May, 14th (IDAHOBIT): the world celebrates sexual and gender diversity in a context of growing rejection

In May, numerous initiatives are taking place around the world to celebrate diversity as part of the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia (IDAHOBIT). It is expected that events will be registered on the website in more than 60 countries and territories worldwide.

Held annually on May 17, this day commemorates the anniversary of the World Health Organization's (WHO) decision in 1990 to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder. Since its creation in 2004, IDAHOBIT has served as a fundamental platform to raise awareness about the discrimination and violence faced by LGBTQIA+ people worldwide.

Last year in LGBTQIA+ rights: glimmers of hope amidst a wave of setbacks

Despite significant advances, data from the ILGA World Database indicates that LGBTQIA+ people continue to face challenges in accessing their basic rights.

64 UN member states still criminalize consensual same-sex sexual acts. At least 61 countries have restrictions on freedom of expression related to diversity issues. There are laws protecting people from hate crimes based on sexual orientation in 63 UN member states, but only in 41 for gender identity, 11 for gender expression, and 8 for sexual characteristics.

The last few months have been filled with alarming and growing threats to the life and dignity of LGBTQIA+ people.

Organizations worldwide have been forced to shut down operations due to aid freezes and funding cuts. Mali criminalized consensual same-sex sexual acts, and Trinidad and Tobago reversed its decriminalization ruling. In the UK, the Supreme Court has restricted the definition of "woman" for the Equality Act. Hungary has amended its Constitution to ban LGBTQIA+ meetings, assert that "a human being is male or female," and remove protections for gender identity. Across the United States, bills and executive orders contribute to making life impossible for trans and intersex people under the false pretext of "defending women." In Argentina, the government modified the National Gender Identity Law through an executive decree, prohibiting access to gender-affirming healthcare for people under 18. In Peru, the National Congress passed a law establishing prison sentences for "anyone who exposes young people to diversity content".

Around the world, LGBTQIA+ communities — especially women, trans, and intersex people among them — face an unprecedented wave of attacks from anti-gender and anti-rights movements. Some political actors are complicit, stripping people of their ability to decide about their bodies, identities, and loves, and excluding them from public life, healthcare, and recognition in general. Worldwide, social justice movements continue to denounce this regression, which increasingly undermines democracy at its core.

However, even amidst these severe crises, progress continues to be made, often thanks to the power of communities coming together, organizing, resisting, supporting each other through all difficulties and brutal repression, and creating positive change. Over the past year, Dominica and Namibia decriminalized consensual same-sex sexual acts. Same-sex marriage became a reality in Thailand and Liechtenstein. The last remaining "LGBT-free zone" in Poland finally fell.

To date, 17 UN member states have implemented nationwide bans on so-called "conversion therapies," while nine have introduced national restrictions on unnecessary interventions for intersex youth. Additionally, 18 UN member states allow legal gender recognition without restrictive preconditions nationwide, and 37 have legalized same-sex marriage.

IDAHOBIT 2025: The power of communities

Amidst advances and setbacks, this year's IDAHOBIT is more important than ever. Its slogan, ‘The power of communities’. highlights the crucial role that connection, solidarity, and common goals play in driving change, both for individuals and for various social justice movements.

It also celebrates the ongoing efforts of LGBTQIA+ human rights defenders, organizations, and community members, as well as feminists, sexual and reproductive rights defenders, and other allies, for a more just world for all.

IDAHOBIT is a key day to share information about the discrimination, violence, and exclusion that LGBTQIA+ people face, and about how communities are working to overcome it. Everyone must participate in building a more equal and just world for all.