Over the past decades, protection of LGBTQI+ people and all people with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions or sex characteristics has greatly expanded. This progress is well worth celebrating, and this is why May 17th is also, and maybe foremost, a day for celebration.

But in many places around the world, LGBTQI+ people still face injustice and live in fear and danger, sometimes for their very lives, as was obvious in the case of Tanzania just recently.

The latest ILGA global report on State-Sponsored homophobia lists 72 states that still criminalize same-sex sexual relations. In 45 of these States the law is applied to women as well as men. Many more States restrict the freedom of speech on gender and sexual diversities, or put other forms of legal pressure.

On the other hand, only 63 States provide some form of anti-discrimination protection and in some places, initial progress in Justice has been followed by regression.

This is why more legal and policy  reforms are necessary to ensure Justice and Protection for all LGBTQI+ people.

But they alone cannot do everything. While social climates have in some places become better over the years, making people feel safer in their societies,  in other places violence, including killings, and stigma have actually increased. Authoritarian and fascist regimes are on the rise and threaten Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and we witness a worrying rise in attempts to whip up moral panics and to scapegoat LGBTQI+ people. And people with diverse gender identities or expressions are still the main targets of social violence and injustice.

On May 17th, individuals, organisations, institutions, corporations, etc. will speak out against LGBTIQI+phobias, continuing our collective journey towards societies that ensure justice and protection for all. In a fair and just world, no one shall be left behind!

 Note on Global Focus issues: Each year a large consultation among activists takes place to identify one issue that is considered by most as a priority. But this focus issue is by no means the only possible focus for May 17 mobilisations. Everybody should feel totally free to pursue whichever objective they hold at heart.

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The Day was particularly marked in numerous Universities

Theme: Voice for Love

Organizer: Cai Fan Union

Event Description: Conducted outdoor advocacy on university campuses, including taking photos with slogan cards, writing down best wishes in exchange for rainbow-colored wristband and other activities.

Theme: Rainbow Location Shots

Organizer: Rainbow Group of Universities in Guangzhou

Event Description: Took photos with slogan pictures provided by the organizer at specific locations and displayed these photos on the WeChat platform.

Theme: Walk Out with Rainbow

Organizer: WDK Purple

Event Description: Distributed 300 rainbow flags and 200 tattoo stickers on campus and invited students to display them on 5.17.

Theme:The Days of Our On-Campus Gender Organizations Years

Organizer: Colorsworld

Partnership Organizations: WDK Purple; SGS

Event Description:Invited the initial organizers of PKU, Tsinghua and RUC’s gender pluralism groups to share and discuss their gains and obstacles encountered in exploring organization development with 50 audience on 5.17.

Theme: Sign on Rainbow

Organizer: Wu Tong She

Event Description: Collected lgbt-friendly students’ signatures on rainbow flags.

Theme: Wear the Rainbow Flag

Organizer: Four students from the Affiliated High School of PKU

Event Description: Invited students of all gender orientation and identification to wear t-shirts with rainbow flag print on campus on International Day Against Homophobia and with the hope that they may send a heart-warming message through this simple method to friends for whom this day may carry special significance.

Theme: Screening of the Documentary Small Talkand Q&A with the director

Organizer: Common Language

Partnership Organizations: The French Institute in Beijing, the Embassy of Sweden and etc.

Event Description: Screened the Documentary Small Talkand held a discussion session with the director Huizhen Huang, Qingsong Cheng, Xiao Shi and Yuan Yuan and a Q&A session with the audience.

Theme: Public Display of Affection at “the Center of the Universe”: a street experiment

Organizer: Beijing LGBT Center

Event Description: Volunteers wore t-shirts with the slogan “I’m gay” and eye masks and waited for hugs from passersby. Same-sex couples held placards with the same slogan and invited passersby to take photos with them.This experiment was conducted on street and live-recorded as VR videos.

Theme: 22 Cities and 369 Businesses stand with LGBT

Organizer: PFLAG China

Event Description: PFLAG chapters in different cities found 369 LGBT-friendly businesses in 22 cities nation-wide and posted “Love is love / 勇敢爱 (Love bravely)” slogans on conspicuous spots in their physical shops.

Theme: Get A Rainbow Badge and Free Hugs

Organizer: Piao Quan Jun

Event Description: Provided free hugs and rainbow badges for participants in 798 Art Zone on 5.13. The event generated great participation, with many brought their own decorative objects with rainbow elements and distributed them freely to street participants.

Theme: Run for Love 5.17

Organizer: Six-colored Rainbow

Event Description: Invited the public to share running photos and screenshots of a 5.17 KM running mileage hashtaging #517RunForLove on the eve of 5.17 as a way to fight against discrimination and celebrate 5.17.

In Shanghai, the now traditional IDAHOTB Bike Ride opened the Pride Festival

Full report in pics HERE

There is an ongoing state of emergency in Turkey as well as a ban on LGBTI events in Ankara, LGBTI organizations and initiatives are under great pressure to organize such events and demonstrations. But still there are many events organized across Turkey:

Corporations are more and more aware of the challenges and opportunities of Equality at the workplace. May 17th is being increasingly invested by companies and their LGBT networks as a day of mobilisation, action and reflection.

At European level, the Work Place Pride network  organised a global conference in Amsterdam that focused on the global dimension of LGBT equality at the workplace.

Designed to be even more inter-active than ever, the 2018 Workplace Pride International Conference saw over 250 delegates from companies and civil society partners explore the full gambit of LGBTI workplace issues. Cutting edge topics and speakers guide participants on a full day’s worth of knowledge gathering, exchange of best practices and unique networking opportunities among the leaders of LGBTI workplace inclusion.

At EY, IDAHOTB is a key annual landmark for the company’s UNITY program, the professional network for LGBT professionals and their straight allies. Unity has more than 1,600 members globally, hailing from all four of EY’s geographic Areas (Americas, Asia-Pacific, EMEIA [Europe, Middle East, India and Africa] and Japan).

To mark the IDAHOTB, EY mobilised all country offices to show support and solidarity. Each region was asked  to publish a Daily News Article on Wednesday 17^th May to show support for the day.The company also updated its ‘Making it real – Globally’,   a practical guide for organizations who want to better deliver LGBT+ workplace equality at a global level.

At Ikea, Co-workers and customers celebrated IDAHOTB around the world (pictured: IKEA Canada).

Across the UK IKEA organised a wide range of in-store activities. From flying the flag outside every one of the 22 stores countrywide, to a rainbow photobooth at IKEA Cardiff and rainbow-inspired roomsets and restaurant at IKEA Reading. was one of the companies flying the rainbow flag to mark the Day.

 In the follow up of the publication of the UN’s Global Business Standards, Toronto’s RightCon 2018 featured a session  by the United Nations Human Rights Office focusing on LGBTI security and inclusion RightsCon Toronto 2018 with Microsoft, Oath, Alex Garner, Hornet

In South Africa the South African LGBT+ Management Forum launched the first of its kind, South African Workplace Equality Index (SAWEI). More information HERE

Riot Games developed a special set of League of Legend characters for the Day and got the staff together to mark the event !

IBM collected support messages on colored sticky notes, which were assembled to form the word IDAHO

Thyssen Krupp staff marking the Day

Vodafone special IDAHOT race team

This year again, companies have marked #IDAHOTB with messages and tweets of support.

To mark IDAHOTB, Unity holds an annual global photographic competition, which is open to all EY people around the world. Called ‘Colors of the Rainbow’ the competition has six categories, each linked to one of the colors of the rainbow Pride flag. This is an excellent opportunity to raise awareness and to engage allies. EY also mobilised all country offices to show support and solidarity. Each region was asked to publish a newsletter article on Wednesday 17^thMay to show support for the day, which featured messages of support from key EY leaders, including their global chairman and CEO.

In London EY hosted two IDAHOTB events. On 16^thMay they hosted an afternoon conference called ‘Making it real – Driving LGBT+ inclusion’. This event included panels debates on topics including allies and sharing LGBT+ workplace best practice, together with a keynote speech from Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, Co-founder and Director of UK Black Pride.
Then on the evening of 17^thMay, IDAHOTB itself, EY hosted an evening reception to exhibit the winning and highly commended photographs from the ‘Colors of the Rainbow’ competition.

Also on 17^thMay, EY’s Global Vice-Chair for Public Policy, Beth Brooke-Marciniak, took part in the United Nations ‘Special Event to Celebrate Allies’ at UN Head Quarters in New York to mark IDAHOTB.

EY also updated its ‘Making it real – Globally’ document, a practical guide for organizations who want to better deliver LGBT+ workplace equality at a global level (and a good starting point for organisations who have, like EY, signed-up to the United Nations’ LGBTI Standards of Conduct for Business).

The theme adopted for the national IDAHOT 2018 celebration was: “Togetherness for Inclusion.” Some of the LGBTI persons also had the opportunity to share personal experiences and stories about discrimination and stigmatization, and how these have adversely affected their personal lives.

Interviews were held with a selection of actors who comprised of human rights activists, religious leaders, journalists, and LGBTI persons, soliciting their personal opinions on the significance of IDAHOTB 2018 celebrations in Liberia.

Unfortunately, this media coverage sparked negative reactions that led to the relocation of the May 17 Conference.

However, the official national event for IDAHOTB 2018 was held with a stakeholder engagement, which brought together religious leaders both from the Christian and Muslim communities, media practitioners, health care workers and service providers, human rights defenders and activists, partners including heads of LGBTI organizations and LGBTI individuals.

So May 17^th is behind us for another year.

It was, here in the land of Vegemite sandwiches, the first May with marriage equality – this gives some cause for celebration of achievement and some a reminder that there are still many rivers to cross.

Wednesday 16^th the mighty Mellem and I tag-teamed out at IPC Health in Hoppers Crossing in Melbourne’s south-western suburbs in a sort of personal story/Q and A (a nice Q and A, not like the one on Monday nights) for 2 sessions with staff. Lots of coverage of diverse stuff and trying to speak for who wasn’t in the room. A great reception. (Lots of other rainbow peeps were at other IPC sites during the week too).

The day itself began with a session at Department of Environment, Water, Land and Planning for the Victorian Public Sector. 3 TGD peeps being yours truly, Jack Metcalfe (VPS) and Rochelle Johnson (corporate) on a panel talking about inclusivity. Good mix – covered needs post-survey, practicalities and experiences in the workplace and areas to tackle e.g. valuing forms of gender expression and unconscious bias e.g. use of language like “soft” skills re skills that might be stereotyped as “female/feminine.” I’ll save the two real winners that happened afterwards (at morning tea) until the end.

Grab the tram and zap across the CBD to Docklands for NAB’s panel with Ruby Susan, Andrea  and moi. A good mix with the focus of each being bi, intersex and trans respectively with considerable intersectionality. I learnt a lot about Kleinfleders from Andrea – awesome. And thank you NAB and Inga Phail for specifically having the panel the way it was and ensuring for once that all the BITs were there. J https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/myth-busting-idahobit-day-kristy-macfarlane/?published=t

Thankfully the final stop was literally up the lane to the Bureau of Meterology’s first ever recognition of IDAHOBIT. My friend and colleague Rebecca Dominguez was a late withdrawal; only a partial change of name tag as Rebecca Corson joined Joel Radcliffe and me. A good range of perspectives and people joining from all around our big broad brown land by livestreaming, Pleasing to see strong recognition of how valuing diversity attracts good talent and awareness of the limitations of gender barriers of all sorts. A case of clear skies ahead for the Bureau re diversity (sorry, that was a bi pun). Given Melbourne’s weather, every iota of talent is needed to increase the accuracy of forecasts. J

A breather before heading to the Clyde Hotel for a much needed refreshment (and chicken burger) for the Union chats launch event. A great panel emphasising the need for intersectional thinking and standing together in solidarity (as one might expect at a union event).

A slight grumpy pan moment in contrast to this when checking emails on arriving home. I might cover this next week.

I think of those countries overseas where events were misrepresented by media, protested or shut down including Lebanon, Uganda, Ukraine, Russia and Liberia (amongst others). I reflect on how visibility and connectedness will still be needed as basics for some time to come. In that light, two highlights sum it up.

After the formal proceedings at DEWLP, two people came up to me. One was a person who heard myself and other bi people speak at a Department of Health and Human Services Victoria IDAHOBIT panel 2 years ago where the focus was bi. I copped flak at the time for stating people come to bi orgs first not so-called LGBTI organisations that may not be close to the grass roots re bi. She told me she went back to her office directly afterwards and heard two colleagues making biphobic remarks. She had the tools to put them in their place. Any pain from flak dissolved. More importantly, shows, sharing info definitely works.

Definitely the biggest moment of the day was the person who I saw out of the corner of my eye was wanting to have a quiet word (tissues/hanky ready here). They (using pronoun in way of gender not known) mentioned how much having trans visibility meant to them. They work in the VPS and are sorta of OK that if transition is needed it will be OK. But being just at the cusp, they are still a little shaky.

Their voice cracked a little, a few quiet tears began.

Sally: “Would you like a hug?”

“Yes” came the reply.

We hugged.

(I heard from someone at the union event who works for VPS that a summary of the panel was distributed and someone else was similarly boosted. Yes.)

We’re gonna need visibility and connectedness for some time yet. May 17^th and all the other general and specific days for the rainbow are a major tool in in achieving that visibility and connectedness. Long may we mark these days.