Articles written by the PinkNews.co.uk 'staff writer' are authored by one or more of the PinkNews.co.uk editorial team.
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9 July 2012US: Washington priest who denied communion to lesbian leaves diocese 14 A priest who told a lesbian she could not receive communion at her mother's funeral has left the Archdiocese of Washington. Rev Marcel Guarnizo officiated at the February funeral of Barbara Johnson's mother at St John Neumann parish in Gaithersburg. -
9 July 20123,000 march at incident-free Budapest Pride 6 Budapest Pride 2012 took place safely on Saturday despite earlier threats and the mayor’s unwillingness to support the event. Over 3,000 marchers took to the streets protected by riot police. -
8 July 2012Australia: ACT bid to remove surgery requirement for trans recognition 3 Legal and human rights groups in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) are pushing to change a law which requires transgender people to have surgery in order to change their legal gender. -
8 July 2012China lifts ban on lesbians donating blood 1 Lesbians in China can now legally give blood - although the ban on sexually active gay and bisexual men remains. The Ministry of Health announced last week that the ban on lesbians donating blood would be lifted immediately. -
8 July 2012US: Gay congressman Barney Frank marries 4 Gay Democratic congressman Barney Frank has married his partner Jim Ready in Massachusetts. Mr Frank, who was first the congressman to voluntarily declare being gay, is also the first congressman to have a same-sex marriage while in office. -
8 July 2012Google launches ‘Legalise Love’ gay rights campaign 10 Google has launched a campaign called 'Legalise Love', aimed at pushing for gay rights in countries with anti-homosexuality laws. -
7 July 2012New York: Court rejects marriage equality challenge 11 A New York court has dismissed an evangelical group's challenge to the city's marriage equality laws. New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms claimed the state Senate acted illegally when it voted to approve a gay marriage bill last year. -
7 July 2012Russia: Eight gay rights campaigners arrested in St Petersburg 10 Eight gay rights activists were arrested today in St Petersburg, Russia, for handing out "homosexual propaganda". The campaigners were attempting to hold gay Pride rallies. Three were arrested in a park, while five more were arrested later at the Smolny complex. -
7 July 2012US: Presbyterian Church narrowly rejects marriage equality 4 The US Presbyterian Church has rejected a motion to open up marriage to gay couples. After four hours of debate on Friday, delegates at the biennial Church Assembly in Pittsburgh voted 338-308 to reject the proposals. -
6 July 2012Texas: Dallas gay couple arrested for marriage equality protest 8 Two gay men in Dallas, Texas, have been arrested after they refused to leave a county clerk's office. The pair, named as Mark Jiminez and Beau Chandler, were protesting the state's ban on marriage equality. -
6 July 2012Australia: Liberal MP Malcolm Turnbull hits out at anti-gay ‘hypocrisy’ 16 Australian Liberal MP Malcolm Turnbull has attacked anti-gay campaigners as "dripping with the worst sort of hypocrisy". Frontbencher Mr Turnbull, who was delivering a lecture on the Gold Coast, attacked the coalition for its unwillingness to legalise marriage for gay couples, The Age reports.
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6 July 2012Virginia: Gym backtracks on gay family membership ban 10 A Virginia gym has lifted its ban on gay family memberships after telling a gay couple their membership was being revoked. Roanoke Athletic Club told William Trinkle in May that he, his male partner and their two-year-old son were not considered a family under Virginia law and that their membership was being cancelled. -
6 July 2012Ukraine: Parliament reported to have cancelled vote on anti-gay law 22 The Ukrainian parliament has cancelled a scheduled vote on legislation that would ban any Ukrainian citizen from speaking out favourably about gays or lesbians, the petition website AllOUt.org said today. -
5 July 2012Critics claim Anderson Cooper ‘came out to boost ratings’ 19 CNN anchor Anderson Cooper has enjoyed plenty of support after coming out this week but not everyone has been so charitable. Some critics have claimed that the broadcaster made his declaration to boost CNN's flagging ratings. -
5 July 2012US: Episcopal Church to debate blessing for gay couples 2 The Episcopal Church in the US is to debate a blessing rite for gay couples who wish to marry. The church's General Convention starts today in Indianapolis. -
5 July 2012Texas: Police release sketch of suspect in fatal shooting of lesbian couple 3 Police in Portland, Texas, have released a sketch of a suspect wanted for the shooting of a teenage lesbian couple in a park last month. Mollie Olgin, 19, was shot dead while her girlfriend, Mary Christine Chapa, 18, remains in hospital after being shot in the head. -
5 July 2012Virginia gay couple sue gym over discriminatory ‘family’ policy 23 A gay male couple from Roanoke, Virginia, are suing a gym which allegedly revoked their membership because of their sexual orientation.
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5 July 2012Scotland: Former first minister backs marriage for gay couples 18 Scotland’s former First Minister, Jack McConnell, has called on the Scottish Government to introduce legislation which would allow gay couples to marry. -
4 July 2012One Washington state anti-equality measure fails 6 One Washington state voter-initiative to ban equal marriage has failed to gain enough support. Backers of Initiative 1192, which sought to restrict marriage to heterosexual couples, said they had fallen "woefully short" of the number of signatures needed to get their measure on the ballot. -
4 July 2012Obama administration asks Supreme Court to hear Defence of Marriage cases 10 The Obama administration's Department of Justice has asked the Supreme Court to hear two cases against the Defence of Marriage Act (DOMA). AP reports that the earliest the cases are likely to be heard is September, with a decision made in June 2013.
