The Malaysian government is following through on a pledge to replace references to LGBTQ identity with the term “budaya songsang,” which translates as “deviant culture.”
In February, Marhamah Rosli, the deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs), argued that replacing “LGBT” with “budaya songsang” in public discourse and on social media would prevent online algorithms from surfacing LGBTQ content and, in turn, prevent the “normalization” of queer culture.
“The more we utter, write, or state [‘LGBT’], the more ‘pop-out’ content related to it will appear,” she said. “Without realizing it, we are promoting the culture unknowingly.”
The erasure of the term “LGBT” is part of a broader campaign by the government to scapegoat LGBTQ Malaysians while appealing to socially conservative Malay-Muslim voters ahead of the next general election.
Malaysia is socially conservative, with same-sex intimacy punishable by up to 20 years in prison, as well as caning, fines, and, in some cases, deportation. Under state Sharia law, same-sex relations are illegal for Muslims in every state and federal territory except Pahang.
Malaysia also lacks laws protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination, and there is no right to change one’s legal gender. Sharia laws also prohibit conduct such as “men impersonating women.” While the federal constitution prohibits gender-based discrimination, those protections are rarely extended to LGBTQ people in practice.
The Malaysian LGBTQ advocacy organization Justice for Sisters reported that at least 307 LGBTQ people were arrested in the country under both federal and state laws last year. Malaysian authorities have also conducted raids of organizations or events associated with LGBTQ identity. In 2023, authorities raided several Swatch stores and confiscated Rainbow-colored merchandise for allegedly promoting LGBTQ identity, before ultimately banning such products and threatening anyone who owns one with three years in prison.
The Malaysian LGBTQ advocacy group Justice for Sisters reported that at least 307 LGBTQ people were arrested under federal and state laws last year. Malaysian authorities have also raided organizations and events associated with LGBTQ identity.
In 2023, authorities raided several Swatch stores and confiscated rainbow-colored merchandise for allegedly promoting LGBTQ identity before ultimately banning such products and threatening anyone who owns them with up to three years in prison.
In July 2025, officials raided what they claimed was a “gay party,” though organizers said it was an HIV education and outreach event. In March 2026, the country’s communications ministry vowed to block access to LGBTQ dating apps such as Grindr, Growlr, and Blued.
“The term ‘budaya songsang’ dehumanizes LGBT people, fuels misinformation, and reinforces the dangerous belief that LGBT people should be ‘corrected,'” Justice for Sisters said in the statement. “It contributes directly to violence, discrimination, and violations of dignity and equality under Articles 5 and 8 of the Federal Constitution.”
Qistina Johari, a campaigner with Amnesty International Malaysia, also criticized the government’s efforts.
“We strongly condemn this appalling decision by the government,” Johari said. “When public officials label LGBTI people as ‘deviant,’ they are not upholding morality — they are legitimizing hate and discrimination against a highly vulnerable group.”
A gay couple that is owed more than $560,000 in damages and legal costs after being denied a marriage license by former Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis has filed a new lawsuit alleging that she transferred inherited property to family members to avoid paying the judgment.
David Ermold and David Moore were turned away by Davis's office when they attempted to obtain a marriage license in 2015. In 2023, a federal jury found that Davis had violated their constitutional rights and awarded them $100,000 in damages.
“We really see ourselves as a pipeline-building organization,” says Stevie McCarty, president of the Capital Stonewall Democrats, D.C.’s leading LGBTQ political organization. The group’s latest initiative seeks to recruit LGBTQ residents to run for local office -- specifically, as Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners.
In D.C. politics, Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners -- part-time, unpaid, nonpartisan representatives -- are the elected officials closest to residents.
GxBar, an LGBTQ-friendly salon in Kyiv, was vandalized by unidentified individuals who poured blood and left severed pig heads and entrails around its main entrance.
The vandalism targeted the GxBar Special salon, which has faced other attacks in recent months that the business believes are linked to its support for the LGBTQ community.
According to a post on GxBar's Instagram account, the salon was defaced around 6:17 a.m. on July 21. Security footage from inside the salon shows at least one person -- and possibly others -- dousing the entrance in blood and placing the pig heads on the building's front stoop.
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