Europe
Labour MEP Michael Cashman: Putin’s ‘hate speech’ has resulted in the ‘barbaric killing’ of gay Russian men
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution condemning Russian MPs for passing a draconian homophobic censorship law, with Labour MEP Michael Cashman saying “hate speech” from President Putin and others has resulted in the “barbaric killing of gay men” Several violent homophobic killings have taken place in Russia since the start of 2013 – the… Read more »
A gay island community created by Italy’s Fascists
Seventy-five years ago in Fascist Italy, a group of gay men were labelled “degenerate”, expelled from their homes and interned on an island. They were held under a prison regime – but some found life in the country’s first openly gay community a liberating experience. Every summer, tourists are drawn to the beauty of a… Read more »
Human rights groups condemn passage of Russian anti-gay ‘propaganda’ law
Human rights groups have heavily condemned the passage of a law yesterday through the Russian State Duma, which would ban “homosexual propaganda” across the country, as “outrageous and incredibly dangerous”. The Russian Duma gave final approval to a bill to ban “homosexual propaganda” to minors, and the media. Similar laws have already been passed regionally… Read more »
Croatia to stage twelfth pride march in protest for equal marriage
A Croatian gay pride parade will take to the streets on Saturday against a backdrop of a proposed referendum to define marriage as a heterosexual union The event follows the recently planned initiative intended to rule out the possibility of legalising same-sex marriages. LGBT campaigners against the referendum plan to march in Croatia’s capital city,… Read more »
Why Is Russia So Homophobic?
Communist-era justifications for bigotry don’t make sense anymore. What’s behind lawmakers’ opposition to gays? The Russian Duma unanimously approved a law on Tuesday that prohibits the distribution of homosexual “propaganda” to minors. Holding gay pride events, speaking in defense of gay rights, or equating gay and heterosexual relationships can now result in fines of up… Read more »
Russian parliament passes bill that imposes fines for gay pride rallies, info sharing
Moscow – A bill that stigmatizes gay people and bans giving children any information about homosexuality won overwhelming approval Tuesday in Russia’s lower house of parliament. Hours before the State Duma passed the Kremlin-backed law in a 436-0 vote with one abstention, more than two dozen protesters were attacked by hundreds of anti-gay activists and… Read more »
Russia: LGBT film festival fined under ‘foreign agent’ laws
A Russian LGBT film festival has been targeted under “foreign agent” laws, and fined a substantial amount for allegedly failing to declare foreign funding, which organisers deny having received. The Bok o Bok (Side by Side) Festival, which originated in the city of St Petersburg, was established in 2007, and recently expanded to several other… Read more »
Ireland: Record levels of new HIV cases for gay and bisexual men
Figures released by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre show there were 166 newly diagnosed cases of HIV among gay and bisexual men last year in Ireland – the highest diagnosis rate recorded to date. Ireland’s Gay and Lesbian Equality Network (GLEN) described the figures as “very worrying”. Tiernan Brady, director of Gay HIV Strategies (GHS)… Read more »
Ukraine human rights commissioner calls for LGBT hate crime laws
The Ukrainian Parliament’s Commissioner for Human Rights has called for LGBT status to be added to the country’s hate crime laws and for an end to attempts to ban so-called ‘homosexual propaganda.’ Ukrainian Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights Valeriia Lutkovska has called for lawmakers to add LGBT status to laws in the country’s criminal code… Read more »
Nikolai Alekseev, gay Russian activist, attacked by masked skinheads
Three masked men attacked Nikolai Alekseev, who received minor injuries, as he was about to board a train leaving from Kostroma to Moscow, Russia Nikolai Alekseev, co-founder of Moscow Pride and GayRussia was attacked, as he was about to board a train in Kostroma heading for Moscow, Russia. Three skinheads dressed in black, wearing white… Read more »
German court grants gay unions marriage tax breaks
Berlin(AP) – Gay rights campaigners won a victory over the German government Thursday as the country’s top court ruled that homosexual couples in civil unions should receive the same tax benefits as heterosexual married couples. The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe ruled that treating the two forms of partnership differently for tax purposes violates the… Read more »
Side by Side LGBT Film Festival: Guilty and Fined 12,500 Euros for Violating “Foreign Agents” Law, Russia
Saint Petersburg, Russia – Magistrates Court Judge Oleg Camaldinov took a mere 10 minutes of ‘deliberation’ to declare Side by Side LGBT Film Festival guilty for not registering as a ‘foreign agent’. The judge, even after defence lawyers had presented 4 hours of solid and incontrovertible argument, was not to be persuaded opting to side… Read more »
Lords follow marriage victory with call for gay sex to be legal globally
Britain’s House of Lords have heard the need for 78 countries to decriminalize homosexuality worldwide, just after voting for gay marriage The criminalization of homosexuality is ‘abhorrent’ and needs to be scrapped on human rights and HIV-prevention grounds, the House of Lords has heard. The comment was made by senior Conservative Lord Norman Fowler as… Read more »
Landslide vote for gay marriage in House of Lords
House of Lords backs gay and lesbian marriage bill for England and Wales and will now scrutinize it in detail The House of Lords has backed the further passage of the equal marriage bill – meaning it has now passed a crucial hurdle. The upper chamber of the British parliament spent two days debating the… Read more »
Russian villagers suspected of homophobic killing
(AFP) – Russian villagers are suspected of kicking and stabbing to death a neighbour in the remote far eastern region of Kamchatka because he was gay, investigators said Monday. Three men from the village of Zaporozhye allegedly killed a man last Wednesday because he “had a non-traditional sexual orientation,” the Investigative Committee said in a… Read more »
Activists celebrate France’s first gay wedding amid mass protests
Two French activists exchanged vows Wednesday in what was apparently the first gay wedding under the country’s new law legalizing same-sex marriage and adoption. Vincent Autin and Bruno Boileau were married in Montpellier, a city in southern France with a large gay community. Autin and Boileau had told Agence France-Presse that theirs would be a… Read more »
Main opposition urges protection of LGBT’s, ruling party calls them ‘immoral’
As many countries discuss granting gay marriages, the Turkish Parliament tackled for the first time May 29 the discrimination faced by lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people (LGBT), a sensitive issue long ignored by politicians. The initiative came from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), which submitted an inquiry proposal regarding the problems of… Read more »
Serbia to consider giving gay couples legal rights
Right to inherit pensions from long term partners is among the rights proposed by new law Serbia’s parliament will be presenting a draft law on giving same-sex legal rights at a public hearing on 4 June. It will introduce the right of inheritance for gay couples who have lived together for a long time. Balkan… Read more »
Italy: Politicians call for civil unions, anti-gay hate laws
After a letter from a suicidal gay teen went viral in Italy, center-right politicians are now calling on government to back gay rights Italy’s center-right politicians are calling for equal rights for gay people, saying they are in favor of same-sex unions and anti-homophobia laws. Sandro Bondi, the former Culture Minister, has responded to a… Read more »
Italy: Culture committee chairman proposes bill on gay civil unions
A centre-right Italian politician proposes to introduce a bill this week that would recognise the civil rights of gay couples in same-sex relationships. Giancarlo Galan is confident that he will receive support from colleagues within ex-premier Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right People of Freedom (PdL) party. “In the PdL, there are many who think like me…Then there… Read more »
St. Petersburg Conference On The Protection Of Children From Homophobia And Trensphobia
On May 31st – June 1st, 2013 a conference “Protecting Children from Homophobia and Transphobia” be held in St.Petersburg by Parents’ Movement and Alliance of Straights for LGBT Equality, supported by the Russian LGBT Network. The two-day conference will be dedicated to Children’s Day, which is observed on June 1st. LGBT youth in Russia are… Read more »
Same-Sex Couple Say, ‘I Do,’ as Italy Sticks to ‘I Don’t’
Rome — The nuptials were traditional in almost every sense. The music was romantic. Teary vows were exchanged, along with shimmering rings, and a passionate first kiss was greeted with boisterous cheers, and more tears, by both families. But from a legal point of view, the wedding last week of Massimiliano Benedetto and Giuseppe Ilaria… Read more »
French lesbian love story wins top prize at Cannes
An intimate lesbian love story by French director Abdellatif Kechiche won the top prize in Cannes on Sunday, and the film festival’s director immediately urged the large crowds protesting against gay marriage in Paris to go and see it. Cannes(Reuters) – “La Vie d’Adele – Chapitre 1 & 2” (Blue is the Warmest Colour) was… Read more »
LGBTQ Ukrainians advance democracy
LGBTQ Ukrainians held their first Equality March in Kyiv this past weekend and its significance goes well beyond calls for legal rights and protections for sexual minorities. In a conservative, deeply religious, fledgling democracy, one misunderstood minority’s peaceful march contributed to advancing freedom of press, speech, and assembly in Europe’s second largest and potentially one… Read more »
Gay Marriage Opponents Stage Paris March Days Before Law’s Start
With only days before a gay marriage law is set to take effect in France, thousands poured into the streets of Paris on Sunday to demand its repeal. The legislation, which takes effect on Wednesday, makes France the 14th nation to legalize such unions. An estimated 150,000 protestors gathered at the historic Esplanade des Invalides,… Read more »
Ukraine gay rights activists hold first ever march
Kiev — Around a hundred gay rights activists marched in Ukraine on Saturday despite fears of violence, marking the first gay pride event in the ex-Soviet country, where homophobia is widespread and socially accepted. “This can be considered a historic day,” Elena Semyonova, a representative of the organisers, said after the event. “We felt like… Read more »
Dozens Of Activists Arrested At Moscow Gay Pride
Authorities in Moscow arrested dozens of gay rights activists on Saturday as they attempted to hold a Gay Pride demonstration. Sky News reported that at least 30 activists were being held by police after they defied a city order banning such protests. The activists targeted Russia’s lower house of parliament, where lawmakers are considering a… Read more »
Balkan states told to improve on LGBT rights before joining EU
The European Parliament have advised countries joining the EU to adopt legislation against discrimination of LGBT citizens Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have been told they should improve LGBT rights ahed of joining the European Union. Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have voted in favour of reports encouraging Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina to enforce… Read more »
Court cancels Ukraine’s first gay pride rally
Kiev, Ukraine (AP) — A Ukrainian court on Thursday banned what would have been Ukraine’s first-ever gay pride demonstration, upholding a suit by city authorities, who argued the rally would disturb annual Kiev Day celebrations and could spark violence. The ruling dashed the hopes of Ukraine’s gay and lesbian community, who planned to use the… Read more »
Ukraine’s Gay Pride Rally Canceled By Court
Kiev, Ukraine – A Ukrainian court on Thursday banned what would have been Ukraine’s first-ever gay pride demonstration, upholding a suit by city authorities, who argued the rally would disturb annual Kiev Day celebrations and could spark violence. The ruling dashed the hopes of Ukraine’s gay and lesbian community, who planned to use the event… Read more »
LGBT Rights: Advocacy Chief Wins Dutch Award
Jos Brink State Prize for Boris Dittrich (Amsterdam) – Boris Dittrich, advocacy director for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Rights Program at Human Rights Watch has been awarded the Dutch government’s prestigious Jos Brink State Prize for 2013. Jet Bussemaker, Dutch minister of education, culture and science, presented the award to Dittrich in… Read more »
MPs pass same-sex marriage bill in final third reading
MPs have voted 366 – 161 overwhelmingly in favour of passing the Marriage (Same Sex Couples Bill) – in its third reading in the House of Commons – giving it a majority of 205. Shortly before the vote took place, Culture Secretary and Minister for Equalities, Maria Miller told MPs: “I accept that for some… Read more »
Czech President In Dispute Over Gay Rights
Prague (AP) — The Czech Republic’s controversy-courting new president is under fire for refusing to grant a university professorship to one of his critics and hinting that it is because the man is a gay rights activist. In what is normally a formality, Czech presidents appoint the country’s professors after they are nominated for the… Read more »
Gay couples in Portugal win limited adoption rights
Lisbon (Reuters) – Portugal’s parliament on Friday handed same-sex couples the right to adopt the children or foster children of one partner, a partial victory for equality campaigners that fell short of their call for full adoption rights. The co-adoption law scraped through with a majority of just five votes in the 230-seat Lisbon assembly,… Read more »
France gay marriage: Hollande signs bill into law
France’s president has signed into law a controversial bill making the country the ninth in Europe, and 14th globally, to legalise gay marriage. On Friday, the Constitutional Council rejected a challenge by the right-wing opposition, clearing the way for Francois Hollande to sign the bill. He said: “I have taken [the decision]; now it is… Read more »
Same-sex couples win adoption rights for partners’ children in Portugal
Portuguese parliament votes for partial adoption law for same-sex couples but stops short of full equality Portugal’s Parliament has voted in favour of limited gay and lesbian adoption. The new law will allow those in same-sex couples to adopt their partner’s biological or adopted child. Ruling Social Democratic Party (SDP) supported the bill along with… Read more »
‘The Other’ and LGBT Rights in Turkey
In 2009, Dr. Binnaz Toprak, then a professor of political science at Bogaziçi University in Istanbul, authored a report titled “Being Different in Turkey: Religion, Conservatism and Otherization.” The report, jointly published with the Open Society Foundation in Turkey, demonstrated how the conservative religious politics of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) had intensified… Read more »
Gay Star News flashmob brings you sunshine for IDAHO
GSN teams up with London Gay Men’s Chorus and London Gay Big Band to Bring Me Sunshine and spread the word about fighting homophobia and transphobia Gay Star News joined forces with the UK capital’s talented LGBT singers and musicians to make a video to mark International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO). While reports… Read more »
Smoke pellets and stones thrown at gay activists in St Petersburg
Russian city’s LGBT population holds demonstration for IDAHO despite propaganda law. Thugs attack Over 150 LGBT people and their friends have braved homophobic and transphobic thugs to demand their rights at a protest in St Petersburg, Russia. The protest for International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) today (17 May) was in the city’s main… Read more »
24 countries in Europe still require sterilization from trans people
For the first time TGEU publishes a Trans Rights Europe Map & Index. The map shows that 24 countries in Europe require sterilization in legal gender recognition while a total of 16 countries do not provide for any possibility to change name and gender at all. This means that transgender people remain barred from active… Read more »
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