2015 was a historical year for LGBT rights movements, not only after the events in the U.S., but also around the world. We got to see more and more public personalities supporting the LGBT community and Governments changing laws in our favor.
While there is still more needed to be changed, let’s look back at what made a difference for us in 2015.
A great success was the legalization of same-sex marriage in all fifty states in the U.S. under the US Constitution. Everybody was thrilled and the world turned into rainbow colors when the victory was announced.
Ireland has also celebrated the legalization of same-sex marriage that came into effect last month and allow same sex couples to legalize their communion.
In 2015 transgender people gained more attention and more rights, as they can serve openly in the military in US, and the issues surrounding transgender people were louder this year than ever. Transgender women and transgender men have posted their stories on social media, and so the world became more aware of their problems, of what they need and expect from society. Eddie Redmayne has recently declared that he is an ally of the transgender people, after playing the role of a transgender woman in The Danish Girl.
UK Government has also become more perceptive to the needs of gay people and made the HPV vaccine available for gays. The HPV vaccine was only available for girls aged 12 or 13. Boys were excluded supposedly being protected as long as their sex partners (girls) were vaccinated. Yet they hadn’t thought of gay men until last month.
This year Hilary Clinton has revealed the awesome gay agenda that is meant to continue all the good things that happened in 2015 for the LGBT community. She talked about banning discrimination in schools, achieving full federal equality, supporting same-sex parents and more. The program also aims to “Increase support for the Global Equality Fund.”
Kim Davis made a fool of herself and some more celebrities came proudly out of the closet. Ellen Page could not be happier after coming out, Johnny Deep’s daughter came out and her father supported her. Wrestler Matt Cage proved that there is no stereotype and anyone can be gay, and Vogue supermodel Cara Delevingne also came out and declared how much she loved her girlfriend.
All in all, it was a great year for the LGBT community, and despite the pessimist predictions for 2016, I think we’re going in the right direction as long as we keep our heads high and keep the faith in who we are.
