The Connection Between LGBTQ Rights and Democracy
Inside the worldwide fight for equality.
It’s the final weekend of Pride Month—a time to commemorate the fight for LGBTQ rights in the United States and beyond. For decades, that struggle has been closely intertwined with movements for democracy, freedom, and human rights worldwide.
It’s the final weekend of Pride Month—a time to commemorate the fight for LGBTQ rights in the United States and beyond. For decades, that struggle has been closely intertwined with movements for democracy, freedom, and human rights worldwide.
In this collection of essays and reporting from our archives, we document LGBTQ activism in spaces from the U.S. military to a choir in Turkey. We also explore why gay reparations may be past due, how gay rights advance democracy, and where LGBTQ Muslims in India turn for solace.—Chloe Hadavas
A gay pride flag hangs at half-staff during a memorial service for the victims of Florida’s Pulse nightclub shooting in San Diego, California, on June 12, 2016. SANDY HUFFAKER/AFP via Getty Images
Gay Reparations Are Past Due
The United States lags behind many other countries in making up for its abusive past. Here’s why—and how to fix it, Omar G. Encarnación writes.
A person waves a rainbow flag during a rally staged by the LGBT community in Istanbul on June 26, 2016.OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images
How Gay Rights Advance Democracy in the Middle East
LGBT activists are in the vanguard of the struggle against the region’s dictators and theocrats, Antoun Issa writes.
Retired Sgt. Tom Swann wears a “lift the ban” armband to protest the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy against gay people in the military in Washington on April 30, 2000. At center is Navy Capt. Mike Rankin. All are part of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Veterans of America. The Washington Post via Getty Images
Fighting ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Paved the Way for Gay Rights
A new book chronicles the arduous struggle for LGBTQ equality in the U.S. military, Elizabeth Becker writes.
Yeliz Guzel practices her musical instrument, the baglama—a kind of lute, in her one-room apartment in Mersin, Turkey, on Nov. 23, 2020. Ahmer Khan for Foreign Policy
Singing for Inclusivity in Turkey
Yeliz Guzel’s pride choir brought LGBTQ Turks together—but left her ostracized, Ahmer Khan writes.
Syeda Lameeya Parween and her partner, Naina, play with their cats at their house in New Delhi on Feb. 21. Shefali Rafiq photos for Foreign Policy
LGBTQI Muslims in India Find Solace in Their Pets
“The first living being to know that I am a gay was my pet parakeet,” Shadab, a 28-year-old man from New Delhi, told Saqib Mugloo and Shefali Rafiq.
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