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There are no statistics on how many LGBT people there are in Singapore or what percentage of the population they constitute. While homosexuality is legal in the country, the country is largely conservative.
Singapore has particularly established LGBT portals owing to its high Internet penetration rates and the restriction on LGBT content in print and broadcast media.
Alex Au Waipang, also known by his Internet pseudonym as Yawning Bread, is an advocate of LGBT rights in Singapore. Au is a blogger and activist who provides analyses of Singaporean politics, culture, gay issues and miscellaneous subjects on his blog. He is also the co-author of two books, People Like Us: Sexual Minorities in Singapore and a French-language treatise on homophobia entitled L'Homophobie.
There is a long history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender activity in Singapore. Male homosexuality was outlawed under British rule, despite being acknowledged among the local population. Following Japanese occupation during World War II and the country gaining independence, homosexuality and transvestism were visible as a street scene, and from the 1970s were catered for in some nightclubs. In that decade also, Singapore became a centre of gender-reassignment surgery.
This article deals with writing that deals with LGBT themes in a Singapore context. It covers literary works of fiction, such as novels, short stories, plays and poems. It also includes non-fiction works, both scholarly and targeted at the general reader, such as dissertations, journal or magazine articles, books and even web-based content. Although Singapore lacks a dedicated gay book publisher or gay bookshop, it does have at least one dedicated gay library, Pelangi Pride Centre, which is open weekly to the public. Many of the works cited here may be found both in Pelangi Pride Centre, as well as the National Library or other academic libraries in Singapore, as well as in some commercial bookshops under 'gender studies' sections.
The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Singapore have evolved over the decades. Same-sex sexual activity is legal for both males and females; for men it was officially legalised in 2022 after being de facto decriminalised since 2007, and for women it was always legal. Prior to 2022, same-sex sexual activity between males was de jure illegal under the British colonial-era Section 377A of the Penal Code. The law had been de facto unenforced for decades. In February 2022, the Court of Appeal in the Supreme Court reaffirmed that 377A cannot be used to prosecute men for having sex with other men, and that it is "unenforceable in its entirety". Transgender rights in the country are also progressive in the region, which included Singapore being the first country in Asia to legalise sex reassignment surgery in 1973.
Singapore's first public LGBT pride festival, IndigNation, took place during the month of August in 2005, with a second annual IndigNation in August 2006. Previous gay celebrations, exemplified by the Nation parties held annually in Singapore since 2001, were private commercial events held for LGBT recreation, but were also socio-political statements of significance in Singapore gay history and milestones in Singapore's human rights record.
IndigNation was Singapore's annual, month-long lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer pride season, first held in August 2005 to coincide with the republic's 40th National Day.
People Like Us (PLU) (Chinese:我等之辈) is a gay equality lobby group in Singapore. Having been twice rejected by the government board which approves or prohibits organisations, the Registrar of Societies, it is now in its third incarnation as "PLU3". The term "PLU" has also gradually become slang for "homosexual" amongst members of Singapore's and Malaysia's gay subculture.
Kumarason Chinnadurai, popularly known as Kumar, is a Singaporean Indian comedian and television host, actor, and drag queen. He made his name at the Boom Boom Room and was, for a time, synonymous with the cabaret nightclub as its resident performer. Having spent nearly two decades as an entertainer, he has amassed a string of television, stage, and film credits. Currently, he is a regular performer at Hard Rock Café. He released his biographical book, Kumar: From Rags To Drag, in September 2011. In his book, he publicly came out as gay, making him the first entertainer in Singapore to come out. He is one of the few openly-gay public figures in Singapore.
Ng Yi Sheng is a Singaporean gay writer. He has published a collection of his poems entitled last boy, which won the Singapore Literature Prize, and a documentary book on gay, lesbian and bisexual Singaporeans called SQ21: Singapore Queers in the 21st Century in 2006.
Atticus Circle was a non-profit organization whose mission was to educate and mobilize straight people to advance equal rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender partners, parents, and their children. With the national office located in Austin, Texas, Atticus Circle focused on straight allies of the LGBT social movements. The organization was founded and was run mostly by straight people and works to empower straight and other allies to give them a sense of ownership in this civil rights struggle.
TREVVY was an LGBTQ website in Singapore. Started August 2006 through a re-branding exercise of Singapore's first gay portal, Trevvy ceased operation in 2021. At one point, Trevvy had over 120,000 registered users.
Pink Dot SG, known endonymously as Pink Dot, is a pride event that has occurred annually since 2009 in support of the LGBT community in Singapore. Attendees of Pink Dot events gather to form a "pink dot" to show support for inclusiveness, diversity and the freedom to love in the country. Pink Dot events typically include concert performances and booths sponsored by organizations that support the LGBT community and cause in addition to the event's name-brand formation.
Currently, there is no legal recognition of same-sex unions in Singapore.
Foo Mee Har is a Malaysian-born Singaporean politician and businesswoman. She is a member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP). Foo has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Ayer Rajah division from 2011 to 2020. Since 2020, she represents the Ayer Rajah-Gek Poh division, a result of the merger between the Jurong West portion of Hong Kah North SMC and West Coast GRC's Ayer Rajah ward.
Silent Walls is a 2023 Singaporean thriller television series telecast on Mediacorp Channel 8 and produced by Ochre Pictures. It stars Tasha Low, Ayden Sng, Mindee Ong, Tay Ying, Charlie Goh, Foo Fang Rong, Shane Pow, Ferlyn Wong, Macy Chen, Alfred Sng, Desmond Shen, Desmond Ng, Jojo Goh, Andie Chen, Bernard Tan and Chen Shucheng. The series centres around a mansion and the lives of its occupants in 1938, 1963, 1988 and 2023.
Dear Straight People is an LGBT media platform based in Singapore. Since its launch, Dear Straight People has gained prominence as one of Asia's leading LGBT publications.
Sean Foo is a Singaporean entrepreneur, filmmaker and advocate known for his contributions to the LGBT community through his work with Dear Straight People.
Getaway is a Singaporean gay web series known for being the country's first Boys Love web series. The series was launched on YouTube on 23 May 2022.
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