A federal lawsuit lodged by a Ugandan LGBT advocacy group alleges Scott Lively conspired with Ugandan religious and political leaders to incite anti-gay sentiment resulting in discrimination, arrest, torture and murder in that country.

The following selection of stories originally appeared on RNS as part of a reporting series on LGBTQI+ rights and religion in the U.S. and Global South. These and other stories in the series were supported by a grant we received from the Arcus Foundation.
A federal lawsuit lodged by a Ugandan LGBT advocacy group alleges Scott Lively conspired with Ugandan religious and political leaders to incite anti-gay sentiment resulting in discrimination, arrest, torture and murder in that country.
NEW YORK — Authorities in Mecca prohibit camera use at holy sites. Openly gay men are subject to the death penalty. But none of that deterred Parvez Sharma.
BOGOTA, Colombia — Not long ago, the thought of a transgender person speaking openly to a Catholic priest here would have seemed unthinkable. Now cultural shifts are making way for LGBT acceptance.
SIDRAP, Indonesia — Indonesia’s predominantly Muslim Buginese community recognizes and respects five separate genders. One group, the calabai, maintains a unique and valued role planning local wedding ceremonies.
BERKELEY, Calif. — A 6-foot-tall African-American, Russell performs Yiddish songs from New York to Florida, from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, to full houses and wide acclaim.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Islamic law forbids cross-dressing, and Malaysia’s government has a zero-tolerance policy toward transgender issues.
NAIROBI, Kenya — Protesters have called for tactics ranging from throwing rotten eggs at the president to encouraging sex workers to march naked in the streets during his visit.
Though several black denominations oppose same-sex marriage, many also object to religious exemptions in nondiscrimination laws.
AHMEDABAD, India — Some members of India’s ancient “hijra” community fear that the new, official third-gender classification will prevent them from practicing their traditions.
NEW DELHI — Despite growing momentum for equal rights across India, openly LGBT people face fear of prosecution.