GLBT DIGEST - September 30, 2008

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New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/
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-Combining Words and Physicality to Explore Religion and Homosexuality
Lloyd Newson first became recognized as a choreographer who boldly blurs the boundaries between dance and theater when his British company, DV8 Physical Theater, arrived on the scene in 1986. His intensely physical, sometimes violent pieces deal frankly with complex issues like sexuality, masculinity and alienation. In "Dead Dreams of Monochrome Men" from 1988, for example, he explored a serial killer's psyche through intense, repetitive movements that were physically daring, even dangerous: falling, climbing, dancers' throwing one another around.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/arts/dance/30danc.html?scp=3&sq=gay&st=cse


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Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
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-Greece: Gays protest for right to wed
ATHENS ROME - Greek gay and lesbian activists are protesting a prosecutor's bid to have the country's first same-sex marriages annulled. Some 50 people took part in Monday's peaceful protest outside parliament, with banners that read "Same-sex weddings are legal" and "I want to get married too." A lesbian couple and two gay men made legal history in Greece in June by getting married in two civil ceremonies on the small Aegean Sea island of Tilos. They took advantage of a loophole in a 26-year-old law that does not specify gender in civil weddings. A prosecutor on the nearby island of Rhodes has tabled a lawsuit seeking the marriages' annulment. The case is due to be heard Thursday.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/sfl-flaworlddig09300sbsep30,0,3261009.story


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365Gay.com
http://www.365gay.com/
Go to this link for the following articles:

-Veep debate likely lively
Sarah Palin brought something more effective than facts and figures to an agriculture debate in the Alaska governor's race. She packed an engaging disposition. One of her opponents, Andrew Halcro, had memorized the complexities of the subject beforehand. He was super prepared. He might as well have stared out the window during the proceedings, for all it mattered.
http://www.365gay.com/news/veep-debate-likely-lively/

-Neff: Read a banned book lately?
My new Borders Rewards card arrived in the mail the other day and I began to think about all the books off the "banned books" lists I could buy at a discounted rate. I've always wanted to build a library of classics and I could tailor the content to consist of books that have been lifted, removed, defaced or banned - but probably not burned - from U.S. schools and libraries.
http://www.365gay.com/opinion/neff-read-a-banned-book-lately/

-American Airlines calls for passage of inclusive ENDA
American Airlines has told Congress that it's time to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. "[We are] proud to express our strong support of federal workplace non-discrimination legislation that would extend basic job protections to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans," the company said in a letter to members of Congress.
http://www.365gay.com/news/american-airlines-calls-for-passage-of-inclusive-enda/

-Gay Australia beyond Sydney
If you love a big gay Aussie parade (you know, the one that adds a little color to the mainstream media each year) and a crushing number of near naked guys out for fun, Sydney has what you're looking for. However, if you've "been there, done that," or are looking for a different kind of Aussie adventure, head south, and take a chance on the States of Victoria and Tasmania.
http://www.365gay.com/features/gay-australia-beyond-sydney/


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The Advocate
http://advocate.com/
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-Gay Bush Appointee Loses Appeal for Fair Treatment
Richard Grenell was appointed spokesperson for the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations by President Bush more than seven years ago and became the longest-serving public servant to hold that post. But when it came to having his partner of six years listed alongside the spouses of other U.N. diplomats, his dedication to the job didn't carry much weight with the State Department.
http://www.advocate.com/exclusive_detail_ektid62590.asp


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Marriage Equality News
http://samesexmarriage.typepad.com/weblog/
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-FL: Orlando protesters target Magic owner for support of marriage ban
Link: Orlando Sentinel
Inside the Amway Arena, a voice over the public-address system announced that the next two people to buy upper-bowl tickets to the Orlando Magic would get a basketball autographed by Hedo Turkoglu. Meanwhile, outside the facility, protesters chanted, "The billionaire's a bonehead. The billionaire's a bonehead."

-Mormon Youth Group Mans Utah Phone Bank for Proposition 8
Link: Box Turtle Bulletin
by Timothy Kincaid
Students at Brigham Young University are being encouraged to campaign for California's anti-gay marriage amendment, Proposition 8. (BYU News) The International Voice for Youth club sponsored an assembly Thursday night to educate students about the possible effects of not passing Proposition 8 in November. After a speech by Lynn Wardle, a BYU law professor, the students got on their cell phones and started calling fellow students from California.

-New Ecuador constitution includes gay rights guarantees, civil unions
Link: 365 Gay News
Rafael Correa's avowed quest for an "equitable, just" Ecuador won a major boost as voters approved a new constitution that will help the leftist president consolidate power and enable him to run for two more consecutive terms. The new constitution guarantees civil rights for gays and lesbians, including civil unions affording all the rights of marriage. It also guarantees free education through college and pensions for stay-at-home mothers and informal-sector workers. Such measures build on already popular Correa programs that provide low-interest micro-loans, building material for first-time homeowners and free seeds for growing crops.

-FL: Commentary--Gay Marriage Not The Issue For Black Clergy
Link: Palm Beach Post Rhythm & Views blog
by Rhonda Swan
When will more black pastors start putting time and energy into helping bring and keep families together instead of trying to keep gay folks apart? Last week, the Florida Baptist Witness published a story online about a group of 40 black pastors gathering at a Tampa church to announce their support of Amendment 2, the Florida Marriage Protection Amendment that seeks to "protect traditional marriage" by prohibiting marriage between same sex couples. [.] How exactly is keeping gay folks from getting married protecting "traditional marriage?"


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Pink News - UK
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/
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-Sean Penn boasts to Madonna about kissing boys
Sean Penn, who is to star in new film Milk, has share an on-screen kiss with co-star James Franco. The actor was reportedly so excited about his first gay kiss that he sent a text message to Madonna about it.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9154.html

-Top author to create gay characters
Alexander McCall Smith, the best-selling author of The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, will introduce gay characters into his new books. The new gay characters will appear in Mr McCall Smith's 44 Scotland Street and Sunday Philosophy Club series.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9152.html

-Gay Congressman at centre of financial crisis
A veteran fighter for gay rights has come under fire for his role in the current crisis in the financial markets. Barney Frank, chairman of the US House of Representatives Financial Services panel, hit back yeserday, mocking Republican representatives for blocking an attempt to inject hundreds of billions of dollars into the American economy.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9151.html

-Sydney celebrates first gay Jewish commitment ceremony
The first Australian same-sex commitment ceremony to take place in a synagogue was held on Sunday. Christopher Whitmont-Stein, 38, and Scott Whitmont, 47, had already entered into a civil commitment ceremony in 2002, took part in traditional Jewish wedding rites.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9149.html

-Indian court told to ignore health minister's call for decriminalisation
A lawyer representing the government of India has said it "does not matter" that the country's health minister supports the decriminalisation of gay sex. The government is opposing a petition filed by gay rights activists asking the Delhi High Court to overturn the law on homosexual acts between consenting adults.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9148.html

-Record turnout at Asia's largest Pride event
The Taiwanese gay community celebrated the highlight of the 2008 Taipei Gay Carnival with a Pride parade on Saturday. There were 18,000 participants, making it the largest gay event in Asia.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9147.html

-EU equality summit meets in Paris
Diplomats, gay rights advocates and equal opportunities experts are meeting in France today to discuss how to apply the principles of non-discrimination in the European Union. 400 delegates will assess the commitments undertaken by the countries which took part in the European Year of Equal Opportunities in 2007.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9145.html

-Morocco may give gays some rights 'within fifty years'
An international congress on gay rights in Muslim countries has been told that the north African nation of Morocco may grant rights to homosexuals "within fifty years." A representative of a gay group in the country, Kif-Kif, said that although homosexual acts are still illegal, they have unofficial contacts with the Moroccan Socialist Party, reports DPA.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9143.html

-Google opposes ban on gay marriage
Internet company Google will publicly oppose an attempt to ban same-sex marriage in California. Co-founder Sergey Brin said in a blog posting that the company, which is headquartered in the state and employs nearly 20,000 people, sees the issue as one of equality.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9140.html


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Fowarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
www.dailyqueernews.com
Go to the links for the following articles:

-Gay Marriage Ban Sparks 'War of the Rings'
By Lisa Leff | Tahoe Daily Tribune
Gettysburg. Armageddon. The War of the Rings.
Those are some of the superlatives culture warriors on both sides of the same-sex marriage divide are using to convey the urgency surrounding California's Proposition 8 on the Nov. 4 ballot, which would place a ban on gay marriage in the state Constitution. To the initiative's backers, nothing less weighty than religious liberty and even the building blocks of society are at stake. To its opponents, the California Marriage Protection Amendment tests nothing more cherished than the American ideals of equality and personal freedom. All of it is riding on whether voters in the nation's most populous state accept or reject 14 words: "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

-Jay Bakker Ministers to Those 'Who Have Given Up on Church'
By YONAT SHIMRON | McClatchy Newspapers | Centre Daily
Jay Bakker, Christian punk preacher and son of televangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, preaches about God's love for gays and lesbians, building on a theme his late mother championed. The pierced and tattooed Bakker grew up in Charlotte, N.C., at the heels of his parents' Praise The Lord ministry and television network. The PTL empire imploded in scandal in the 1980s. Afterward, Tammy Faye, who divorced an imprisoned Jim Bakker and married Roe Messner, re-emerged as a television and cult personality - this time embracing gay men infected with the AIDS virus. She died of cancer last year. Her son is following in her footsteps - fighting to end religious and political discrimination against gays and lesbians, and presenting a nonjudgmental, inclusive face to his Christian faith.

-Blacks, Whites Show Prejudices Along Racial Divide
By RON FOURNIER and ERRIN HAINES | Associated Press Writers | Yahoo News
The Classic Creations barber shop sits empty, surrounded by drunks and shuttered storefronts just two blocks from the manicured lawns of Grosse Pointe Park. The contrast isn't lost on LaVar Anthony, a young barber who speaks in riddles of race, class and politics. "What's already understood," he says without looking up from his Ebony magazine, "don't need to be explained." But when it comes to race, what is understood? And what is misunderstood?


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Forwarded from Gays Without Borders
Contact rays.list@comcast.net for the full article

-Sexual cleansing in Iraq: coordinator of Iraqi LGBT murdered in Baghdad by Therion
McCain keeps trumpeting that the surge is responsible for a 'much improved' security situation in Iraq. What he omits to say is that without ethnic cleansing, the partitioning of Baghdad into a walled city and the paying off of Sunni fighters the surge wouldn't have had as much of an impact. These measures have created the surreal appearance of normality heralded as 'progress' by the propagandists at Fox news - but behind the scenes is a tale of repression and violence. This was demonstrated this week when the coordinator of the Iraqi LGBT community in Baghdad, 27 year old Bashar, was gunned down in a barber shop by militia members. This killing and others of gay people, has been given the seal of approval by religious authorities. Shia leader Moqtada al-Sadr has actively encouraged attacks on gays. There
is a strain of virulent homophobia in Iraqi society, given sanction by religion and tradition.
http://aidanmaconachyblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/sexual-cleansing-in-iraq-coordinator-of.html

-Link here to the video: Queer Fear - Gay life, Gay Death in Iraq, produced by David Grey for Village Film. It documents the tragic fates of gay Iraqis who have fallen victim to the homophobic fanatics who would like nothing less than sexual cleansing directed against the LGBT community in Iraq.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6vbpr

-Link to Gays Without Borders for comprehensive coverage of this story and international challenges facing the LGBT rights movement.
http://gayswithoutborders.wordpress.com/

-Iran admits it has gay people
But only a few, says President Ahmadinejad
Execution of lesbians and gays denied
The Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has done an astonishing volte-face by admitting in a US TV interview that there are lesbian and gay people in Iran. Only last year, in a speech at Columbia University in New York, he notoriously claimed there were no lesbians and gays in his country. "We do not have this phenomenon," he declared. Last week, however, Ahmadinejad grudgingly conceded there "might be a few" gay people in Iran. [...] Text of the section of the interview relating to gay issues
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/9/26/iranian_president_mahmoud_ahmedinejad_on_iran


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Forwarded from Euro-Queer
Contact rays.list@comcast.net for the full article:

-Greeks protest government crackdown on gay marriage
Dozens of gays and lesbians protested outside parliament on Monday against the conservative government's attempt to overturn Greece's first same-sex marriages. Waving banners reading "These Weddings Are Valid", dozens of homosexual couples gathered in central Athens ahead of a court ruling due this week on the two marriages celebrated on the tiny Aegean island of Tilos in June. The Justice Ministry has filed a legal suit to overturn the union of one gay and one lesbian couple after they took advantage of a loophole in Greek civil law that fails to specify gender in matrimony.
http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnLT695789.html

-Invitation to submit testimonies to a document concerning transgender rights breaches in Europe
ILGA-Europe is currently compiling an advocacy document concerning transgender human rights breaches across Europe. We intend to illustrate the breaches that we shall highlight through real life examples through personal testimonies, discriminatory practices/policies that are currently in place (in public and private institutions) and/or discriminatory court decisions. I would thus like to ask the members of this group to send any information/documentation that they may have to silvan@ilga-europe.org as soon as possible and ideally by not later than 15th October.

-TASMANIAN GAY AND LESBIAN RIGHTS GROUP
HIV RESEARCHER SAYS STIs NO BASIS FOR GAY BLOOD BAN
HIV researcher, Prof John Kaldor, has agreed rates of sexually transmitted diseases other than HIV are not a basis upon which to ban gay men from blood donation. The concession came during evidence from Prof Kaldor to the Tasmanian Anti-Discrimination Tribunal hearing into gay blood donation which continued in Hobart today. During his evidence, Prof Kaldor has also agree that gay oral sex is safe and that having a period of celibacy from gay anal sex that is longer than the current HIV-detection period of nine days is "conservative". However, Prof Kaldor still maintains that gay anal sex is a high risk activity even when condoms are used.


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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
Go to the links for the following articles:
Contact rays.list@comcast.net if can't access the article

-NBJC Partners with California State Conference of the NACCP
In a striking display of unity and support to ensure the civil rights protection of all people across the state, the California State Conference of the NAACP and the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) have joined forces to champion the issue of marriage for gay and lesbian couples.
http://www.nbjcoalition.org/news/los-angeles-town-hall.html

-The Biology of Voting
A small band of scholars tries to reshape political science
Five years ago, John R. Alford was chafing under the limitations of political science. Despite more than two decades of work in that area, he and his colleagues were failing to make much progress in explaining basic political inclinations, such as why some people trust government while others do not.
http://chronicle.com/temp/email2.php?id=JXRkQTpkcWrs4WJpsCCbMg8yNFgvS6mr

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