World
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22 January 2007Human rights group tell Tatchell to back off + Calls last week from gay rights group OutRage! to pile international pressure on the Nigerian government have been blasted as unhelpful and counterproductive by New York-based NGO Human Rights Watch.On Friday, Peter Tatchell urged gay and lesbian people to contact the Nigerian goverment to show their opposition to draconian new laws aimed at outlawing same-sex marriage and restricting other gay rights. -
19 January 2007Tutu stands up for gays 2 Legendary anti-apartheid campaigner Archbishop Desmond Tutu has urged his fellow Anglicans to focus on the problems facing Africa and stop obsessing over gay issues.Dr Tutu told a conference in Nairobi that the God he worships does not consider the position of homosexual clergy to be more important that AIDS.The former Archbishop of Cape Town is attending the World Social Forum in Kenya. -
19 January 2007Matthew Shepard’s mum nominated for award + Gay activists in America are urging people across the world to vote for Judy Shepard, who has been chosen as a finalist in the fifth "Volvo For Life" awards.Mrs Shepard, Executive Director of the Matthew Shepard Foundation, has become one of America's most vocal advocates for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality.The foundation was created by Dennis and Judy Shepard in memory of their 21-year old son, Matthew. -
19 January 2007Network steps into F word row, actor apologises 4 ABC television has issued a rebuke to Grey's Anatomy star Isaiah Washington for using the word faggot in public.And in yet another twist, Washington has apologised for the second time for his use of the offensive word.An online petition sent to bosses at ABC asked the network to fire Washington, and was signed by over 9,000 people. -
19 January 2007Alleged rapist and serial killer in court + A 42-year-old man has appeared in court in Louisiana charged with nine counts of first degree murder.Ronald Dominique pleaded not guilty to the charges, which relate to the rape and murder of nine men in Terrebonne County between 2002 and 2005.The accused was arrested by police at a homeless shelter last month. -
19 January 2007Gay director pleads not guilty + A lawyer for Gus Van Sant, director of My Own Private Idaho, has told a court in Portland, Oregon, that he is not guilty of driving recklessly and drink-driving.The 54-year-old was arrested on December 21st last year, after police officers spotted him driving at night with no headlights on.Police allege that the director was slurring his words and had bloodshot eyes when stopped. -
19 January 2007Mardi Gras protest over gay marriage 1 Sydney Mardi Gras organisers have launched a stinging attack on the Australian Prime Minister's stance on same-sex marriage.The federal government of John Howard has rejected calls for Australian gay and lesbian couples to be allowed to have same-sex marriages or civil unions.The Liberal leader has spoken out against gay rights on many occasions. -
18 January 2007Nigerian anti-gay laws about to pass + New legislation currently being debated by politicians in Nigeria could be the most serious crackdown on the rights of gay and lesbian people since the Iranian revolution.The proposed laws are presented as a defence of marriage, but gay activist Peter Tatchell argues they seek to remove the few rights sexual minorities have in the troubled African state. -
18 January 2007Controversial gay ex-MP demands pension + The Australian former Liberal party MP Andrew Olexander is in the limelight once again.He is applying for an exemption to allow him to access a pension paid for by the taxpayer.Mr Olexander was a controversial figure in the Liberal party, roughly equivalent to the Conservatives in the UK. -
18 January 2007Internet cruisers less likely to know HIV status + One in five of all men seeking men for sex on the internet have not had an HIV test since their last episode of unprotected casual sex.This is just one of many findings discussed in newly published data from the 2006 Gay Auckland Periodic Sex Survey (GAPSS) and Gay men's Online Sex Survey (GOSS).Together the surveys spoke to over 3,000 gay and bisexual men in New Zealand. -
18 January 2007Red carpet row escalates 4 The ongoing feud over what was or was not said in the heat of an on-set argument between the stars of hit US drama Grey's Anatomy shows no sign of dying down.GLAAD, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, are demanding that actor Isaiah Washington apologise for using the word 'faggot' when he denied calling co-star TR Knight a faggot on set.
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17 January 2007Moscow Gay Pride row moves to Euro court 1 The ongoing dispute between gay activists in Russia and the Moscow city authorities will now move to the European Court of Human Rights.As reported on PinkNews.co.uk, in May 2006 the city's mayor, Yuri Luzhkov, refused to issue a permit for the Pride march.Gay activists pressed on with Moscow Pride on 27th May, despite the ban, police arrests, and violence from neo-fascists. -
17 January 2007Homophobia row spills onto red carpet 4 The stars of hit medical drama Grey,s Anatomy are engaged in a very public war of words over an alleged incident of homophobic abuse.Speaking at the Golden Globe awards on Monday, cast member Isaiah Washington attempted to rehabilitate his image.He was accused last October of abusing fellow actor TR Knight, who plays Dr George O'Malley on the show. -
17 January 2007Top Manhattan firm in gay lawsuit + One of New York's most prestigious law firms is being sued for discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation by one of their own lawyers.28-year-old associate Aaron B Charney says in his suit that senior colleagues subjected him to "lewd and illegal conduct," The New York Times reports.Sullivan Cromwell, founded in 1879, is one of America's best known - and profitable - law firms.
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17 January 2007Football stars talk about being gay – anonymously 3 Two stars of the German football league have given in-depth interviews to a magazine about life as a gay man in the top flight of soccer - on condition that their identities were kept secret.RUND magazine spent two years gaining the trust of the players and researching homophobia in the beautiful game.Just like the UK, there are no out gay professional footballers in the German leagues. -
17 January 2007Gay-friendly Obama to run for President 2 Senator Barack Obama took the first step on the road to the White House yesterday.The 45-year-old junior Senator from Illinois announced that he is forming an exploratory committee, which allows him to raise funds and put together a campaign.Obama is the only African-American in the Senate, and his candidacy is already being compared to that of President John F Kennedy. -
16 January 2007Arnie faces pressure from gay Republicans 1 The Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, is under pressure from gay activists in his own party to approve a gay marriage bill.The former action star is seen as a moderate Republican who learned to work with the Democrat-controlled state legislature since he took office in 2003.Now members of the Log Cabin Republicans, an LGBT lobbying group, are calling on the governor to treat gay rights as a civil rights issue. -
16 January 2007Czech gay man wins landmark discrimination case + In yet another sign of positive change in the new EU states, a gay man has won damages after being denied a job as a masseur because of his sexuality.Lech Sydor, a 43-year-old Czech citizen, was awarded 70,000 koruna (£1,660) and received an apology for his treatment, AFP reports.The landmark ruling is the first time that a Czech court has ruled on an issue of work discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation.
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16 January 2007Transsexual’s two passports request denied 1 Norwegian police officials have turned down a request from a transsexual to be issued with two passports.The 63-year-old, reported to be a crime fiction author, accused the authorities of trans discrimination.The Aftenposten newspaper in Oslo reported yesterday that the Ministry of Justice had dismissed the accusation of discrimination. -
15 January 2007Copenhagen looks to Outgames in 2009 + Despite the financially disappointing Montreal Outgames, plans for the 2009 event in Copenhagen are looking positive.Outgames is a sports, cultural and human rights event primarily for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transsexuals.The second event will be the largest international sports and cultural event ever held on Danish soil.
