Report: US policies undermine global LGBTQ+ rights progress

A comprehensive annual report from Human Rights Watch has cast a stark light on the erosion of global human rights and LGBTQ+ protections, with particular scrutiny on the actions of the United States under the Trump administration. The report emphasizes a critical link: "Where democracy is undermined, so too are human rights."

Philippe Bolopion, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch, articulated the severity of the situation in the report's introduction, stating, "The global human rights system is in peril." He further elaborated that the "rules-based international order is being crushed" under "relentless pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump," compounded by challenges from China and Russia. This systemic assault, Bolopion warns, threatens the very framework relied upon by human rights defenders worldwide.

The report details a "democratic recession," noting that an alarming 72% of the world's population now lives under autocratic rule, with freedoms diminishing not only in Russia and China but also in the United States. Bolopion observed that authoritarian leaders exploit public mistrust to gain power, subsequently dismantling institutions, citing examples like India, Turkey, and Hungary.

As detailed by LGBTQ+ Nation, the U.S. played a role in advancing LGBTQ+ rights internationally, advocating for their inclusion in U.N. resolutions and documents. However, Bolopion highlighted a "opposite movement" under the Trump administration, both domestically and abroad.

Within the United States, the administration and its allies have aggressively pursued policies that roll back protections for LGBTQ+ individuals. The report specifies "escalated attacks on transgender communities," including executive actions that restrict the definition of "sex" and "gender," limit access to gender-affirming care for youth, and diminish safeguards for transgender students.

Internationally, the report points to a significant reduction or elimination of U.S. funding that previously supported LGBTQ+ rights and welfare initiatives. The cessation of USAID programs, for instance, cut vital funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and other programs benefiting LGBTQ+ communities. Furthermore, the U.S. withdrew from numerous U.N. treaties and international agreements under the guise of eliminating "gender ideology," and in January, broadened the Mexico City Policy to include this ideology, barring promotion of abortion alongside other related activities.

Sarah Yager, Human Rights Watch Washington Director, underscored the deliberate nature of these actions, stating that "LGBTQ rights are not just a casualty of the Trump foreign policy; it is the intent of the Trump foreign policy."

The report also extensively documented human rights abuses in other nations, many of which were implicitly or tacitly supported by the Trump administration's alignment with autocratic regimes. In Hungary, where Prime Minister Viktor Orbán maintains a close alliance with Donald Trump, the parliament amended laws in March to ban Pride marches and other public LGBTQ+ events, imposing fines and authorizing facial recognition for attendees.

Similarly, in Russia, President Vladimir Putin, whom Trump has publicly admired, continues to enact legislation aimed at suppressing the LGBTQ+ community. The report cites cases from 2025 where individuals received prison sentences for "involving" people in the "international LGBT movement," which Russia's Supreme Court designated as "extremist." Other instances include compulsory labor for displaying "extremist" symbols like the rainbow flag, and suspended sentences for social media posts advocating for LGBTQ+ rights. In the same year, Human Rights Watch itself was declared "undesirable" and banned from operating in Russia.