17 May - International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia

This year's theme is “No one left behind: Equality, Freedom and Justice for all”. LGBT+ people still face persecution around the world, including the threat of imprisonment or death in some jurisdictions. Despite many advances in recent years in the UK, including the legalisation of same-sex marriage and changes to adoption law, many LGBT+ people still face attacks on their rights.

Hate crimes against LGBT+ people in England and Wales rose by almost 11% last year and it is believed that there is still massive under-reporting of such incidents. This has been fuelled, no doubt, by the culture war stoked up by the government and right-wing groups. Just last week, PCS criticised the government's plans to abolish equality, diversity and inclusion jobs across the civil service.

IDAHOBIT is an important date not just for the LGBT+ community, but also for allies, human rights groups and trade unions to call for greater protections and enhancements for LGBT+ people worldwide and in the UK.

LGBT+ rights are a trade union Issue

The purpose of trade unions is to promote and protect the interests of our members. This isn’t limited to the workplace. Our members should be able to live their lives free from the threat of discrimination and violence.

PCS has a long and proud history of campaigning for the rights of the LGBT+ community and standing against individuals, groups and organisations that would seek to diminish those rights.

If you feel you’ve suffered detriment or have been discriminated against because of your sexual orientation or gender identity, your local PCS rep can help. You can find their details by logging in to PCS Digital.

Get involved

There will be a number of events held across the UK to mark IDAHOBIT. You can also find out more about PCS’s LGBT+ network PCS Proud.

You can share the campaign messages on social media using the hashtags #IDAHOBIT2024