THEGAYUK

Category: News

  • Over 80 per cent of LGBT+ people don’t feel they can hold their partner’s hand in public

    It appears that the vast majority of LGBT+ people in the UK feel uncomfortable holding the hands of their same-sex partner in the UK.

    CREDIT: © oneinchpunch Depositphotos

    THEGAYUK.com conducted a flash poll on social media, asking 200 people from the LGBT+ community whether they felt they could hold the hand of their same-sex partner, where opposite-sex partners could and would hold theirs – and the results are staggering.

    Over 80 per cent (85%) of those who answered the poll said that they didn’t feel they could hold their same-sex partner’s hand in public in the UK. Only 15 per cent of those who answered said they would feel comfortable.

    Speaking about the findings, editor of THEGAYUK.com, Jake Hook said,  “What this poll shows is very troubling. Despite LGBT+ people having almost equal legal rights in the UK, our community still don’t feel that we’re societally equal.

    “Gay and bisexual men and women should be able to walk down any street in the UK, where their straight counterparts hold hands and feel that they can do the same without ridicule, attack or comment”.

    Percieved safety is getting worse

    gay couple moving into their own house
    CREDIT: Depositphotos.com

    Seemingly the LGBT+ community is getting more wary of showing public displays of affection on the streets of the UK. In 2018 only 41% said they wouldn’t feel they could hold hands with their partner and in 2016 that figure was 23%.

    THEGAYUK.com asked a similar question in October 2018 we asked whether LGBT+ people were comfortable holding hands, 41 per cent said no – 22 per cent were unsure and 37 per cent said they were comfortable holding hands.

    In December 2016 – where we asked 166 people if they felt they could hold their partner’s hand in a supermarket. Only 30 percent of people said that felt they wouldn’t be able to, where as 23 per cent admited that they already did hold their partner’s hand in public.

  • The guy who is leading the anti-No Outsiders protests at schools – doesn’t have kids at the school

    The guy who is leading the anti-No Outsiders protests at schools – doesn’t have kids at the school

    One of the leading voices of the protests in Birmingham against LGBT+ equality lessons in schools – doesn’t, in fact, have children at the school.

    Asfar seen arguing with MP Jess Philips over teaching No Outsiders at Primary schools in Birmingham.

    Shakeel Afsar has become one of the leading voices of protest at Anderton Park primary school in Birmingham where Muslim-majority parents are heard shouting “our kids, our choice”, “let kids be kids” over the decision by the school to include the “No Outsiders” equality lessons, which includes, in part, LGBT+ equality and acceptance.

    However, it turns out that Asfar doesn’t have children at the school. Last week he was filmed arguing with MP Jess Philips over her support for an exclusion zone around the school – to ensure that teachers and children at the school feel safe. He does however have a sister who has two children at the school, according to Sky News.

    Tensions have been mounting for weeks as parents have protested outside Anderton Park and Parkfield schools for weeks over, it turns out, two books, according to LGBT+ activist Khakan Quereshi, that are read in the “no outsiders” lessons, which take up a tiny proportion of total teachable time during the school year.

    Parents have also removed their children from the school. In April around 600 children were removed from Parkfield Primary school by protesting parents.

     

    Last week Asfar appeared on This Morning to debate whether LGBT+ acceptance should be taught in British schools. In the interview he said that parents at the school felt “that the LGBT community are becoming intolerant towards them and their religious beliefs”.

  • Community which filmed the anti-LGBT “No Outsiders” protests has rife homophobia on its Facebook page

    Community which filmed the anti-LGBT “No Outsiders” protests has rife homophobia on its Facebook page

    Alum Rock Community Forum, a Facebook community which filmed the anti-No Outsiders protests outside Parkfield Primary school is filled with vile homophobic abuse.

    Alum Rock Community Forum which was instrumental in bringing live footage from the protests outside the Parkfield Primary school in April has uploaded another video to its group. In this video, Ferhan Khan, an out Muslim activist, who marched in Birmingham Pride’s parade, was denied access to the pride, due to not having a wristband.

     

    However, comments from viewers and members of the group have been widely homophobic and moderators of the Facebook group have as yet, failed to remove any of the vile comments, allowing it to become a breeding ground of hateful bigotry.

    The video currently has around 55 comments, with the majority of the comments calling the activist homophobic names, such as fa***t, “drama queen” and many questioning Khan’s gender.

    One commenter even went as far as to say that security should have battered him.

    Another called upon the “Almighty” to “destroy all gays”.

    The group, which has just under 10,000 users describes itself as “a non-profit organisation that provides a platform for the residents of Alum Rock to share their ideas and work together for a better future”.

    The group first uploaded the video with the following remarks, “#LGBT Muslim campaigner Ferhan Khan who led this weekend’s BirminghamPride parade alongside Parkfield School teacher Andrew Moffat was kicked out of the event security staff. Is this the #love #nooutsiders #Equalities being promoted?”

    It then edited the statement to, “#LGBT campaigner Ferhan Khan who led this weekend’s BirminghamPride parade alongside Parkfield School teacher Andrew Moffat was kicked out of the event security staff. #nooutsiders #Equalities”

    The group has now removed the video as well as all the comments.

    *This story was updated on the 29th May 2019 to reflect the fact that the group had removed the video and all associated comments.

  • Grindr’s IntoMore magazine looses millions of visits

    Grindr’s IntoMore magazine looses millions of visits

    After the effective disbanding of its editorial team, Grindr’s online magazine, Into has lost millions of visitors.

    Into was the world’s most read LGBT+ news site, topping over 7,500,000 hits per month according to SimilarWeb, however after it was announced that the site’s editorial team had been let go, the site has lost over 7,000,000 monthly visitors.

    In the month before the effective closure of the editorial team, IntoMore.com recieved over 7.3 million hits, in April 2019 that had fallen to 360,000 hits.

    It is now one of the smallest players in the American LGBT+ news market.

    Grindr‘s digital magazine, Into, which was launched in 2017, the Chinese-owned dating app company says it was looking to focus on other areas, including “video”.

     

  • Is gay marriage legal in the UK now?

    Is gay marriage legal in the UK now?

    The laws changed in the early twenty-teens to make gay marriage legal. However, the timetable was different for all parts of the UK.

    gay marriage became law in 2013
    CREDIT: © ivonnewierink Depositphotos

    Gay marriage or same-sex marriage has been legal in part of the UK since 2013 when the law was changed to allow partners of the same sex to marry. England and Wales were the first nations of the UK to permit same-sex marriage when the law changed in July 2013.  Royal Assent was given by the Queen on the 17th July 2013 for English and Welsh same-sex marriages. The first same-sex marriage in England took place on the 13 March 2014.

    In Scotland, the legislation took a little longer and gay marriage was given Royal Assent on 12th March with the first weddings taking place on 16th December 2014.

    Is gay marriage legal in all parts of the UK now?

    In Northern Ireland, same-sex marriage didn’t become law until only recently after a long contentious battle.

    Northern Ireland held out in make gay marriage legal
    The DUP held back LGBT+ rights in Northern Ireland vote against gay marriage every time it became before the courts to become law. In total, they voted against it five times. Eventually, it was made law in 2020.

    Northern Ireland made gay marriage legal in January 2020 after a long and drawn-out legal clash between activists, human rights lawyers and the DUP. There were numerous attempts, in fact, there were five attempts to make gay marriage legal in NI since 2012.

    The subject of same-sex marriage was voted on five times by the Northern Ireland Assembly. Each time it was blocked by the DUP.

    There are a lot of differences between civil partnerships and marriages. You can read about them here.

    Are you planning a wedding? Check out our gay wedding guide for the best services and planners.

  • Grindr killer apparently was having sex with a convicted paedophile in Prison

    Grindr killer apparently was having sex with a convicted paedophile in Prison

    According to reports, Stephen Port had been having sex with Britain’s most notorious convicted paedophile.

    Stephen Port

    Stephen Port and Richard Huckle, who has been dubbed Britain’s “worst paedophile” allegedly had a sexual relationship while they were both in prison together according to the Mirror Online.

    According to the report, Port and Huckle struck up a relationship while both at MHP Belmarsh in London. The pair shared the prison with 90 other inmates and apparently, there are only three guards to keep tabs on all the prisoners.

    The two have now been separated, but their relationship was an “open secret” according to the paper.

    The relationship allegedly happened while Port was waiting to be sentenced for the raping and murdering of four men.

    Remembering Port’s victims: Who were the Grindr Killer’s victims?

    In 2016 Port was imprisoned for life for the murders of Anthony Patrick Walgate, 23, Gabriel Kovari, 22, Daniel Whitworth, 21 and Jack Taylor, 25. Their bodies were dumped in or near a graveyard in Barking. The graveyard was 500 meters away from his flat in east London.

    The 44-year-old was also found guilty of 10 offences of administering a substance with intent, four rapes and four sexual assaults.

    “Open secret”

    Stephen Port

    A source at HMP Belmarsh told Mirror Online, “It’s an open secret the two of them had sex, everyone knows about it.

    “They were both in the max area of the prison but when the cells door are open those in that area can mix.

    “You have 90 inmates being overseen by three guards, they can’t see everything going on in every cell.

    “It happened when they were both here before Port was sentenced, their paths crossed.

     

  • Turns out the “paedophiles” flag was just a “troll experiment” hoax

    Turns out the “paedophiles” flag was just a “troll experiment” hoax

    In 2018 a flag that purported to be a pride flag for paedophiles made headlines, but it turns out it was just a hoax.

    A pride flag, with colourful stripes, made the rounds in 2018 and it was reported by many outlets, including THEGAYUK, that it was the pride flag for MAPS (minor-attracted people) however the rumours are simply untrue and turns out that it was a “troll experiment” that started on Tumblr.

    We are happy to set the record straight.

    The fact-finding website, Snopes has declared the reports, untrue.

    In its report, Snopes.com remarked, “A number of fear-mongering campaigns over the years have attempted to link paedophilia to the LGBTQ community, despite an utter lack of scientific proof of any such connection. In December 2017, for instance, internet trolls spread a false rumour that the letter “P,” representing “pedosexual,” was being added to the initialism LGBT (for “lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender”).

    “An eerily similar rumour was spread via social media in June 2018 in the form of an image purportedly showing a “MAPs (Minor-Attracted Persons) Pride Flag” supposedly created for Gay Pride Month.

    “This picture does not represent a “MAPs Pride Flag.” Rather, the image was created as part of a troll experiment on Tumblr.”

    So there you have it, there is no flag for paedophiles and they are not part of the LGBT+ community.

  • Gay or Bi men still can’t donate blood, if they’re having sex… Here’s what you can do about it

    The group FreedomToDonate, who successfully led the campaign to update the Government’s rules on gay and bi men donating blood in 2017, are now calling for people who still aren’t allowed to donate to make their voices heard.

    kropekk_pl / Pixabay

    FreedomToDonate is asking people who could donate but are prevented from doing so to #PledgeAPint to show how many pints are being missed each year: https://www.freedomtodonate.co.uk/pledge-to-donate/

    Ethan Spibey, founder of FreedomToDonate, said, “the progress we’ve made in the UK is amazing and while the UK now has a world-leading policy. However, our end goal has always been to have a truly individualised risk-based policy introduced. This means that every person who wants to donate blood is assessed individually rather than subject to blanket restrictions.

    We’re asking anyone who otherwise would be able to give blood but can’t because of the remaining restrictions to shout about it. We want to understand just how many people are being excluding from making the life-saving gift of donating blood.”

    Until recently, men could not donate blood if they had had sex with another man in the last 12 months, regardless of type or frequency of sexual activity.

    FreedomToDonate spearheaded a campaign which resulted in the 12 months being reduced to three months alongside LGBT charities including the Terrence Higgins Trust, Stonewall and the National AIDS Trust.

  • Only 40 per cent of gay men will attend a pride in 2019

    Only 40 per cent of gay men will attend a pride in 2019

    According to a new survey, only 40 per cent of gay men will attend one of the UK’s 150+ prides this year.

    New research from online-dating specialist Gaydar, has revealed that while the UK’s LGBT+ community is planning a big summer of Pride celebrations, not everyone is feeling included.

    Over 500 people completed Gaydar’s survey. While many respondents were excited about being part of Pride celebrations, having their voice heard, and playing their part in ensuring LGBT+ visibility, 32% of respondents have decided that they won’t be attending a Pride event this year, and a further 28% have not yet decided.

    Barriers to attendance identified by the survey included – geography, cost, age, disability, not feeling included, or having no interest or connection to Pride events. A number of respondents felt that Pride events have become over-commercialised, or that they don’t represent who they are.

    Over 150 different Pride celebrations will be held across the UK in 2019.

    While some of the biggest events will be held in cities such as London, Brighton, Manchester, and Birmingham, survey respondents confirmed that they will also be enthusiastically supporting local events in their hometowns.

    “This is going to be a big year for Pride…” said John Edwards, Managing Director of Gaydar. “It’s the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, which is a major milestone for our community. This year, Gaydar will also be celebrating our 20th anniversary. Plus, it’s been a particularly political year here in the UK – I’m sure that will also be reflected in our Pride marches.”

    Survey respondents were asked to indicate the key issues that they were passionate about and keen to see addressed in Pride marches.

    Issues identified included – a need for more inclusion, Trans rights, anti-discrimination protections, equality, highlighting those countries where homosexuality is illegal, support for older LGBT+ people, HIV stigma, and climate change. Also, quite a lot of respondents feel that Pride should not be addressing social or political issues, or that they have no personal interest in any social or political issues.

    “Gaydar has a long tradition of supporting and being part of Pride events across the UK and around the world…” said John Edwards. “We’re excited that as we celebrate our 20th anniversary, we’re going to be helping LGBTQ communities across the UK to celebrate Pride, tocelebrate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, and work towards creating a better future for LGBTQ people around the world.”

  • This MP nailed equality for all in the most perfect way

    This MP nailed equality for all in the most perfect way

    MP Jess Phillips managed to explains how the equality act protects Muslims and LGBT people – ‘you don’t get to pick and choose what equality you have’.

    Jess Phillips talks with a protester Shakeel Afsar outside the Anderton School in Birmingham

    The Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley Jess Phillips managed to explain her belief that the current equality act protects Muslims and LGBT+ people, saying that the current protests against teaching LGBT+ education, in programmes like the No Outsiders campaign, is “damaging the reputation of a peaceful and loving community”.

    Embed from Getty Images

    Speaking outside a school in Birmingham where mainly Muslim parents have been protesting, the MP said, “I don’t agree with these protests, I don’t agree that you get to pick and choose which equality you can and cannot have.

    “Our equality laws protect us all. I want them to protect you. Actually I want to protect the Muslim community, which is getting a terrible… I want our Muslim community to be completely protected.

    “The worse thing about it is it’s damaging the reputation of a peaceful and loving community that I have lived in my entire life.”

    She continued to say that she was advocating for an exclusion area around the school to protect children the current wave of protests.

    Parents have been protesting outside the Anderton Park school in Birmingham in demonstrations similar as seen outside Parkfield Primary school last month.

     

  • This company is trying to sell Manchester Bombing victim Martyn Hett’s homepage

    This company is trying to sell Manchester Bombing victim Martyn Hett’s homepage

    It’s two ago since Martyn Hett was killed along with 21 other people after a bomb exploded at the Manchester Arena.

    Today, just shy of two years on, Martyn Hett‘s former website is up for sale for $1995 by the company HugeDomains.com, a company that sells domains it describes as “premium domains”.

    Martyn has become a Twitter legend since his death, with his name trending numerous times since his death in 2017. A heartwarming hashtag #BeMoreMartyn is reminding people to have fun and not to take life too seriously.

    MartynHett.com is still linked from his official Twitter account. Visitors who visit his URL are greeted with a sales page, offering the domain for nearly $2000. The original domain would have most likely cost under $20.

    HugeDomains.com is offering the deceased PR manager and reality TV star’s former website for a whopping $2295 or in 12 monthly payments of $167. As part of their sale’s pitch, the seller reminds potential customers, “Besides being memorable, .com domains are unique: This is the one and only .com name of it’s kind. Other extensions usually just drive traffic to their .com counterparts.”

    HugeDomains is not the only company selling the domain, name.com is selling it for $1965.