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.
Category: Stories
The following stories stem from Taboom’s regular workshops for journalists, editors and media professionals around the world. Since 2014 we have trained and mentored hundreds of journalists from more than 50 countries.
Interfaith leaders find common ground promoting Internet freedom
Interfaith leaders are spearheading a new fight for net neutrality — once the realm of tech wonks and digital rights activists — and framing a free and open Internet as essential for religious freedom, social justice and interfaith cooperation.
African-American opera singer revives the songs of the shtetl
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.
PHOTOS: For trans Muslims in Malaysia, daily life brings struggles, triumphs
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Islamic law forbids cross-dressing, and Malaysia’s government has a zero-tolerance policy toward transgender issues.
African clergy to protest Obama’s gay-rights ‘agenda’ on trip
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.
Black clergy walk a fine line between religious liberty, discrimination
Though several black denominations oppose same-sex marriage, many also object to religious exemptions in nondiscrimination laws.
India’s third-gender ‘hijra’ community balances acceptance with religious identity
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.
By the numbers: India’s LGBT community in legal limbo
NEW DELHI — Despite growing momentum for equal rights across India, openly LGBT people face fear of prosecution.
India’s debate: Can Hinduism and homosexuality coexist?
AHMEDABAD, India — As India grapples with gay rights, theologians and historians often disagree on whether homosexuality is compatible with Hinduism.
Gay civil rights activist, MLK mentor Bayard Rustin to be honored
Years before the gay rights movement gained momentum, the openly gay black activist, a Quaker, advised Martin Luther King Jr. on nonviolent protest tactics and organized the 1963 March on Washington.
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