Netherlands appoints youngest and first gay prime minister

 

Netherlands has appointed its first openly gay and youngest prime minister, Rob Jetten, who is the leader of the Democrats 66 (D66). He won the elections of last year, dethroning the far-right Freedom Party (PVV). 

Jetten was formally sworn in by King Willem-Alexander at the Huis ten Bosch Palace in The Hague. Posting a selfie ahead of his swearing-in ceremony, Jetten wrote on X: "Proud to be doing this together. In a new phase, with great responsibility and, above all, a shared promise to work for everyone in the Netherlands".

Jetten served as a cabinet minister under Mark Rutte, the Netherlands' longtime prime minister and now NATO secretary-general. Now, with his minority coalition of parties is set to be put to the test in an already fractured political landscape.

He is engaged to be married to his partner Nicolás Keenan, an Argentine two-time Olympian and field hockey star.

Purple Friday: supporting LGBT youth across Scotland

 

LGBT Youth Scotland is gearing up for its 22nd annual Purple Friday celebration. On February 27, communities are invited to take part in Paint It Purple activities, aimed at showing visible support for LGBT young people.

Purple Friday is the annual fundraising day where people all over Scotland show their support for LGBT young people and fundraise for vital services.

Organisers say the day is all about celebrating "creativity, self-expression, and showing up for queer young people in ways that feel bold, joyful, and unmistakably visible."

The goal is to turn places like classrooms, offices, and shop windows visibly purple for the day.

A spokesperson said: "On Purple Friday, we use it to say loudly and clearly that LGBT young people matter, that their creativity is powerful, and that they deserve a future filled with colour, possibility, and care."

Team LGBTQ gets a new record at 2026 Winter Olympics

 

The LGBTQ athletes at 2026 Milan Winter Olympics got a new feat after winning a record-breaking number of medals.

Nineteen of the 49 publicly out LGBTQ athletes, competing in the multinational sporting event placed in Italy, won a medal in their respective competitions. In total, 11 medals were won across multiple sports by members of Team LGBTQ.

This year’s Winter Olympics had already broken records, having the highest number of out LGBTQ athletes in Winter Olympics history. Team LGBTQ was the 19th largest contingent of athletes at the event.

Team LGBTQ included competitors representing UK, US, Canada, Finland, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and the Czech Republic. Among them was Swedish freestyle skier, Elis Lundholm, who became the first trans man to compete at the Winter Olympics during the women’s freestyle skiing tournament.  

Congratulations!!!

A record-breaking number of LGBTQ athletes competed at 2026 Winter Olympics

Turkish government increasingly becomes more hostile towards LGBT community

 

The Turkish government is looking to introduce new legal regulations in a fight against what authorities are calling the influence of “LGBT deviants”.

New regulations being discussed include a 3 year prison term for offences relating to the spreading of pro-LGBT propaganda, in an attempt to uphold “family and moral values”. And it is also proposing prison time of up to 4 years for people seeing same-sex wedding ceremonies. 

The government is also considering changes to laws concerning transgender people. A new proposal seeks to change the required minimum age to undergo gender-affirming surgeries from 18 to 25, with required court approval. Anyone involved in unauthorised surgeries will risk jail time of up to 3 years. 

Currently, homosexuality is still legal in Türkiye but there are no civil rights protections for LGBT people and same-sex marriage is not recognised. Besides, the authorities have been cracking down on pro-LGBT propaganda in recent years, under President Erdoğan. 

A lawmaker for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), said at a summit held in Ankara this week: “Projects that attempt to force LGBT propaganda are dynamites that will blow up the future of the Turkish nation. We have to have legal reinforcement for protection against online anti-family disinformation campaigns and harmful trends targeting our children.”

Unacceptable!!!

Turkish LGBT community is fighting for their rights

European Parliament passes resolution declaring trans women are women

 

Europe’s Parliament has agreed to a resolution declaring that trans women are women. The resolution made a host of recommendations for the European Union (EU) to pursue at the 70th annual United Nations Commission on the Status of Women.

Among the recommendations was a proclamation emphasising the “importance of the full recognition of trans women as women, noting that their inclusion is essential for the effectiveness of any gender-equality and anti-violence policies”.

Other proclamations referencing LGBTQ+ people included the need for a “comprehensive tool to monitor and counter democratic backsliding and backsliding in women’s rights”, as well as the acknowledgement of a rise in attacks against LGBTQ+ and women’s rights activists.

The array of recommendations were adopted in a 340-141 vote, with 68 abstentions. While most European Parliament resolutions aren’t legally binding, their passage typically marks significant influence within EU member states.

Pride flag returns to Stonewall Monument defying Trump's policy

 

Activists in New York have restored the Pride flag at the Stonewall Memorial after it was controversially removed.

The flag, which had been flying near the monument in Greenwich Village, was taken down by the National Park Service. 

The Agency confirmed the removal was in line with updated Trump's guidance, limiting the types of flags permitted on government-managed flagpoles.

In a move of defiance against the Trump administration, who ordered it to be removed, it was restored in a ceremony at the same site.

Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Manhattan State Senator Erik Bottcher organised the re-raising of the flag as crowds gathered to see it returned.

Instead of the flag returning to its original place however, it was being raised on an alternate flagpole, to comply with government regulations, a move that left it essentially at half mast, displeasing many.

Two activists on the scene intervened stepped in to ensure the Pride flag went to its rightful place at the monument.

We won't be erased!!!

The price of dignity

 

Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych wore a special helmet during his first training sessions on the Olympic track. 

It features portraits of Ukrainian athletes killed during Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine – in total, it’s over 650 Ukrainian athletes and coaches. 

But the IOC confirmed that Heraskevych won't be allowed to wear the helmet, saying it contravenes the Olympic Charter guidelines. He has finally been banned to participate in the games.

Shame on you IOC!! Stop War!! Stop Putin!!

Stand with Ukraine!!

It seems Republicans do not want to attack marriage equality for now, but until when?

 

A number of prominent conservative advocates recently launched a campaign with the explicit goal of organizing to overturn the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage in 2015.

The Republican Party has been toning down its opposition to gay marriage in recent years. For decades, the party’s official platform declared that marriage was a union exclusively between a man and a woman. After Donald Trump returned to the White House and issued an executive order denying the existence of transgender people, his administration has taken several brazen steps against LGBTQ+ Americans. 

But, as the 2026 midterms approach, Republicans do not want to lean into it. They prefer to focus on issues people care about, and right now it’s pocketbook issues, namely the economy and immigration. Even Republicans who do oppose gay marriage the most aren’t interested in wrapping that messaging into their campaign strategy.

Of course, for Democrats, this issue offers them an opportunity to attack Republicans on an issue that’s politically unpopular, and all of them know it.

Polling also shows that most Americans overwhelmingly support keeping gay marriage legal. A May 2025 Gallup survey found that 68% of Americans believe that same-sex marriages should be considered valid under law. 

Reading this, it is pretty obvious who to vote for in the next U.S midterms elections.

The impact of Republican anti-trans legislation on youth Americans

 

More than half of U.S. transgender youth aged 13-17 live in a state with at least one law restricting their rights, according to a new study from the Williams Institute, a research organization at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law. The study, titled The Impact of 2025 Anti-Transgender Legislation on Youth, looks at laws enacted in 2025 and previously.

An estimated 724,000 Americans in this age group identify as transgender, the institute notes. Of these, 382,800, 53 percent, live in one of the 29 states, most of them Republican, that has enacted one or more laws banning access to gender-affirming care, participation in sports, use of bathrooms and other sex-separated facilities, or gender affirmation through pronoun use.

But nearly 40 percent, or 285,300 teens, live in jurisdictions that have “shield laws” that protect access to gender-affirming care. 17 states and Washington, D.C., most of them Democrat, have these laws, which protect care providers and families from actions originating in states where this care has been restricted and, in some cases, from intrusion by the federal government.

The study also notes Donald Trump’s many anti-trans executive orders, such as those denying the existence of trans, nonbinary, and intersex people; using various means to further restrict young people’s access to gender-affirming care; and threatening states and schools that allow trans student athletes to participate in sports under their gender identity.

Download the full the study here.

A record number of LGBTQ athletes compite in Milan Winter Olympics 2026

 

There will be at least 43 publicly out gay, lesbian, bi and queer athletes competing at the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics. There will be 9 out men and 34 out women, 22 of whom are out ice hockey players, making it by far the sport with the most LGBTQ athletes.

The one major sport where out male athletes outnumber women is figure skating, with Milan having at least six men and one woman. Other sports represented by out athletes are skiing (both alpine and freestyle) with five; speed skating, four; skeleton, two; and one each from snowboarding, curling and biathlon.

The number of out athletes continues a trend at the Olympics, both Winter and Summer. Out Olympians say visibility and the desire to be themselves and not have to hide are reasons for coming out. 

There were 36 out Olympians at the 2022 Winter Games, 15 in 2018 and seven in 2014, which means there has been a sixfold increase in 12 years. Athletes on Team LGBTQ for the Milan Winter Olympics include: Brittany Bowe, Amber Glenn, Gus Kenworthy, Conor McDermott-Mostowy and Lewis Gibson. The 2024 Paris Summer Games also saw a record, with 199 out athletes competing.

Good luck!!

‘Heated Rivalry’ stars named Winter Olympics torchbearers