easy to do so. Indeed the inspiration originally comes from the famous design of Mick Jagger's lips and tongue. Yes, a man.

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Sexual Violence In War: Listening And Healing — And Never Again

Three women who were victims of sexual violence during the Colombian Civil War recount their stories of struggle and survival. They speak up in the hopes that the judiciary will open a new case to bring justice to them and many more survivors of sexual abuse perpetrated during the conflict.

BOGOTA – Jennifer, Ludirlena and Diana suffered a living death at the hands of their aggressors. It was their self-love and resilience that saved them, after experiencing sexual violence during the nation’s civil war.

The Colombian government forgot about these women. But now, they are champions in a battle towards justice and dignity. With different perspectives, they manage to find a connection, something that will unite them forever: advocating so that no one else experiences what they endured.

All sides in the war perpetrated sexual violence. But in the case of these three women, it was specifically the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and United Self-Defences of Colombia (AUC) paramilitary groups who exerted power over their bodies, through the cruelty of their crimes.

These were not isolated incidents and, to the shame of our society, they remain a massive, forgotten outrage.

According to official records, during the war in Colombia there were 15,760 victims of sexual violence. Of that total, 61.8% were women, and another 30.8% were young girls and teenagers. Unfortunately, underreporting plays a significant role in these numbers. Organizations such as the Network of Women Victims and Professionals, the collective Focal Groups - Men Victims of Sexual Violence and the British organization All Survivors Project estimate that the real number may be as much as three times higher.

The three protagonists in our story show how armed conflict has marked the lives of thousands of women in Colombia. They are three voices among many that have come together to demand the opening of a "macro-case," or investigation into sexual violence through Colombia’s Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), which would uncover the patterns of sexual and gender-based crimes among armed groups which have devastated entire communities.

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This Happened — July 30: Bruce Jenner Wins Decathlon

Caitlyn Jenner, then known as Bruce Jenner, won the Men's decathlon at the 1976 Montreal Olympics on this day.

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Society
Carmen Domingo

How Spain’s "Only Yes Means Yes" Law Has Freed Sexual Assault Convicts From Prison

Spain's groundbreaking "only yes means yes" law on consent was supposed to crack down on sexual abusers. But early signs say the real-life effect may be just the opposite. Critical voices of its effects keep appearing.

-Analysis-

MADRID — In May 2022, Spanish lawmakers introduced what was touted as a revolutionary feminist bill aimed at toughening legislation around sexual abuse. The law was conceived by the Ministry of Equality following the trial in an infamous 2016 gang rape case of an 18-year-old during the running-of-the-bulls in Pamplona. A video had shown the victim was silent and passive, which was interpreted by judges as proof of her consent.

Dubbed the "Only Yes Means Yes" law, the new legislation aims to ensure that a case like this would never come to be again. Now, a sexual act where no explicit consent is given (even without violence or threat) would be classified as rape. Spain would be joining 12 other European countries who have changed their legal definition of rape as sex without clear consent.

It was a watershed in criminal justice and society at large, aiming to completely redefine acts of sexual abuse and give ultimate power to the victim to acknowledge her trauma and pursue legal action .

But the new law came with a caveat: some of those already convicted of sexual assault and abuse would see an automatic reduction in their prison sentences because the new law created a wider range for sentencing. And indeed, more than a year since the new law took effect, studies indicate that a troubling number of rapists and other sexual offenders have been released from jail.

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Society
Raúl Cervera

A Mexico City Women's Football Club Brings LGBTQ+ Players On The Field

In Mexico City, the "Football, Sweat and Joy" football club is creating a welcoming space for women and LGBTQ+ soccer players to play and socialize.

MEXICO CITY – Amid the chaos of Mexico City, a group of women and gender non-conforming soccer lovers are building a community where every player can feel welcome.

Calling themselves 'Fútbol, Sudor y Goce' (Football, Sweat and Joy), the group began with a small group of people during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. Julieta, who had arrived in Mexico from Argentina shortly before the quarantine, wanted to find people who shared her passion for soccer and to build a community and a safe space to socialize and have fun.

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"In a WhatsApp group, Julieta wrote the invitation: if anyone was interested in forming a small soccer group to meet new people," says Yorely Valero, who was part of the first to join the group. "I am from Colombia and had been living here for some time. But the pandemic affected everything, so it was an excuse to both play and connect with more people."

A small group of people responded, and after planning for months, Julieta, Yorely, Yuki, Catalina, and Anne gathered for the first time on a small field in the Juárez neighborhood . It was March 2021. Word started to spread, and more people joined the WhatsApp group.

"In that group, we only added women and queer people. That was the premise from the beginning, because there are many other spaces for cisgender men to play. This space is for these other people who have often been excluded from playing," comments Yorely.

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LGBTQ Plus
Awino Okech

The Western Organizations Funding Africa's LGBTQ+ Backlash

Uganda has signed a harsh anti-LGBTQ+ bill into law. It's part of a wider push back against "Western" values that's partly being funded by a global coalition.

Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni assented to the anti-homosexuality bill on May 26, 2023. The new law legislates, among other things, a 10-year jail term for “attempted homosexuality,” a 20-year jail term for “promotion of homosexuality,” a life sentence for “the offense of homosexuality” and a death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality.”

Previously there has been been historical surveillance and targeting of queer people in Uganda, but no penalties nearly as harsh as this.

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This is reflective of a spate of new laws across Africa. Their proponents argue that they protect the heterosexual African family and “African values” in a rejection of “Western norms”.

Similar laws have been proposed in Ghana and Kenya. In July 2021, members of Ghana’s parliament proposed the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill. In April 2023, a Kenyan member of parliament introduced a Family Protection Bill. Among other things, it prohibits sexual health services and sexual health rights education.

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Society
Mara Resio

How Argentina Is Changing Tactics To Combat Gender Violence

Argentina has tweaked its protocols for responding to sexual and domestic violence. It hopes to encourage victims to report crimes and reveal information vital to a prosecution.

BUENOS AIRES - In the first three months of 2023, Argentina counted 116 killings of women, transvestites and trans-people, according to a local NGO, Observatorio MuMaLá. They reveal a pattern in these killings, repeated every year: most femicides happen at home, and 70% of victims were protected in principle by a restraining order on the aggressor.

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Now, legal action against gender violence, which must begin with a formal complaint to the police, has a crucial tool — the Protocol for the Investigation and Litigation of Cases of Sexual Violence (Protocolo de investigación y litigio de casos de violencia sexual). The protocol was recommended by the acting head of the state prosecution service, Eduardo Casal, and laid out by the agency's Specialized Prosecution Unit for Violence Against Women (UFEM).

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LGBTQ Plus
Liang Yutong

'MTF' Alarm, Life Is Crueler Than Ever For Trans Women In China

Cast out by family, discriminated against by the state, shut off from the medication, China's "male-to-female" trans community is under immense pressure, as suicide rates rise and incomprehension continues to spread.

BEIJING — Another MTF has committed suicide in China: born in June 2009, she was not yet 14. MTF is an acronym for "male-to-female," a term used by transgender women in China to identify themselves on online platforms.

Although the World Health Organisation announced in 2019 that "transgender" would be removed from the International Classification of Diseases, the transgender community in mainland China has had to continue to endure pressure and abuse from the state, society and families. Transgender women have a disproportionately high rate of suicide in China.

✉️ You can receive our LGBTQ+ International roundup every week directly in your inbox. Subscribe here.

One of the dangers that MTFs face is their medication being cut off. The drugs, including those containing oestrogen and anti-androgens, are the only way for the MTF community to maintain their femininity before undergoing gender affirming surgery. A number of trans women have openly shared their experiences of being deprived their medication, and being in constant fear of returning to a gender they do not belong to. This can lead to serious depression and other mental problems, that sometimes winds up with suicide.

Under the harsh restrictions on purchasing drugs in mainland China, MTFs often have to contact underground drug dealers, and that too often means being sold fake drugs. There was even a case reported of a transphobic man who deliberately sold high-priced fake drugs to MTFs, which caused dangerous side effects.

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Society
Ignacio Pereyra

Let's Dance, Dudes! On The Insidious Gaze Of Gender Police

Why do we get so embarrassed about dancing? A fleeting thing that happened to me when I was younger haunts me more than I thought it would.

Before starting Recalculating, when I was mulling over what I would write to you all about — I had a very long list — I thought it would be interesting to reflect on certain insecurities and fears that we men hide.

More than anything else, it was about what makes us question and pay attention to what it is to be a man (and not a woman). This idea functions kind of like a tireless whisper in us.

I won’t generalize; instead, I'll share some of the situations I’ve personally encountered, connected to something I've been reading — let’s see where we get.

When I was starting Recalculating, I wasn’t sure about sharing it with Ale, a great friend of mine from Latin America who has a lot of experience working in the media there and in Europe.

It was an important project for me, and he could probably even contribute professionally. So why wasn’t I sure whether to tell him about it or not? As I write that now, I feel a little ashamed: my own prejudices and fears meant that I thought he might laugh at me.

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LGBTQ Plus
Maria Eugenia Luduena

What A Barcelona Suicide Tells Us About Trans Bullying And Media Blind Spots

The case of 12-year-old twins, one of whom was transgender, who jumped off a balcony after being bullied, led experts in trans childhoods to reflect on how to better protect children. And how to talk about it.

TW: This content may address topics and include references to violence that some may find distressing.

In Barcelona, two 12-year-old Argentine twins, Leila and Iván, climbed on two chairs on a balcony and jumped into the void from a third floor window. They left letters by way of farewell, where they wrote that they suffered bullying for their Argentine accent. They had been living there for two years — and Iván was teased at school for his transgender identity.

✉️ You can receive our LGBTQ+ International roundup every week directly in your inbox. Subscribe here.

Leila, who survived and is in very serious condition, wrote on that piece of paper that she was jumping in solidarity with her brother. Although the school has denied that they suffered bullying, peers and acquaintances, as well as their Argentine grandfather, made statements that support this scenario.

While the facts and circumstances are being investigated, many media outlets have reported the news without respecting Iván's gender identity, treating him as a female and mentioning his former name. Some, appealing to supposed journalistic accuracy, have inserted a disclaimer among their notes that states: “There is only evidence of the desire of the minor, aged 12, to be treated as a man through indirect sources. Neither his family nor his closest environment have spoken yet."

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Society
Ignacio Pereyra

Toy Guns And Dolls, And My Pink-Loving Son

The father of a four-year-old boy thought the idea of colors and toys for boys and girls was a thing of the past. Turns out he was wrong.

“Papá, is pink for girls?” asked Lorenzo, my four-year-old son.

Lorenzo usually listens attentively to the stories we read at home. Sometimes, I think it seems like a paradox, because the rest of the time he can't sit still (literally, I'm not exaggerating). I wonder if it's that, as he listens to the stories, his body is relaxed but his head is doing somersaults.

He often interrupts his night-time stories — I suspect in the hopes of stretching the ritual out as long as possible so as not to fall asleep. “I don't want to sleep anymore, I just want to play,” he told me last Sunday, as we were walking home at night after having spent the whole day playing with his friends.

But back to pink. This time, his interruption of the reading had an edge of concern — his frown and serious tone showing a mix of sadness and distress.

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