THEGAYUK

Day: 23 March 2018

  • Can “Anal Examinations” prove someone is gay?

    There’s been a change in the law in the African country of Kenya, which forbids a cruel and inaccurate medical procedure to determine if someone is gay or not.

    There are over 70 countries in the world where homosexuality or sex between two men is illegal. Some of those countries have been known to force people suspected of being gay to have anal examinations.

    What is an anal exam?

    An anal examination would involve a doctor or other authority figure stripping someone, forcing them into a position to expose their anus and looking at the outside of their anus to determine whether that person had had anal sex.

    There is a belief that the anus looks different if anal sex has taken place.

    Some people who have experienced this cruel and humiliating practice have also spoken out about how fingers or other instruments were inserted into their anuses to determine the virginity of their rectums.

    These tests are rarely done in private and may have several people present whilst the exam takes place.

    Outdated

    In practice, this sort of test is outdated and rarely, if ever, accurate. According to the Human Rights Watch, the test was discredited in the 19th century and note that many people who are forced to have these examines live with lasting psychological trauma.

    The biggest lie in the history of medicine.

    Doctor Sami Kawas, a forensic doctor says, “It is completely unreliable. Anal exam cannot tell you if you’re a homosexual or not whether you’re passive or you’re active this is the biggest lie ever created in the history of medicine”.

    WATCH: This video includes testimony from people who were forced to take an anal examination.

    Sticking anything inside someone’s anus, into their anal canal without their explicit consent would surely constitute a form of sexual assault.

    Despite this anal examination outcomes are used in the prosecution of men suspected of having same-sex sex. HRW count Egypt and Tunisia as examples of countries that use this evidence to prosecute. A report is prepared and used in court as a form of evidence.

     

  • How to find out who blocked you on Grindr

    If you’re wondering who has blocked you on Grindr, there’s now a simple way of checking out.

    You’ll need to do these steps in an Internet browser. There is no way to do this inside the app.

    1. Firstly you need your login Email and your password, there will be a chance to change your password if you’ve forgotten it.
    2. Log on to https://blocked.ongrindr.com/.
    3. Enter the email address you signed up to Grindr with and then enter your password.
    4. If you need to change your password there’s an option to update.
    5. Once logged in you’ll be able to see who has blocked you.
    This is what the Blocked On Grindr front page looks like

    If you’re concerned about data,  Trever Faden who created the website gives these reassurances,

    “Luckily, someone finding out that you blocked them on Grindr isn’t a huge security vulnerability, as much as it is an awkward conversation waiting to happen. That said, when you block someone on Grindr, you do assume that information will stay somewhat private.

    “Sometimes that is unfortunately just an assumption, as we’ve seen with data breaches in the past at companies like Ashley Madison.

    “All of this data is safe, until it’s not, which, in my opinion, just means that if you really want to keep a secret–don’t send it through the internet.”

  • You can now find out who blocked you on Grindr

    This is not going to be pretty.

    There’s now away to find out who blocked you on grindr

    You can find out who blocked you (the bastards) on one of the world’s biggest gay dating apps. The program is called C*ckBlocked, created by a user, Trever Faden. You can find it here.

    It’s free to access online and all you have to do is put in your Grindr username and password.

    When someone blocks you that data is stored by both users – the blockee and the blocker (bastard).

    ALSO READ: 5 Dating App Etiquettes You Must Do

    ALSO READ: The 10 Most Popular Gay Dating Apps on Android

    Speaking to Queerty, Trever offered this security and data advice:

    “Luckily, someone finding out that you blocked them on Grindr isn’t a huge security vulnerability, as much as it is an awkward conversation waiting to happen. That said, when you block someone on Grindr, you do assume that information will stay somewhat private.

    “Sometimes that is unfortunately just an assumption, as we’ve seen with data breaches in the past at companies like Ashley Madison.

    “All of this data is safe, until it’s not, which, in my opinion, just means that if you really want to keep a secret–don’t send it through the internet.”

    So if you’re finding that you’ve been blocked by a bunch of people maybe these are the mistake you’re mistaking.

  • COMMENT | Another Facebook alarm bell

    I confess I am one of the people who sometimes take tests on Facebook. So what is all of the fuss about?

    We need to be paying more attention to who can create and use Facebook accounts.

    Pretty sure that whenever me and my single brain cell have decided to partake in these online analysis of personality and many other brain-teasing trait-identifying, pigeonholing non-entities tests there is a stage at the end to post your results.

    This part of the process includes a disclaimer stating the originating program owner will get access to your personal data and friends list; if you proceed to post your results. I don’t. I take the tests out of my own curiosity with no intention of sharing so never give access to that sort of information.

    Perhaps Facebook was/is culpable of allowing a large amount of data to be shared, but ultimately it is generally the user who gives permission for the information to be shared. It’s not like it’s been stolen.

    If I was more worried about Facebook and how it is used and its foibles I would mention underage users. A couple of years ago I did a search for gay men in my area. Among the results were men who liked men and wanted to meet men. One of them was the 8-year-old son of a friend I worked with.

    Starting the day with an awkward conversation “Hey Phil, as you know I am gay. I looked for other gay men in my area on Facebook this morning. Best if I ask you to do this search too.” To say he was shocked as he scrolled down the page and found a pic of his 8-year-old would be an understatement. He didn’t know his son had a Facebook account. His son had not got to the age of being interested in girls so had checked interested in men. Ergo he came up in my search for gay men!

    If I was to scream anything from the rooftops it would be about safeguarding children. Online grooming is already a massive problem and a gargantuan organisation like Facebook was foiled by a little boy in primary school who had a natural curiosity to see what all the Facebook fuss and interest was about.

     

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  • THEATRE REVIEW | The Little Mermaid – Edinburgh Festival Theatre

    ★★★★| The Little Mermaid – Edinburgh Festival Theatre

    THEATRE REVIEW | The Little Mermaid - Edinburgh Festival Theatre

    *This review was taken from the Leeds Grand Theatre review*

    Northern Ballet return with their third new ballet this year, The Little Mermaid. Based on the much loved fairy-tale, the ballet tells the story of Marilla, the little mermaid who dreams of life above the waves, and who falls in love with Prince Adir after she saves him from drowning. But her love is unrequited; as the Prince falls in love with another young woman who he mistakenly believes saved him. Exchanging her tail for legs, and with her voice lost, Marilla sets about trying to win his heart.

    David Nixon’s choreography is well conceived, and executed, with a keen eye for detail and a style that lends itself well to the underwater setting.  The nuances of the choreography are impressive, with a real fluidity of movement in the underwater setting, reflecting life beneath the ocean and the gentle swaying of the current. Nothing stays still underwater, whether it is the beautifully designed flowing costumes, the mermaids held aloft as they weave and bob across the stage, or the ever-active limbs of the ensemble cast, with the sequential movement of the dancers accurately depicting the ebb and flow of the tide. But perhaps the crowning glory to this is Nixon’s use of the ensemble cast at one entity – the sea – and using these multiple bodies as one to form the ocean into a character in itself.

    The original score, which has been composed by Sally Beamish, flits between the primarily light and playful to the romantic and finally to the dramatic, feeling cinematic and engaging. The costumes work very well, with long flowing skirts that accentuate the gesticulation and mobility of the cast. Joseph Taylor was engaging and charismatic as Prince Adair, whilst Abigail Prudames enchanted as the titular character and the delicate movements of the cast as a whole was technically well executed.

    The ballet itself appears deceptively simple.  The demarcation between land and sea seems to be little more than a lighting change, and two large concave structures are used to good effect to set each location; thrusting the narrative to the forefront and portraying that with ease and clarity.  The narrative is decidedly darker than the familiar saccharine Disney version, adhering more closely to the source material, but is all the better for it. What the audience is left with is a production which requires very little thought as a viewer, allowing you to simply be able to be swept away by the music and movement on stage.

    Visit Northern Ballet’s Website for details.