International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commision

June is international gay pride month. There have been parades, meetings and other events all over the world I thought it was time to do my part and help support gay and lesbian rights as we celebrate diversity.
Around the world, many nations still have homosexuality as a crime punishable by imprisonment and even death. In the United States the population is strongly divided on the status same sex marriages should have. Starting in the late 1960s and 1970s gay rights have been a major issue in human rights discussions.


One of the leaders in supporting increased security and rights for sexual minorities around the world is the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC). From the organizations founding in 1990 by Julie Dorf the it has reached out from its initial work in the United States and started to take action across the world. Notably they offer support in developing nations of the middle east and Africa. Their early victories include lobbying for the repeal of anti-sodomy laws in Soviet Russia in the early 1990s and establishing the first cases where asylum was granted to individuals being persecuted in their home countries on grounds of sexual orientation. The IGLHRC has participated in United Nations events for nearly two decades. In 1994 they brought lesbian issues to the worlds attention at the 4th World Conference in Women. This movement help found the Pink Triangle Coalition, active mostly in the early 2000s and focused on brining forward the specific persecution of lesbians in NAZI Germany. They have continued to gain support and influence international policies to fight civil and humanitarian injustices.

Their regularly published reports are both publicly available and submitted to national and international organizations to publicise the states of gay rights globally.In 2011 the IGLHR collected information by interviews with locals and cooperation with local organizations such as Pink Life of Turkey and Filipino Freethinkers. This information was reported directly to the UN and will be used in the Human Rights Committee's list of issues for 2012. This is hardly then end of their activities as comparable work has been done in Africa, South America, Asia, Pacifica and continue to provide assistance to individuals in North America and Europe who are in crisis.  Their commitment to work in nations where homosexuals are most at risk is particularly interesting. They work on emergency responses to arrests and murders in nations where same sex intercourse or relationships are illegal. This includes Iran, where President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has previously stated that there are no homosexuals to avoid discussing his policies in more detail (AFP). 


In additional to performing investigations and reporting to political organizations. They help organize public events for out reach and community building. By bringing gay and lesbian issues to the public awareness, they promote further discussion of events and issues many of us are unaware of. The IGLHRC has been a major force for good in working for equal rights for all.