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· Iris Jung
‘Merry Queer’: Episode 1 of South Korea’s first LGBTQ-plus reality show available on YouTube
Available on Korean streaming platform Wavve, “Merry Queer” is an LGBTQ-plus “coming out” romance reality series that premiered the week of July 8. Multiple storylines reveal the intimate experiences of the couples and the challenges they face in South Korea. The show is hosted…
· Jane Nam
Asian employees feel least included in workplace, behind Black and LGBTQ-plus workers, says survey
A survey conducted by Bain & Company revealed that Asian employees were the demographic with the highest percentage of respondents to report feeling not fully included at work. The study titled The Fabric of Belonging: How to Weave an Inclusive Culture, found that only 25% to…
· Ryan General
India’s Supreme Court widens definition of ‘family’ to include unmarried and queer couples
India's Supreme Court has ruled that familial relationships may take the form of domestic, unmarried partnerships or queer relationships, effectively expanding the country’s definition of what constitutes a “family.” The verdict was made during the hearing of a nurse named…
· Ryan General
Voting begins: 2022 Gold Futures Challenge to give $500,000 to top groups empowering AAPI communities
The second annual Gold Futures Challenge by philanthropic nonprofits Asian American Futures (AAF) and Gold House is set to award a total of $500,000 to top organizations promoting and empowering Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. Competition organizers are…
· Carl Samson
Vietnam declares being gay ‘not an illness’ 32 years after WHO declassification of homosexuality as disease
Vietnam’s Ministry of Health declared homosexuality as “not a disease” in a directive to provincial and municipal health departments on Aug. 3. The announcement noted that homosexuality “is entirely not an illness” and therefore “cannot be ‘cured’ nor need[s] to be ‘cured’ and…
· Carl Samson
Singapore to end colonial-era ban on sex between men
Singapore is set to repeal Section 377A of its penal code, a colonial-era law that criminalizes sex between men. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the long-awaited move on Sunday, saying he hopes it provides “some relief to gay Singaporeans.” While the repeal was planned…
· William Yuk
‘Shoutout to Shrek’: Cast of ‘Never Have I Ever’ S3 break down their onion-like, layered characters
Mindy Kaling’s pseudo-autobiographical series cleverly riffs off of the teen dramedy formula by subverting television’s most enduring coming-of-age tropes. Instead of your typical white manic pixie dream girl, the leading lady is Devi Vishwakumar (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan), an…
· Ryan General
How the new ‘Minions’ movie scored rare approval to release in China
“Minions: The Rise of Gru” is set to be released in Chinese cinemas in less than two weeks, defying a recent trend of major Hollywood blockbusters failing to break into the Chinese moviegoing market. The approval could potentially provide a huge boost in revenue for Universal…
· Ryan General
‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ set to lose millions in potential revenue as China release prospects dim
Marvel Studios’ newest film “Thor: Love and Thunder,” which launched globally last week, has yet to get a release date in China. In 2017, “Thor: Ragnarok” earned $112 million in China, which is now the second-largest film market in the world, second only to the U.S. Getting…
· Ryan General
Singapore says those ‘engaging in gay sex’ will not be prosecuted despite archaic law that bans it
Singapore Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam said in an interview on BBC’s “Hardtalk” that their government will not prosecute citizens under its colonial-era law against consensual same-sex sexual relations. Section 377A of Singapore’s penal code criminalizes acts of “gross…
· Ryan General
Queer California man faces risk of deportation to Fiji after living in the US for 44 years
Salesh “Sal” Prasad, 50, is facing deportation to his birth country, Fiji, where he is at risk of violence and abuse for being a queer person. Prasad, who arrived in the U.S. as a lawful permanent resident in 1978, had a troubled childhood growing up in Modesto, California. At…
· Celine Pun
California bakery releases ‘mochi muffin’ trademark after online backlash
A gay-and family-owned bakery in Berkeley, California, released their trademark on mochi muffins after receiving heavy criticism and poor Yelp reviews from baker netizens in an uproar over cease-and-desist letters. In 2014, Third Culture Bakery chef Sam Butarbutar started baking…
· Jane Nam
Drag Queen Story Hour event for kids in San Francisco stormed by Proud Boys yelling slurs
At a children’s storytime hour on Saturday in San Francisco, a group of far-right men disrupted the event by shouting anti-LGBTQ-plus slurs at drag queen Panda Dulce. Dulce was hosting a Drag Queen Story Hour at the San Lorenzo Library in honor of Pride Month when five men, who…
· Jane Nam
SF DA Chesa Boudin introduces new AAPI victim service unit amid upcoming recall election
On Wednesday, San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin unveiled plans for a new Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Unit as part of his office’s wider Victim Services Division. Boudin introduced the new unit’s director, Paul Lam, whom he stated would “ensure all AAPI…
· Carl Samson
Texas county commissioner candidate apologizes for doctored image of Asian American opponent’s face
Lesley Briones and Benjamin Chou are battling for the Democratic nomination to represent Precinct 4 in the Harris County Commissioners Court in Texas. Chou accused Briones’ campaign of doctoring an image of Chou in an ad released last week, which Chou slammed as “racist” for…
· Ryan General
Urvashi Vaid, influential LGBTQ activist and leader, dies at 63
Loved ones and members of queer activist communities are mourning the sudden passing of pioneering LGBTQ Indian American activist, attorney and author Urvashi Vaid. Vaid, 63, died from cancer at a hospital in New York City on May 14, according to a news release from the National…
· Jane Nam
South Korean senior official’s endorsement of gay conversion therapy sparks resignation calls
Kim Seong-hoi, the newly-appointed religion and multicultural secretary of South Korea, faced major backlash for his apparent endorsement of gay conversion therapy. Kim was initially criticized for his 2019 Facebook post, in which he described homosexuality as “a type of mental…
· Jane Nam
Tokyo set to recognize same-sex partnerships starting November
On Tuesday, the Tokyo metropolitan government revealed its draft of a new registration system that would recognize same-sex partnerships. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike had already promised at the end of last year that the capital would start a system that allowed same-sex couples…
· Bryan Ke
Yīshíjì, popular Chinese content creator, comes out as gay in suicide note
Yīshíjì, a Bilibili content creator known for his videos of himself cooking and eating alone in his home, came out in a suicide note that he included in a pre-scheduled video last week. “I’m gay and it feels great to come out of the closet,” the video’s onscreen text says in…
· Ryan General
‘It’s not OK’: Benedict Wong defends ‘Doctor Strange 2’ co-star Xochitl Gomez from homophobic ‘trolls’
Xochitl Gomez endured homophobic vitriol online after it was reported that “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” will not be shown in certain territories due its LGBTQ-plus content. In the film, Gomez plays the multiverse-hopping America Chavez, who is gay. During an…