Queensland mum Yolanda Bogert placed a heartwarming birth notice in the classifieds section of the Courier Mail newspaper on Tuesday, retracting her daughter’s birth and celebrating her transgender son’s “arrival”. Read More
AIDspan releases first-ever documentary, "I didn't want to bring shame on my family": growing up gay in Ghana
The documentary short is the story of a young HIV positive gay man in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, whose journey through the public health system -- which is largely supported by international donors led by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and malaria -- reflects the challenges inherent in reaching those who are most vulnerable to infection by the disease. Watch Now
Debate on sexual orientation should be mainstream: Hansal Mehta
Top Indian director Hansal Mehta is producing and directing a movie inspired by the true story of a gay professor as he feels the debate on sexual orientation should be a part of mainstream. His film is based on an Aligarh Muslim University professor, who was suspended for allegedly having gay sex, weeks before his retirement in 2010. S R Siras was later reinstated after Allahabad High Court revoked the suspension. He died the same year.
"The film is based on many such true incidents which are happening in our country for a long time. Marginalisation of people based on religion, caste, gender and sexual orientation is not new. Read More
Nigeria: Country's Homophobic Law Driving Gays Into Shadows
Award-winning Nigerian writer Jude Dibia’s first novel, Walking With Shadows, has as its central character a gay man who lives his life as a married family man. Dibia’s novel is one of the first to deal with the taboo subject of homosexuality in Nigeria.
“People have gone further underground, but they still are trying to survive. And, I think maybe that is why online now on the Internet and on blogs you are seeing more stories coming out,” he says.
“There is a lot of anger festering in the underbelly. … But, more stories are popping out there because of this law. And, I think it is a good thing. In its own way, it is a good thing,” Dibia says. Read More
Being gay in China: Does the rainbow flag fly free?
In this narrow Beijing hutong, the rainbow flag flies free. I'm in Two Cities Cafe, a popular meeting place for the local gay community. Here, I meet with some of the country's leading LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) advocates to learn about gay identity in China.
Unlike their counterparts in the West, China's LGBT community does not have to face down strident political opposition or right-wing religious uproar. For them, the biggest source of pressure comes from the family, brought on in part by China's one-child policy. Read More
How The Father Of Soviet Pornography Became A Crusader Against “Gay Propaganda”
The story of Vladimir Linderman's transformation from anti-Kremlin sexual radical to moralist crusader who many Latvians suspect of being a Kremlin agent isn’t really about how Linderman changed his mind about homosexuality. Rather, he says his story is about how many people living in the former Soviet Union went from being desperate to escape Moscow’s rule to yearning for its patronage. It is also a tale of how Putin used that desire to co-opt some of his most committed enemies and convince many living in the former Communist world that what once seemed so exciting about the West is now what is most terrifying about it.
“I was the father of the sexual revolution, and now I’m becoming the father of the sexual counterrevolution.” Read More
Advocate magazine names person of the year
The Advocate's Person of the Year, Vladimir Putin
Driving the governmental, religious, and popular disdain for gays and lesbians, the Russian president became the single greatest threat to LGBTs in the world in 2014.
“Imagine a boy who dreams of being a KGB officer
when everyone else wants to be a cosmonaut.”
This quote appears early in The Man Without a Face, Masha Gessen’s 2012 biography of Vladimir Putin. It’s as succinct and illuminating a characterization of the Russian president as you’re likely to find. The KGB, after all, perfected the thuggery, espionage, and aimless bureaucracy that are hallmarks of Putin’s regime. The agency’s crackdown on dissidents offered a blueprint for Putin’s own strongman excesses. That he aspired to such a career as a child tells us something useful about his psychopathology: This is a man hardwired to intimidate. Read more
Pro Strongman champion Rob Kearney comes out as gay
Rob Kearney is the first self-acknowledged gay man to be actively competing in pro-level, international strongman competition. He is in a pantheon of brave souls who decided to not hide for the fear of harming their social status or career aspirations.
Coming out in any arena is a pressure-filled venture. We often forget that this world is still rather ignorant when it comes to same-gender love and sex. There is plenty of hate brewing - and plenty of folks who act on that hate to cause harm and instill fear in those who may love another of the same sex. To be the first of something unique is not something we all get a chance to experience in life. But to be the first 'gay" something can be just as frightening as it can be positive. Read more
Olympic rower Robbie Manson comes out as gay
Robbie Manson, Olympic rower for New Zealand, comes out publicly as gay, talks about the struggles in the closet and coming out to friends before the 2012 Olympics.
Two and a half years ago I made the scariest decision of my life: to come out.
I feel like there has always been a confident, outgoing side of me dying to come out. But from an early age I realized that I was different from most other guys. I desperately tried to hide that "different" side of myself. In doing so I inadvertently became very quiet and shy, shutting myself off and avoiding attention for fear that someone might discover my deepest, darkest secret: I'm gay. Read more
Benjy the 'gay 'bull saved from slaughter by fundraising effort.
A bull branded gay, has been saved from the slaughterhouse by charity donations, including £5,000 from Sam Simon, co-creator of the Simpsons. Benjy, from County Mayo, Ireland, was destined for the abattoir after showing more interest in breeding with other bulls than cows.
Gay and animal rights campaigners launched a joint online campaign to save Benjy. It went viral.
Benjy's story first came to light when his owner mentioned to friend and local journalist, Joanna McNicholas, that Benjy was not fulfilling his farm role, and would have to be reluctantly sent for slaughter. Read More
Gay+ song wins Country Music Awards song of the year
“Oh my goodness! Do y’all know what this means for country music?!”
That’s what the charming Kacey Musgraves said when she won the prize for Song of the Year for her controversial hit “Follow Your Arrow” at last night’s Country Music Awards. And she’s right—that the Country Music Association recognized a song with such a progressive (or at least libertarian) message is a big deal. Read More
Canadian Museum of History to add gay stories to exhibits
The Canadian Museum of History announced a formal partnership with the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives (CLGA) June 18 to include gay Canadian history in a newly renovated and expanded Canadian History Hall, set to open on Canada’s 150th birthday, on July 1, 2017.
The $30-million renovation, of which $25 million comes from the federal government and another $5 million will be raised by donations, will be the first major overhaul of the exhibit since the museum opened in Gatineau in 1989 as the Canadian Museum of Civilization. Read More