Europe
Love against all the odds: Lesbian Muslim couple from Iran tie the knot in Stockholm… and the delighted imam is gay too!
Sahar Mosleh and Maryam Iranfar married in Swedish capital Stockholm Both were forced to flee Iran where gay people are given the death penalty The couple were married by Imam Ludovic Mohamed Zahed Imam Zahed who is Algerian but lives in South Africa is also gay Beaming with pride, their faces wreathed in smiles, this… Read more »
What will be named the world’s best LGBT film short?
Two men meet moments before their execution. A love story between two women across decades and states. A zebra – all of these and more in the running for the Iris Prize A late night search for Viagra by two aging strangers during a one night stand. A military exercise in the woods where two… Read more »
British Embassy in Hanoi officiates its first wedding of a same-sex couple
The British Embassy in Hanoi has officiated its first wedding for a same-sex couple in Vietnam. Yein Kai Yee and Sutpreedee Chinithigun, both males and British citizens, had their wedding held by the British Embassy July 29 morning, according to tuoitrenews.vn. The marriage was attended by the couple’s relatives and the embassy staff and Charge… Read more »
That Gay Guy: Yareth Talks Gay Life in Rotterdam, the Netherlands
That Gay Guy is an interview series with, you guessed it, gay guys from all over the world. Instead of focusing on my own limited homo travel adventures, this series gives me (and you, hopefully) the chance to discover just what life is like for gay people in different parts of the world. This time… Read more »
Proud Healthy
Factors such as stigma, discrimination, violence, gaps in the knowledge and attitudes of health-care workers, and the criminalisation of same-sex acts have adversely affected the access to and uptake of health-care services by LGBTIs in Southern Africa. To address the need to build and strengthen the capacity of LGBTI organisations in Southern Africa in the… Read more »
5,000 march for LGBTI rights in the Faroe Islands
One-in-ten people in the Danish dependency of the Faroe Islands marched in the Faroe Pride March on Sunday as lawmakers continue to oppose the legalization of same-sex marriage despite wide public support for the reform Police in the Faroe Islands estimate that one-in-ten people in the country marched for LGBTI equality on Sunday at Faroe… Read more »
Russian gay rights group deemed ‘foreign agent’ for ‘violating straight rights’
An LGBT rights organisation based in Russia has been deemed a “foreign agent” by a St Petersburg court. The label “foreign agent” implies that a group carries out work on behalf of foreign countries, and restricts the work they can do and messages communicated. This week Coming Out, a leading LGBT rights organisation Coming Out,… Read more »
Russia Year In Review Report
Read entire pdf here Source – HRC Articles
Declaration Of Ilan H. Meyer, PH.D.
In The CaseseS Of Bayev V. Russia (NO. 67667/09), Kiselev V. Russia (NO. 44092/12), And Alekseyev V. Russia (NO. 56717/12) I. Qualifications 1. I am a Senior Scholar of Public Policy at the Williams Institute at University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) in the United States of America. Prior to my current position, I was… Read more »
Kiev Activist: Life ‘Dangerous’ for LGBT Ukrainians
Activist Globa Bogdan, who had his hopes for Kiev Pride dashed this year, says the culture of machismo threatens LGBT Ukrainians. For Bogdan Globa, founder and executive director of Tochka Opory|Fulcrum, an LGBT rights advocacy organization in Ukraine, the dream of celebrating LGBT Pride the way he saw it done in America seems farther away… Read more »
Ukrainian LGBT advocates cancel march
Ukrainian LGBT rights advocates say they cancelled a march that had been scheduled to take place in the country’s capital on July 5 because local police refused to protect them. Olena Shevchenko, co-chair of the Kyiv 2014 Pride organizing committee, told the Washington Blade on Monday that Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko told march organizers that… Read more »
Greece: Newly discovered gay erotica ‘some of the oldest in the world’
An archaeologist in Greece has uncovered ancient inscriptions celebrating gay sex, in what is believed to be some of the oldest erotic graffiti in the world. Dr Andreas Vlachopoulos of the University of Ioannina, has been working on the Aegean island of Astypalaia for four years. He reports finding inscriptions describing gay male sex alongside… Read more »
Vlad Tornovoi murderers go to jail for 20 years, court ignores antigay motive
Two Volgograd residents who brutally murdered their friend Vlad Tornovoi on May 9, 2013, after he allegedly came out to them as gay, were sentenced to substantial imprisonment terms. The press service of the Volgograd Regional Court confirmed it on July, 2. Earlier this month LGBT activists and their allies drew attention to the absence… Read more »
Denmark: Changing Legal Sexual Identity Simplified
The Danish Parliament has approved a law allowing Danish citizens to change their legal gender identity without first undergoing sterilization or surgery. Denmark’s Minister of the Economy and Interior, Margrethe Vestager, announced on June 11, 2014, that beginning September 1, Danish citizens over the age of 18 may apply to change their legal gender designation… Read more »
Foreign gay tourist brutally murdered in Crimea
Crimean police is seeking criminals who murdered a foreign tourist in the heart of the resort city of Yevpatoria. The man’s body was found near the monument to World War II marines. According to preliminary investigation, the murder was motivated by homophobia. Next to the body of the tourist police found a burned down minibus,… Read more »
Russia: Pride rally held in St Petersburg Sunday without violence
Russian news sources report that a peaceful Gay pride parade took place in St Petersburg on Sunday, despite organisers being told to hold the event on a landfill site. The Moscow and St. Petersburg Times reported some two dozen LGBT activists rallied in the Field of Mars square on Sunday to celebrate gay pride. QueerRussia.com… Read more »
Turkey: Thousands march in Istanbul Pride despite religious objections
Tens of thousands of people turned out on Sunday to celebrate LGBT Pride in Istanbul, slated as the largest gay pride celebration in any majority Muslim country. 100,000 or more participants marched peacefully under the watchful eye of the Turkish police, waving celebratory rainbow flags and signs to celebrate LGBT pride. The celebrations were heavily… Read more »
Thugs attack LGBT activist in Voronezh by night
On June 3, Pavel Lebedev was attacked by a group of thugs around midnight. “We were sitting with my boyfriend on a bench near his home, when we were approached by an aggressive group of people. One of them asked for a cigarette. I gave him a cigarette . Then he said, “Hey, you’re that… Read more »
Bryansk official warned on privacy breach of underage lesbian schoolgirl
Office of Public Prosecutor passed a resolution that Dyatkovo district administration deputy head Elena Krivtsova has wrongfully disclosed the full name of a 14 year old lesbian schoolgirl to mass media, and thus commited a privacy breach. In February 2014 the girl from Bryansk region was warned by the local Commission on Affairs of Minors… Read more »
Serbia: Belgrade Pride cancelled due to flooding
Belgrade Pride, which is usually banned due to threats of violence, was instead this year cancelled due to flooding. The event, which often leads to confrontations between anti-gay groups, police and marchers, has been officially banned every year since 2010. The 2010 parade was marred by violent stand-offs, and around 100 people were injured at… Read more »
Large Majority Of Slovak Lawmakers Approve Constitutional Gay Marriage Ban
A large majority of Slovak lawmakers on Wednesday voted for a constitutional amendment limiting marriage to heterosexual couples. According to gay weekly the Washington Blade, 102 parliamentarians supported the amendment, with only 18 voting against it in the 150-member parliament. The amendment was drafted by leftist Prime Minister Robert Fico’s ruling Direction-Social Democracy party. “The… Read more »
Slovakia Becomes The Seventh EU Country To Ban Same-Sex Marriage
This makes it the third European Union member state to ban same-sex couples from marrying since 2012. The parliament of Slovakia adopted a constitutional amendment prohibiting legal recognition of same-sex couples on Wednesday. This makes it the third European Union member state to ban same-sex couples from marrying since 2012, bringing the total number of… Read more »
Gay Couples Can Marry in Russia, Other Countries in British Consulate
The British newspaper the Telegraph reports same-sex marriages can now take place in the British consulates of 23 countries around the world, including nations where gay marriage isn’t legal, like Russia, Serbia, Hungary and Azerbaijan. The marriages, however, won’t be recognized under foreign law. “The Foreign Office has opened the doors of its missions to… Read more »
Backroom deal rules out same-sex unions in Slovak constitution
Today, Slovak MPs from SMER (Social-Democrats) and KDH (Christian-Democrats) voted to define marriage as a ‘unique bond between a man and a woman’ in the Constitution. Ruling party SMER agreed to the demand of opposition party KDH in exchange of their support for a judicial reform. Slovak flag102 parliamentarians voted in favour of the constitutional… Read more »
LGBT in Samara – pederasts and paedophiles
Aggressive homophobia, harassment and public incomprehension – these are the conditions under which members of Samara’s LGBT community live. In this city of 1.5m, homosexual, bisexual and transgender people are trying to unite to confront the problems they face in today’s Russia. Pederasts and paedophiles For the general public, the words ‘pederast’ and ‘paedophile’ mean… Read more »
Michael Lucas’ ‘Campaign Of Hate: Russia And Gay Propaganda’ Examines Anti-LGBT Laws, Sentiment (VIDEO)
Gay porn mogul Michael Lucas is tackling Russia’s controversial “gay propaganda” laws as part of a new documentary. Lucas teamed up with director Scott Stern for “Campaign of Hate: Russia and Gay Propaganda,” which is currently making the international film festival circuit and is available for purchase on Amazon. “The scapegoats used to be the… Read more »
South Urals gay man held hostage by money squeezers to ”cleanse society”
A criminal case is brought up against a group of five Chelyabinsk college students who used a local gay cruising chat to lure a 25 year old gay man, kidnap, threaten him with a gun and rob. Afterwards the group led the man to a bank forcing him to take a loan, while the victim… Read more »
Russian LGBT advocates detained during Moscow protests
Russian authorities on May 31 detained several people who took part in two LGBT rights demonstrations in Moscow. The Associated Press reported that police arrested two advocates during what the news agency described as an “unsanctioned gay pride demonstration” outside Moscow City Hall. Reuters posted a video to its website that shows a handful of… Read more »
What the second LGBTI Pride feels like for Portuguese in Braga
Portugal’s third-largest city gears up for its second Gay Pride parade. Have things changed since last year? While some cities are celebrating decades of Gay Pride parades and parties this June, others are only just embarking on their pride parade journey. Pride organizer Janison Horácio, a Brazilian native fighting for LGBTI rights in Portugal, paints… Read more »
Straights ‘want to wash’ after contact with gays
Researchers have discovered that even some people who consider themselves to not be homophobic still think gay men can ‘contaminate’ them Straight people still think gay men are ‘dirty’, according to new research. According to experiments undertaken across the world, the participants felt the need to ‘physically cleanse’ themselves after imagining contact with a gay… Read more »
Finland and Kosovo united against homophobia
Finland is helping Kosovo fight against homophobia and transphobia. How? Through the EU funded project Fight against Homophobia and Transphobia officially launched on 15 May 2014 in Pristina. The project tackles homophobia as one face of discrimination, emanating from biased attitudes in society that lead to exclusion and hostility and create a severe obstacle for… Read more »
Aiding Turkey’s Gay Inmates
Last month, the Turkish justice minister, Bekir Bozdag, announced a government project to establish separate prisons for the country’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender inmates. According to Mr. Bozdag’s written statement, the goal is to protect these inmates from abuse. This was not the first time Ankara has floated the idea: The Justice Ministry proposed… Read more »
Belgium’s Gay Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo Steps Down
Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo, the world’s first openly gay male head of state, on Monday stepped down following Sunday’s general election in which the New Flemish Alliance Party (N-VA) was the chief winner. Di Rupo, 62, handed in his government’s resignation to King Philip. “The king accepted the resignation and asked the government… Read more »
Russian police protect some LGBT activists, harass others
Police in Russia harassed or arrested several LGBT rights activists in connection with the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia on May 17, the Russian LGBT Network reported. But most of the IDAHOT events in 16 Russian cities occurred without disruption. Many of the celebrations were organized as “Rainbow flashmobs” without a public announcement of… Read more »
Official: Wurst win good for European gay rights
Paris — The head of Europe’s leading human rights body is praising Conchita Wurst’s Eurovision victory as a positive sign that freedom of expression is thriving, and that Europeans are “allowed to shock.” Secretary-General Thorbjorn Jagland of the Council of Europe spoke with The Associated Press by phone about new initiatives to fight anti-gay discrimination… Read more »
Sweden and US fight homophobia together
Reinfeldt and Obama have stood side by side and affirmed their joint commitment to protect the human rights of LGBT people globally, writes the US ambassador to Sweden as he explains why he is “anti anti-gay”. Many of you may know the story of Matthew Shepard a 21-year-old American university student who was beaten, tortured… Read more »
Austrian drag queen, Conchita Wurst wins Eurovision Song Contest
Conchita Wurst, Austria’s bearded drag queen star, won the 59th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night in Copenhagen. Conchita Wurst’s performance of Rise Like a Phoenix wowed judges and the European viewers to take home the title for Austria. It is the first time the country has won in 48 years. The… Read more »
LGBT in the Balkans: “Two steps forward and one step back”
Dutch MEP Marije Cornelissen (Greens/EFA) – a member of the Parliamentary Group for the rights of homosexual, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons—describes the current state of the fight against homophobia and for LGBT rights in the Balkans During the past EP legislature you have been working on the issue of homophobia in the Balkans. How… Read more »
Watch: Russian same-sex couples marry in Copenhagen
Three Russian same-sex couples have married in Copenhagen, while the city hosts the Eurovision Song Contest. The city had in February announced plans to provide weddings for foreign same-sex couples this week, to mark both Eurovision and 25 years since Denmark’s first civil partnership. Last month it was confirmed that three anonymous Russian couples were… Read more »
Fighting Against Discrimination in Mersin
The Platform for Fighting Against Discrimination was established in Mersin with the support of 19 organizations. Hüseyin Aslan, a member of the board of directors for Akdeniz Göç-Der (Mediterranean Association for Migration) held a press conference at the Mersin Journalists Association and explained that the Platform for Fighting Against Discrimination will be the voice of… Read more »
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