Chinese gay activist challenges homosexuality 'disorder' textbooks

Natalie Thomas

A gay Chinese student activist on Monday lodged a suit against the Ministry of Education over school textbooks describing homosexuality as a mental disorder, the latest step by China’s small but growing gay rights movement.

It is not illegal to be gay in China and these days many large Chinese cities have thriving gay scenes, though there is still a lot of family pressure to get married and have children, even for gay men and women.

Homosexuality was listed as a mental disorder until 2001.

However, Chinese universities continue to use textbooks that contain terms such as “disorder” and “impediment” to refer to homosexuality, research the Gay and Lesbian Campus Association of China carried out in 2014 found.

Qiu Bai, 21 and a media studies student at Sun Yat-Sen University in Guangzhou, told Reuters she came across similar materials when she turned to the books in her university library after beginning to question her own sexual orientation. Read more via Reuters

A community guide to the Global Fund’s strategy in relation to sexual orientation and gender identities

This week, we are releasing our third community guide on the Global Fund. The Community Guide to the Global Fund’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identities (SOGI) Strategy has important human rights components that are essential for an effective response to HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria, at all levels.

This community guide is a basic overview of the Global Fund’s SOGI Strategy. 
 
In this guide you will find: 1) What is sexual orientation and gender identity? 2) Some fast facts on how HIV/AIDS  disproportionately impacts sexual minorities 3) Four strategic actions that the Global Fund takes to ensure grants meet the needs of SOGI communities Read more via Global Fund

UNESCO: Report shows homophobic and transphobic violence in education to be a global problem

In some countries, 85% of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students experience homophobic and transphobic violence in school, 45 % of transgender students drop out. Homophobic violence also targets 33% of students who are wrongly perceived to be LGBT because they do not appear to conform to gender norms.

These are the findings from Out In The Open, a global report on education sector responses to violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. Compiled by UNESCO, the report reveals the nature, scope and impact of the violence, the status of education sector responses and recommendations for the way forward.   Read more via UNESCO