This is a list of notable events in the history of LGBTQ rights that took place in the year 2007.

Events

January

* 1 **

Registered partnerships A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with child ...

begin in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. **

Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 was secondary legislation in the United Kingdom, outlawing discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities, services, education and public functions on the grounds of sexual orientation ...

comes into effect in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. * January 11 – The Mexican northern state of

Coahuila Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza, is one of the 31 states of Mexico. The largest city and State Capital is the city of Saltillo; the second largest is Torreón and the thi ...

, which borders Texas, passes (20–13) a bill legalizing same-sex civil unions, under the name ''Pacto Civil de Solidaridad'' (Civil Union Pact). After a similar measure was approved in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

in November 2006.

February

* 28 – Equalised

age of consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to Human sexual activity, sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is un ...

comes into effect in United Kingdom territory of

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

March

* 17 – The Soulforce Equality Ride visits 32 schools in the United States that ban enrollment of openly gay students. * 27 – A group of 29 human rights experts including seven United Nations Special Rapporteurs and a former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights releases the

Yogyakarta Principles The Yogyakarta Principles is a document about human rights in the areas of sexual orientation and gender identity that was published as the outcome of an international meeting of human rights groups in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, in November 2006. T ...

on the Application of International Human Rights Law in Relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.

April

* 10 – The legislature of the U.S. state of

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

passes S5336, giving final approval to

domestic partnership A domestic partnership is an intimate relationship between people, usually couples, who live together and share a common domestic life but who are not married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partnerships receive legal be ...

legislation, which would give same-sex couples many state rights of marriage. * 26 – The legislature of the U.S. state of

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

passes legislation for

civil unions A civil union (also known as a Civil partnership in the United Kingdom, civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for Same-sex relationship, same-sex couples. Civi ...

, which give same-sex couples many state rights of marriage. * 30 –

Regulations Regulation is the management of complex systems according to a set of rules and trends. In systems theory, these types of rules exist in various fields of biology and society, but the term has slightly different meanings according to context. Fo ...

covering the provision of goods, facilities and services, outlawing discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation enter into force in Great Britain.

May

* 8 – In the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

, New York congressman

Jerrold Nadler Jerrold Lewis Nadler (; born June 13, 1947) is an American lawyer and politician from the state of New York. A Manhattan resident and a member of the Democratic Party, he has served as the U.S. representative for since 2023. Nadler was first ...

and

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

senator

Patrick Leahy Patrick Joseph Leahy ( ; born March 31, 1940) is an American politician and attorney who represented Vermont in the United States Senate from 1975 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he also was the pr ...

reintroduce the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) (H.R.2221 & S.1328). * 9 – U.S. state of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

bans discrimination based on sexual orientation (which is legally defined to include gender identity) in the private sector. * 17 –

Ted Strickland Theodore Strickland (born August 4, 1941) is an American politician who served as the 68th governor of Ohio from 2007 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the United States House of Representatives, representing ( ...

, governor of the U.S. state of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, issues an executive order banning discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in the public sector. * 22 – U.S. state of

bans gender identity discrimination in the private sector. * 24 –

Jenny Bailey Jenny Bailey is a British Liberal Democrat politician who was the civic leader of Cambridge City Council in Cambridge, England. Bailey served her mayoral term from 2007 to 2008. Bailey became a member of the city council in 2002, when she was ...

becomes the first

transsexual A transsexual person is someone who experiences a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desires to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (incl ...

mayor in the United Kingdom. * 25 ** U.S. state of

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

bans discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in the private sector.PrideDEPOT.com – Everybody Has A Right
** U.S. state of

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

bans discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in the private sector.

June

* 1 –

begin in South Australia.

August

* 9 – '' Visible Vote '08: A Presidential Forum'', the first ever LGBT issues debate is hosted by the

Logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name that it represents, as in ...

cable television channel. Six candidates for the Democratic party's presidential nomination participate in the event. * 31 –

Kathleen Sebelius Kathleen Sebelius (; née Gilligan, born May 15, 1948) is an American politician who served as the 21st United States secretary of health and human services from 2009 until 2014. As Secretary of Health and Human Services, Sebelius was instrumenta ...

, governor of the U.S. state of

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, issues an executive order banning discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the public sector.

September

* 17 – The

Maryland Court of Appeals The Supreme Court of Maryland (previously the Maryland Court of Appeals) is the highest court of the U.S. state of Maryland. The court, which is composed of one chief justice and six associate justices, meets in the Robert C. Murphy Courts of ...

overturns a lower court ruling in ''Deane & Polyak v. Conaway'' and rules that the Maryland constitution does not require the state to recognize or sanction same-sex marriage.

November

* 13 – Charles Iavarone, Supervisor of the Town of Salina, proposes human rights legislation which included a domestic partnership registry for the town. The board's only Democrat sided with two Republicans to defeat the law. * 21 –

Jennifer Granholm Jennifer Mulhern Granholm (born February 5, 1959) is an American politician who was the 16th United States secretary of energy from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, she previously served as the 47t ...

, governor of the U.S. state of

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, issues an executive order prohibiting employment discrimination based on gender identity or expression in the public sector. * 29 ** The first foreign gay wedding is held in Hanoi, Vietnam, between a Japanese and an Irish national. **

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

becomes the first Latin American country to pass a national

civil union A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with ch ...

law.

December

* 16 – In

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, the

Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act, 2007 The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act, 2007 (Act No. 32 of 2007; also referred to as the Sexual Offences Act) is an act of the Parliament of South Africa that reformed and codified the law relating to sex offence ...

comes into force, setting an equal

at 16; previously it had been 16 for heterosexual sex and 19 for homosexual sex. * 17 – The

National Assembly of Hungary The National Assembly ( ) is the parliament of Hungary. The unicameral body consists of 199 (386 between 1990 and 2014) members elected to four-year terms. Election of members is done using a semi-proportional representation: a mixed-member m ...

passes

registered partnerships A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with child ...

, to become effective on January 1, 2009. The law gives the same rights to registered partners as to married spouses except for adoption.

Deaths

* February 18 –

Barbara Gittings Barbara Gittings (July 31, 1932 – February 18, 2007) was an American LGBTQ movements, LGBTQ activist. She started the New York City, New York chapter of the Daughters of Bilitis (DOB) in 1958, edited the national DOB magazine ''The Ladde ...

, 75, U.S. gay rights activist * March 14 – Ryan Skipper, 25, U.S. victim of an anti-gay hate crime * May 15 –

Yolanda King Yolanda Denise King (November 17, 1955 – May 15, 2007) was an American activist and campaigner for African-American rights and first-born child of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, who pursued artistic and ent ...

, U.S. civil rights and gay rights activist * November 29 –

Jane Rule Jane Vance Rule (28 March 1931 – 27 November 2007) was a Canadian-American writer of lesbian-themed works. Her first novel, '' Desert of the Heart'', appeared in 1964, when gay activity was still a criminal offence. It turned Rule into a r ...

, 76, U.S. lesbian author and advocate of gay rights

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2007 In Lgbtq Rights LGBTQ rights by year

LGBTQ rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Nota ...

Events

January

February

March

April

May

June

August

September

November

December

Deaths

See also

References