THEGAYUK

Category: Front Page

  • Gay activists picket former Prime Minster of Jamaica

    A Dozen Activists from Jamaica protested a speech by the country’s former Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, on Tuesday night in New York.

    The gay rights activists shouted ‘Bruce, you’re wanted! Unrepentant murder!’ and ‘Gay rights are human rights!’

    The protesters lined the pavement outside the Harlem Institution for over an hour and received comments from supportive and non-supportive bystanders.

    A statement from the National Anti-Discrimination Alliance (NADA) said that Golding is symbolic of Jamaica’s homophobic culture. He publicly announced his opposition to gays serving in his Cabinet on BBC Hard Talk in 2008 and has since made other homophobic statements.

    This year there have been a number of anti-gay crimes in Jamaica, including the brutal murders of 16-year-old Dwayne Jones and 41-year-old Dean Moriah. Dwayne was murdered in July this year; he was dressed as a woman. His gender identity and sexuality are unconfirmed at this time.

    In September, two men escaped a ‘mob’ of men, who became violent towards them, after a car accident in the small town of Old Harbour. The crowd assumed that the two were gay.

    Dwayne Brown, organiser of the demonstration and a gay Jamaican who fled to the USA because of death threats, said he would not go inside for Golding’s speech because he feared a violent response from the audience.

    The press release from NADA continued with:

    ‘The Jamaica Anti-Homophobia stand feels strongly that Bruce Golding must be held accountable for the human rights offenses he oversaw during his tenure, including the Tivoli Gardens Massacre and the perpetuation of anti-gay attacks.’

    Watch video from the protest here

  • Police in Scotland call for condom ban in Edinburgh saunas

    Police in Edinburgh have called for a ban of ‘all items of a sexual nature’, including condoms in all saunas in Edinburgh, in a move which could put lives at risk.

    Police Scotland want condoms banned from all saunas across the Scottish Capital, including the two gay saunas that are based in the city.

    The story being widely reported is that a number of heterosexual saunas or saunas that are known to have sex workers working there are affected by the potential ban, but speaking to a gay sauna in Edinburgh TheGayUK has discovered that the ban would also have an impact on all gay saunas in Scotland.

    The police set out the contentious plans in a letter which was delivered to the city’s licensing committee, who is deciding on the license renewals on several of the city’s saunas.

    The letter asks the licensing committee to include new licensing conditions, one of which included: “no items of a sexual nature will be permitted on the premises”.

    A Police Scotland spokesman said,

    ‘Police Scotland recently provided reports to the Council Regulatory Committee in respect of a number of public entertainment licence renewals.

    ‘In cases where there was evidence of criminality or premises operating out-with the conditions of their licence, objections were made to those licences being renewed.

    ‘Police Scotland will continue to work with partners to inspect and report on licensed premises operating within Edinburgh in order to keep people safe.

    ‘Whenever criminal activity, or licensing contraventions are detected within these venues, officers will respond appropriately and report all offences to the relevant authority.’

    DRACONIAN

    The call for the ban has put Scotland’s HIV/Aids charities on red alert, with Robert Mckay, the nation director of the Terrence Higgins Trust Scotland saying that the idea was ‘Draconian’

    He went on to say:
    ‘We would be keen to see the full details of any proposals that would prevent saunas from having condoms on their premises. Taking away condoms doesn’t stop people from having sex; it does however result in unprotected sex and increased rates of HIV and sexually transmitted infections. It is vital that people can protect themselves wherever they have sex.’

    ‘Our point of view is to make sure that people are kept safe. Condoms have proved very successful in preventing STDs and HIV transmissions.’

    GAY SAUNA RAIDS

    Earlier in the year Police Scotland raided two gay saunas in Edinburgh, a report lodged by the police stated that:

    ‘One member of staff and six male customers were found within.

    ‘During the inspection, officers found evidence to indicate that the premises were used for activities other than those permitted by the licence, specifically sexual activity.

    ‘On behalf of the Chief Constable, I object to the renewal of the licence under the terms of Schedule 1, Paragraph 5 (3) (d) of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 on the grounds that the premises have not been operated in accordance with the activities on their licence.’

  • UK Government does not support Sochi boycott

    Foreign Office rules out Government supported boycott of the Russian Winter Olympics in Sochi.

    In an email received from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) by petitioners who asked the Government, to make a political statement to the Russian Government about their anti-gay laws, by officially boycotting the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, has said it ‘does not support a boycott.’

    Over 13,000 people have signed the petition that was created by Sean Robertson earlier in the year.

    In June President Putin signed into law, a bill that could see anyone discussing homosexual relationships to anyone under the age of 18 sentenced to a prison term or fined.

    In September the Russian Government moved one step closer to introducing a bill that would remove children from gay parents.

    The statement from the FCO reads:

    As this e-petition has received more than 10 000 signatures, the relevant Government department have provided the following response:

    ‘The Government wants to see an open and inclusive games at the 2014 Russian Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Sochi, but we do not support a boycott. The Prime Minister believes we have a better chance of influencing Russia by engaging and challenging prejudices than by boycotting.

    ‘We share concerns about changes to the law in Russia prohibiting the promotion of “non-traditional sexual relations” to minors. In effect, the law could prevent the LGBT community in Russia from fully enjoying the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. The Prime Minister set out these concerns with President Putin in a meeting in St Petersburg on 6 September, making clear the strength of feeling in the UK and that it was in Russia’s interests to tackle discrimination.

    ‘British officials at all levels have been lobbying on the LGBT law since the first regional “homosexual propaganda” law was tabled. As well as raising the subject in bilateral meetings, we have actively supported LGBT issues in Russia for some years, including through involvement in the annual Queerfest in St Petersburg and funding for the Side-by-Side LGBT film festival held across Russia.

    ‘More broadly, we regularly make clear to Russia that human rights are universal and should apply equally to all people, as part of our overall engagement on human rights with the Russian authorities, including at the 2013 UK-Russia Human Rights dialogue in May and in the Foreign Secretary and Minister for Europe’s regular discussions with their Russian counterparts.

    ‘We have updated our travel advice for Russia to inform British Nationals of the new LGBT law. We review this advice regularly and will update further as necessary. We are committed to providing a modern and efficient consular service for visitors to Sochi.

    ‘Human rights will continue to be a central part of the UK-Russia relationship and we will continue to raise our concerns and encourage Russia to tackle discrimination and homophobia.

    ‘This e-petition remains open to signatures and will be considered for debate by the Backbench Business Committee should it pass the 100 000 signature threshold’

    The petition is still open and the deadline is 15th January 2014. If you wish to sign it click here.

  • BOOK REVIEW: It’s Okay To Be Gay, Edited by Alison Stokes

    BOOK REVIEW: It’s Okay To Be Gay, Edited by Alison Stokes

    It’s OK to be Gay is a brilliant new book featuring the coming out tales of a number of high profile personalities. Edited by Alison Stokes, It’s OK to be Gay has been created to raise money for the charity Diversity Role Models.

    It’s OK to be Gay contains the coming out stories of a diverse range of LGB people. It may have been too easy for the book to comprise of the usual gay celebrities telling the same tales we have heard many times before. What It’s OK to be Gay does is feature a number of prominent LGB people who discuss their sexuality, their coming out, and how it has shaped their lives. It’s an interesting read and I found myself relating to many of the situations the contributors had faced and the emotions they had experienced.

    The balance of It’s OK to be Gay is just right; the tone is frank and matter of a fact, but not in a way that is shocking or headline grabbing. It’s a collection of real accounts that many readers will relate to. There is something for everyone.

    The one story that stuck out for me was that of the great Phyllis Opoku-Gyimah, co-founder and director of UK Black Pride. Many of the stories show that coming out can be a positive experience, but this particular story shows that it is not always plain sailing. There are some of us who experience negative reactions when coming out and Phyllis’ story is a stark reminder of that. It covers not only being a lesbian, but also black and from a religious household. However, it’s not a story that focuses on the doom and gloom, and Phyllis’ journey demonstrates that each negative experience can be turned into something wonderfully positive.

    Another story that drew my particular attention was the inclusion of the singer Diana King. A long-time admirer of Diana having been brought up on her music in my own mixed race, multi-cultural household, it was interesting for It’s OK to be Gay to feature a coming out story from someone who lives in a country where being gay is not widely accepted. In Jamaica it is a real risk that LGB people can be beaten or even killed due to their sexuality. I feel it is of the utmost importance that a book of this kind covers cultural difficulties that some LGB people can face, and it achieves that with flying colours.

    As a whole package, It’s OK to be Gay covers all bases. The inspiring people who have contributed their stories come from all walks of life, which instantly makes this book endearing. Perhaps it’s true to say that several of the stories are quite similar, but it does prove that although our coming out experiences are as individual as the people we are, there will more often than not be those similarities. The majority of us experience the same worries and apprehensions when faced with coming out.

    I thoroughly recommend getting your hands on It’s OK to be Gay. It’s a delightful and well put together book. I believe it will serve to help and inspire younger LGB people as well as reminding the rest of us that it can and does get better.

    It’s OK to be Gay is available on Amazon.

  • The 6 Weirdest Things You Searched For On THEGAYUK Last Week

    So, we took a look into the analytics vault of THEGAYUK to discover what our readers Googled for on TGUK last week – here’s a few of our favourites:

    top 10 things to say during gay sex
    Firstly does one need to say anything during sex? Secondly, 10 things to say whilst having sex? Seriously? You’re making whoopie not collecting an award for best climax.

    what former teen queen turned to ebay to help clean out her closets in summer 2006
    We have no idea who or what you’re talking about dear… Odd what search requests can bring you to the pages of THEGAYUK… Teen (check) Queen (check) Closets (check) Ta da!

    x factor sam callahan coming out the water
    Just like Daniel Craig or a more masculine Ursula Andress – We also love watching the video of X Factor‘s Sam Callahan coming out of the water butt naked.

    anal and lesbian
    Now these aren’t usually two words you’d put together – but hey on TGUK anyone goes… However, it did link to one of our most popular posts from last week, in which writer Daniel Browne asked: Are Lesbians More Accepted Than Gay Men?

    is Harvey milk an icon in the gay community
    Dear person, please remove yourself from under the rock from which you have been holed away. Yes. Yes he is.
    Check out our little homage to the great man.

    matt demon white speedo
    Despite the fact you spelt Damon wrong, we’ll forgive you – for the pictures of Matt Damon are quite spectacular. So good we’ve posted them again! Did you know Behind The Candelabra is out today!

  • Airline apologises for “I Am Gay” sticker on passenger’s bag

    A passenger on one of Australia’s biggest budget airlines Jetstar was ‘utterly disgusted’ when he found his baggage had stickers attached which read ‘I Am Gay’

    Taking to twitter @aaronpp wrote: “Utterly disgusted to find my luggage front and center on the @JetstarAirways luggage carousel looking like this,” he wrote.

    Writing on his blog, http://onesleepydad.blogspot.com.au he continued:

    ‘Yesterday I tweeted a photo of my luggage after a Jetstar flight from Perth and it has caused quite the stir on social media.

    ‘I would like to point out that Jetstar has contacted me and offered a very sincere apology. For which I am grateful.

    ‘They are also conducting a “serious” investigation that I am assisting them with. Their PR machine is making all the right noises and saying all the right things. I have set no expectations of Jetstar with regards to their procedures or outcomes.’

    THEGAYUK reached out to Jetstar, but no one was immediately available to comment on this story.

  • Kuwait plans medical test to ensure no gay people enter the country

    Kuwait Public Health Department has announced plans to conduct ‘medical screening’ tests to “detect” gay people entering the anti-gay region.

    IBTimes.co.uk is reporting that the director of public health in Kuwait, Yousouf Mindkar said that ‘routine clinical screening of expatriates coming into the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC) will include tests to identify LGBT people who will then be banned from entering the country.’

    ‘Health centres conduct the routine medical check to assess the health of the expatriates when they come into the GCC countries,’ he told local daily Al Rai.

    ‘However, we will take stricter measures that will help us detect gays who will be then barred from entering Kuwait or any of the GCC member states.’

    Homosexuality is illegal in the region with a potential punishment of 10 years in prison for anyone engaging in homosexual behaviour.

    Details have not emerged on what form these tests may take, however numerous commenting members on Queerty have said that the Kuwait government have used rectal tests to determine whether a person has had receptive anal sex.

    ‘And one of their “tests” for homosexuality involves a rectal exam to reveal whether or not you’ve had penetrative anal sex.’ wrote Kenover on the site.

  • Hillingdon’s First Support Group For LGBT People With Mental Health Issues

    Hillingdon Mind has recently employed a dedicated LGBT project coordinator whose sole role is to develop a support service for LGBT adults with mental health problems in the borough of Hillingdon.

    Support services that are to launch in early November will consist of a social group meeting once a week, trips and other enriching activities decided by members on a quarterly basis. There will also be a mentoring and buddying system that will aim to support those most in need.

    “Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are more likely to suffer mental health problems due to social isolation and prejudice attached to those identities, if we add to it the stigma attached to mental health, we have a very vulnerable group. I am pleased that Hillingdon Mind recognises it.” – Lukasz, LGBT Project Coordinator

    The project is still in its infancy, but Lukasz is already receiving enquiries. If you would like more information you can contact him via mobile: 07415151185 or email: lgbt@hilligdonmind.org.uk or visit Hillingdon Mind’s website for more information: www.hilligdonmind.org.uk/lgbt

  • NEWS: Terrence Higgins Trust Launches Its First Ever Supper Club At Home

    For more than 10 years, the HIV and sexual health charity has hosted its annual Supper Club, a glamorous dine-off at which dozens of London’s top restaurants donate a private table for Terrence Higgins Trust supporters. Last year, around 500 guests took part in more than 40 dinner parties, with tables at Gauthier Soho, Galvin La Chapelle, and The Square. (more…)

  • Gay Couple To Join Channel 4’s Sex Box

    A gay couple take part in a sex experience in front of live studio audience for a Channel 4 progamme that aims to look at the sex lives of normal Britons.

    Three couples, which includes an engaged couple who were childhood sweethearts, a gay couple who have been together for 3 years and couple in their 20s.

    A spokesperson for Channel 4 said that the gay couple had wanted to take part in the show because it was a brilliant opportunity to show how ‘normal’ gay sex could be.

    Mariella Frostrup is to host the new show for Channel 4, which aims to reclaim sex from porn by ‘exploring how the ever-increasing consumption of pornography is distorting people’s expectations of sex and ultimately damaging the sex lives of Britons.’

    The show is to be recorded in front of a live studio audience, who like TV audiences will not see any sex or nudity.

    After each couples’ time in the box, they will talk with Frostrup and a panel of sexperts, which includes psychotherapist, broadcaster and author Phillip Hodson, sex, body language and relationship expert Tracey Cox and internationally syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage

    Sex Box presenter Mariella Frostrup said: “Ten years as the Observer’s Agony Aunt has given me plenty of insight into what an important role sex plays in our lives but also how difficult we find to talk openly about it to each other. The sex we see on screen, in magazines and increasingly online bears little relation to the real experiences of real people. I’m delighted to take part in this attempt to have a frank conversation about an essential element of all our lives. ”

    The actual Sex Box is a completely sound proofed box – however the walls are opaque, so audiences or the production crew will see little.

    Dan Savage said: “Many people have an easier time speaking honestly about sex with their friends – or with anonymous strangers online – than they do with their partners. But honest, fearless communication with the person (or persons!) with whom you actually have sex is central to creating successful long-term relationships. Sex is that important.”

    The show is to be broadcast on the 7th October.

    The Campaign for Real Sex Season starts on 30 September at 10pm with Porn on the Brain.

  • ‘AIDS Ring’ Video By Pat Robertson Reinstated by YouTube

    Stonewall Bigot Nominee Pat Robertson has lost his battle to have a controversial AIDS remark removed from YouTube.

    The 83 year-old televangelist has lost his fight with YouTube to have a comment he made about gay men spreading AIDS with a ring which could cut and infect those who shook hands with someone wearing the ring in San Francisco, removed after the Google owned service re-instated the video.

    Robertson claimed the gay community had also passed several ‘draconian laws’ which prohibited people from discussing this particular affliction.’

    The video’s copyright owner the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) initially had the video removed, stating copyright infringement but when the clip reemerged with Robertson’s outrageous remarks removed Right Wing Watch (RRW) wrote,

    ‘…The episode reveals the lengths CBN will go to hide and censor the statements made by its own leader,’

    The video has now been reinstated after RWW said that the clip fell under a fair use clause – and seemingly YouTube agrees.

    Last week Stonewall released a list of nominees for its 8th Annual Awards, Pat Robertson has been nominated for a Bigot Of The Year Award.