Oklahoma Gets Official State Gospel Song

On Tuesday, Oklahoma's House voted unanimously to make Swing Low, Sweet Chariot the official state gospel song. No other state has an official religious song.
When state Representative Jabar Shumate of Tulsa (left), the Oklahoma bill's House sponsor, was asked by a colleague to give a rendering of the song on the House floor on Monday, he declined, saying his pastor told him to always sing solo -- "so low nobody can hear." Even without a performance, no one voted against the song. "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" was written in 1862, when Oklahoma was still Indian Territory, by a Choctaw Freedman named Wallis Wallis. It's said the Red River made Wallis think of the Jordan River, and the song was loosely based on a Bible passage that describes the Prophet Elijah being taken to heaven in a chariot. "It should be a source of pride to all Oklahomans that this meaningful song was written in our state," Shumate said.
Gov. Mary Fallin signed the bill into law last night.

Quote Of The Day - Peter Sprigg

"In any discussion of 'sexual orientation,' it is important to remember that this is only an umbrella term for three quite different things—a person’s sexual attractions, the sexual behavior, and their self-identification. In the survey upon which this study was based, there was only a single question on 'sexual orientation,' which asked 'which of the following best describes you.' The choices were 'heterosexual (straight), gay or lesbian, bisexual' or 'not sure.'

"This is essentially a measure of self-identification. Therefore, the logical take-away from the study would be this: the most effective way of reducing teen suicide attempts is not to create a 'positive social environment' for the affirmation of homosexuality. Instead, it would be to discourage teens from self-identifying as gay, lesbian, or bisexual." - Family Research Council bigot Peter Sprigg, in an FRC article denouncing last week's Pediatrics study on teen suicide.

According to Sprigg, gay kids wouldn't kill themselves so much if adults would just do a better job of browbeating them out of accepting their sexuality. Seriously.

NOM Signs Up For Diaz Rally

NOM has officially aligned themselves with NY Sen. Ruben Diaz' massive anti-gay hate rally, which takes place in the Bronx on Sunday, May 15th, the day of the AIDS Walk in Central Park.
On May 15, Rev Díaz called for a rally in the Bronx and I will be there! Talk about fighting for marriage in the deep blue country! But marriage is an extraordinary issue which gathers together people of all races, creeds and colors in defense of an idea: Marriage is the way we bring together the two great halves of humanity, male and female, in part so that children can know the love of their mom and dad. We're gearing up with Rev. Díaz and thousands of New Yorkers to fight for marriage. Pray for Rev. Díaz and for all on the front lines of this fight, will you? And following Rev. Díaz's lead, pray for those who wish to redefine marriage—for their safety, for a new spirit of civility and decency—and for the conversion of their hearts to support for marriage. - Brian Brown.
As in 2009, I will among the likely few counter-protesters at the Diaz rally. If you plan on attending, you might consider including respectful messages in Spanish on your signage. The odds are high that your image will end up in the other side's materials.

Tony Perkins: Gay Activists Are Terrorists

"This has moved from cultural terrorism to corporate terrorism. That's what this is. Now, back in the 80's and early 90's I worked with the state department in anti-terrorism and we trained about fifty different countries in defending against terrorism, and it's, at it's base, what terrorism is, it's a strike against the general populace simply to spread fear and intimidation so that they can disrupt and destabilize the system of government. That's what the homosexuals are doing here to the legal system." - Hate group leader Tony Perkins, on King & Spalding's DOMA withdrawal.

Just three days ago we were cowards, now we're terrorists. Make up your diseased mind, Miss Perkins.

HomoQuotable -Jimmy LaSalvia

"Our organization’s number one goal between now and November 2012 is defeating Barack Obama. We look forward to the Iowa Straw Poll as the kickoff to this effort. Barack Obama’s tenure in the White House has been an unmitigated disaster for all Americans, including gay and lesbian Americans. Defeating Barack Obama and putting a conservative in the White House should be the number one goal of every single person in the conservative movement." - GOProud president Jimmy LaSalvia, who hilariously adds that "this Republican presidential field is shaping up to be an incredibly strong one."

Spike in searches causes Google to suggest “James Middleton Gay”


The search engine Google has begun to auto-suggest “James Middleton gay” following a surge in searches on the younger brother of Catherine ‘Kate’, Duchess of Cambridge.

Mr Middleton, who is a cake designer, gave a reading earlier today at the marriage of his sister to Prince William. As soon as he began to speak, hundreds of people asked on Twitter and other social media networks if he is gay. There is no evidence to suggest that he is.

An increase in searches on Google for the term “James Middleton gay” has led to the search engine auto-suggesting the term “James Middleton gay” when a user begins to type his name.

Google’s suggested terms are driven by the volume of people querying a particular term as opposed to an algorithm or editorial involvement by the company. In 2006, the search engine auto-suggested “Ashley Cole gay” when users searched for his name. The spike in traffic relating to Cole coincided with his legal battle with the News of the World that wrongly implied that he was involved in a gay sex incident with a well known DJ.

The social media traffic relating to Mr Middleton today has included users sharing photographs of him partying in one of his sister’s dresses and another dressed as a French maid. A third photograph shows him naked aside from a strategically placed bottle of beer.

The Daily Telegraph reports that last month Mr Middleton posted a photograph on his Facebook page showing “four men, backs to camera, with their trousers around their ankles and bottoms on show standing on a country road called Back Lane.”

Remembering the Admiral Duncan bombing 12 years on


Tomorrow marks the twelfth anniversary of the Admiral Duncan nail bomb attack on April 30th 1999 in Soho.

It was one of three nail bomb attacks and killed three people, while 80 were injured.

While the incidents in Brixton and Brick Lane were targeted directly towards ethnic minorities, the Admiral Duncan bombing was a vicious attack intended to kill gay people.

The bomb detonated in the busy pub at 6.37pm. The location was an obvious choice for bomber David Copeland due to its location in Old Compton Street, at the heart of London’s gay community. Allegedly, it was the first gay pub chosen from an alphabetical list.

One witness described the scene as “absolute carnage”, with several people blown out of the pub into the street.

What made the situation even more frightening, was that no warning was given and many were anxious that another explosion was set to go off, causing panic in the streets. Many injured were treated on the roadside, while others fled the area.

At the time, many gay people had seen the area of Old Compton Street as a safe haven where they could socialise without fear of homophobic attacks. The explosion inevitably changed all this and highlighted the prejudice inherent in society that many had forgotten existed.

Peter Tatchell summed this view up after the attack, saying: “This outrage has destroyed that cosy assumption.”

Deputy Assistant Commissioner, Alan Fry, head of the Metropolitan Police’s anti-terrorist branch, said that when officers arrived at the scene they were confronted by utter devastation. He said: “It was an horrendous scene. It was a complete wreck.”

The device exploded at the start of a bank holiday weekend so the Old Compton Street area had been heaving with people. It was a pre-mediated attack in which the aim was to hurt and kill as many gay people as possible.

Copeland, a former BNP member and neo-Nazi, was so fuelled by hate that he did not consider integration in any of his attacks.

In this, where he thought he would be attacking specific groups because the areas he targeted were known to be either gay areas, or ethnic areas, he faltered. In all three attacks, he injured whites and straight people.

One of these was Andrea Dykes, 27, who was four months pregnant. She was was instantly killed while enjoying pre-theatre drinks at the Admiral Pub and her husband was one of those seriously injured.

Their friend, Nik Moorem, 31, was also killed and the best man at their wedding, John Light, 32, later died in hospital.

There is now a memorial and a plaque in the pub to commemorate those injured and killed in the blast.

The explosions were set off by David Copeland, then 22, whose objective was to wage a war against ethnic minorities and gay people in Britain.

He was arrested at his flat in Sunnybank Road, Farnborough, where police found Nazi flags and a poster of Adolf Hitler in the middle of a collage of photos of bomb victims.

He is currently serving six life sentences in Broadmoor Hospital at Crowthorne.

In March 2007, the High Court ruled Copeland could not be released before 2049, when he will be 73.

The initial sentence ordered him to spend at least 30 years behind bars but this was extended due to what the High Court judge described as the case’s “exceptional gravity”.

One year on from the tragedy, in 2000, a memorial service was held at St Anne’s church nearby to mark the anniversary of the bomb, an event which has been carried out ever since.

A trio of cherry trees were planted on the church grounds in dedication to Andrea Dykes, John Light and Nik Moorem. The trees symbolised the three local London communities: Soho, Brick Lane, and Brixton, which were left in chaos by the three nail bombings.

Today, the Admiral Duncan will remember the tenth anniversary of the bombing.

There will be a two-minute silence at 6.37 pm at St Anne’s Gardens, which will stay open until 7.30pm for those wishing to pay their respects. The Rector of St Anne’s Chruch will also say a few words for families and friends.

Interview: Richard ‘Biff’ Stannard, the man with the X Factor


You might not know his name, but you can’t fail to know Richard ‘Biff’ Stannard’s music. Working with The Spice Girls, Kylie, U2 and countless other bands and artists he’s arguably written and produced some of the best songs in the history of pop music.

Born in London’s east end in 1966, Stannard says he stood out from his brothers at an early age.

“It’s a bit of a Billy Elliot story really,” he says. “I grew up in a very masculine environment. My brothers were all fighters and I was literally going jazz-tap rather than boxing. When I was four I would get two bricks and a bit of wood and stand outside our terraced house tap-dancing for money.”

He left home at the age of 17 with the aim of becoming a dancer.

“I earned money doing window dressing and some other bits and pieces. I did some bad deejaying and ran around with Philip Sallon and the Mud Club crowd for a while. It was all music, music, music and clubbing all the time.”

It was while he was dating Tom Watkins, The Pet Shop Boys’ former manager, that Stannard met Tony Mortimer.

“He had these tunes on a little cassette. House of Love was one of them. Deep was another. I heard them and I was like: ‘This is brilliant, let’s play it to Tom.’ Tom loved it but wanted Tony to be part of a band. He was impressed that I’d seen the material’s potential and my career in music sort of started from that. I helped put East 17 together and House of Love was the first hit I produced. I started co-writing with them on their second album.”

East 17 went on to sell more than 20 million records, although Stannard ceased working with them after he and Watkins split up. Within a month of the break-up however, Stannard had a surprise encounter with a girl called Melanie.

He was walking down a corridor in West London’s Nomis Studios, having finished a meeting with Jason Donovan, when Mel B jumped on his back and told him he had an arse like a black man.

“She asked me what I did and I mentioned the song Steam and East 17. She said she loved it and dragged me in to meet them all. We were all best mates in 20 minutes. I went and got Matt Rowe who I’d been doing stuff with and within ten days we’d written Wannabe and 2 Become 1.”

Wannabe, of course, went to number one in 37 countries and launched the Spice Girls as a global phenomenon. The group went on to sell more than 75 million records.

Was he just in the right place at the right time?

“We were working 18-hour days, seven days a week. We wrote Wannabe quite quickly, but it took ages to get it to sound right. I remember waking up on the studio floor with this post-it from Matt saying, ‘Press play.’ We’d finally got it. So it was luck and hard work.”

Since The Spice Girls and their respective solo careers Stannard has written songs for Kylie, Will Young, Gabrielle, Five, Westlife, Ellie Goulding and Sophie Ellis Bextor to name just a few.

I ask him if he’s a frustrated pop star.

“Not at all. I don’t have that ambition to be looked at. I work with people who have that though and it fascinates me.”

What makes him such a good songwriter?

“A lot of people say my strength is being able to morph into different people. I can work with U2 and become Bono. Then I can be a girl with pigtails and be a Spice Girl. I tend to write happy songs because I’m a very happy person.”

Right now he’s happier than usual: later this year he’ll be marrying his partner Pat in a civil partnership.

“It’s kind of soppy, but meeting Pat has changed everything for me. Simon noticed it in me instantly.”

That would be Simon Cowell.

“I’ve known Simon for ages. Over the years he’s asked me to do a lot of stuff, but when he asked me to do X Factor I hadn’t worked with him for like 12 years. It was such a great opportunity. I started off doing one of the groups with Dannii. I’d help choose the songs, arrange them and record them and my role just sort of grew from there.”

During their first X Factor meeting, Cowell sensed something different about him.

“He smiled and asked me: ‘Who is he?’ I told him I’d met Pat and he said: ‘I knew it!’ He’s incredibly perceptive.”

I ask him why he took the X Factor job.

“I just thought it would be fun. It’s very hard work, but I love the idea of 20 million people watching. No matter how big a hit you have nowadays you never get an audience that big anywhere else. I’m not doing it for the money. Neither does Simon. Because of it though I’ve got to work with Matt, Rebecca and One Direction. I’m doing Matt’s album now.”

How does he answer the criticism that shows like X Factor are destroying the traditional music industry?

“Rubbish,” he says. “Shows like X Factor give a voice to the people who aren’t lucky enough to be born in London and weren’t bought a Power Mac by their parents.”

I ask him what he makes of the decline in album sales the music industry typically bemoans?

“There’s not been a decline for the big releases. Look at the Take That’s Progress: it outsold all of their previous albums. When you’ve got a good pop record it sells. Part of the decline is because nowadays kids are buying different stuff. It’s just the recent phenomena have been Harry Potter and Call of Duty, not albums.”

With a Spice Girls musical in the works, written by Jennifer Saunders, 2011 looks like being another busy year for Stannard.

Does he work too hard?

“Maybe. Pat’s very good at telling me when to stop. Otherwise I’d be working in the studio until three o’clock in the morning every night. He’s amazing.”

“A lot of the artists I’ve worked with are coming to our wedding. They’re Pat’s friends as much as mine. He’s really shy, but he’ll sit and sing Especially For You on SingStar with Kylie and not be phased by it. I’m a very lucky guy.”

Lucky? Perhaps. But very, very talented with it.

Atlanta Braves coach accused of anti-gay slurs


The coach of the Atlanta Braves, Roger McDowell, has been accused of shouting homophobic slurs at fans during a match last Saturday.

During the game at the AT&T Park in San Francisco, he allegedly asked three Giants fans: “Are you a homo couple or a threesome?”

He reportedly made lewd gestures at them and threatened another fan with a baseball bat.

American lawyer Gloria Allred was in the stands with Giants fan Justin Quinn and his family.

She said Mr Quinn asked Mr McDowell to mind his language in front of children. Mr McDowell allegedly responded: “Kids don’t [expletive] belong at the baseball park.”

Ms Allred claimed that the coach then walked towards Mr Quinn with a baseball bat, asking: “How much are your teeth worth?”

In a statement, Mr McDowell said: “I am deeply sorry that I responded to the heckling fans in San Francisco on Saturday. I apologise to everyone for my actions.”

Mr Quinn has demanded an apology, a fine for Mr McDowell and an order for him to attend sensitivity training.

The Atlanta Braves said: “This in no way represents the Braves organisation and the conduct we expect of our employees.

“We will withhold further comments until we finish gathering information.”

The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation said “real disciplinary action” must be taken.

President Jarrett Barrios said: “McDowell’s apology is a start, but the Atlanta Braves and Major League Baseball must take real disciplinary action and send the message that anti-gay slurs have no place in sports.

“Professional sporting events should be an environment that all fans and families can enjoy, not a place where children are exposed to violent threats and discriminatory language.”

New Mexico school bans all clubs after gay-straight alliance forms


A school board in New Mexico has voted to ban all school clubs after a gay-straight alliance applied for recognition.

Officials on the Clovis school board said the ban was a coincidence but the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) questioned the timing.

The alliance was approved by the principal last month who apparently did not realise that the district superintendent must approve new clubs.

District superintendent Terry Myers told the Albuquerque Journal that the gay-straight alliance’s application did not trigger the ban.

“Being a new superintendent in Clovis, the board asked me to review each policy as it came up and make recommendations or at least bring those to their attention if there’s some question as to what the board truly wants with a particular policy,” he said.

“This was not prompted by a particular request.”

The school board voted to ban any extra-curricular school group from using school premises during school hours. The ban also means that groups cannot use school resources.

Micah McCoy, of the ACLU of New Mexico, told Reuters: “This sort of tactic has been used in the past by school districts to discourage gay-straight clubs from forming. A lot of alarm bells went off when we saw this.”

The gay-straight alliance has not yet been approved. Mr Myers said it would be if it meets normal requirements.

Gay US politician abandons plan for gay marriage this year


The House Speaker for Rhode Island has abandoned efforts to bring marriage equality to the state this year.

Gordon Fox, who is gay, says he will instead push for civil unions because a gay marriage bill does not have enough support to pass.

He said he still personally supports marriage equality but civil unions are “the best we can do right now”.

Gay rights campaigners were deeply disappointed at his decision and urged him to rethink it.

Mr Fox, a Democrat, said: “This is the best we can do right now. Full marriage will happen. I’m born and bred in Rhode Island. When I do get married it will be in my home state.”

Gay marriage bills have failed in Rhode Island repeatedly in recent years. The latest bill was greeted with more hope, as new governor Lincoln Chafee promised he would sign it if it reached his desk.

Mr Chafee said yesterday: “I think [gay marriage is] inevitable. But it doesn’t look like we had the votes this year.”

Marriage Equality Rhode Island said it was “extremely disappointed” at Mr Fox’s decision.

Martha Holt, chair of the group’s board of directors, said: “Civil unions are a compromise for no one. Advocates both for and against marriage equality have clearly expressed their opposition to the half measure of civil unions.

“We are extremely disappointed in the lack of leadership at the State House and we would urge Speaker Fox to rethink sponsoring legislation that would create a second class of citizens.”

Five states – Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, New Hampshire and Vermont – and the District of Columbia – currently allow gay couples to marry.

Recent national polls have found that just over half of the population support marriage equality.

The latest, by CNN, found that 51 per cent of the 824 adults surveyed said gay couples should be allowed to wed.

US Marines begin training to accept gay soldiers


US Marines have begun training in preparation to accept openly gay troops.

Before President Obama signed an order to repeal the 17-year-old ban, there was concern that the Marines in particular would react badly to serving alongside out gay colleagues.

A Pentagon survey carried out last year showed that nearly 60 per cent of troops in the most dangerous roles – in the Marines and combat units – said repeal would be damaging.

General James Amos, commandant of the Marine Corps, said at the time that gay servicemembers might cause a “distraction” that could result in increased injuries and deaths.

According to AP, training materials ask Marines to consider scenarios such as seeing a colleague in a gay bar or hearing locker-room jokes aimed at gay colleagues.

While Marines will not be expected to change their views, the materials say they must follow orders.

“You remain obligated to follow orders that involve interaction with others who are gay or lesbian, even if an unwillingness to do so is based on strong, sincerely held moral or religious beliefs,” the training material states.

Testifying before a Senate Armed Forces hearing earlier this month, Gen Amos said: “We’ve not seen issues. There’s not been anxiety over [out gay soldiers] from the forces in the field … there hasn’t been pushback.”

It is expected that gay soldiers will be permitted to come out at some point during the summer.

The ban will not be lifted until military chiefs have certified that repealing the law will not harm military readiness. Following this, 60 days must pass.

Anger over Tennessee’s ‘don’t say gay’ bill


The US Senator who introduced a bill to ban discussion of homosexuality in schools says he has received hundreds of angry letters from parents around the world.

Republican Stacey Campfield’s bill, if approved, will ban all teachers in public elementary and middle schools from talking about the subject.

The legislation, known as the ‘don’t say gay bill’, has been compared to the UK’s Section 28 law, which was repealed in 2003.

Last week, it passed a Senate education panel. It will soon go to the Senate floor for a vote.

Mr Campfield claims his bill is neutral and is not anti-gay.

In an interview with CNN, he said: “My bill is neutral. It doesn’t say anybody can speak for it or against it. So, I’m sure people wouldn’t want someone coming out and saying, you know, there are some people who say, you know, we should be preaching against it and saying it’s evil, dirty and wrong, or some people say hey, it’s great, wonderful thing.”

“I don’t think that’s appropriate,” he added. “Like I said, I think we need to let the families decide that.”

Mr Campfield has been pushing for the law for years.

According to On Top magazine, he compared homosexuality to bestiality during an interview in 2009.

Speaking to Sirius XM’s Michelangelo Signorile, he said: “If I want to talk about the bestiality movement, do you think we should be teaching that?”

Mr Campfield also claimed that homosexuality was a “learned behaviour”.

The Tennessee Equality Project said the bill could lead to more gay teen suicides.

“We believe it’s a ploy to advance a social agenda into the classroom,” chairman Jonathan Cole told FoxNews.com.

“And we think it will create an unsafe environment for kids who may be gay, lesbian, transgender or just have questions.”

He added that it would prevent anti-bullying initiatives and ban counsellors from speaking to children who are worried about their sexuality.

“So if they witness a kid being bullied because of sexual orientation, how will they be able to deal with that?” he said.

Similar legislation was introduced in the UK in 1988.

Section 28 of the Local Government Act prevented schoolteachers from educating children about homosexuality, and “the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship”, but it was repealed in Scotland in 2000 and in the rest of the UK in 2003.

Elton John’s mother speaks about rift


Elton John’s mother has spoken out about the rift between her and her son.

Sheila Farebrother, 86, said the pair had not spoken for three years and she had not met the star’s baby son Zachary.

She told the Sun: “He has cut me off completely.

“It happened three years ago this June, he has had nothing to do with me since then.”

Mrs Farebrother, who lives in Sussex, would not say what caused the row but confirmed that the singer still looks after her financially.

“I don’t want to start mud-slinging. It was very painful,” she said.

Sources told the newspaper that Mrs Farebrother had offended Sir Elton’s civil partner David Furnish.

A spokesman for Sir Elton said: “I have never had a conversation with him about whether he talks to his mother. She is a lovely lady but she is 86 and she is frail and old.”

Gay man beaten in homophobic south London attack


A gay man has received hospital treatment after being beaten up in a homophobic attack at the weekend.

Chas Andersen, 20, from Bethnal Green, was knocked to the ground and punched twice in the head while trying to use a cash machine on Clapham High street in south-west London, opposite the gay KAZ Bar.

Mr Andersen’s partner, Mike Adler, told Rob Parsons of the London Evening Standard: “The only reason the man started on him was to say the shorts he was wearing were ridiculous.

“[Chas] was standing up for himself and I was standing up for him. The man just switched from yelling backwards and forward to becoming violent.”

Mr Adler was taken to hospital and X-rayed after the attack. He has suffered from blurred vision but was told there would be no permanent physical damage. He said: I have always thought London was the most diverse and open city in the world. For this to happen makes me realise that these people are still around.”

This attack comes only weeks after Philip Sallon, a friend of Boy George and a fixture of London’s alternative and gay scenes since the late 1970s, was beaten in Piccadilly Circus.

San Francisco’s legendary gay bookshop to close


The last of the four shops owned by A Different Light Bookstores – and the last exclusively LGBT bookstore in San Francisco – is set to close by the end of this month.

The chain, which opened its first shop in Los Angeles in 1979, established the San Francisco branch on Castro Street in the heart of the city’s gay district in 1986.

It was first managed by Terry Anderson, at the time the partner of novelist Armistead Maupin. In 1987, the job was taken over by Richard Labonte, who went on to manage the entire chain for more than a decade.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s the shop was a vibrant cultural centre, with frequent in-store events and exhibitions, a vast stock of new and backlist books, self-published books, zines, activist t-shirts and other materials. It also served as a meeting location and message center for a number of ad-hoc radical queer groups in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

A huge number of events were held at the San Francisco store up until 2000, with author readings and other in-store presentations taking place twice a week or more. Those who appeared included Dorothy Allison, Diamanda Galas, Justin Bond and Larry Kramer.

Staff at Gay’s the Word, London’s only remaining independent LGBT bookshop said:

“Sadly we are now witnessing the world’s last independent gay bookshops – pioneers of gay enlightenment and equality – closing one by one.

“For staff at Gay’s the Word in London, the news about A Different Light feels like the loss of a sibling. We send our love and respect to the employees of this fine bookshop.

“Gay bookshops are the mind, heart and soul of the LGBTQ community – institutions that nurture all that is special and unique about us, but that we need to nurture back in return.”

Last known gay holocaust survivor to receive France’s top honour


The last known gay survivor of the Nazi holocaust is to receive the Ordre national de la Légion d’honneur.

Rudolf Brazda, 97, who spent three years in Buchenwald concentration camp, was recommended for the honour by President Sarkozy.

News of his award came 66 years to the day he left the camp, in 1945.

Philippe Couillet, president of Les Oublié(e)s de la Mémoire (an association campaigning for recognition of the suffering of gay people once imprisoned by the Nazis), said the award marked “a further step in the recognition of the deportation of homosexuals” and was a deserved reward for the bravery Mr Brazda had displayed in speaking publicly about his experience.

Author Alexander Zinn has documented Mr Brazda’s life in a new book titled Das Glück Kam Immer zu Mir (Happiness Always Came to Me). In addition, Mr Zinn has gathered material for a documentary which he hopes will be screened this year, which includes interviews with Mr Brazda and his return to Buchenwald.

It was after the unveiling of the Berlin monument to gay and lesbian holocaust victims that Mr Brazda came forward to tell his story. He has previously received the gold medals of the cities of Toulouse and Nancy.

Writing on his LGBT Asylum News blog, Paul Canning said: “In spite of his old age, and health permitting, Brazda is determined to continue speaking out about his past, in the hope that younger generations remain vigilant in the face of present day behaviour and thoughts similar to those which led to the persecutions endured by homosexuals during the Nazi era.”

Mr Brazda will receive his award tomorrow at College Puteaux in Hauts-de-Seine. He will give a speech and the honour will be presented to him by Marie-José of Chombart Lauwe, a former resistance fighter who was an inmate at Ravensbrück, the notorious women’s work camp. She is now president of The Foundation for the Memory of the Deportation.

Pakistan allows trans men and women their own gender category


A landmark decision has been taken in Pakistan to allow trans people their own gender category on selected official documents.

The country’s Supreme Court has ruled that Pakistanis who do not consider themselves to be either male or female should be allowed to choose an alternative sex when they apply for their national identity cards.

This is startling and positive news given the conservative climate in Pakistan, a country where trans people - known as hijras - are often ridiculed and forced to live in isolation. Many struggle for survival and are unable to secure jobs other than sex work, or even find a place to live away from their families. Often, they are reduced to begging.

Illiteracy rates among trans Pakistanis are also reportedly high.

Shehzadi, a trans woman living in Karachi, told the BBC that it was indeed “a difficult life” and that she had known she didn’t fit into either gender since the age of six. She left home as soon as she could, she said, and came to live with other trans people.

With the new gender category comes new hope, and some trans men and women are already being employed by the government in their drive to crack down on tax evaders. Those interviewed by the BBC said they were “proud” to be working in such a role.

Horses killed in Midwestern barn fire in apparent gay-hate arson attack


Eight horses owned by a gay man were killed in a barn fire in Ohio on Monday in what police believe was a homophobic hate crime.

Brent Whitehouse was at home in the town of McConnelsville when he saw an orange glow in his garden. Rushing outside, he witnessed flames shooting up through the roof of the barn where he kept his horses. “It was gone in five minutes” he told the Zanesville Times Recorder.

The heat from the flames was so intense that the chassis of a tractor inside the barn melted. Yet despite the destruction, spay-painted slogans saying ”fags are freaks” and “burn in hell” were still visible on the remaining walls.

As the fire marshals declared the blaze to have been arson, the slogans were enough for police to launch an investigation into whether or not a hate crime had been committed.

Mr Whitehouse had eight horses, including a foal. He said: “The barn I can rebuild, but the bond I had with those horses can’t be replaced.

“Whoever did this had to walk right by all those horses, including the baby, and didn’t care that they were killing a gentle, loving animal.

“I just don’t understand someone wanting to kill innocent animals. It’s like killing a child.”

Of the messages he said: “They were just hateful.”

A reward of $5,000 has been put up in the hope that anyone with information regarding the fire will come forward.

Cary Grant’s daughter claims her father ‘enjoyed being called gay’


The daughter of legendary Hollywood star Cary Grant has stated in a new book about her father that he “enjoyed being called gay”.

In her new book, Good Stuff: A Reminiscence of my Father, Cary Grant, Jennifer Grant – whose mother is actress Dyan Cannon – claims her father was always intrigued by the rumours surrounding his sexuality and was even keen to play up to them.

She said: “Can’t blame men for wanting him, and wouldn’t be surprised if Dad even flirted mildly back. When the question arises, it generally speaks more about the person asking. Dad somewhat enjoyed been called gay. He said it made women want to prove the assertion wrong.”

Grant, who was born Archibald Leach in Bristol in 1904, has been the subject of rumours surrounding his sexuality for decades. In the 1930s and 1940s he lived on and off with cowboy star Randolph Scott in a Malibu beach house known as ‘Bachelor Hall’, though there is no hard evidence that their relationship was anything other than platonic.

Cary Grant was married five times, and died in 1986.

Maddow: Gay Anchors Should Come Out

"I'm sure other people in the business have considered reasons why they're doing what they're doing, but I do think that if you're gay you have a responsibility to come out." - Rachel Maddow, in a profile by the UK's Guardian.

Whoever could she be talking about?

GOP Praises Paul Clement, Disses King & Spalding Over DOMA Withdrawal

"I want to express my gratitude to former Solicitor General Clement. I admire his unwavering commitment to his clients and his dedication to uphold the law – qualities that appear to be inconsequential at King and Spalding where politics and profit now appear to come first. King and Spalding’s cut and run approach is inexcusable and an insult to the legal profession. Less than one week after the contract was approved engaging the firm, they buckled under political pressure and bailed with little regard for their ethical and legal obligations. Fortunately, Clement does not share the same principles. I’m confident that with him at the helm, we will fight to ensure the courts – not the President – determine DOMA’s constitutionality." - Rep. Dan Lungren, chairman of the House Republicans Study Committee.

Prop 8 Proponents Move To Vacate Judge Vaughn Walker's Ruling Because He's Gay

They've been talking about it for weeks and today Prop 8's backers officially filed to vacate Judge Vaughn Walker's ruling overturning the ban of same-sex marriage in California. Because a gay judge cannot possibly be impartial about gay issues.
The sponsors of California's same-sex marriage ban said Monday that the recent disclosure by the federal judge who struck down Proposition 8 that he is in a long-term relationship with another man has given them new grounds to have his historic ruling overturned. Lawyers for the ban's backers filed a motion in San Francisco's U.S. District Court, arguing that Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker should have removed himself from the case or at least disclosed his relationship status because his "impartiality might reasonably be questioned." "Only if Chief Judge Walker had unequivocally disavowed any interest in marrying his partner could the parties and the public be confident that he did not have a direct personal interest in the outcome of the case," attorneys for the coalition of religious and conservative groups that put Proposition 8 on the November 2008 ballot wrote.
Lambda Legal's Jon Davidson reacts:
To say that Judge Walker's should have disclosed his ten-year relationship with another man or that it made him unfit to rule on Proposition 8 is like saying that a married heterosexual judge deciding an issue in a divorce proceeding has to disclose if he or she is having marital problems and might someday be affected by legal rulings in the case. Or that any judge who professes any religious faith is unable to rule on any question of religious liberty or, at a minimum, must disclose what his faith teaches. Much like a suggestion that a female judge could not preside over a case involving sexual harassment or an African American judge could not preside over a case involving race discrimination, Proposition 8's supporters improperly are suggesting that a judge will rule in favor of any litigant with whom he shares a personal characteristic.
American Foundation for Equal Rights reacts:
"This motion is yet another in a string of desperate and absurd motions by Prop 8 Proponents who refuse to accept the fact that the freedom to marry is a constitutional right. They're attempting to keep secret the video of the public trial and they're attacking the judge because they disagree with his decision. Clearly, the Proponents are grasping at straws because they have
NCLR's Shannon Minter reacts:
"This is a desperate and ill-advised move that underscores their inability to defend Prop 8 on the merits. This is not likely to win them any points with the courts, who understandably do not appreciate having the integrity of judges called into question based on such outrageous grounds. This is part and parcel of the underhanded way the Prop 8 campaign itself was run-based on lies, insinuations, and unsupported innuendo."

Levi Johnston Readies Palin Tell-All

This fall Levi Johnston will release Deer in the Headlights: My Life in Sarah Palin's Crosshairs, a tell-all book of his time with Mama Grizzly.
"I want to tell the truth about my close relationship with the Palins," Johnston, 20, says in a statement released by his publisher. "My sense of Sarah and my perplexing fall from grace – how I feel and what I've learned." Johnston adds: "I'm doing this for me, for my boy Tripp and for the country.
The timing of the book's release should prove amusing, as Palin may be officially launching her 2012 campaign by then

Tony Perkins On King & Spalding

"Looking for attorneys that won't buckle under pressure? Don't bother contacting King & Spalding. In a stunning announcement, the Atlanta-based firm just dropped the most high-profile client on its books: the U.S. House of Representatives. Barely a week ago, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) hired King & Spalding to go to bat for the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) when the Obama administration refused. Within hours, the homosexual community was up in arms.

"Led by the so-called Human Rights Campaign, activists promised to target the firm until its attorneys dropped the case. Five days later, they did. Unable -- and unwilling -- to take the heat, King and Spalding took the cowardly way out. Once again we see how the activists who are trying to redefine marriage want to shut down any and all public debate. King & Spalding have proven that they are not advocates for the law -- but for a small but influential cabal that want to undermine policy and society." - Family Research Council head Tony Perkins, via press release

Marriage Protest At Buckingham Palace

Yesterday noted British activist Peter Tatchell led a marriage equality protest in the middle of the royal wedding media storm outside of Buckingham Palace.
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell delivered a gigantic wedding card to Buckingham Palace which, according to the website of Chicago Gay Pride, read: "Congratulations William and Kate on your Wedding Day. We wish you a happy life together. You can get married, gay people can't. We are banned by law. We ask you to support marriage equality. Equal=Love." Gay marriage supporters have put together a waved pink Union Jack flags as the giant card, part of the so-called Equal Love campaign, was unveiled. Tatchell said he hoped the royal couple would "find a way" to back the protest.
Tatchell: "I'm sure Kate and William have gay and lesbian friends. I'm sure they wouldn't wish to see them discriminated against."

PhoboQuotable - William Gheen

"Targeting anybody for importation into the country based on their sexuality doesn't sound like something that Congress should be messing with at all. They're looking to bring in anybody challenging the established culture inside the United States that they want to bring down. And though the majority culture of the United States for the last 200 years has been predominately European Christian, they are looking for anybody that would take issue with that. And, of course, Christianity preaches against sodomy." - William Gheen, president of Americans for Legal Immigration, denouncing the Uniting American Families Act.

MARYLAND: Hundreds Attend Rally Against Anti-Transgender Violence

Last night hundreds of protesters crowded the street outside a Baltimore McDonald's in a rally against anti-transgender violence. The event was spawned by last week's brutal attack against Chrissy Lee Polis, a local transwoman who was beaten by two female McDonald's patrons for daring to use the ladies room. Kevin Naff reports at Washington Blade: “The turnout tonight is wonderful, I’m so happy,” said Renee Carr, Polis’s mother, who attended the rally with family and neighbors, but without her daughter. “I didn’t think that McDonald’s was a dangerous place, all she wanted to do was eat and use the bathroom.” In an interview with the Blade after the rally, Carr said she has always known her daughter was transgender and that she has supported her “100 percent.” “I even carried her pocketbook on the way to the bus stop as a kid,” Carr said, adding that Polis is doing better but was unable to attend. Others at the rally said Polis was afraid to leave her house. “I want to thank everyone personally who came tonight,” said Kathleen Hand, Polis’s grandmother, who also attended the rally, which was held in the McDonald’s parking lot in Rosedale, Md., where the beating took place. “Chrissy is doing great.”

Andrew Sullivan On King & Spaulding

"To put pressure on lawyers defending clients or laws because lobby groups don't like them is deeply illiberal. It remains disgusting, for example, that rightwing groups targeted lawyers defending terror suspects and Gitmo prisoners. When the far right did this, it was despicable. Now that the left is doing it, it remains just as despicable.

"Memo to the gay rights leadership: the ends do not justify the means. Let DOMA have the most robust defense it can possibly muster and let us argue just as passionately for its unconstitutionality. When civil rights groups bully, they lose the moral high-ground. When you have men like David Brock leading the charge - and there are no means he has ever eschewed to achieve his ends - the danger is that we prove the far right's point. We must be better than them." - Andrew Sullivan, writing for Daily Beast.

Moscow set to allow first ever gay pride parade in the city


Moscow city authorities gave permission today for the first ever gay pride parade to be held in the Russian capital.

This significant decision was greeted with delight by Nikolai Alexeyeve, Russia’s most respected gay rights activist. The city’s government will allow the march to go ahead on 28 May, although the head of Moscow’s central district has claimed to be unaware of the plans.

On the website gayrussia.eu, Mr Alexeyeve said: “The authorities must now ensure the security of the participants in line with the ruling of the European Court [of Human Rights].”

Last October, the Strasbourg Court fined Russia for banning gay pride marches in Moscow and fined the city’s authorities $41,090 in damages and for legal fees. This ruling, Mr Alexeyeve said at the time, was “a crippling blow to Russian homophobia on all accounts”.

Yury Luzkhov, the previous mayor of Moscow who was sacked last September, had been an outspoken critic of the proposals to allow gay parades, describing them as “Satanic”. The current mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, has also said he is not in favour of the idea.

Gay rights campaigners who sought to defy the ban in the past found themselves attacked not just by nationalist and religious groups, but also by members of the city’s police force.

Gay former governor of New Jersey has bid for ordination ‘deferred’


A gay former governor of New Jersey has had his bid to join the Episcopal priesthood deferred.

Jim McGreevey, who resigned from his post as Governor of New Jersey in 2004 shortly after coming out and admitting to an affair with a male member of his staff, has been told that his path to priesthood is now on indefinite hold.

As reported by the Associated Press, the American Episcopal Church – which does allow the ordination of gay people and women priests – want McGreevey to wait a while in order to “put more distance between his possible ordination and the fairly recent turmoil in his life”.

Along with McGreevey’s resignation, he came out on national television and endured a “messy divorce” from his wife in 2008.

Speaking to the AP, the Reverend William Sachs, director of the Centre for Interfaith Reconciliation in Richmond, Virginia, said it was “not unusual” for people to be deferred, adding that church officials would be interested in how someone with McGreevey’s baggage would handle the ministry.

Rev. Sachs said: “How would he apply what he’s learned to his ministry? Does he translate from being the person he was in the political realm to being in ordained ministry? It doesn’t surprise me there would be an instinct to defer.”

McGreevey, 53, attained a master of divinity degree last spring, after studying for three years at General Theological Seminary in New York City.

The Reverend Patricia McCaughan, who writes for the Episcopal News Service, said ordination was a complex, subjective process that differed from one state to another.

“If a person is deemed not ready to go forward, that doesn’t mean that’s the end. People can always try again.”

For now, McGreevey said he plans to continue ministering to inmates and helping raise his daughter, who is in elementary school.

McGreevey, who has lived with his partner Mark O’Donnell since 2005, has declined to comment on his potential ordination, saying the process is confidential.

Rapper receives death threats over ‘I’m Gay’ album title


An American rap artist has told MTV that he has received death threats following the announcement that he intends to call his new album I’m Gay.

Lil B made the announcement at the Coachella festival in California last week, and his since claimed to have been sent death threats on Twitter.

He said: ”I’m not gonna stop and I’m not scared of anybody on earth . . . that’s why I titled the album I’m Gay and nobody gonna stop me.”

Lil B said that he was using the word ‘gay’ in the traditional sense and that he supported gay people. “I’m very gay, but I love women. I’m not attracted to men in any way. I’ve never been attracted to a man in my life. But yes I am gay, I’m so happy . . . I’m a gay, heterosexual male.

“I got major love for the gay and lesbian community, and I just want to push less separation and that’s why I’m doing it. I hope GLAAD sees that I’m taking initial steps to break barriers.”

A spokesman for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) reportedly said that they hope Lil B’s album title is “not a gimmick, and is really a sincere attempt to be an ally.”

Lesbian newsreader says gay men and women have a ‘responsibility to come out’


An openly gay American newsreader has said she believes men and women in her industry have a “responsibility” to come out.

Rachel Maddow, a 38-year-old Stanford graduate who hosts her own show nightly on MSMBC, is one of the few openly gay news anchors in America. In an interview with the Guardian today, Hadley Freeman asked Ms Maddow’s opinion on a fellow news anchor who was “widely assumed” to be gay but had made no move to come out. Ms Maddow responded: “I’m sure other people in the business have considered reasons why they’re doing what they’re doing, but I do think that if you’re gay you have a responsibility to come out.”

Ms Maddow rose to prominence on Air America, a national radio station where she co-hosted ‘Unfiltered’ with Chuck D. She then moved to CNN before being give her own show on MSMBC in 2008.

That same year, David Frum, a former speech writer for George Bush told Ms Maddow – live on her own show – that he saw her as part of “the ugliness that has been a feature of American politics in the past eight years”. Despite this, Maddow is a popular figure, whose ratings were 26% higher than CNN’s Piers Morgan-hosted talkshow in the same timeslot.

Freeman says that Maddow is “inspirational to all women, gay or straight. With her short brown hair and elegant if gangly body, she is a defiant rebuttal to the cookie cutter blonds who dominate US television.” Maddow said “I’m definitely not an ‘autocutie’ . . . I’m confrontational.”

Caroline Winberg is A Fashion Model

The day when a modeling scout found Caroline Winberg must be the worst day for Swedish football fans. This happened when she was 15, when scout Cesar Wintland suggested her to try modeling career. The event took place on a subway station, when she was en route to her football training! Caroline Winberg loves football, and if she was not to be a famous fashion model, she'd probably become a professional athlete right now.

Caroline Winberg played for AIK Solna club during her youth. If only she continue playing football, she'd probably help Swedish women's national team wins Word Cup or European Championships, the title that they've never won again since 1984.

Well, the football fans of Sweden are probably mourning about her, but obviously not us. How can we enjoy Caroline Winberg Lingerie Pics if she was gonna be an athlete?


HomoQuotable - Greg Quinlan

"When two plus two doesn't equal four anymore, you can do anything you want because logic and truth [don't] matter. We are no longer a nation of laws; we are a nation of lawmakers. And those lawmakers happen to wear black robes and sit in courtrooms. I have to speak to this as a former homosexual. This is part of the pathology, the arrogance of the narcissism of homosexuality, because Judge Walker is himself a homosexual and proud to say so. So this is the issue that we have here. We have the elitist arrogance of the homosexual political movement who are making rules as they go along. This is illicit and illegal what he did." - "Ex-gay" whackjob Greg Quinlan, who is ever so pissed that Walker recently played a Prop 8 trial clip during a speech to college students.

FLORIDA: Anti-Gay Group Launches MTV Boycott Over Transgender Character

The Florida Family Association has launched an advertiser boycott against MTV because the network's Degrassi series positively portrays a young transgender man. Degrassi airs on MTV's Teen Nick channel. FFA chairman David Caton (left) writes in a letter to the show's advertisers:
It is very concerning that your company would knowingly advertise during a television show that condones and promotes transgender lifestyles to an audience that is almost exclusively watched by young teens and children. You would think by the number of episodes that MTV devotes to including the relationship between a female to male transgender high school student and a bi-sexual lesbian student that such relationships are a common occurrence in America’s high schools. The odds of this bizarre relationship occurring in high schools are extremely rare. Yet, MTV feeds this salacious and irresponsible propaganda to an audience made up of almost exclusively young teens and children as if it were common place. MTV airs a free promo for PFLAG on DeGrassi which directs kids to an organization that will encourage our youth to embrace a different sexual identity that may stay with them for life. Will your company continue to advertise on this irresponsible show?

GOP Sen. John Ensign To Resign

Last month beleaguered GOP Sen. John Ensign announced that he wouldn't seek reelection in 2012. But today his aides revealed that Ensign will resign tomorrow.
Ensign has fallen under investigation by the ethics committee in the wake of an alleged sexual relationship with an aide and accusations that he steered business to her lobbyist husband. His departure could clear the way for Nevada's Republican governor to appoint Rep. Dean Heller (R) to the seat, giving the GOP an incumbent in 2012.

NEW YORK: Sen. Ruben Diaz To Stage Massive Anti-Gay Marriage Rally

Arch homophobe Sen. Ruben Diaz will once again work with anti-gay Hispanic evangelicals to stage a massive anti-marriage rally in New York City on May 15th. JMG reader Sabirjan provides us with a translation of this news story.
Radio Vision Cristiana, a New Jersey-based Spanish-language AM radio station that broadcasts religious programming, is planning a huge anti-gay march in New York City on May 15, 2011. It will be held in the Bronx (starting at noon the participants will march from 149th Street and Third avenue to 181st street in the Bronx). The radio station, as well as the main organizer of the event, State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. are urging all Hispanics and especially evangelicals to oppose the possible legalization of same-sex marriages in New York State. Ruben Diaz is urging the participants "to paralyze all traffic in the Bronx" on that day. Organizers of the event expect up to 30,000 people to show up. A similar rally was held in 2009, it attracted about 20,000 people and took many city officials by surprise.
I attended the 2009 rally staged by Diaz and Radio Cristiana. The vast majority of the protesters arrived via church buses from outside New York City. In my video below, watch the crowd erupt in ecstatic song as their hero Diaz arrives.

Updated: Lesbian couple sue Brighton hotel


A lesbian couple claim that a hotel manager in Brighton barred them from staying in a room together because they are lesbians.

Rebecca Nash, 22, and Hope Stubbings, 19, from Andover, claim that the manager of the Brunswick Square Hotel called them “rejects” when they complained.

In response, the hotel claimed the pair never had a booking and denied being anti-gay. A manager said that the building is full of gay couples during Pride weekend.

The couple, who are both office workers, say they arrived at the seafront hotel for a weekend away last October after booking a double room by telephone.

But they said that when they arrived, they were told that rooms were only available for “couples and families”.

They claim that when they said they were a couple, the manager said: “No two boys, no two girls. We don’t have any rooms.”

They claim that the manager then became aggressive and threatened to call police before shouting: “I don’t accept rejects in my hotel”.

The couple could not find anywhere else to stay for their trip and had to drive home.

They are claiming sexual orientation discrimination against the hotel and are being represented by Liberty.

In an email to PinkNews.co.uk, the manager of the Brunswick Square hotel, who would not give his name, said the couple had made an enquiry and had not booked a room.

He said they were asked to leave because they were “loud” and “rude” and said the hotel had never discriminated against anyone.

He added that the hotel was full of gay couples during Pride.

James Welch, Liberty’s legal director, said: “Laws prohibiting hotels and guesthouses from discriminating against gay men and lesbians have been in place for four years now, but clearly the message still isn’t getting through.

“With the Equality Act 2010 now in force, my clients intend to show that they have as much right to enjoy a quiet weekend away together as any other couple.

This is the latest in a number of cases around hotels accused of barring gay couples.

Earlier this year, Steve Preddy and Martyn Hall won £3,600 in compensation after successfully suing a Christian-run Cornwall hotel for refusing them a room.

Another couple, Michael Black and John Morgan, are suing a Berkshire B&B after the Christian owners said they could not stay.

Man, 18, arrested over east London anti-gay stickers


An 18-year-old man has been arrested in connection with homophobic stickers plastered around London’s east end.

The teenager, from Leamouth, was arrested on suspicion of a public order offence yesterday, police said.

He has been bailed to return to police on Sunday May 8th pending further enquiries.

The stickers, which have been found in Brick Lane, Poplar, Bow and Canary Wharf, show a red line through a rainbow flag and the words ‘gay-free zone’.

They say: “Arise and warn. Gay free zone. Verily Allah is severe in punishment.” At least 70 have been reported.

This is the second arrest over the stickers. PinkNews.co.uk reported last month that an 18-year-old man had been arrested and then released after police found him with stickers in his possession.

After the anti-gay messages were discovered, local residents began a campaign to remove them and replace them with messages of love.

A Pride parade was also planned but had to be cancelled after it was revealed that one organiser had links to the far-right group English Defence League.

Mallika Sherawat Desperate Move

Did you notice that Mallika Sherawat released a lot of hot pics recently? She just appeared almost topless for April 2011 edition of FHM India magazine. On August 2010, Mallika Sherawat posed with lingerie for Bunker Hill magazine. This ignited a little bit of controversy in India, which always considered as a pretty conservative country.

Apparently, Mallika Sherawat is kinda desperate. Her decision to moved to Hollywood hasn't paid off yet, while in the other hand she has to let go the offers from Bollywood's producers. Well, she will be 30 in next October, which makes her doesn't have much time to prove herself. Maybe with these hot pictorials she's trying to get attention for big projects.

Anyway, we don't mind at all about her decision to expose her sexy side. Enjoy these Mallika Sherawat's lingerie pics from Bunker Hill and FHM magazine:

LD068


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