French version/version française du communiqué

Montréal/Paris, March 2^nd, 2026 — Pride 7, a G7 engagement group dedicated to the protection of the human rights of LGBTQI+ people, calls on the G7 to take a clear stance and act in response to the United States’s unprecedented expansion of the Global Gag Rule. As France places the weakening of the official development assistance system at the heart of its G7 presidency, the P7 warns of the devastating consequences that this new policy will have on the human rights of women, LGBTQI+ communities, racial and ethnic minorities, and other marginalized peoples globally. The dramatic expansion of this draconian policy is the latest attempt by the Trump administration to weaponize foreign assistance as it seeks to advance its extremist ideological agenda upon the globe.

Previously, the Global Gag Rule (also known as the Mexico City Policy)—a policy repeatedly rescinded by Democratic presidents and reinstated by Republican presidents since 1984—prohibited foreign organizations receiving U.S. reproductive health funding from providing information, services, or referrals for abortion services with their own funds. Initially expanded by the first Trump administration to cover all of global health assistance, the Global Gag Rule has had devastating and life-threatening impacts on access to sexual and reproductive health services for women and LGBTQI+ people around the globe, including access to contraception, post-abortion care, and maternal health services.  Now, in the latest and most radical expansion, the policy will apply to all non-military U.S. foreign assistance, impact a broad range of new actors including foreign governments and multilateral organizations like United Nations agencies, and extend restrictions to activities that recognize the dignity and human rights of transgender, nonbinary, and intersex persons, or those that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion practices in foreign assistance.

Pride 7 also raises the alarm about the major funding restrictions created by the expansion of the Global Gag Rule, in a context where the United States had already withdrawn billions of dollars in international aid over the course of 2025. This double blow directly weakens frontline organizations and health systems that rely on these funds to deliver essential services, particularly to the most marginalized populations, including programs supporting maternal health, gender-based violence response, and adolescent reproductive health services. This shortfall will be extremely difficult to offset without concerted effort and coordination by the entire global community. In this context, G7 countries must lead by example, reaffirm their commitment to evidence- and human-rights-based international assistance, and mobilize resources commensurate with urgent needs.

“The expansion of the Global Gag Rule is not just a funding restriction—it is a political weapon. It fuels the vilification of transgender people, enables the return of so-called ‘conversion therapies,’ and silences the very organizations working to provide lifesaving, evidence-based care. By attacking freedom of expression, this policy creates space for anti-rights legislation targeting trans communities to advance unchecked. The expanded policy is also an effort for the US administration to spread its anti-DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) agenda to other countries. This is a direct assault on human dignity and fundamental rights,” said Michaël Arnaud, Executive Director of Égides that currently chair Pride 7.

In light of this situation, G7 governments must denounce this policy and reject the pressure and censorship it imposes. The expansion of the Global Gag Rule muzzles the international system, seeks to force international and multilateral agencies to adopt practices that run counter to human rights, and severely undermines international cooperation.

In response to the expansion of the Global Gag Rule and its direct consequences for access to health care, human rights, and the dignity of the most marginalized people, Pride 7 calls on G7 countries—and particularly the French presidency—to demonstrate clear and responsible leadership by:

• publicly condemning the expansion of the Global Gag Rule, acknowledging its harmful effects on public health, gender equality, and the rights of LGBTQI+ people, particularly trans, nonbinary, and intersex individuals;
• protecting the autonomy and integrity of international and multilateral mechanisms, as well as the sovereignty of aid-recipient states, in the face of political, ideological, and financial pressure exerted by the United States;
• reaffirming that reforming international aid cannot come at the cost of censorship or the rollback of human rights, particularly in the areas of sexual and reproductive health and the human rights of marginalized communities;
• mobilizing additional and predictable financial resources to address the deficit created by the massive withdrawal of U.S. aid and to ensure the continuity of essential services.
• reconfirming that international aid must remain a tool of solidarity, grounded in human rights, including the protection of sexual and reproductive health and rights, rather than an instrument of political and economic coercion.

About Pride 7 (P7)

Founded in March 2023, Pride 7 is a G7 engagement group dedicated to the promotion and protection of the rights of LGBTQ+ people. It seeks to elevate LGBTQI+ issues as a cross-cutting priority within the G7 agenda and to support the adoption of public policies that advance equality, inclusion, and dignity.

Media contact 

Égides : info@egides.org