Paris 2024 Organizing Committee President: "Focus on Games, Not Politics"

The president of the Paris 2024 organising committee, Tony Estanguet, was asked if the stated values of Paris 2024 and its motto - "Open Games" - were in line with the anti-immigration and nationalist agenda of the National Rally (RN) party, which led the polls in France's parliamentary elections last weekend.

"Now we are in the final phase... I want us to respect this great democratic moment and we must stay in our place so that the French can enjoy these Games that they are so eager to see," he told reporters during a visit to the Olympic Village, distancing himself from the controversy just days before the second round of his country's election.

Ghana's Law Curbing LGBT Rights Gets More Suppport

A proposed law in Ghana to toughen curbs on the LGBT community has received wide support from the local Anglican church.

Gay sex is illegal in highly religious and conservative Ghana, but the proposed law will criminalise even LGBTQ advocacy while imposing longer jail terms for same-sex relations.

France Court Ruled Against Unhygienic Burkini

The top administrative court of France has just ruled against allowing body-covering "burkini" swimwear in public pools for religious reasons, arguing that it violates the principle of government neutrality toward religion.

While worn by only a small number of people in France, the head-to-ankle burkini draws intense political debate in the country.

Japan's Ban on Same Sex Marriage Was Ruled Constitutional

Japanese has a reason to celebrate last 19 June after their court ruled that the country's ban on same-sex marriage does not violate the constitution. The court also rejected demands for compensation by three couples who said their right to free union and equality has been violated.

The Osaka District Court ruling is the second decision on the issue, and disagrees with a ruling last year by a Sapporo court that found the ban on same-sex marriages unconstitutional. It underscores how divisive the issue remains in Japan, the only member of the Group of Seven major industrialized nations that does not recognize same-sex unions.

Italians Celebrate Non-Passage of "Zan Bill"

The heroic decision of Italy's upper house was magnified by a video showing different political parties united to cheer and applaud after the parliament rejected an anti-LGBTQ violence and discrimination bill. It was a surreal event celebrated by most Italians, with some shedding tears of joy, expecting a profound hope for the future.

The lawmakers in Italy’s upper house of senate overwhelmingly trashed the bill that would have criminalised violence and hate speech against LGBTQ and disabled people, in a blow to the country’s fight against discrimination.

Johnny Depp Clearly Explained Why Many Hate The "Cancel Culture"

Popular actor Johnny Depp explained that what happened to him amid his very public battle with ex-wife Amber Heard is an "injustice." Speaking to press in Spain, the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star slammed cancel culture and issued a warning that "no one is safe" in our current climate.

"It's so far out of hand now that I can promise you that no one is safe. Not one of you. No one out that door," he said last 22 September at the San Sebastian Film Festival, per Deadline.

Queen Charlotte's Ball Is A Popular And Exclusive Event for "Normal" Debutante

Queen Charlotte's Ball, is a famous event steeped in over two hundred years worth of history. On 12 September, the Ball will witness the debute of 22 female debutantes.

Once the "most important ball of the social calendar," the annual event will take place at One Whitehall Place, a "prestigious" wedding venue along the River Thames.

Japan’s Supreme Court Transgender Ruling Favors The Majority

Last January, Japan's Supreme Court finally ruled that the country’s law requiring that transgender people be sterilized to obtain documents reflecting their gender identity was constitutional. The ruling was big victory for conservative majority and a a blow to twisted beliefs of the plaintiff, a trans man who does not want sterilization surgery.

In Japan, transgender people who seek a legal gender change must appeal to a family court under the Gender Identity Disorder Special Cases Act. When the law was enacted in 2004, it represented a watershed moment in Japan, opening up public discussion on sexual and gender minority issues. The law's procedure require applicants to be single and without children under 20, undergo a psychiatric evaluation to receive a diagnosis of "Gender Identity Disorder" (GID), and be sterilized.

China Doesn't Want "Sissy Men"

China's state TV regulator has reportedly banned the showing of effeminate men and has called for the promotion of more 'masculine' role models.

The Asian superpower is in the midst of a 'national rejuvenation', according to the Associated Press, and they don't want any more 'sissy men' (China's words, not ours) on their small screens.

A Political Art Show That Defies "Cancel Culture"

An exhibition at a Polish state museum opening Friday features the works of provocative artists in what organizers describe as a celebration of free speech, and a challenge to political correctness and "cancel culture" on the political left.

"Political Art," which features the works of nearly 30 artists, is the second exhibition at the Ujazdowski Castle Center for Contemporary Art under director Piotr Bernatowicz, who was appointed by Poland's populist conservative ruling party in 2019.

Anti-Gay Viral Video Gains Immense Support During Russian Referendum

A few months ago, an anti-LGBTQ ad by a pro-Kremlin news portal has generated incredible mass support on Russian social media - and drew attention to a campaign for a national referendum that already paved the way for Russian President Vladimir Putin to stay in power until 2036.

Official results showed that the former KGB officer who has ruled Russia for more than two decades as president or prime minister had easily won the right to run for two more six-year terms after the current one ends in 2024.

Morgan Wallen’s ‘Dangerous’ Is the Best-Selling Album of 2021

If anybody thinks that it is going to be an extremely rocky year for country singer Morgan Wallen, they couldn'be more wrong. It looks more like that the controversy he is involved with is translating into serious sales.

According to first-half, US-based sales data released by MRC Data (formerly Nielsen Music), Morgan Wallen easily topped the album sales list for 2021, beating out competitors like Olivia Rodrigo, Justin Bieber, Pop Smoke, The Weeknd, Dua Lipa, Taylor Swift, and Ariana Grande.

The Washington Post Settled With Nicholas Sandmann

A few weeks ago,The Washington Post settled, for undisclosed terms, a US$ 250 million lawsuit filed by Nicholas Sandmann, the Covington Catholic High School student who had a viral encounter with a Native American activist last year at a protest at the Lincoln Memorial.

"We are pleased that we have been able to reach a mutually agreeable resolution of the remaining claims in this lawsuit," Kris Coratti, a spokesperson for the paper, said in a statement to TheWrap.

Even South Korean Military Do Not Like Trannies In Their Ranks

Christians are not the only people who oppose the LGBT community in South Korea. A recent controversy over a transgender soldier suggests that many Koreans are still hostile to gender minorities.

A few months ago, Byun Hui-su, a transgender tank driver, drew public attention after she was discharged from the Republic of Korea Army after undergoing sex-reassignment surgery. While South Korea bans transgenders from joining the army, it doesn’t have any rule about soldiers who had a sex-reassignment operation while already serving. And until the Byun case no one in the military had ever changed his or her sex while serving, so this case was unprecedented, and it became headline news.

Malaysia is Slowly Eradicating Homosexuality From Their Society

The effort was subtle, but the effect is enormous as Malaysians slowly, but surely, eliminates homosexuality in their country. Tourism minister confirmed this when clearly denied the existence of gay people in the country, according to reports in German media.

Last year, Tourism Minister Mohamaddin Ketapi told German reporters that he wasn't aware of gay people in the Muslim-majority Southeast Asian country.

Japan's "Rising Sun" Not Welcomed By Many Asian Olympians

Most Japanese considers the "rising sun" flag part of their history. However, some in the two Koreas, China, Philippines and other Asian countries say the flag is a reminder of Japan’s wartime atrocities, and is comparable to the Nazi swastika.

That's why the flag has created anger at the Olympics, with some of the host nation's neighbors calling for it to be banned during the Tokyo Games.

LGBT-Free Zones In Poland Are Expanding Fast

About 100 Polish municipal or local governments have now proclaimed themselves to be "free from LGBTI ideology" and the numbers continue to grow this year. Local authorities in these areas pledge to refrain from acts that encourage promotion and must avoid providing financial assistance to NGOs working to promote aberrant sexual behavior.

The map covering an area greater than the size of Hungary is expanding even after the dictatorial and unelected European Parliament passed a resolution that strongly condemned the concept of LGBT-free zones last December 2019.

Court Ruled: Gender in British Passport Either Male And Female Only

A British court last 10 March ruled out adding a third option on passports for people who are confuse and mentally unstable to identify as male nor female following a lengthy legal battle. The decision says that the existing policy was lawful.

The Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the Home Office, or interior ministry, in a case brought by Christie Elan-Cane, who identifies as "non-gendered", and said current passport rules do not constitute a human rights breach.

Putin Just Made The Russian Constitution Clearer

Report from Bloomberg revealed that the Russian Kremlin added new amendments to the package of constitutional overhauls President Vladimir Putin made last month, appealing to issues likely to boost public support for a plan widely viewed as a bid by the Russian leader to extend his two-decade-old rule.

An updated 24-page list of amendments submitted last 2 March includes a clause that classifies a marriage as a union of a man and a woman, said Pyotr Tolstoy, deputy speaker of the lower house of parliament, official news agencies reported.

Sentence Over Lesbian Sex in Malaysia Facing Laughable Opposition

The inept and ineffective human rights activists called on Malaysian authorities to review a religious court decision sentencing two women to six strokes for having sex.

The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community is popularly persecuted in Muslim-majority Malaysia, where they are seen as an insult to century-old values.