Category: News
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Man vows to have gay sex everyday for a year – for art
Mischa Badasyan a 26-year-old Berlin-based performance artist has a new project called ‘SAVE THE DATE’ when he is giving ALL to his Art.
Literally.
His aim is to have sex with a different man every day for a whole year, which evidently he counts as art. He wants to unselfishly use his body to shed light on the intersection of loneliness and desire created by modern hookup culture. He is also planning to use the project as an opportunity to spread the word about safe sex and condom use.
Hoping to start the project next month Badasyan has already signed up with all the major gay networking sites such as Grindr, and got a condom supplier to sponsor him. He’s not intending to tell any of his ‘dates’ about the project but is hoping to get some sort of small token from each one.
Reaction from the gay community to this Project has been mixed as it is by no means a unique idea, it’s just the first time this course of action attempted regularly by many gay men has ever been labelled as Art.
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FNUR Responds To Uganda LGBTs Murder False Allegations Claims
Yesterday, THEGAYUK reported that up to 6 LGBT men and women had been killed, by stoning, in Uganda. A number of complaints have been made about the validity of the source for the article.
THEGAYUK published the article on the basis of this press release, that was written by the Safe Passage Fund supported by Friends New Underground Railroad (FNUR), a Quaker organisation based in Olympia, Washington.
When we ask the FNUR to clarify and give validity of the claims made in the press release, they responded with this statement:
‘The press release is by Anne-christine d’Adesky, Founder of Safe Passage Fund – with input from Friends New Underground Railroad.
Friends New Underground Railroad (FNUR) is a project of Olympia Friends Meeting (Quakers).
We are aware that there are claims that that “there is no truth to the claims made in the release.”
We – the Quakers in Olympia, WA and the activists we support in Uganda – all understand the importance of corroborating the work they are doing. FNUR reports as much information as we can and operate this project as transparently as we are able – while protecting the identities of those whose work we support. They are on the ground working to save others. The safety and well being of the activists/conductors and their passengers is our reason for creating FNUR and it is our only consideration. We respect and follow what the security team and others we work with in Uganda ask us to reveal or not to media folks and others.
It is unclear to us if they are calling us liars who are conning people, or dupes who have been conned and are too stupid to realize it. Or both.
It really doesn’t matter. We are not doing this for those people’s approval.
There is a lot of information on the FNUR website
http://friendsnewundergroundrailroad.org/
Updates are posted on the FAQ page and our blog.’THEGAYUK also reached out to the Quaker organisation in the UK, to ask whether they had heard of FNUR, they replied,
‘Thanks for your enquiry about Friends Underground Railroad. After our conversation I asked other staff about this work and they had no further information to add. As I mentioned on the ‘phone, we are aware that some American Quakers are involved. Quakers in Britain, have not to our knowledge, been involved and therefore I’m unable to verify your story.’
THEGAYUK continues to research the claims made by the press release, and will endeavour to bring you an update shortly.
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VIDEO: Naked Boys Towel Dancing
The dashing pair wowed the audience in France’s version of the hit reality show: Got Talent, France Got Talent. (more…)
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UPDATED: Crisis in Uganda: Six LGBTs murdered in Uganda in a week
Unconfirmed reports are being made that at least six LGBT people have been stoned to death in Uganda, after the Country’s Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA) was annulled.
We are in the process of validating this story – to read the full statement by the Friends New Underground Railroad, please click here.
Ugandan LGBT activists have reported that at least 6 gay, lesbian and transgender individuals have been killed in rural areas of the African nation.
Three gay men, two lesbians and one transgender person were allegedly amongst the victims.
‘One who survived (still breathing after stoning) was burnt alive using kerosene / paraffin and a matchbox,’ a witness and a source to the Friends New Underground Railroad FNUR, a Quaker solidarity imitative helping LGBT people in Uganda, stated, according to this press statement.
A seventh gay man was reported to have been attacked, by a mob. He died from his injuries a day later.
According to the source, a rural vigilant mob attacked the 28-year-old gay man in a different zone on August 5th. ‘I went to the scene,’ wrote the eyewitness in an email. ‘I saved him, when I lied to the mob that let me take him to the police.’
The witness stated that he was able to convince the mob he would deliver the victim to the police, but instead put him on a boda boda, (motorcycle) and rescued him. The victim was later denied medical care, he alleged, because he lacked funds to pay.’
The news comes after around 200 LGBT activists and allies celebrated the annulment of the AHA.
On August 1st, Uganda’s AHA (Anti-Homosexuality Act) was annulled after it was discovered that the bill was passed without Quorum.
However 215 of 375 MPs have already signed a petition to reintroduce and ‘fast-track’ a revised law.
‘I am confident we shall have the bill retabled and passed into law overwhelmingly,’ MP Latif Ssebaggala told IRIN News.
The repealed AHA calls for up a 14 years sentence for anyone found guilty of “homosexual acts” and a life sentence for those convicted of “aggravated” offenses – such as those committed by HIV-positive individuals, or involving the disabled, minors or serial offenders.
The promotion of homosexuality is outlawed, and citizens have been urged in the media to denounce and ferret out presumed LGBT people.
A wave of evictions has also followed, as families and landlords kicked out LGBT individuals, fearing arrest themselves under the AHA.
TheGayUK hasn’t been able to confirm these reports.
We reached out to FNUR for comment on whether the accusations were true, a statement from the organisation stated,
‘The press release is by Anne-christine d’Adesky, Founder of Safe Passage Fund – with input from Friends New Underground Railroad.
‘We are aware that there are claims that that “there is no truth to the claims made in the release.”
‘We – the Quakers in Olympia, WA and the activists we support in Uganda – all understand the importance of corroborating the work they are doing. FNUR reports as much information as we can and operate this project as transparently as we are able – while protecting the identities of those whose work we support. They are on the ground working to save others. The safety and well being of the activists/conductors and their passengers is our reason for creating FNUR and it is our only consideration. We respect and follow what the security team and others we work with in Uganda ask us to reveal or not to media folks and others.’
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Man dies after vibrator gets stuck in his rectum for five days
A man has died after a vibrator was stuck in his anus for five days, after being too embarrassed to seek advice from doctors.
The fifty-year-old carer from Forest Hill, London, was rushed into hospital on New Year’s Eve after telling a friend that he had been ‘lying on the sofa for five days feeling dizzy and weak’, the Evening Standard reports.
The man went into septic shock and was rushed into emergency surgery at Lewisham Hospital to remove the vibrator from his anus, Southwark Coroner’s Court heard on Tuesday. He died over a month later on 7th February.
The autopsy revealed that the man died of multiple organ failure, sepsis (a condition that is triggered by an infection) and a punctured bowel.
If sepsis is not treated quickly multiple organ failures may result.
The coroner ruled that the man ‘died as a result of an accident.’
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Section 28 supporter tops up Scotland’s YES VOTE campaign by £1 MILLION
Sir Brian Souter, who famously supported keeping a section 28 clause installed in the Scottish legal system, has reportedly topped up the Yes Campaign with £1 Million.
In 2000 when the Scottish Government were planning to repeal the Section 28 laws, which forbade the promotion of homosexuality to minors, by education staff, and local authorities, Souter became the leader of the Keep The Clause campaign. In Scotland, the clause was known as Clause 2A. A spokesperson at the time said that the transport tycoon was not undertaking the campaign for ‘personal glory’ but was fighting the ‘battle because he is a father and committed Christian’
At the time gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell stated that ‘Brian Souter’s support for Section 28 is the moral equivalent of the business-funded campaign to maintain racial segregation in the Deep South of the USA in the 1950s.’
HeraldScotland.com is reporting that Souter has now donated £1m to the SNP, as a ‘gift’ for Yes vote’.
A spokesperson for the SNP said, ‘It’s a fantastic sign of confidence that Brian and others the length and breadth of Scotland are stepping up to the plate to do what they can so that we have the resources to take on the Westminster establishment and win the Yes vote.’
In Feb 2013, Souter talked about the issue of same-sex marriage on Question Time. In 2011 he was nominated as Bigot Of Year by Stonewall.
The people of Scotland will vote on whether they stay part of the UK or leave on 18th September 2014.
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Gay Icon And Screen Legend Lauren Bacall has died aged 89
Lauren Bacall passed away today in New York at the age of 89, after a career that spanned seven decades.
After the death of Robin Williams yesterday, another acting legend, Lauren Bacall has died. Known for her smoky voice and sultry looks, Lauren was one of the remaining stars of the golden age of Hollywood.
She became a bit of a gay icon, winning legions of fans, with her films, How To Marry A Millionaire (opposite Marilyn Monroe and Betty Grable), Written On The Wind as Rock Hudson’s muse and the mother of Barbra Streisand’s character in the 1996 film, The Mirror Has Two Faces. That film earned the actress a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award nomination.
She also lent her reputation to High Point coffee in the late 70s and early 80s – which resulted in these ultra campy commercials.
In pop cultural references, Bacall was also name checked in Madonna’s Vogue, which listed many Golden Age of Hollywood stars.
She was known as deeply liberal and anti-Republican. In an interview with Larry King in 2005 she said, ‘being a liberal is the best thing on earth you can be. You are welcoming to everyone when you’re a liberal. You do not have a small mind.’
She reportedly died after a major stroke in her New York home.
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Google and YouTube To Be Honoured As LGBT Game Changers
GLAAD have announced that they are to honour Google and YouTube at a Gala in San Francisco.
Glaad, the US’s national lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) media advocacy organisation, today announced it will honour global technology leader Google and video-sharing innovator YouTube at the GLAAD Gala San Francisco.
At the gala, Google and YouTube will receive the Ric Weiland Award, which honours innovators who advance LGBT equality through tech and new media. The award is named after Ric Weiland, who was a computer software pioneer and philanthropist. Together with his surviving partner Mike Schaefer, he is known for his dedication to LGBT and HIV/AIDS organisations.
For years, Google has been one of Silicon Valley’s most vocal supporters of LGBT equality. In 2008, Google spoke out against California’s Proposition 8, a statewide ban on marriage for same-sex couples, and donated significant contributions to efforts to remove the ban.
In 2010, Google announced that it would cover extra health coverage-related costs incurred by gay and lesbian couples unable to legally wed. The following year, Google expanded its employee healthcare coverage to include transition-related care for its transgender employees.
In 2012, the company launched ‘Legalize Love,’ an international effort to “promote safer conditions for gay and lesbian people inside and outside the office in countries with anti-gay laws on the books.” That same year, Google unveiled a YouTube video showcasing employees speaking out in support of marriage equality in four battleground states – Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington. In 2013, YouTube unveiled its first-ever pride campaign, #ProudToLove, and changed its logo to be pride-themed for the first time in the company’s history.
Earlier this year, Google showed its support for LGBT Russians through a rainbow ‘Google Doodle,’ which debuted just hours before the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. And in June, YouTube unveiled its #ProudToPlay campaign – a celebration of LGBT equality in sports. The campaign was featured on the YouTube and Google homepages and marked the second consecutive year that YouTube changed its logo for a pride campaign.
‘Few companies have the power to reach billions, and even fewer use that power to help ensure everyone can live the life they love,’ said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. ‘Tech innovators like Google are now at the forefront of the global conversation on LGBT equality, ushering in a new era of acceptance and understanding for users across the world. Through groundbreaking campaigns, outspoken support, and a relentless commitment to its LGBT employees, Google has raised the bar on corporate leadership that drives equality forward.’
GLAAD also announced that Kris Perry and Sandy Stier, lead plaintiffs in Hollingsworth v. Perry, the landmark case that struck down California’s Proposition 8, will receive the Presidential Local Hero Award at the event.
‘Kris and Sandy’s courage and leadership have now touched the lives of countless loving and committed couples across California and beyond its borders, drawing us closer than ever before to full marriage equality in the United States,’ said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis.
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Robin Williams Dies After Apparent Suicide
It’s going to be a sad day for many as we hear the news of Robin Williams’ passing. Such a delightful talent who had created so many wonderful characters and memories on TV and the silver screen.
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Appeal For Information After Homophobic Attack On London Train
A man was assaulted and verbally abused on a train between Charing Cross and Bexleyheath in July.
British Transport Police (BTP) officers are appealing for information after a man suffered homophobic abuse and was assaulted on Tuesday, 15 July on a train between Charing Cross and Bexleyheath.
PC Michael Willoughby is investigating. He said: ‘The victim boarded the train at Charing Cross around 5.30am. During the journey a man sat opposite him and began making homophobic comments to him and began taking pictures of the victim on his phone.
‘The victim challenged the man, but was punched and kicked in return’
The suspect is described as a Chinese man, aged around 35, wearing a casual dark grey shirt, black trousers and black shoes. He is thought to be of proportional build and around 5’9.
Officers are appealing to anyone who was on the service at the time and who may have information about what took place.
PC Willoughby continued: ‘Anti-social or violent behaviour has no place on the railway and passengers should feel able to use the network without fear of becoming a victim of crime.
‘Anyone who witnessed the incident, or who has any information about what took place, should get in touch.’
Anyone with information should contact British Transport Police by calling 0800 40 50 40 or texting 61016 quoting SSUB/B6 of 7/8/14. Alternatively contact the independent charity, Crimestoppers, on 0800 555 111 anonymously.
