“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.
Reporting on a tiny minority of “fake” asylum cases while ignoring the many people fleeing persecution who are denied refuge is racism.
Reporting on a couple of “regretted” medical transitions while ignoring the vast majority of trans people who are thriving is transphobia.
It’s painfully clear.
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/...
“Rather than leading to better decision-making by the Home Office, panic over fake claimants could create a harsher atmosphere where those with well-founded fear of persecution may find it even harder to be protected.”
Seeking asylum is physically and emotionally demanding. We must make it easier.
“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.
Congratulations, Daniel! 👏🏾🌈
Ideas of “free speech” cannot be divorced from social reality. Right now, those who vocally defend the rights of trans folk, migrants, Palestinians, etc are punished while those who contest the rights of minoritised groups are protected. That’s not encouraging free speech — it’s cultivating fascism.
“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.
White supremacists freely march the streets of Manchester calling to “restore Britain” to a time of its imperial dominance while people who call out the Israeli genocide of Palestinians are arrested. Institutional racism enables the freedoms of racists while policing those who oppose it. It’s gross.
“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.
Media outlets should spend less time writing about the “legitimate grievances” of people who loathe immigration and more time addressing how racist reporting about migrants, Muslims, Black folks, and other racialised communities has cultivated the fascism we are enduring today. Just saying.
Reporting on a tiny minority of “fake” asylum cases while ignoring the many people fleeing persecution who are denied refuge is racism.
Reporting on a couple of “regretted” medical transitions while ignoring the vast majority of trans people who are thriving is transphobia.
It’s painfully clear.
“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.
Our laws and activism are steeped in feelings—disgust fuels bans on queer expression, and love demands inclusive sex ed. This interview dissects how emotions create an “emotional grammar,” shaping LGBT rights battles.
With @senthorun.bsky.social on @hightheorypodcast.bsky.social
buff.ly/Rks9uth
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...
“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. 🏳️⚧️
The government: “People should seek asylum using regular legal routes and stop getting on boats to come here.”
Also the government: “We are cancelling more visa routes to stop people coming here.”
The political gaslighting when it comes to people who seek asylum is as racist as it is destructive.
When it comes to sexual assault, asylum, domestic violence, the structural reality is that people (especially migrant women) are faced with great suspicion, scrutiny, and stigma for making such claims. Any reporting that obscures this reality only further institutionalises racist, sexist inequality.
It’s been a year since the UK Supreme Court disrupted the lives of trans folk and placed them all in an even more precarious legal position. The @goodlawproject.org has an online form you can use to ask your local MP to ensure the new Code of Practice does not enable transphobic exclusion. Act now.
“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/...
Gay folks who claim asylum have to “out” themselves to bureaucrats who ask invasive and demeaning questions, face stigma from their broader communities, have to deal with abuse from people sharing their accommodation. The idea it’s “easy” to just pretend to be gay for asylum is breathtakingly false.
Anyone who knows immigration bureaucracy will know that people who seek asylum because they are gay undergo hostile and humiliating scrutiny. Media reports that suggest people “pretend to be gay because it’s an easy route for a visa” are missing the glaring fact there is no “easy” way to get asylum.
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.
It’s a point that bears repeating: it’s not “reasonable concerns” or “legitimate questions” that impede healthcare for trans people. It’s just basic transphobia.
“We support the dignity of gay people but getting married or having kids should just be between a man and a woman.”
“We support the dignity of trans people but sex is what is assigned at birth and gendered spaces should be based on biology.”
There is no “dignity” with discrimination. Just saying.
Two Tamil women statues holding a candle facing each other. A shrine of a gold pot with a coconut inside is placed between the statues. The text reads, “Happy Tamil New Year.”
ஒளிரும் புத்தாண்டு!
Happy Tamil New Year!
This is a really lovely scholarly conversation about an excellent book.
“The 16-year reign of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is at an end after a crushing election loss on Sunday that will send political shockwaves from Washington to Moscow.”
This is very welcome news, especially to minoritised communities in Hungary. We need to dissolve authoritarian politics.
“Ultimately, women's empowerment and trans inclusion are not mutually exclusive. We are all fighting against the oppressive patriarchal norms that limit us all.”
We need to challenge categories that erase bodily diversity. Bodies are complex and sporting associations need to recognise this reality.