LGBTQ+ organisations worldwide are facing a deepening funding crisis, with groups cutting healthcare, closing safe spaces and warning they may not survive the next year. New research from Outright International shows how US aid reductions and wider donor uncertainty are hitting grassroots services hardest, especially those supporting trans people, gender-diverse communities and LBQ women.

Essential Takeaways

  • Budgets are shrinking fast: Nearly half of affected organisations have lost more than half their funding.
  • Vital services are being cut: Groups report reductions to HIV care, mental-health support and sexual-health programmes.
  • Communities face a wider safety gap: Many organisations can no longer respond properly to violence, arrests, displacement or emergency relocation.
  • Closures are a real possibility: More than a third say they could be forced to shut within 12 months.
  • Flexible funding is urgently needed: Outright International is calling for multi-year support that covers core costs, staff and security.

Grassroots LGBTQ+ groups are being pushed to breaking point

The starkest warning is not buried in a balance sheet. It's in the loss of quiet, practical support: a safe room, a legal referral, a counsellor who knows the local risks or a discreet route out of danger.

Outright International's report surveyed 229 organisations across 94 countries, alongside interviews with movement leaders. Of those surveyed, 203 said they'd lost funding since January 2025, according to Outright's research. Nearly half of the affected groups had lost more than 50% of their budgets, while three-quarters had lost at least a quarter.

That matters because most were small organisations to begin with. Almost three-quarters had annual budgets below US$250,000, leaving little room for reserves when major grants suddenly vanish. As LGBTQ+ Nation reported, the financial impact has spread widely across the global movement rather than remaining limited to a handful of groups.

US aid cuts sent a shock through the system

The crisis accelerated after Donald Trump's return to the White House in January 2025. A pause on much of US foreign assistance was initially presented as a review, but funding terminations soon followed, creating uncertainty for organisations that relied on American-backed programmes.

The Global Equality Fund, which had supported LGBTQ+ groups and human-rights defenders in more than 100 countries, closed in April 2025. USAID later stopped operating as an independent agency, while HIV-related programmes serving key populations were also narrowed, according to reporting by the Bay Area Reporter.

The disruption didn't stop with US government funding. Other governments, foundations and corporate donors have also reduced support, leaving organisations caught between rising need and fewer reliable sources of money. Alliance magazine described the situation as a wider defunding of freedom, with local groups absorbing the immediate consequences.

The cuts are reaching healthcare and emergency protection

This isn't simply a story about fewer campaigns or smaller offices. Outright found that half of affected organisations had reduced health services, including mental-health and sexual and reproductive healthcare. Some 45% had cut or stopped HIV prevention, treatment or care.

Emergency work is also under strain. Almost two-thirds said they could no longer respond adequately to situations involving violence, arrest, displacement or urgent relocation. In conflict-affected settings, the pressure is even more intense.

That loss of capacity can be hard to see from outside. A service may disappear without a dramatic announcement, leaving people to discover that the phone no longer gets answered or the shelter has closed. The Williams Institute has also highlighted how international policy changes can have serious effects on LGBTQI communities far beyond the country where those decisions are made.

Trans people and LBQ women face the sharpest impact

Funding losses aren't landing evenly. Seventy-one per cent of affected organisations identified trans, non-binary and gender-diverse people among those experiencing the deepest harm. Lesbian, bisexual and queer women were identified by 61%.

In many countries, these organisations provide far more than advocacy. They may be the only trusted route to HIV services, emergency accommodation, legal advice, mental-health care or relocation assistance. Mainstream institutions can be inaccessible or unsafe, so when a specialist group closes, there may be no straightforward replacement.

The danger is particularly acute where LGBTQ+ people face criminalisation, political repression or regular violence. Ebar reported that the new research shows how US aid cuts have weakened organisations working in precisely these high-risk environments.

Could the global movement rebuild on stronger foundations?

Outright's figures offer little comfort in the short term. Forty per cent of affected organisations described themselves as at severe or immediate risk, including 10% facing immediate closure. Separately, 36% said they were likely or very likely to shut within the following year, while only 3% considered themselves stable.

The organisation is calling for emergency bridge funding, flexible multi-year grants and dedicated support for community-led healthcare, emergency protection and relocation. It also wants donors to prioritise trans and gender-diverse people, as well as LBQ women, rather than allowing the most vulnerable groups to disappear from funding plans.

Outright's proposed Our Freedom campaign aims to raise US$10 million for this work. Its broader argument is persuasive: rebuilding shouldn't mean restoring the same fragile donor model that existed before the latest shock. A more diverse funding base, stronger local decision-making and reliable core support could make the movement less exposed to the next political reversal.

For the people relying on these organisations, that may sound like a distant ambition. Right now, it's about keeping the lights on, the phones answered and the doors open.

It's a small window for action, but it hasn't closed yet.

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