Blog: Perspectives

Rikki Nathanson, an OutRight board member and fierce activist for the rights of trans and gender diverse persons, has won a landmark case against the Zimbabwean government after she was awarded $400 000 by the country’s High Court. This is the first case in which the country’s judiciary has recognised that gender does not have to be either male or female.

Celebrated on the 3rd Wednesday of October, International Pronouns Day seeks to make sharing and respecting everyone’s pronouns commonplace. This year will be the second year of its recognition, and I for one am excited to see how it will be celebrated across the world. As someone who uses they/them pronouns, I was excited when I heard about this day being celebrated for the first time last year.

National Coming Out Day, celebrated on October 11th, seeks to show the world that LGBTIQ people exist everywhere, in every community. One of the founders of National Coming Out Day, Robert Eichberg, said in 1993 that “Most people think they don't know anyone gay or lesbian, and in fact, everybody does.

I joined the LGBTIQ movement as a teenager because I was shocked at the levels of hate I was seeing when the first few Pride marches were being organized in Riga, Latvia, and I wanted to help, somehow. From early on, those I met there asked who I was. Was I a lesbian, was I an ally, was I bisexual? In the 19 years of life prior to meeting my LGBTIQ community, I had only been attracted to men. So I guessed that I was straight, and because people asked, I identified as such. But I didn’t like the label.

In a connected world, it is unsustainable for a minority to gain dignity and opportunities in some parts of the globe while having to remain in the shadows in others. In the case of LGBTI people, this dichotomy often leads to either migration or despair… or both, as forced migration is rarely a “happy voyage”.

OutRight is pleased to announce a new addition to its Board of Directors - Rikki Nathanson! Rikki is a fierce activist for the rights of trans and gender diverse persons, globally, and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to OutRight's board.

23rd September, is Bisexual Visibility Day, or Bi Visibility day for short. Started in 1999, Bi Visibility Day is an important way to recognize your bi+ friends and celebrate their identities. Over half of the LGBTIQ community identifies as bi+ (bisexual, pansexual, polysexual, or another identity attracted to multiple genders), but the perception remains that gays and lesbians are the majority.