World
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13 April 2007Gay political icon to get big screen treatment – twice + Two Hollywood directors are to make biopics of one of America's first out gay politicians.Harvey Milk's story of gay liberation and electoral success, followed by a tragic death at the hands of a jealous gunman, is likely to make a compelling movie, but Gus Van Sant and Bryan Singer are set to make very different versions of his life. -
13 April 2007Pride organiser will not be prosecuted for flower protest + One of the leaders of the Moscow Pride movement has been told he will not now be prosecuted for his actions at the banned event last year.Nicolas Alexeyev was arrested on 27th May 2006 after a group of activists attempted to lay flowers at The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a war memorial, equating the struggle for gay rights with fighting fascism.In May 2006 the city's mayor, Yuri Luzhkov, refused to issue a permit for the Pride march. -
13 April 2007Hate crimes legislation named for Matthew Shepard + A new federal law that will grant protections based on sexual orientation or gender identity in the United States is to be named after the murdered gay teenager who brought the issue of hate crimes into the American consciousness.Matthew Shepard was beaten and left for dead, tied to a fence in freezing Wyoming in 1998.He was the victim of a hate crime, targeted because he was gay. -
13 April 2007Hate group funeral protests banned 2 The Governor of Kansas has signed into law a bill aimed at stopping a homophobic church group from protesting at the funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq.The Westboro Baptist Church, based in Topeka, Kansas, first gained notoriety for their noisy picket at the funeral of Matthew Shepard.Their extreme homophobia has led them to protest at the funerals of servicemen and women killed in action. -
13 April 2007Australian PM – keep HIV people out 1 John Howard, the Prime Minister of Australia, has said that people with HIV should not be allowed to migrate into the country.Interviewed on radio, the outspoken Liberal leader said that HIV+ people who came to Australia either as migrants or refugees, should not be allowed in the country. -
13 April 2007Riga Pride ban overturned + Gay activists in Latvia were celebrating yesterday after a court ruled that the decision to ban a gay Pride march in 2006 was illegal."The right of the LGBT community to organise a march has been evaluated as having more importance than the desire of some other people to push a certain community out of the public arena by means of threats and violence." -
12 April 2007Gay bishop speaks in favour of gay unions + Gene Robinson, an openly gay man whose appointment as Bishop of New Hampshire continues to cause controversy, has given evidence in favour of same-sex civil unions.Last week the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted to bring forward legal unions by a margin of two-to-one, and this week the state Senate will consider the bill."This legislation simply has nothing do to with religious bodies." -
12 April 2007Lesbians released by Nepal rebels + Two women working for an HIV/AIDS advocacy group in Nepal have been freed from a Maoist camp after a month in captivity.Dukhani Choudhary, 16, and Sarita Choudhury, 20, were taken by the rebels on March 2nd.During their detention they were interrogated about their relationship and pressured into returning to a heterosexual lifestyle. -
12 April 2007Vatican’s gay attitude criticised by French contender + A politician who is on course to become the next President of France has spoken out against the anti-gay rhetoric of the Roman Catholic church.Nicolas Sarkozy, the UMP candidate for the Presidency, has maintained a consistent lead over his main rival, the Socialist Segolene Royal.The first round of elections are held on 22nd April. -
12 April 2007Homophobic violence at Jamaica funeral + A funeral service in the Carribean island of Jamaica has been disrupted by a mob attempting to attack a group of mourners.The Easter Sunday funeral of Kirk Wayne Lester, a Jamaican businessman, was attended by "gay cross-dressers," reports Real Jamaica Radio.A mob surrounded the church and attacked people thought to be gay with knives, stones and bottles. -
12 April 2007Pink’s attack on Bush banned from radio stations + Singer Pink has spoken on American TV about her new song Dear Mr President, which has been unofficially banned from radio stations across the US.Appearing on the Jimmy Kimmel Live show, Pink said that the song, which attacks President Bush for his stance on gay rights and other policies, cannot even be discussed on air in many radio stations.She thanked the talk show host for being not afraid to let her perform Dear Mr President. -
12 April 2007Presidential hopeful’s cancer “in remission” + Fred Thompson announced yesterday that he has cancer.The veteran actor, best known for his work on TV show Law and Order, is considering running for the Republican nomination for President of the United States.In a statement, the 65-year-old said he has an indolent lymphoma which is not life-threatening. -
11 April 2007Gay adoption site sued for discrimination + One of the largest adoption websites in the world is being sued for refusing to accept a listing from a gay couple.Michael Butler and Richard Butler, who live in California, took action against Arizona-based adoption.com and its owners, Nathan and Dale Gwilliam, in December 2003.The couple have finally been given permission by a judge to go to trial.
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11 April 2007Presidential hopeful courts gay voters + Democratic candidate for President of the United States John Edwards has been showing off his support among gay political donors.Edwards has released a list of 25 LGB supporters, among them David Mixner, a gay activist who raised millions of dollars for Bill Clinton's campaigns for the White House.The former Senator from North Carolina is making a play for the gay vote in the hotly-contested Democrat nomination for President. -
11 April 2007Transsexual granted new legal identity without surgery + A Spanish man who had his gender confirmed by civil officials.He is thought to be the first beneficiary of a new law that allows transsexual people to be legally identified as a sex different from that recorded at birth without having undergone gender reassignement surgery.50-year-old Julio Cuesta was granted official documents by the civil registry office in Valencia yesterday. -
11 April 2007War veterans come out to oppose gay ban + Three retired colonels and four captains in the United States military have publicly declared their homosexuality in a gay magazine and spoken out against the policy that bans LGB Americans from serving.The former officers, among them a chaplain and two female Navy Reservists, decided to come out in protest at comments from the current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.General Peter Pace called lesbian, gay and bisexual service members "immoral." -
11 April 2007Faded sitcom star apologises for gay rant 3 Gay campaigners today condemned anti-gay remarks made this week by comedian and actress Roseanne Barr on a California radio station.In a discussion about families accepting their gay relatives, Barr said, "Never once in my 54 years have I ever once heard a gay or lesbian person who's politically active say one thing about anything that was not about them."They don't care about minimum wage, they don't care about any other group other than their own self." -
11 April 2007US activists celebrate Ellen’s ten lesbian years + In the United States, the 10-year anniversary of Ellen DeGeneres' coming out is being celebrated by the Gay Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).DeGeneres appeared on the April 14, 1997, cover of Time magazine with the headline, "Yep, I'm Gay."Her onscreen character, Ellen Morgan came out as well during the April 30th 1997, episode of the ABC sitcom Ellen. -
10 April 2007Putin set to re-appoint Moscow mayor + The homophobic mayor of Moscow may be re-appointed in the next few days.The 70-year-old politician, Yuri Luzhkov, has been mayor of the Russian capital since 1992.Media speculation in the Russian papers suggests that Luzhkov is looking to get re-elected without serious opposition. -
10 April 2007HIV+ man detained for reckless transmission + As many as twelve Australians may have been infected with HIV, after an HIV positive gay man used the internet to have unprotected sex.Stuart McDonald was detained in Glenside Hospital last week for recklessly endangering his sexual partners.McDonald found his sexual partners through Gaydar, the gay meeting website.
