EU’s top court finds Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ+ law in breach of key values ECJ says law passed in 2021 is discriminatory and ‘contrary to the identity of the union’, in early test for new PM

“The EU’s highest court has found Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ+ law to be discriminatory, stigmatising and in breach of basic democratic values…”

This is a crucial decision. The court rejected the political claim that LGBTQ+ representation is “propaganda.” We must keep fighting politics that dehumanise us.

Screenshot of event link.

My fantastic former PhD student, Dr Cathy Jaquiss, is presenting her doctoral research on litigating LGBTQ+ asylum claims on 13th May (online and in person). Dr Jaquiss uses space and emotion to show how we can better support for people in need of refuge.

See here: www.outsavvy.com/event/35506/...

There is something wrong with the asylum process for LGBTQ+ people – but it’s not fake claimants A new investigation is likely to cast suspicion over LGBTQ+ claims more broadly.

Great to write with @raawiyah.bsky.social and Calogero Giametta on the realities of LGBTIQA+ asylum following the BBC's deeply misleading and harmful reporting last week.

theconversation.com/there-is-som...

Large, diverse crowd marches in a Pride protest, holding a rainbow banner that reads “#L WITH THE T.” People carry trans and Pride flags and handmade signs.

LGBTQIA+ women and non-binary people remain underrepresented in media, overlooked in research and excluded from decision-making.

#LesbianVisibilityWeek exists to change that.

This year, we’re spotlighting stories that centre their voices and push back on that erasure. Starting here 👇

#LVW26
🧡🤍🩷

Redefining apartheid in the Crimes against Humanity Treaty: Towards inclusive pathways forward [Dr Nora Jaber is a Lecturer in Law in the Globalised Muslim World at the University of Edinburgh Law School, where she also serves as Programme Director of the Human Rights LLM and Deputy Director…

“Apartheid emerged from a specific anti-colonial struggle tied to settler colonialism, racial hierarchy, and the denial of self-determination. A modern definition must honour that legacy.”

It’s vital that we develop an intersectional understanding of gender apartheid informed by its colonial roots.

Belarus Imports Russia’s 'Propaganda' Playbook Belarus’s parliament adopted a new law on April 2 banning “propaganda” of same-sex relationships, of “gender reassignment,” and even of “childlessness.”

“Belarus’s parliament adopted a new law on April 2 banning ‘propaganda’ of same-sex relationships, of “gender reassignment,’ and even of ‘childlessness.’”

LGBTQ+ folk are not “propaganda” or “ideology.” We’re people. We must continue to refuse dehumanising politics and resist laws that degrade us.

The historically pivotal court case, that is critical to the future UK Trans+ rights Christine Goodwin v UK, changed the lives of Trans+ people across Europe, leading to the UK Gender Recognition Act. But it continues to be misunderstood

More than 20 years ago, a landmark ruling changed Trans+ lives.

Now, especially since the Supreme Court ruling, it’s significance is being erased

Supreme Court Decision one year on – 365 days of confusion, gaslighting, and fear A ruling that was supposed to provide legal clarity has left service providers more confused than ever, and Trans+ people vulnerable. What now?

“Spaces for all women have been lost as inclusive women’s groups have closed rather than be bullied into excluding trans people, and trans people have been increasingly worried about what comes next.”

Defining “sex” in crude biological terms does not offer clarity — it just cultivates more anxiety.

How can we preserve and celebrate trans histories?

If you're in Birmingham on 29 April, come hear about the Digital Transgender Archive.

Speaker: Prof K. J. Rawson (Northeastern University)
Chair: Prof Mo Moulton
Arts 104 University of Birmingham
29 Apr 1pm

www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net

🌈🎓

Fully funded Bloomsbury PhD studentship (SOAS/Birkbeck): Queer Meaning-Making in South Asian Literature: New Comparative Perspectives. Supervised by Anandi Rao & me. Application deadline 6 May. www.soas.ac.uk/study/studen... 🌈🎓

We mustn't overlook the tireless work, activism and progress since the Supreme Court The judgment last April was a defining, but not definitive, moment. We may come to remember April 2025 as the moment we galvanised our movement

The judgment last April was a defining, but not definitive, moment. We may come to remember April 2025 as the moment we galvanised our movement

www.wearequeeraf.com/we-mustnt-ov...

Legal aid for asylum seekers is hard to come by – it’s no wonder criminal advisers are taking advantage People seeking asylum navigate one of the most complex areas of law, often not in their first language

“The legal aid crisis, the uneven geography of advice provision, the culture of disbelief among asylum officials and the assessment process itself are also worthy of examination.”

The media should investigate (and politicians should address!) the institutional abuse faced by people who seek asylum.

Screenshot of article link.

Excited to be joining the University of Bologna in Italy at the end of the month as a visiting professor. I’ll be delivering a series of public seminars on critical approaches to international human rights law.

If you’re around, come along. corsi.unibo.it/magistrale/S...

A year under attack – and a year fighting back Jess O’Thomson and Jolyon Maugham reflect on what has happened in the year since the Supreme Court’s judgment, and how the trans community has courageously fought back

It's a year today since the Supreme Court decision on the meaning of "sex" under the Equality Act 2010.

Jolyon Maugham and I have written a reflective piece with our thoughts on the judgment, everything that has happened since, and why it's so important that we are still fighting - together 👇

A year under attack – and a year fighting back Jess O’Thomson and Jolyon Maugham reflect on what has happened in the year since the Supreme Court’s judgment, and how the trans community has courageously fought back

“Be proud of the fact that we’re still here. We’re still fighting. And no matter how long and difficult the struggle is – it is a fight we will win, together.”

Let’s remember that justice does not begin or end in a court. Solidarity with trans folk who are resisting legal erasure and keep living. 🏳️‍⚧️

'You did it dad': The ordinary people who took their case to the highest court From love and freedom to native title and the right to vote, these are some of the High Court cases that have helped define our nation, and the ordinary people behind them.

“The first morning I went to the High Court, there was a part of me that was the activist that wanted the law to change…”

The story is a reminder of how minoritised people (Indigenous folk, queers, refugees, prisoners) in Australia engaged with law and transformed society, often in unexpected ways.

The UK has a “hostile immigration environment” acutely felt by people who seek asylum. For queer folk, this means dealing with patronising interviews, bureaucratic disbelief, and narrow stereotypes about what it means to be gay. I’ve written more about this here: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

I presented to some local civil law judges today about LGBT equality. I was painfully clear in my indictment of institutionalised homo/transphobia in the legal system and was pleasantly surprised that the judges I spoke to heard my critiques and then reflected on how legal cultures can be improved.

If you or someone you love operates a law library, my Pornography: A Legal Research Guide is now available from Hein! home.heinonline.org/catalog/?id=...

From EARTHSEED: THE BOOKS OF THE LIVING Choose your leaders with wisdom and forethought. To be led by a coward is to be controlled by all that the coward fears. To be led by a fool is to be led by the opportunists who control the fool. To be led by a thief is to offer up your most precious treasures to be stolen. To be led by a liar is to ask to be told lies. To be led by a tyrant is to sell yourself and those you love into slavery.

Octavia E. Butler, 1998:

Book Symposium on The Emotions of LGBT Rights and Reforms: Repairing Law by Senthorun Sunil Raj Published in Australian Feminist Law Journal (Ahead of Print, 2026)

The Australian Feminist Law Journal (@aflj.bsky.social) published a symposium on my new book. My book explores how emotions shape legal conflicts over LGBT rights and reforms. I’m honoured that some brilliant scholars shared their thoughts on my book and the importance of doing critical legal work.

Text reads: Call for papers, Special issue. The Cultural Lives and Afterlives of Sex, Gender, and Sexuality Data, in Sexuality & Culture. Guest editors: Dr Amin Ghaziani & Dr Kevin Guyan. Expressions of interest due: 1 June 2026.

🔥 CALL FOR PAPERS: The Cultural Lives and Afterlives of Sex, Gender, and Sexuality Data.

I'm co-editing a Special Issue of Sexuality & Culture with Amin Ghaziani.

📝 Full details: link.springer.com/collections/hcbbadjbha

#CfP #callforpapers #sexuality #gender #data

Together with fellow UN experts, I called on the United Kingdom to ensure that its review of statutory guidance under the Equality Act fully complies with international human rights law and guarantees equal protection for transgender people and all women and girls.

#IESOGI #UN #UNCHR

It’s okay to be outraged and scared and tired and admit we don’t know what to politically do... and to still try to do something.

Screenshot of article link.

Recently had the pleasure of discussing my book on the High Theory podcast. My book cautions against dividing emotions into good and bad, but instead asks us to take a critical stance on all emotions, to understand how they shape our policies.

Listen to it here: newbooksnetwork.com/emotions-of-...

The Supreme Court Keeps Ignoring Actual LGBTQ+ People in Its Gay Rights Cases The Supreme Court’s decision in Chiles v. Salazar is painful to anyone who cares about LGBTQ+ adolescents.

“Reducing the regulation of conversion therapy to a simple matter of free speech in which LGBTQ+ people have no say is a ghastly betrayal of the constitutional duty to protect minorities’ rights and liberties.”

Courts degrade LGBTQ life by seeing our rights as abstract conflicts over “free speech.”

A reminder: you cannot treat people with respect and enable their safety while you trash their right to exist. Just saying.

The colonial lie at the heart of Africa’s homophobic 'culture war' The notion that queerness is "un-African" is one of Britain's most successful lies, and most enduring exports

From the archive: Across the global majority, politicians defend anti-LGBTQIA+ laws as protecting “traditional culture”.  

But often, those laws aren’t tradition at all. They are colonial imports.

Answering the Call to Fight Injustice: An Interview with Barbara Smith Barbara Smith is one of the leading intellectuals and activists who developed the traditions of Black feminism. A part of a group of Black lesbian

“Speaking across generations is vital. Those of us engaged in revolutionary political work have to unite all different kinds of people, including people of different ages.”

Feminist scholar-activist Barbara Smith shares crucial advice on political organising and building solidarity across borders.