Understand the LGBTQIA+ news: Digital ID – Anti-trans campaigning groups have already been lobbying the government to create a list of Trans+ people

This weekend, in the humble seaside town of Margate where QueerAF is based, a UKIP rally will march along our seafront.

And yes, you read that right - not Reform but UKIP, led by a woman who says Reform's ultra-right wing plans don't go far enough.

Her march will be flanked on either side by two anti-fascist counter-protests along the route, demonstrating that the majority of Margate values the diversity and difference that are the bedrock of what makes our town so special. All the protests planned are said to be peaceful, but we've seen in recent weeks how quickly fascist marchers are ready to test that boundary.

Our town is not unused to this kind of flare-up. We've long been the home of UKIP. In 2016 there were 'White Lives Matter' marches and a source of riots right back to the infamous 'Mods and Rockers' riots that, while not explicitly racist in their intentions, saw this undertone run rife including in anniversary events in the years after.   

What we're seeing in Margate is a Reform-led Kent County Council testing out what being in government could look like. So far, it's increased police orders, bans on Trans+ books in libraries, Pride flag bans, and divisive tactics in the council. All this against a backdrop of a town with major poverty, crumbling housing stock, and local migrant centres being weaponised to rile up and distract British people who are angry at successive governments failing them.

As the weekend approaches, local businesses are closing up shop and boarding up their windows to keep their properties safe, and my friends are discussing how we can stay safe as we get around town. This is what a Reform council has brought to the UK's 'first seaside town'.

It is with this lens I invite you to read about plans for Digital IDs this week in our top slot - as an indication of how, as privacy campaigners we've spoken to say, they can easily be weaponised against the queer community.

It will be particularly acute for Trans+ people if, as Wes Streeting said the government was considering in an interview this week, Equality Watchdog plans to segregate Trans+ people from public single-sex spaces go ahead.

Overwhelming right? I couldn't agree more. So here's my promise to you:

Just like I'll be at the counter protests this weekend, to show how much love this town has for our marginalised communities – I'll also be here, every week, helping you make sense of the news. Helping you understand what's happening - so you have what you need to fight back.

To borrow a phrase from Harvey Milk, my mood going into this weekend is out of the bars and into the streets. Right now, let's get you what you need this week to join me.

Jamie Wareham
QueerAF Founder

Understand the LGBTQIA+ headlines and keep track of the latest queer content and perspectives. The QueerAF newsletter is written by Jamie Wareham, and a different queer creative each week.

💬 This week:

• Digital ID cards: Privacy campaigners are already warning how this move could easily be weaponised against the LGBTQIA+ community, as the UK looks set to implement ID cards for the first time since WWII.
• EHRC: Comments about the government considering a policy that would insist on Trans+ women using 'third spaces' has been widely shared. We look at the comments from Wes Streeting and consider their meaning.
• No script: There’s lots of advice on how to come out - but not if you’re asexual. Sarah Sharp writes about what she learned from coming out as asexual at work. 

Skip the doomscrolling and support queer creatives instead. We are QueerAF – and so are you.

"Catastrophic" potential as 'Brit Card' Digital IDs could out Trans+ people, campaigners warn

TL;DR: Amid plans announced this week for the UK to bring in 'Brit Cards' as digital ID for work, LGBTQIA+ campaigners speak to QueerAF about the "catastrophic" potential that mandatory IDs on smartphones could have in forcing Trans+ people to come out.