Caribbean

Aerial view of Santo Domingo

Dominican Republic celebrates historic court win against old anti-gay law

By / / Good News For Humankind

In a historic victory for human rights, the Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic has struck down a ban on same-sex conduct within the national police and armed forces. This landmark ruling declares that Article 210 of the Police Code and Article 260 of the Armed Forces Code are unconstitutional. By eliminating the threat of prison sentences for LGBTQ+ officers, the court has affirmed the right to equality, privacy, and dignity. This decision aligns the nation with international standards and sets a powerful precedent for future anti-discrimination efforts.

Silhouette of palm tree

Barbados, Belize, Dominica, and St Vincent launch EU-style deal to let citizens work freely across borders

By / / Good News For Humankind

This groundbreaking pact has created a new, flexible labor market across the Caribbean. Citizens of Barbados, Belize, Dominica, and St Vincent can now live and work in any of the four countries without needing complex work permits. This freedom of movement is expected to significantly boost regional economic resilience by addressing labor shortages. The initiative also strengthens social ties and promotes family stability across the participating nations.

St. Lucia landscape and coastline

Court strikes down nation of Saint Lucia’s homosexuality ban

By / / Good News For Humankind

For years, the Caribbean island nation’s gross indecency and buggery laws have criminalized same-sex relations, even in private. Under those laws, consensual male homosexuality could be punished with up to ten years’ imprisonment. Even attempting to “commit buggery” could be met with a sentence of five years. Now, the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court has ruled that the law violates the rights to privacy, life, liberty, security of the person, freedom of expression, protection from discrimination on the basis of sex, and protection of the law.

Cuban flag

Cuba now allows trans people to change ID gender markers without requiring surgery

By / / Good News For Humankind

Cuba’s National Assembly of People’s Power has passed a landmark law granting people the right to change their gender markers without first proving they’ve undergone genital-affirming surgery—a breakthrough victory years in the making for the nation’s trans and nonbinary communities. The new Civil Registry code also expands recognition of love and partnership, formally acknowledging unmarried couples through emotional unions and cohabitation agreements. Together, these reforms mark a major step toward greater dignity, equality, and legal inclusion for all Cubans.

Trinidad & Tobago's Kamla Persad-Bissessar

For the first time, an entire country’s top political roles are held by women after Trinidad & Tobago’s recent elections

By / / Good news links

Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s election victory means that she will become prime minister for the second time since 2010. Pennelope Beckles-Robinson will be sworn in as the opposition leader. Once they are sworn in by President Christine Kangaloo, the Caribbean island will, for the first time in history, have three women occupying the top constitutional offices simultaneously, making it the first country in modern history to have all top political positions filled by women.

Reef shark

Endangered Caribbean reef sharks rebound in Belize

By / / Good news links

Endangered Caribbean reef sharks and other shark species are making a striking recovery in Belize after plummeting due to overfishing between 2009 and 2019, according to recent observations. Experts say the establishment of no-shark-fishing zones around Belize’s three atolls in 2021 is what enabled the population boom. These shark-safe havens were made possible by remarkable cooperation and synergy among shark fishers, marine scientists, and management authorities.

Sea turtle swimming

Local groups drive creation of new Puerto Rico marine protected area

By / / Good news links

The marine protected area (MPA), named Jardines Submarinos de Vega Baja y Manatí or the Vega Baja and Manatí Underwater Gardens, spans 77 square miles and is the culmination of a 16-year effort by ­­a coalition of local communities and NGOs. It’s comprised of several critically important ecosystems, including coral reefs, mangrove forests, and seagrass beds, and is home to more than a dozen threatened species, including the greater Caribbean manatee and several species of sea turtles.

Black woman smiling

Puerto Rico bans hair discrimination

By / / Good news links

Puerto Rico recently approved legislation forbidding discrimination against natural hair and protective hairstyles in both public and private organizations, marking a significant step forward in the fight against racial discrimination. The new rule reflects years of grassroots activism and the personal experiences of those who have encountered prejudice because of their natural hair, particularly in Afro-descendant groups.

Ocean water

Island states win historic climate case in world oceans court

By / / Good news links

Nine small island states have won a historic climate change case at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, which ruled that all signatories to a United Nations treaty on marine activities must do more to protect the world’s oceans from climate change. The tribunal found that signatories to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea’s responsibilities to prevent marine pollution extend to greenhouse gas emissions, which harm oceans by altering the earth’s atmosphere.

Dominica flag

Dominica’s High Court ends the country’s ban on being gay in historic ruling

By / / Good news links

The High Court of Dominica, an island nation in the Caribbean, has overturned a colonial-era law banning same-sex relations between consenting adults after a gay man filed a lawsuit claiming the ban was unconstitutional. The ruling stated that the constitution guarantees that a person shall not be hindered in the enjoyment of his right to assemble and freely associate with other persons and that this “must necessarily include the freedom to enter into and maintain intimate relationships without undue intrusion by the State.”