
On Pride Day, Canada, Brazil, and Europe back ‘rights of LGBTQI people' — US silent
On Saturday, to mark Pride Day, the foreign ministries of Canada, Brazil, Australia, and a number of European countries issued a joint statement reaffirming their commitment to the rights of LGBTQIA+ people. The message was clear: rising hate speech, criminalisation, and discrimination against LGBTQ+ communities worldwide must be condemned.
According to Reuters, the statement read:
'We are speaking and acting as one to champion the rights of LGBTQI people.'
It added:
'At a time when hate speech and hate crimes are on the rise, and in view of efforts to strip LGBTQI people of their rights, we reject all forms of violence, criminalisation, stigmatisation or discrimination, which constitute human rights violations.'
The statement was backed by countries including Spain, Belgium, Colombia, and Ireland.
The international statement comes amid growing concern that regression in one country can embolden anti-LGBTQ movements elsewhere. Activists particularly fear worsening conditions in countries like Uganda and Ghana, where LGBTQ communities already face harsh legal and social environments.
Absent from the list of signatories was the United States. The Trump administration did not publicly endorse or sign onto the joint declaration, a move that raised eyebrows among human rights advocates and foreign policy observers.
'As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female,' said President Donald Trump at his inauguration speech on January 20.
This proclamation was followed by a slew of executive orders which withdrew several Biden era initiatives that prevented discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation, and aimed to enhance the recognition and visibility of LGBTQIA+ persons.
On the same day as the Pride Day statement, tens of thousands of demonstrators in Budapest took to the streets to protest Hungary's controversial law passed in March, which allows local authorities to ban Pride events.
The law, introduced by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's government, has faced backlash from both civil society and the European Union.
Rainbow flags and chants of solidarity filled the capital as citizens defied government efforts to suppress public expressions of LGBTQIA+ identity.
(With inputs from Reuters)

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