This article may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may interest only a particular audience.(August 2023) |
Shaneel Lal | |
---|---|
Born | Nausori, Fiji | 22 January 2000
Occupations |
|
Known for | Activism |
Awards | Kiwibank Young New Zealander of the Year |
Shaneel Shavneel Lal (born 22 January 2000) [1] is a Fijian-New Zealand LGBT rights activist, columnist and political commentator. Lal is best known for advocating for the ban of conversion therapy in New Zealand. [2] [3] [4]
Lal was born in Nausori, Fiji to a mixed iTaukei and Girmitiya family on 22 January 2000. [5] Lal comes from a Hindu family and was raised in a Hindu and Muslim community. After attending a Christian primary and high school in Fiji, Lal states that they "grew out of" religion and subscribes to indigenous spirituality. [6]
In Fiji, Lal was put into conversion therapy in an attempt to change their sexuality and gender identity. [7] The elders of the village prayed over Lal to free them of spirits that supposedly made Lal queer. Lal experienced conversion therapy as a challenge to their indigeneity and relationships with their ancestors. [8] Lal claims that precolonial indigenous queerness is distinct from colonial attitudes to and terms for queerness. [9] Lal argues that prior to colonisation, vakasalewalewa were integral to native Fijian society, and that colonisation and Christianity stripped Fijians of their rich queer identities and conditioned them with homophobia and transphobia. [10]
In 2014, Lal moved to New Zealand with their family. Lal joined Otahuhu College and was named dux in 2018. [11]
Lal uses they/them pronouns and has described themself as trans, non-binary, vakasalewalewa and hijra. [12] [13] [11] [14]
In the summer of 2017, Lal was volunteering at Middlemore Hospital when a church leader walked up to them and offered to pray their gay away. When Lal refused, the church leader wished hell upon them. [15] [16]
Lal's speech at the 2019 Youth Parliament to ban conversion therapy received a standing ovation. [17] Following this, Lal was targeted online with homophobic abuse. [18] In an interview with Breakfast in 2020, Lal labelled conversion therapy "state sanctioned torture". Lal told interviewer Jenny-May Clarkson that numerous queer people pray to God to "heal them, or kill them". [2] Following this interview, Massey University lecturer Steve Elers wrote an opinion piece for the Manawatu Guardian, republished by TheNew Zealand Herald, dismissing the issue of conversion therapy. [19] David Farrier defended Lal in his blog Webworm, and the subsequent media attention led to Elers's opinion column being cancelled. [20] [21] [22]
Lal founded the Conversion Therapy Action Group in 2019 to work towards ending conversion therapy in New Zealand. [3] During the 2020 New Zealand general election, Lal and CTAG pressured the New Zealand Labour Party to commit to banning conversion therapy in New Zealand. [23] Lal worked with the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand to deliver a petition of over more than 150,000 signatures to ban conversion therapy. [24]
In July, the Minister of Justice, Kris Faafoi, introduced the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill. Lal criticised the Bill, calling it an "inadequate bill that fails to ban the practice or compensate the victims". Lal argued that the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill would not allow the police to prosecute offenders and would allow conversion therapy to continue. [25] The Justice Select Committee hearing submissions on the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill received over 100,000 submissions following Lal's online campaign, breaking the record for the number of submissions. [26]
In February 2021, the Minister of Justice announced that a ban on conversion therapy would be enacted at the end of 2021 or in February 2022, at the latest. [27] Lal claimed that this was "an astounding commitment" because at that point, Labour hadn't done foundational work towards their goal. [28] Leading up to the second reading of the Bill, Lal launched a petition asking the Labour Party to amend the Bill through Supplementary Order Papers at the Committee of the whole House. Lal argued that the Labour Party ignored the voices of queer people and put forward an inadequate and ineffective Bill after the select committee process. The petition asked the Government to remove the 18-year age limit to include all ages, to remove the provision that the Attorney-General needed to give consent for prosecutions and to provide ACC coverage for the harm caused by conversion therapy. [29] The Labour Party did not accept any recommendations. [30]
The Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill passed at third reading on 15 February 2022. [31] Lal stated that it was "disheartening" that the bill only protected children (because people over 18 would have to prove they suffered "serious harm" under a strict legal definition) and did not include Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) coverage for mental harm. [32] Nonetheless, Lal said that New Zealand's ban on conversion therapy is a win for humanity, not just the queer community, and asserted that queer rights are human rights. [33]
Lal stated that they received a death threat after the passing of the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill. Lal dismissed the threats and instead called for celebration. [34] Lal told VICE World News that the ban on conversion therapy is a gift to future generations of queer people. [35]
In 2022, Vogue magazine published an online article in celebration of Lal's efforts to ban conversion therapy in New Zealand. Vogue wrote that "Lal's call for New Zealand to reform the laws around conversion therapy have made a major impact". [36]
In 2022, Lal shared an article to their Instagram detailing how Bethlehem College in Tauranga requires all students and their families to demonstrate a commitment to the belief that marriage is only between a man and a woman. Former and present students responded to the Instagram post, accusing the school of abuse. Lal said the students made allegations including victim blaming of people who alleged they were raped, racism and blackface incidents, and conversion therapy practices. Lal started a petition calling for the Education Review Office to launch an independent investigation into Bethlehem College and for the Ministry of Education, the Minister of Education and the Associate Ministers of Education to support the investigation. Lal said that when they "posted about the issue of homophobia at Bethlehem College, I did not realise the gravity of the abuse the former and present students have been experiencing at Bethlehem College." [37]
Since May 2022, Lal has argued that the New Zealand Blood Service should allow gay men in monogamous relationships, who have had sex only with each other in the last three months, to donate blood. [38] Researchers estimate that about thirty-five thousand people would be able to give blood if New Zealand Blood Service took this approach. [39] Lal says the blanket ban on gay blood donation rules out people who could safely donate blood but who are not allowed to because they are gay. [38] In October 2022, Lal argued that anyone who hadn't had a new sexual partner and anal sex, or who hadn't had multiple sexual partners and anal sex within the last three months, should be allowed to donate blood if they carry no infections. [40]
In February 2023, Lal advocated for New Zealand Blood Service and Medsafe to use individualised donor behaviour criteria to determine eligibility of blood donors. Lal wanted the question to be "have you had sex with more than one person, or a new person, in the last three months?” instead of asking questions about a donor's sexuality. [41] Lal claimed that if the "stars align", the Sex and Prevention of Transmission Study "will provide [New Zealand Blood Service] with the necessary scientific evidence to make a proposal to Medsafe to utilise an individualised risk assessment for gay men wanting to donate blood". [41]
In April 2023 after winning Young New Zealander of the Year, Lal asked urged New Zealand Blood Services to use individualised risk assessments to determine blood donor eligibility and remove the blanket ban on gay men. [42] [43] In May 2023, Lal said that New Zealand Blood Services had sufficient international evidence demonstrating it was safe to use individualised risk assessment to determine donor eligibility. [44]
In 2022, Lal launched a petition calling the Labour Party to protect queer people, women and disabled people from hate speech. The petition gained over 10,000 signatures. [45] Lal wrote in their NZ Herald column that "the Labour Party's failure to prohibit anti-queer hate speech will embolden anti-queer groups, extremist religious groups, and right-wing groups to incite violence against queer people." [46]
Following a 2022 arson attack on RainbowYOUTH's Tauranga Drop-In Centre, Lal set up a Givealittle which raised $84,000. [47]
Lal is calling on the Pacific Islands to decriminalise homosexuality. [11] Following a 2021 Green Party event celebrating 35 Years of Homosexual Law Reform, Lal criticised the lack of action by New Zealand's Pākehā queer community to support the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the Pacific Islands and addressed the racism in the New Zealand queer community. A petition called on Rainbow Youth to expel them from Rainbow Youth's board. [48] Pasifika communities have celebrated Lal for their advocacy for queer Pasifika voices and issues. The Coconet wrote that "Shaneel Lal is a multifaceted and intersectional activist. They have been vocal and influential in bringing to light various issues around racism, transphobia, indigenous land issues, systemic injustice and much more. [49]
At the 2021 Auckland Pride March, Lal confronted anti-queer Christian protestors. [50]
In 2023, Lal helped organise a counter-protest of a women's rights rally organised by the British anti-transgender activist Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull in Auckland. [51] [52] [53] Keen-Minshull was escorted out of Albert Park after the event became unsafe, and cancelled her other rally in New Zealand. [54] [55]
Lal advised the Minister of Education, Chris Hipkins for three years as a member of the Minister's youth advisory group. [56] Lal has sat on Amnesty International's Youth Task Force. [57] Lal has served as a Global Youth Leader for Open Government Partnership. [3] In 2019, Lal was selected by Jenny Salesa to represent Manukau East in the New Zealand Youth Parliament. [18]
In 2020, Lal was a finalist for Mr Gay New Zealand, a competition run by Express Magazine. [58] [59]
Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change an individual's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms. Methods that have been used to this end include forms of brain surgery, surgical or hormonal castration, aversive treatments such as electric shocks, nausea-inducing drugs, hypnosis, counseling, spiritual interventions, visualization, psychoanalysis, and arousal reconditioning.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights in Germany rank among the highest in the world and have evolved significantly over the course of the last decades. During the 1920s and the early 1930s, lesbian and gay people in Berlin were generally tolerated by society and many bars and clubs specifically pertaining to gay men were opened. Although same-sex sexual activity between men was already made illegal under Paragraph 175 by the German Empire in 1871, Nazi Germany extended these laws during World War II, which resulted in the persecution and deaths of thousands of homosexual citizens. The Nazi extensions were repealed in 1960 and same-sex sexual activity between men was decriminalized in both East and West Germany in 1968 and 1969, respectively.
Rainbow Labour is the LGBT+ sector of the New Zealand Labour Party.
The New Zealand Young Nationals, more commonly called the Young Nats, is the youth wing of the National Party, a centre-right political party in New Zealand, and a member of the International Young Democrat Union.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights in Fiji have evolved rapidly over the years, however LGBT people may still face some legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. In 1997, Fiji became the second country in the world after South Africa to explicitly protect against discrimination based on sexual orientation in its Constitution. In 2009, the Constitution was abolished. The new Constitution, promulgated in September 2013, bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. However, same-sex marriage remains banned in Fiji and reports of societal discrimination and bullying are not uncommon.
Canadian lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights are some of the most extensive in the world. Same-sex sexual activity, in private between consenting adults, was decriminalized in Canada on June 27, 1969, when the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1968–69 was brought into force upon royal assent. In a landmark decision in 1995, Egan v Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada held that sexual orientation is constitutionally protected under the equality clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In 2005, Canada was the fourth country in the world, and the first in the Americas, to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide. In 2022, Canada was the third country in the world, and the first in North America, to fully ban conversion therapy nationwide for both minors and adults.
Otahuhu College is a secondary school in Auckland, New Zealand for students years 9 to 13.
New Zealand lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights are some of the most extensive in the world. The protection of LGBT rights is advanced, relative to other countries in Oceania, and among the most liberal in the world, with the country being the first in the region and thirteenth in the world to enact same-sex marriage.
The New Zealand Youth Parliament, held once in each term of parliament, is an event used to promote the civic and community engagement of New Zealand youth. The event has been held since 1994, and takes place at the New Zealand Parliament Buildings. The latest Youth Parliament, the 9th Youth Parliament, took place on 16 and 17 July 2019.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the U.S. state of Florida have federal protections, but many face legal difficulties on the state level that are not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity became legal in the state after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Lawrence v. Texas on June 26, 2003, although the state legislature has not repealed its sodomy law. Same-sex marriage has been legal in the state since January 6, 2015. Discrimination on account of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations is outlawed following the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County. In addition, several cities and counties, comprising about 55 percent of Florida's population, have enacted anti-discrimination ordinances. These include Jacksonville, Miami, Tampa, Orlando, St. Petersburg, Tallahassee and West Palm Beach, among others. Conversion therapy is also banned in a number of cities in the state, mainly in Palm Beach County and the Miami metropolitan area. In September 2023, Lake Worth Beach, Florida became an official "LGBT sanctuary city" to protect and defend LGBT rights.
Simon David O'Connor is a New Zealand politician and a former member of the New Zealand House of Representatives for the National Party. He represented the Tāmaki electorate from 2011 to 2023.
Shane Raymond Reti is a New Zealand politician and a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives, and a Cabinet Minister with the roles of Minister of Health and Minister for Pacific Peoples, since 27 November 2023. He was first elected at the 2014 general election as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Whangārei electorate. He is a member of the New Zealand National Party and served as its deputy leader from 10 November 2020 to 30 November 2021 including a period of five days as interim leader following the ousting of Judith Collins.
Maria Josina Elisabeth "Marja" Lubeck is a New Zealand politician. She was a member of parliament in the House of Representatives for the Labour Party.
Christopher Mark Luxon is a New Zealand politician and business executive who has been the 42nd prime minister of New Zealand since November 2023. He served as leader of the Opposition from 2021 to 2023. Luxon became member of Parliament (MP) for Botany in 2020. He had previously been the chief executive officer (CEO) of Air New Zealand from 2012 to 2019.
The Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Act 2022 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand that bans conversion therapy practices that seek to change or suppress a person's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. The Bill passed its third and final reading on 15 February, receiving royal assent on 18 February 2022.
Vakasalewalewa are people from Fiji, who were born assigned male at birth but who have a feminine gender expression. In Fiji this is understood as a traditional third gender identity, culturally specific to the country.
This is a list of notable events in the history of LGBT rights that took place in the year 2022.
The Youth Mental Health Protection Act, H.B. 217, is an Illinois bill that prohibits mental health professional from implementing conversion therapy, reparative therapy, or sexual orientation change efforts on patients under the age of eighteen. Additionally, the bill outlaws any promotional materials from deceiving consumers and falsely representing homosexuality as a mental health defect in any manner. The goal of the legislation is to protect minors from undue stress and further stigmatization as a result of their sexuality.
Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity. As of August 2023, twenty-six countries have bans on conversion therapy, eleven of them ban the practice by any person: Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Malta, New Zealand and Spain; eight ban its practice by medical professionals only; Albania, Brazil, Chile, India, Israel, Portugal, Vietnam and Taiwan; another seven: Argentina, Fiji, Nauru, Paraguay, Samoa, Switzerland, and Uruguay have indirect bans in that diagnoses based solely on sexual orientation or gender identity are banned without specifically banning conversion therapy, this effectively amounts to a ban on health professionals since they would not generally engage in therapy without a diagnosis. In addition, some jurisdictions within Australia, Mexico and the United States also ban conversion therapy. In China and South Africa case law has found conversion therapy to be unlawful. Bills banning conversion therapy are being considered in Ireland, Mexico, Poland, the Netherlands, Austria, Finland, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.