Twitter, the navy and French spelling

Your Daily Package of newsy and naughty bits from around the world

American court blocks Trump trans military ban

A judge in Washington says that US President Donald Trump cannot ban trans people from the military because his policy is not based on actual concern for military effectiveness but rather disapproval of transgender people. [CKRA]

French academy condemns gender neutral spelling

The academic group responsible for policing the use of the French language in France says the language is in “mortal danger” from new gender-neutral spellings adopted by the government. [The Telegraph]

Indian high court orders accommodation for trans sailor

The Delhi high court of India says the country’s navy should find a new job for a transgender woman who was fired after receiving gender-confirming surgery. The navy says the woman was fired because women cannot hold the job she formerly held. [Hindustan Times]

UN tussles over Olympic LGBT language

The United States, Brazil and France have stepped in to stop Russia and Egypt from removing LGBT-rights language from a United Nations resolution on the Olympics. The clause protects against discrimination, including against LGBT people, at the Olympic Games. [Washington Blade]

Study: Australia vote could be closer than expected

While conventional polls suggest a solid win for equal marriage in Australia’s mail ballot, two academics say the vote could be much closer. The researchers used a sophisticated analysis of Twitter messages, a technique that has been used successfully to call other difficult elections. [SBS]

Niko Bell

Niko Bell is a writer, editor and translator from Vancouver. He writes about sexual health, science, food and language.

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