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This is our second and latest bulletin of 2025. It offers a broad overview of events and trends in gender, sexuality, and abortion policy throughout the year to complement the analysis developed in July that addressed the policies implemented by the Trump’s second administration and the US landscape.

by Rosalind PetcheskyOriginally published by Zeteo I’m old enough to be Zohran’s bubbe. I was arrested with him and I can tell you, he’s a

As soon as US-born Robert Prevost was chosen to be the new head of the Catholic Church at a conclave held in May 2025, SPW

English Pope Francis put women on a pedestal, where they could do no harm – Irish Times Pope Francis opened the door to the LGBTQ

Introduction Once again, our newsletter brings you news and analysis about the current times, which are more somber than bright: authoritarian trends, the continued expansion

Sonia Corrêa In April 2024, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of Faith, the main doctrinal body of the Holy See, published the Declaration Dignitas Infinita. This

by Sonia Corrêa Introduction I was motivated to write this commentary after reading a series of articles that revisit the conditions in which a transnational

Since July, when we published our last Special Edition, as you will see in this issue, a lot has happened in the pandemic and in the field of sexual politics. Once again, the pages that follow are quite dense, but we remind you that the sections are relatively autonomous.

In the last Special Issue of last year we did a brief assessment of Vatican politics. Concomitantly, we published an article by the Italian political

First Words  In the last 2020 edition of Sexual Politics in Times of Pandemic Special of 2020, we hypothesized that throughout 2021, with the arrival

Last week’s rallies in London, Berlin, and Los Angeles against lockdown measures attracted both New Agers and far-right groups. We’ve seen before this overlap between the spiritual

Preliminary comment In 2020, in order to adjust our lenses to COVID-19 world conditions, we suspended our regular monthly announcements and started a series of

Title  Vehicle / Author Pedophilia – more of the same? SPW Monsters Under The Bed SPW How Covid-19 myths are merging with the QAnon conspiracy

by Thais Rodrigues and Edson Sardinha* Brazilian conservative and extreme-right parliamentarians are planing to take advantage of the new presidency of the House, MP Arthur

2013 SPW Newsletter N.13 – July, 2013 – SPW 2014 Vatican Document: Gays Have ‘Gifts and Qualities to Offer’ Church – NBC News Catholic bishops

In his artistic practice, Léon Ferrari makes use of different languages, such as sculpture, drawing, writing, collage, assemblage, installation, and video. This heterogeneous set of

A 10-Year-Old Girl’s Ordeal to Have a Legal Abortion in Brazil – HRW Brazil 10-year-old rape victim name anti-abortion activist put online make pipo vex

Paul B. Preciado: The Hot War – e-flux Pompeo’s Legacy Of Partisanship And Wading Into Political Waters – NPR Brazil Joins Egypt, Indonesia, Uganda, Hungary

Pedophilia – more of the same? – SPW Monsters Under The Bed – SPW How Covid-19 myths are merging with the QAnon conspiracy theory –

Since 2013, Pope Francis I has been making unexpected comments about homosexuality, which usually call for compassion and tolerance. While these speech acts erupt here

Editors’ Note We apologize to our readers and partners for the delay in making our last Special Issue on Sexual Politics in the Pandemic available.

The Council for Inclusive Capitalism with the Vatican, A New Alliance Of Global Business Leaders, Launches Today – PR Newswire Council for Inclusive Capitalism launches

By Sonia Corrêa A new encyclical signed by Pope Francis I was published in early October 2020. Entitled Fratelli Tutti, the new papal exhortation was

By Massimo Prearo* That words such as “revolution”, “change” or “turn” can be attributed to a religious institution like the Catholic Church, or to the

Vatican says Pope’s comments on same-sex civil unions were taken out of context – CNN Vatican clarifies pope’s comments on homosexual unions – DW Vatican

After six months into the pandemic, a striking feature of the condition under which we are working is that time has not expanded, as initially

By Sonia Corrêa Since 1940, Brazilian law has permitted abortion in cases of rape,  and sexual intercourse with persons under 14 years old is automatically 

Ventura Profana (which can be translated as Profane Fortune) is a singer, writer, composer, performer, and visual artist from Bahia, in the Northeast Region in

Since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in early 2020, SPW has been reporting on the events, trends and dynamics triggred by Sars-Cov-2. In order to

Since January, when the Chinese government adopted extreme confinement measures in Wuhan,  the pandemic sparked the worldwide spread of questionable war semantics.  It also provided

The global scenario of the COVID-19 pandemic has changed since April, but the crisis is still far from over. Only eight countries are listed as

The SPW Announcement for May and early June 2020 will have the same format adopted in March-April 2020, it will organize the newly compiled information

As Brazil has been rising the tops of global coronavirus dissemination curve and Bolsonaro’s popularity hits a new low, his most radical support base has

March and early April 2020 It has been very challenging to prepare the  SPW announcement for March/April 2020 due to the abnormality, risks, and losses

Preamble 1. We, the undersigning individuals and organizations, have gathered from all over Latin America in joint work to accompany people and communities of faith

MAY / JUNE Contesting science and misinformation Ofcom: Christian TV network aired Covid-19 conspiracies – The Guardian Nigerian pastor spread covid-19 conspiracies and disinformation –

MAY / JUNE Hunger, infection and repression: Venezuela’s coronavirus calamity – New Yorker Contact-Tracing Apps: No Substitute for Public Healthcare Interventions – Bot Populi Spread

Abortion Your Questions About Reproductive Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Answered – Rewire Abortion and COVID-19: why we need to support women’s right to abortion

Anti- gender politics in Latin America – SPW is pleased to announce the collection Anti-gender Politics in Latin America, which encompasses  nine case studies from

India’s New Laws Hurt Women Most of All – Foreign Policy We Are Seeing, for the First Time, a Sustained Countrywide Movement Led by Women

The year of 2019 has finished and, as traditionally, SPW offers our readers and followers a compilation of the main facts, trends, setbacks and victories

HIGHLIGHTS Latin America: Politics in Trance In the period covered by this newsletter, Latin America has been the scene of three simultaneous elections – in

Due to a historically progressive human-rights based approach to HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention, Brazil has globally been deemed an important standard-bearer of the HIV/AIDS response

September 28 – “Abortion is a Health Issue” was the theme of this year’s International Safe Abortion Day, widely celebrated around the world (see compilation).

We start this announcement recalling that, before May 2019, two major antigender events have taken place that are worth revisiting because of their potential subsequent

On Tuesday, September 3rd, JMB has Twitted that he mandated the Minister of Education to draft bill to prohibit the diffusion of “gender ideology” in

Report from Brazil to the United Nations describes a country that does not exist 213 pages. This is the extent of the report published this

On May 30, the US State Department announced the creation of the “Inalienable Rights Commission” to advise Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The body, chaired

At present, 15 bills related to “gender ideology” are being processed in the Parliament. Eight of them were presented in the first half of 2019,

SPW has transcripted and translated Minister of Foreign Affairs Ernesto Araújo remarks during a Public Hearing on July 8th, 2019, when he was summoned to

#StopTheBans – Thousands of demonstrators marched in more than 500 cities across the US on May, 21th to protect abortion rights after Alabama state house passed,

Vatican Issues Document During Pride Month Denying Concept Of Gender Identity – NPR LGBTQ Catholics denounce Vatican’s document on gender identity – PBS Vatican rejects

Download here

With great pleasure, SPW offers an assessment of sexuality and gender politics, including abortion rights, in the first (almost) six months of the Jair Messias

By Sonia Corrêa What has been happening, since January,  in the Brazilian Congress regarding abortion rights and gender must be situated in a longer political.

Highlights Algeria and Sudan: A revived Arab Spring? –  Almost six years after the Arab Spring waned under the shadows of the Sissi regime, political

Full text Pope vs. Pope: How Francis and Benedict’s Simmering Conflict Could Split the Catholic Church – Vanity Fair Pope Francis Under Siege by Bannon,

What happened in New Zealand is no coincidence – openDemocracy Jacinda Arden is leading by following no one – The New York Times The Myth of

Call for Papers for a session at the Annual International Conference of the Royal Geographical Society with Institute of British Geographers (RGS-IBG), London 28-30 August

As 2018 reaches its end, SPW publishes a recollection of main events, trends, discoveries and challenges as we start 2019 and prepare for all the

More than 200 women accuse Brazil ‘spiritual healer’ of sex abuse – MSN Famed Brazilian medium accused of sex abuse surrenders – Channel News Asia

Researchers: María Angélica Peñas Defago, José Manuel Morán Faúndes, Juan Marco Vaggione Guest Experts: Gordan Bosanac, Kapya Kaoma Research Assistance: Violeta Cánaves Download the report

The Brazilian perfect storm We apologize for the delay in the circulation of SPW’s October 2018 monthly announcement due to the stormy process and result

Download FESPSP’s Núcleo de Etnografia Urbana magazine – Center for Urban Ethnography Vol.1 Issue Dec. 2017 Gender education protests

Text by Berenice Bento (UnB) published at Outras Palavras, on Dec. 12, 2018. Translated by SPW. Available here. At first glance, nothing seems stranger to

By Jaime Barrientos Chile began 2018 with a visit from Pope Francis. The country still remembered the one paid by John Paul II who, in

After the Pennsylvania Report release Faithful Catholics Respond After Abuse Scandals: Commitments to Change and Belief in Pope Francis – The New York Times Why Changes

Pope Calls Abortion ‘White Glove’ Equivalent of Nazi Crimes – The New York Times Argentina’s top bishop says abortion is ‘not a right, but a tragedy’

New York’s Sex Workers rally to take back International Whores Day: ‘Let us survive’ – The Daily Beast Puta Dei in NYC and New Jersey

Watch Sonia Corrêa’s speech ‘Gender Ideology: tracking its origins and meanings in current gender politics’ at the Gender Threat(ened) conference in Rio de Janeiro’s State

Español Articles in the news Informe preliminar CIDH, documenta el uso desproporcionado de la fuerza durante las manifestaciones de abril 2018, en Nicaragua – Iniciativa Mesoamericana

By Sonia Corrêa In the first week of November 2017, Judith Butler was viciously attacked in Brazil by a heterogeneous group of actors who define themselves as

Pro-Lifers Dismiss Pope’s Declaration that Protecting Migrants Is Just as Important as Abortion – Slate Pro-life leader: Pope Francis’ new exhortation ‘causes confusion’ on gravity

On March 14th, 2018, Marielle Franco and her driver Anderson Gomes were brutally assassinated in a shootout a week after Women’s International Day.  Marielle was

By José Manuel Morán Faúndes Things did not turn out as expected in Chile. Pope Francis, whose image as a charismatic leader sharply contrasts with

By Victoria Pedrido On March 20, five draft bills to pass the Voluntary Pregnancy Termination law were debated by Commissions in Parliament. Of those, one

The first half of 2017 has been a busy and growthful time for the SRJC. We have been storming, norming and forming a working team

On the completion of Egon Schiele’s 100th birthday, Vienna’s Tourist Board started a campaign to promote art exhibitions in honour of Schiele’s work all over

Montevideo (Uruguay) was the stage of the 14th Latin American and Caribbean Feminist Gathering (EFLAC in Spanish), where women gathered from the 23 to 25 of

Philosopher Judith Butler visited Brazil to launch two books and participate in the International Colloquium on the Ends of Democracy at SESC Vila Mariana in

Turkey introduced a draft bill allowing religious leaders to perform civil marriage ceremonies. Women’s rights activists claim it will only make it harder to monitor the ceremonies

Table of Contents Special Section: Abortion and Human Rights GUEST EDITORS Alicia Ely Yamin, Paola Bergallo, and Marge Berer EDITORIAL Narratives of Essentialism and Exceptionalism:

The new report for the UN General Assembly on fundamentalism, extremism and the cultural rights of women by the Special Rapporteur Karima Bennoune is now out in all language versions.

Two outstandingly positive news are to be reported in sexual politics worldwide in August 2017. In India, the Supreme Court issued a groundbreaking decision on

The Observatory on the Universality of Rights (OURs) has launched its first report, Rights at Risk. The report maps a complex global anti-rights lobby targeting

June is LGBTIQ Pride month worldwide. This SPW brief highlights events around the world, prioritizing parades and other demonstrations that are not captured by mainstream radars. In that regard, we also recommend the readers who read Spanish to peruse the new blog Orgullos Críticos which examines trends and traps implied in the growing normalization and pinkwashing of pride parades

The world is seeing a resurgence of religious extremism at national, regional, and global levels, which renews the threat to many of the rights that

Post by Sarah Ather* originally published at Kafila on May 05, 2017. Available here. My life has revolved around the concept of God. I have

Habemus Gender! The Catholic Church and ‘Gender Ideology’ – Volume 6 – Issue 2 – 2016 Guest editors: Sarah Bracke and David Paternotte You can

Resource for Teaching & Learning about anti-Muslim Racism in the United States Home #IslamophobiaIsRacism Syllabus Race, Empire, Islam The Production and Reproduction of Anti-Muslim Racism

There are many events to be reported in regard to abortion rights in February and early March 2017. The most important comes from  Brazil where

The Secretariat has the honour to transmit to the Human Rights Council the report of the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, Karima

Newspapers and web-based news sites have carried a flurry of responses to the new abortion bill in Malawi, and has led the country’s president to deny

Text by Nadje Al-Ali, Zahra Ali and Isabel Marler, originally published by Jadaliyya, on Dec 9, 2016. Avaliable here. After a long delay, the United

This research study was carried out by the Moroccan Family Planning Association (MFPA) in partnership with the Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW), Malaysia, to generate evidence on the nature and consequences of unsafe abortions in Morocco and how religious fundamentalism (in the case of Islam) prevents adequate policies and practices for safe abortion services.

Feminist and queer art was part of the 13th International AWID Forum in Costa do Sauípe, Bahia Sep 8th-11th , 2016). Gabrielle Le Roux was

In August, the Rio Olympic Games provided a privileged stage for the critical observing of gender and sexuality performances. Several SPW partners positively and generously

Burkini beach row puts French values to test – BBC Cannes ‘burkini’ ban: What do Muslim women think? – BBC Rights group to take action after Cannes

Originally by Human Rights Watch, posted on 10/08/2016. Available at: https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/08/11/indonesia-lgbt-crisis-exposed-official-bias (Jakarta) – The Indonesian government stoked an unprecedented attack on the security and rights

  Between July 12th and 15th, right before the Durban International AIDS Conference, SPW organized a seminar in Umhlanga, the Northern District of the City.

 by Sonia Corrêa “The discourses that legitimize punitive power, as established in the middle Ages, are in full force. This is when criminology was born

In discussions around why young Syrian men join armed groups (such as ISIS or Jabhat al-Nusra) in Syria, it often boils down to two main theories: that of sectarianism, the ancient, seemingly perpetual divide between Sunni and Shia Muslims, or that of Islam being a ‘religion of violence’.

A senior Iranian health official warned Wednesday that sexual transmission of HIV/AIDS was on the rise, in part because of taboos about discussing sex. As part of its efforts against HIV/AIDS, the government has for the first time set up centres to provide assistance to prostitutes, including checks for sexually transmitted diseases, education on prevention and free contraceptives.

Originally posted by ЛГБТ Аман түүх at lgbtamantuukh on 04/07/2016. Available at: https://lgbtamantuukh.wordpress.com/2016/07/04/welcome-to-the-lgbt-oral-histories-of-mongolia-project/  Sponsored by the LGBT Centre (Mongolia)’s Youth Leadership Program, Batchimeg S. and

The proposal launched in May by the LAC 5 countries for the creation of a Special Mandate on Human Rights and Sexual Orientation and Gender

In June, 2016, as the impeachment of Dilma Roussef followed its course, it became increasingly evident that one of the strongest motivations of the power maneuvering that led to the April parliamentary coup was the interest of many of those supporting this move to strangle the ongoing investigations on corruption.

In a defining vote, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted a resolution on “Protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation, and gender identity”, to mandate the appointment of an Independent Expert on the subject.

The person appointed to this new role will be responsible for monitoring “violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.”

In this issue, we are proud to feature a collection of innovative and rigorous contributions. Two exceptional articles tackle archives as a historical and conceptual

The Passport Administration at Cairo International Airport banned this morning feminist activist and woman human rights defender (WHRD) Mozn Hassan from traveling during completion of her departure procedures from Cairo to Beirut, and she was informed verbally that the travel ban had been issued by the Egyptian General Prosecutor based on the request of the investigative judge.

Solidarity with the LGBTQI community – Frida Mourning Orlando’s Loss from Kabul – Open Society India vigils in memory of Orlando shooting victims – Orinam

The mass shooting at the Pulse, the nightclub in Orlando, took over the media screens and pages on the third week of June 2016.  The

By Orinam Jun 13 2016 A makeshift memorial with flowers and handprints rests in a parking lot near the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla. source:

As the Brazilian crisis continues unfolding it gets increasingly intricate with gender and sexuality politics. Read Sonia Corrêa and Fábio Grotz report on what happened

In this interview with STATUS/الوضع host Katty Alhayek, journalist and author Rafia Zakaria discusses her articles on ISIS and women, and the challenges that she faces when sharing her perspective on these issues with a wider audience.

Very soon after Professor Rezaul Karim Siddque of Rajshahi Univeristy was hacked to death in the morning of April 23, 2016, I wrote my feelings, my frustrations, my concerns and my fears. From all the information we received, Professor Karim appeared to be a quiet man, a man who was of a peaceful nature, a lover of music and a committed teacher.

A new wave of deadly attacks against human rights and secular activists is at play in Bangladesh. In final April, two LGBT activists were hacked

Since our reports of early 2015, SPW has always linked developments in the abortion debate to the on-going Brazilian political and economic crisis. On April 17th, 2016, this crisis reached an initial point of culmination when the House of Representatives voted for and approved the admissibility of the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff.

SPW shares an unnamed letter written by  Bangladesh activist after the murders of LGBT activists in the Asian country in the past weeks. The letter

Across the globe, religion plays a critical role in shaping attitudes about gender norms and sexuality, which in turn have a profound effect on people’s everyday lives. A new Faith, Gender & Sexuality Toolkit launched today seeks to build knowledge and provide crucial support for faith communities and leaders working to promote social justice in relation to gender and sexuality.

Read New Yorker‘s article, authored by James Carroll, on Pope Francis’s latest apostolic exhortation, “Amoris Laetitia” (“The Joy of Love”).

We have the great pleasure to inform that our Spanish page has been re-launched. In this opportunity Alejandra Sardá from Akahatá has written an update

Alma López is a queer Chicana artist who lives in California. Her work has many varied expressions. But most principally it elaborates and re-signify the

During 2015, as previously reported by SPW, Brazilian abortion politics continued to evolve under pressures created by the unsettled intersection of regressive policy trends (which have been gaining strength since the mid 2000’s) and the macro-political crisis which has overtaken the Brazilian res publica.

Queer Wars explores the growing international polarization over sexual rights, and the creative responses from social movements and activists, some of whom face murder, imprisonment or rape because of their perceived sexuality or gender expression.

“Area Impossible: The Geopolitics of Queer Studies” is the latest issue of GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies. Edited by Anjali Arondekar and Geeta Patel, “Area Impossible” stages a much-needed conversation between two often-segregated fields: queer studies and area studies.

Originally posted on QZ on 15/03/2016. Available at: https://qz.com/africa/639763/nigerian-lawmakers-voted-down-a-women-equality-bill-citing-the-bible-and-sharia-law Nigerian lawmakers on Tuesday (Mar.15), voted against a gender and equal opportunities bill (pdf). The bill,

Originally published on IDS. Available at: https://www.ids.ac.uk/news/connecting-perspectives-on-women-s-empowerment Worldwide, women continue to contribute to social, economic, cultural and political achievement. And we have much to celebrate

The Boston Globe’s investigation busted open a massive Catholic Church scandal in the United States 14 years ago. But in remote parts of South America, GlobalPost discovered that the church practice of reassigning child abusers to another parish, instead of defrocking them, has continued.

Originally published on Catholics for Choice. Available at: https://www.catholicsforchoice.org/news/pr/2016/PopeandPatriarchMisrepresent.asp On his way to Mexico, Pope Francis, head of the Roman Catholic church, met with Russian

The global epidemics fueled by the mosquito-born Zika virus, its potential correlation with microcephaly and the connection with abortion rights is one main headline in

Last week in Jakarta, I met leaders of the Support Group and Resource Center on Gender and Sexuality Studies at the University of Indonesia, who were brimming with confidence about their work with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people.

This article is based on some of the research that I have conducted over the past two years on women’s activism in Egypt, Lebanon, and Jordan, from independence until the Arab uprisings. I collected over one hundred personal narratives from middle class women activists of different generations.

Horrifying images posted on social media for all the world to see show men accused of homosexuality thrown off high buildings, stoned to death, or shot in the head by extremist groups, including the Islamic State (known as ISIS) in Iraq, Syria and Libya.

As the year heads toward its end, SPW recollects main trends and facts in sexual politics worldwide. January Pope Francis drew global attention after urging

As we were finalizing the compilation of sexual politics related events that make the headlines in November the screens were taken over by the armed

Originally published at Verso Books on 16/11/2015. Available at: https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/blogs/news/2337-mourning-becomes-the-law-judith-butler-from-paris Letter from Judith Butler, Paris, Saturday 14th November I am in Paris and passed near

Check the main facts in October 2015. We highlight the Stop Trans Pathologization Campaign 2015; the Synod on the Family’s final statement; Brazilian feminists protests against partially approved legislation that criminalizes providing information and assistance in regard to abortion; and the Indonesian regressive law against sexual freedom.

Originally published on Paper Bird on 28/09/2015. Available at: http://paper-bird.net/2015/09/28/anusbook-forensic-exams-tunisia/ by Scott Long “Tests of shame! Till when?” Campaign by the Tunisian group Damj Join

At the global stage, one even to be highlighted was the launching of the Sex Work Law Map, produced by the Institute of Development Studies.

Pope Francis’s meeting with Kim Davis disappointed the liberals he courted – The Guardian Vatican: Pope Francis Barely Knew Who Kim Davis Was When He

SPW has the great pleasure to announce the publication of Working Paper nº 11 Emerging Powers, Sexuality and Human Rights: Fumbling around the elephant. Authored

Image: Barbara Kruger By Sonia Corrêa[1] As previously reported by SPW (here and here), for some time now, growing obstacles have been impairing any movement

Originally published no Paper Bird on 23/08/2015. Available at: http://paper-bird.net/2015/08/23/the-un-security-council-terrible-idea/ By Scott Long   I. Questions On August 18, the Islamic State (also known as ISIS

Written by Fábio Grotz (in collaboration with Sonia Corrêa) Since the heyday of preparation for the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD, Cairo, 1994),

The issue nº 8 brings articles on religion and development. Click here to access it.

Everybody on earth knows that last week a deal on Iran’s nuclear program was announced. Everybody also knows that this apparent step toward peace launched a new stage in an old war: of propaganda.

Uganda’s infamous 2009 Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which would institute the death penalty for a new and surreal category of offenses dubbed “aggravated homosexuality,” captured international headlines

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) has released a collection of eight articles that offer innovative and provocative approaches to advance acceptance

Originally published on Paper Bird on 20/07/2015. Available at: http://paper-bird.net/2015/07/20/gay-hanging-in-iran/ I. Everybody on earth knows that last week a deal on Iran’s nuclear program was announced.

In early July, UN Human Rights Council adopted the resolution concerning the protection of the family, whose text points that the family is the natural and

by Juan Marco Vaggione Since his inauguration as the new pontiff, Bergoglio has generated new complexities for those of us who think that it is

On June 18th, the Vatican launched the encyclical “Laudato Si – On Care for Our Common Home”. The encyclical is the first one to have

Originally published on the Global Post on 12/06/2015. Available at: http://www.globalpost.com/article/6580371/2015/06/12/anti-lgbt-groups-making-inroads-across-east-africa Kenyan gay and lesbian organizations demonstrate outside the Nigerian High Commission in Nairobi on February

Originally published on The Global Post on 04/06/2015. Available at:  http://www.globalpost.com/article/6571484/2015/06/04/indonesias-unique-religious-and-political-culture-makes-strange Faisal Riza is a national organizer for the Organisasi Perubahan Sosial Indonesia (the Organization for Social Change,

Originally published on Jadaliyya in 2015. Available at: http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/21613/new-texts-out-now_kenneth-m.-cuno-modernizing-marr Kenneth M. Cuno, Modernizing Marriage: Family, Ideology, and Law in Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Egypt. Syracuse: Syracuse

In Sexuality, Health and Human Rights (Corrêa, Parker and Petchesky, 2008) we have examined the early 2000’s French controversies, which  led to the banning of

Originally published on: http://www.madamasr.com/sections/politics/being-transgender-egypt Aisha* was sleeping when her apartment was raided. She and three other friends had just moved in when the police came by asking

Any critical revisiting of 2015 will inevitably address the tragic episodes of Paris that left behind 17 dead people, including the journalists and cartoonists from

With panoramic views of both the city and its harbor, the Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam (OBA), proved to be an ideal place for me to take a break from working at either my home or office at Leiden University.

Originally published on Aljazeera on June/2015. Available at: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/06/rules-clothing-label-discrimination-case-150601141831931.html Supreme Court rules in favour of Muslim woman who said clothing label denied her a job

Originally published on Rewire on 30/04/2015. Available at: http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2015/04/30/pope-francis-call-equal-pay-equal-work-toothless-promising/ by Erin Matson Sadly, the more Pope Francis speaks, the more things stay the same. (Philip Chidell

Originally published on Jadaliyya on 26/01/2015. Available at: http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/20626/%E2%80%98a-distinctly-french-universalism%E2%80%99_translating-la%C3%AF by Muriam Haleh Davis It was impossible to avoid the discussion, despite my repeated protests. In Lyon,

Originally published on Paper Bard on 27/01/2015. Available at: http://paper-bird.net/2015/01/27/isis-kills-gays-a-history-of-violence/ Hands shove them forward, bound and blindfolded. Then comes the step when the stone beneath them stops

Originally published on Paper Bird on 09/01/2015. Available at: http://paper-bird.net/2015/01/09/why-i-am-not-charlie/ There is no “but” about what happened at Charlie Hebdo yesterday. Some people published some cartoons, and some

Originally published on NYT on 05/01/2015. Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/06/opinion/egypts-appalling-crackdown-on-gays.html By THE EDITORIAL BOARD JAN. 5, 2015 Even if they were acquitted on the ludicrous charge of “debauchery,”

Originally published on Paper Bird on 08/12/2014. Available at: Taken from: http://paper-bird.net/2014/12/08/dozens-arrested-cairo/ At about 10 PM last night, December 7, police carried out a massive raid on ahammam

In 2007, the Pope’s visit to Brazil mobilized groups in opposition to the Vatican’s moral dogmatism. In support of these groups, SPW, in close collaboration

“By now you have probably already heard of the harem of Tunisian sex-warrior slaves heading to Syria in order to give up their young bodies to the appetites of deprived rebels to fulfill jihad al-Nikkah — “Sexual Jihad” — and are coming back to the country with bellies full of Jihadi babies. Unfortunately for what seems to be that blind spot people have when it comes to stories on Muslims and sex, there doesn’t seem to be any evidence of Tunisian female warriors going to fight a holy sex war.”

Originally published on Political Research, on 06/10/2014. Available at: http://www.politicalresearch.org/2014/10/06/conversion-therapy-a-bigger-threat-to-africa-than-scott-lively/# By Kapya Kaoma, on October 6, 2014 Conversion therapy, also known as ex-gay or reparative therapy,

By Kathy Bougher September 2, 2014 – 7:24 pm Fundamentalist groups in El Salvador have escalated their media attacks against the “Freedom for the 17”

Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML) released its latest publication, Dossier 32-33: Sexualities, Culture and Society in Muslim Contexts, available in paperback hard copy and

The Nation‘s article underlines the gaps between Obama’s administration promises to cut funding to discredited HIV and pregnancy prevention programs in Uganda and the ongoing

An article from RH Reality Check shows how fundamentalist christians are reaching space on US state and federal governmemt. Read here.

Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID) has launched a new manual for rights activists facing religious fundamentalist opposition to their work. Click here to

Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID) has launched analysis on the role and coordinated actions that Conservative forces played during the 58th Commission on the

The Nation brings an article about the role of American Christian organizations in triggering anti-LGBT laws. Click here.

SPW recommends Sexualities january edition. It brings articles about gender and sexuality boundaries on evangelical websites; medicalization of women sexuality as well as other interesting

Reality Check brings Adele M. Stan’s article about how Pope Francis “when it comes to inequality of the sexes, enthusiastically embraces Rome’s status quo, using

SPW recommends reading the blog “The adventures of cosmic yoruba and her flying machines”, which brings reflections on sexuality in pre-colonial Nigeria. Click here.

Cultural Cold Wars: Where “traditional values” came from See Scott Long’s HQ on the place of sexual rights in what he calls “Cultural Cold Wars”.

“The Gikuyu of Kenya, who had very rigid codes of sexual convention, thought the public displays of affection among Europeans were unspeakably vulgar. Ironically, however,

During his apostolic journey to Rio de Janeiro for the 28th World Youth Day, Pope Francis did not repeat the Vatican’s old rhetoric. Instead, he

US: Exodus International announces it’s closing doors. The closure comes less than a day after the organization released a statement apologizing to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community for years of undue judgment, by the organization and from the Christian Church as a whole. Read more.

US: NY Archdiocese has been reluctantly paying for health plan that covers birth control. Read more.

Awid’s “Facing Fundamentalisms Newsletters” seek to spark engagement and interaction from readers who are confronting religious fundamentalisms across a diversity of contexts. March edition is focused on Religion, Culture, Tradition and Fundamentalisms at the UN.

The International Journal of Middle East Studies just launched a special issue about Queer Affects in its Volume 45 of May, 2013. Copies may be requested here.

Canada: The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that Biblical speech opposing homosexual behavior, including in written form, is essentially a hate crime. Read more.

In the The Equal Rights Review (Volume Seven), it is debated human rights violations. Some people are at higher risk of having their rights violated. When the higher risk is associated with more or less stable personal characteristics such as gender, religion, race, disability, sexual orientation, etc., and materialises in a less favourable treatment or a particular disadvantage, the result may amount to discrimination: a violation of the fundamental right to equality.

In the Volume Six of The Equal Rights Review, The Equal Rights Trust searches for answers to questions like: If equality is understood as a fundamental human right and a basic principle of social justice (this is how it is described in the ERT mission statement), what does it mean in respect to health? How is health equality thinkable? While there is a wealth of literature in political theory, health care policy, economics, social medicine and medical law addressing the central issues of relevance to health equality, an equality and human rights law approach is underdeveloped.

The Sexuality Policy Watch (SPW) is participating at the VIII International Association for the Study of Sexuality, Culture and Society (IASSCS) Conference, in Madrid, Spain, from 6th to 9th July 2011, organizing the session Regional dynamics in Sexuality and politics: common threads and differences (July 8th) and participating in the panel Electronic Sociability, Gender, Sexuality and Internet Regulation (July 9th), organized by APC-WNSP. Read more.

Read the news report Winds of change on the situation of LGBT in the Middle East, published by the Australian LGBT magazine DNA.

Read Towards a Future Without Fundamentalisms and Feminists on the Frontline: Case Studies of Resisting and Challenging Fundamentalisms, two reports by AWID.

The Catholics for Choice and the International Consortium for Emergency Contraception released a new briefing paper entitled Emergency Contraception: Catholics in Favor, Bishops Opposed, detailing how Catholic bishops continue to oppose access to emergency contraception and lead opposition efforts, going against the beliefs of the majority of Catholics. Read the paper.

IDAHO May 17th is the International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO). Various activities are being planned around the world. On www.dayagainsthomophobia.org > This year, IDAHO will

CONTENTS I. SPW ACTIVITIES / EDITORIAL Since late September 2009, the SPW executive team has been engaged in a wide variety of activities. First and

2.5 Sexuality and religion Vatican: Read the article The Great Catholic Cover-up, by Christopher Hitchens, a columnist for Vanity Fair and the Roger S. Mertz

USA: Read about the stand taken by one brave catholic priest against Prop-8, the California referendum on gay marriage.

In this issue, you find information on what SPW has been involved since October, 2009. First and foremost, we made further progress on preparation for the Dialogue on Sexuality and Geopolitics and the African Regional Dialogue will held in the last week September, 2010. Following the recommendation of the Latin American Regional Dialogue, we have added our voices to a global campaign that has been underway since May 2009 by developing, together with partners, a statement calling for the de-pathologization of transexuality. In the session “Around the world”, we highlight on the one hand the regressive legislation proposed in Uganda, which aims to further criminalize “homosexual” behavior, and on the other hand you find information on the same sex marriage legislation recently approved in the Federal District of Mexico. Read also about other regional highlights, and recent sexuality/sexual rights advocacy, like the 54th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). See what projects and events connect art and sexuality and browse listings of upcoming events, scholarships, job opportunities and publications.

Available on Facebook Immoral, and a threat to the youth. When the 2nd Division of the Commission on Elections rejected Ang Ladlad’s application for accreditation

Fourth panel – Religion and Sexual Politics Afternoon – August 25, 2009 After the presentation and debate of the conference overview paper on religion and

Fourth Session – Sexuality, Religion and Politics Afternoon – August 25, 2009 The last session of the Dialogue, coordinated by Gloria Careaga, started with the

In this issue learn what SPW has been doing since January, including the Asian Regional Dialogue on Sexuality and Geopolitics, held in Hanoi, Vietnam, in April 10-12, 2009, and the web-based survey to evaluate the use and application of the Yogyakarta Principles whithin Brazilian LGBT activists, groups and researchers. Read also about global and local events involving sexuality, politics, as well as recent sexuality/sexual rights advocacy. See what projects and events connect art and sexuality and browse listings of upcoming events, scholarships, job opportunities and publications.

After two days of intense discussions, during which the politics of sexuality in Asia were examined from a variety of angles, the chairs of the

This session brought to the larger audience that was at 2009 IASSCS Conference a synthesis of the discussions held at the first Asia Regional Dialogue

Argentina uncategorized: Debates about human trafficking, prostitution and sex work In this article, Carolina Justo von Lurzer and Santiago Morcillo present the main points debateted

Internet Regulation and Sexual Politics in Brazil The issue 55(2) of Development – Citzenship for Change assesses the potential and unpacks the myths around new

In this issue we highlight the UN declaration on sexual orientation, gender identity and human rights and the long anticipated end of the Bush Era: Welcome Obama! Other updates, materials and texts are provided in the sections Advocacy: keep an eye and Sexuality in Art. In Check it out, you can find links to job opportunities, scholarships, upcoming events and publications.

By Vagner de Almeida * Sexuality and Hate Crimes is a documentary and the first alternative film produced by Director Vagner de Almeida and Richard

Since March 15th, 2006, when the resolution creating the Human Rights Council was adopted by the UN General Assembly, the Council have met in four sessions. The 5th session of the HRC will take place from June 11th to 18th, 2007, when it is expected that the ongoing HRC institution building process will be completed.

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