World
-
5 March 2007Mexico rocked by gay pop star 3 A Mexican pop singer has announced that he is gay, becoming one of only a few public figures to have come out in a country that is traditionally conservative Catholic.22-year-old Christian Chavez, a member of the Mexican pop band RBD, revealed his homosexuality following the leaking of photographs that showed him marrying his partner at a ceremony in Canada."I don't want to keep on lying and lie to myself because of fear," he said on the band's website. -
5 March 2007Commentator causes a commotion with the F word 2 Right-wing polemicist Ann Coulter, who once called Arabs towel heads, has outraged American political class by calling a Presidential candidate a faggot.Speaking at the influential Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington on Friday, the publicity-seeking Ms Coulter said:"I was going to have a few comments on the other Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards. -
2 March 2007Sydney’s gay parade live online + The Sydney Lesbian Gay Mardi Gras parade will be steamed live on the internet on Saturday night.The parade, one of the best-known gay events on the planet, will be viewed live across the world for the first time this year.The internet broadcast is being shown by Australian company Viocorp, and will cost $7.50 (£3.85) to watch online. -
2 March 2007Transsexual gets insurance hike after operation + A Swedish woman is outraged that her car insurance costs shot up following her gender-reassignment surgery.Carina Bladh from Linköping, central Sweden, became a woman at the end of last year, and at the same time bought a new Audi A6.She was shocked to discover that, as a woman, her annual premium was 1,200 kronor (over £87) more expensive. -
2 March 2007US airman given 50 years for rapes 1 captain in the US Air Force who claimed that four men accusing him of drugging and raping them were lying to avoid being exposed as gay was sentenced yesterday.He had been found guilty earlier in the week on four charges of forcible sodomy, two counts of kidnapping and two counts of attempted sodomy as well as one charge of unlawful entry.Capt. -
2 March 2007Report says homophobia helps spread of AIDS in Africa + The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) today published a new study which for the first time reveals how African governments and the global HIV/AIDS policy and funding community is denying basic human rights to same-sex practicing people in Africa.The report, entitled Off The Map, documents some shocking examples of how lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people are denied access to effective HIV prevention, counselling and testing, treatment, and care. -
1 March 2007“Pillow biter” acceptable language in Australia + A tribunal in Australia has ruled that an outspoken radio host has the right to vilify homosexuals on air.The Administrative Decisions Tribunal in New South Wales was hearing a case brought by gay activists under the country's anti-discrimination laws.The tribunal agreed with gay activists that the use of terms like 'pansy,' 'fairy' and 'pillow biter' by radio broadcaster John Laws did constitute vilification. -
1 March 2007Dublin teen sex ring exposes lack of LGBT support 1 Reports from Dublin concerning a 14-year-old boy being sexually abused by a ring of middle-aged men have exposed the lack of support for LGBT teenagers in the country.The child was groomed on the internet and then taken to a range of addresses in Dublin where the abuse took place. -
1 March 2007Gay playground jibe ends up in court + An American judge will have to balance Constitutional rights with the protection of gay kids at school in a lawsuit about the phrase "that's so gay" that has come before the courts.A Mormon high school student in the United States used the phrase, was given a warning for doing so by school authorities, and now her parents are suing.They claim the word is youth slang meaning stupid, silly or dumb.
-
28 February 2007Congress may revisit gays in the military + In the wake of announcements that Congressman Marty Meehan will re-introduce legislation to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" this week, observers are debating the future of the gays-in-the-military issue in Congress.Last year, Representative Meehan, a Democrat from Massachusetts, garnered the support of 122 representatives for the Military Readiness Enhancement Act. -
28 February 2007Lithuanian MPs think homosexuality a perversion 4 A poll of members of the Lithuanian parliament has revealed that over half of them agree that homosexuality is a perversion.The survey reflected a deeply ingrained homophobia in Lithuanian society. -
27 February 2007Police raid Sydney Mardi Gras party + Gay and lesbians in Australia have reacted with fury at a drugs raid on Sunday night that closed one of the dance parties for Sydney Mardi Gras.Revellers have described the police tactics as heavy-handed.
-
27 February 2007Analysis: Irish government accused over gay unions defeat 3 Legislation proposed by the Irish Labour Party designed to recognise, amongst other things gay marriages, failed in country's Parliament due to a lack of Government support.Celine Casey, a former Parliamentary researcher at the Dáil Éireann, explores the background to the defeat and the future for gay rights laws in Ireland. -
27 February 2007The case of a lesbian adoption and the IBM fortune + When Olive Watson and Patricia Spado discovered they could not legally marry in Maine in 1991, they decided to take a less conventional route to cement their rights.Ms Watson adopted Ms Spado, naming her as the sole beneficiary of her will and cementing her rights of inheritance.The couple split in 1992, but Ms Spado is claiming her share of inheritance as an official "grandchild" of Ms Watson's family.
-
26 February 2007BA airline sorry to gay couple for blanket incident 1 A gay couple who were covered with a blanket by an airline stewardess because they were hugging have received an apology.South African carrier Comair run British Airways services in that country and is an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline.They had been threatened with legal action by the couple. -
26 February 2007Homophobic mayor faces lawsuit and London protest + The organisers of Moscow's gay pride parade are suing Yuri Luzhkov, the mayor that banned the event last year, for likening the parade to a "satanic act."Organisers of the parade, led by Nicholas Alexeyev, are calling on Luzhkov to retract his comments, DPA news has reported."Both in the secular and religious context, the term 'satanic' is offensive and carries a negative colouring," Alexeyev said. -
26 February 2007Homophobic preacher claims his gay sex rights + A former Southern Baptist church leader who had publicly condemned homosexuality has been charged for offering to engage in an act of lewdness after soliciting sex from an undercover policeman in Oklahoma.The Reverend Lonnie Latham was arrested on January 3rd 2006 outside the Habana Inn in Oklahoma City after asking an undercover policeman to come up to his hotel room for oral sex. -
26 February 2007Congress prepares for gay rights bills + Gay rights activists and opponents are preparing themselves for the likely passage of America's first major gay rights bills.It is widely expected that at least two gay-rights measures will gain approval in Congress this year.These include a hate-crimes bill that would cover homophobic offences and a workplace bill that would include sexual orientation in anti-discrimination policy.
-
26 February 2007New York ordered to pay for gender surgery 1 A court has ruled that the city of New York must pay for gender re-assignment surgery for a 21-year-old.Mariah Lopez was in the care of the city when she began her legal fight to get treatment. -
26 February 2007Rupert Everett to lead Sydney Mardi Gras + Gay actor Rupert Everett will be this year's Chief of Parade at the Sydney Gay Lesbian Mardi Gras.The parade kicks off on Saturday, and will be broadcast live on the internet.This year's Mardi Gras, the 29th, has been accused of being too commercial.
