Issue #48 Monday, 22 July 2024
Welcome to issue #48 of the LGBT Great News Digest, a short briefing on the 5 LGBTQ+ news stories that you need to know about right now. A quick reminder that July is Disability Pride and South Asian Heritage Month. As always, here are your 3 LGBT Great updates: 1 – Project 1000 Role Models and Allies: Not nominated yourself yet? Join our mission to increase visibility within the workplace: Nominate here 2 – Discover 9 types of authentic allyship: Download your copy of our Striving For More Allyship Guide: Download here 3 – LGBTQ+ benchmarking: Find out where your organisation is succeeding and where it can enhance further through our Inclusion Index Benchmarking Tool (iiBT): Email us here
This Saturday, July 27th we will be at Trans London Pride and if you are planning to be there and would like to meet up email us here. Finally, you can check out this issue’s five news stories below and watch out for our next Digest issue on Monday 5th August. Best wishes, LGBT Great Team ___ Enjoyed this Digest? Click HERE to provide your feedback.
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| 1. 56% of lesbian and gay parents face negative comments about their families |
| On 24 June 2024, the LGBT young people’s charity Just Like Us released a new research report which surveyed 1012 UK LGBTQ+ parents and found that 56% of those respondents had heard negative commentary around their family. _____ Our View: Another 2024 report from the UCLA Williams Institute in the US showed that LGBTQ+ parents are more likely to be living in poverty than non-parents and straight cisgender parents. LGBTQ+ parenting across the globe comes with disproportionate hardships be it economically or socially, as evidenced by these reports.
If you are an LGBTQ+ parent and want to be put in touch with a specialist parenting network, contact us at members@lgbtgreat.com and we will connect you.
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| 2. Dutch Supreme Court rules Aruba, Curaçao must allow same-sex couples to marry |
| On 12 July 2024, the Dutch Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples would be now able to legally marry in Aruba and Curaçao. This judgement upholds a joint ruling on same-sex marriage equality across 6 island nations from 2022 which was challenged by the governments of Aruba and Curaçao. _____ Our View: In the last 3 years, multiple islands in the Caribbean have administered protections for same-sex relations. Examples include Saint Kitts and Nevis, Antigua & Barbuda and Barbados. This domino effect has now extended to Aruba and Curaçao reflecting the increasingly accepting public opinion of the LGBTQ+ community in the region.
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| 3. 78% of LGBTQ+ consumers are influenced by company DE&I policies when making purchase decisions |
| Findings from Kantar’s 2024 Brand Inclusion Index which encapsulates global data from 20,333 respondents has indicated that 78% of consumers worldwide consider DE&I policies before making purchasing decisions. This number increases to 80% for Gen Z and neurodiverse people. _____ Our View: This phenomenon extends to the attraction of under-represented talent too. LGBT Great's fieldwork surveying 1832 respondents across 7 markets found that LGBTQ+ respondents were much more inclined to apply to organisations that had formal diversity targets, visible LGBTQ+ representation and had been formally assessed for LGBTQ+ DE&I.
To get involved in our new research and understand how you can enact recruitment strategies that attract under-represented talent, contact: members@lgbtgreat.com
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| 4. Wes Streeting to make trans puberty blocker ban permanent |
| On 14 July 2024, Wes Streeting, the new Labour Government’s Health Secretary announced that he was backing an emergency ban on the use of puberty blockers for LGBTQ+ young people. The ban imposed by his predecessor is currently being challenged in High Court. _____ Our View: Wes Streeting has cited the Cass Review as the underpinning motivation for his support of the ban. However, the Cass Review clearly recommends caution and not exclusion when prescribing puberty blockers. Furthermore, the Cass Review has been thoroughly condemned by academics for its "flawed” methodology and biased findings.
Gender-affirming healthcare for young LGBTQ+ people leads to positive mental health outcomes as indicated by multiple studies. To read comprehensive evidence on why this ban and the Cass Review need to be repudiated, click here.
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| 5. Malawi’s Constitutional Court declines to decriminalise same-sex relationships |
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On 28 June 2024, the Malawi High Court ruled against decriminalising same-sex relations. The ruling came after a challenge against sections 153, 154 and 156 of the constitution which criminalise “carnal knowledge” of any person “against the order of nature,” attempts to commit an “unnatural offence” or undertakes “indecent practices.” _____ Our View: A 2019 report from the Other Foundation also found that 80% respondents in Malawi believed that same-sex relations were “wrong” with 90% people saying that they were not ready to accept a lesbian or gay family member. These findings were supplemented by a 2020 CEDEP report which recorded 15 cases of anti-LGBTQ+ stigma, harassment and violence.
Due to the High Court's decision, the LGBTQ+ community in Malawi will continue to face discrimination and violence with no judicial repercussions for the perpetrators. |
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Applications for new Corporate Members are open. If you would like to find out more about the membership options with LGBT Great, get in touch today via this short form. |
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Disclaimer The information contained in this newsletter is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by LGBT Great and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability, or availability with respect to the newsletter or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained in the newsletter for any purpose. All the quotations in the news are presented as originally published. LGBT Great does not necessarily share the views of the quoted authors and is not responsible for the accuracy of the information or quality of the analysis provided by them. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk. |
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