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May 22, 2013
South Asia gay community mourns death of Shivananda Khan

The death of veteran Indian gay rights activist Shivananda Kahn prompts outpouring of appreciation for his achievements

Gay rights advocates in India and around the world are mourning the death of 'committed, passionate, inspiring, nurturing, visionary' activist Shivananda Khan, who passed away on Monday (20 May).

'[Khan] forged a pioneering path across the decades in helping achieve rights and equality for LGBT individuals and communities in diverse geographies and sociocultural environments from Europe to Asia and the Pacific,' said a statement from the organization he helped found, Asia Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health (APCOM).

May 20, 2013
MPs should vote for straight civil partnerships, gay activist demands

Veteran gay activist Peter Tatchell says UK government is ‘inconsistent, hypocritical and wrong’ by offering same-sex marriage but not straight civil partnerships

The current same-sex marriage bill going through the UK Parliament should be changed to allow for heterosexuals to have civil partnerships, veteran gay activist Peter Tatchell has said.

He is urging Members of Parliament (MPs) to vote for an amendment making the change to the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill for England and Wales which is coming before the House of Commons again today (20 May).

May 17, 2013
Uma Thurman to play anti-gay activist Anita Bryant

‘The Times of Harvey Milk’ director Rob Epstein will co-direct biopic ‘Anita’, with plans for the film being shown at Cannes

Hollywood actress Uma Thurman is set to play anti-gay rights activist Anita Bryant in a biopic.

Bryant was a 70’s singer, beauty queen and celebrity spokesperson for orange juice. She was named Good Housekeeping’s ‘Most Admired Woman in America’ three years in a row.

In 1997, Bryant’s celebrity career collapsed when her anti-gay activist past was revealed. The mother from Florida successfully campaigned to stop gays from teaching or adopting a child in the state.

May 16, 2013
Outspoken LGBT activist Chris Kluwe signs with new NFL team: Oakland Raiders

Punter was let go by the Minnesota Vikings after more than eight years to the disappointment of even the governor of the state

Chris Kluwe, the NFL punter who has become a hero in the fight for LGBT equality, will be playing for the Oakland Raiders next season.

Kluwe was cut by the Minnesota Vikings this month after more than eight years on the team. His departure came after he rose to fame as an outspoken ally of marriage equality.

Kluwe, always very active on Twitter, has not yet commented about his hiring which was to be formally announced later today. He will have a one-year contract.

May 14, 2013
Longtime activist Cyndi Lauper warns people that HIV still needs to be prevented

'It is an arduous journey for people taking the drugs'

Cyndi Lauper, nominated for a Tony Award for writing the songs for the current Broadway musical Kinky Boots, warns people who weren't around during the AIDS crisis that HIV is still not something you want to have.

May 10, 2013
Veteran activist to lead Birmingham Pride gay marriage parade

Support same-sex marriage at Birmingham’s equal love-themed parade in the Midlands of England

Veteran LGBT human rights activist and gay marriage campaigner Peter Tatchell will be leading Britain's Birmingham Pride Parade on 25 May.

The parade is supporting the pending same-sex marriage bill, to legalize gay marriage in England and Wales, due to resume its progress through parliament on 20 May.

May 9, 2013
Tatchell slams sex at 13 lawyer but wants lower age of consent

LGBT rights campaigner Peter Tatchell supports an age of consent of 14 for sex but not of 13, as suggested by senior British lawyer Barbara Hewson today

Veteran gay activist Peter Tatchell has criticized a British lawyer who called for the age of consent for all sex – gay and straight – in the UK to be lowered to 13.

Barbara Hewson was commenting on a child sex abuse scandal that has rocked the UK with some of the country’s ageing TV stars being arrested or questioned on suspicion of abuse of young boys and girls or women.

Now barrister – or senior lawyer – Hewson has said those rounding up suspected abusers are ‘zealots’ who are ‘manipulating’ the law.

May 6, 2013
Outspoken LGBT activist Chris Kluwe is cut by NFL's Minnesota Vikings

Team doesn't say if Kluwe's high-profile activism was a factor

NFL punter Chris Kluwe has become a hero in the fight for LGBT equality but now he's a hero without a job.

The Minnesota Vikings on Monday (6 May) cut the 31-year-old Kluwe from the team after more than eight years.

'Thank you to everyone for your support,' Kluwe said in a tweet. 'Remember, one label does not define who you are as a person.'

Kluwe had feared the move when the Vikings selected UCLA punter Jeff Locke as a fifth-round draft pick.

May 6, 2013
Russian protestors defy gay gag law and police threats for May Day parade

An estimated 100 LGBT activists risked arrest and violence by joining the May Day march with pro-gay banners and rainbow flags 

A group of Russian LGBT activists showed their pride at this year’s May Day parade in St. Petersburg.

According to reports by human rights activist Michael Petrelis, approximately 100 activists rallied with the larger crowds celebrating International Workers’ Day holdings signs that read: ‘Repeal the Shameful Homophobic Law! Let's Stop Hate and Discrimination Together!’

May 1, 2013
Jane Fonda reflects on her friendship with the late gay activist Harvey Milk

'He was the most wonderful, loveable ... huge generous heart and spirit'

In video released Wednesday (1 May), Jane Fonda reflects warmly on her friendship with slain gay rights activist Harvey Milk.

Fonda, speaking at the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center's Conversations With Coco event, worked with Milk in 1978 to fight the Briggs Initiative, a ballot measure seeking to ban gay teachers in California.

'We were friends,' Fonda told drag performer Coco Peru. 'He was the most wonderful, loveable.'

She added that Milk had a 'huge generous heart (and) spirit.'

April 25, 2013
Call for rights in 43 gay sex crime countries

Veteran gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell and supporters meet Commonwealth officials to discuss LGBT rights push

Gay activist Peter Tatchell and his fellow campaigners have met with Commonwealth officials to press for more action on LGBT rights.

The Commonwealth, whose titular head is Queen Elizabeth, has 54 member states but 43 of them criminalize homosexuality – that’s a majority of the 79 countries worldwide where it is illegal to have gay sex.

April 22, 2013
Call for gay marriage supporters to lobby Britain’s House of Lords

Veteran activist Peter Tatchell warns Lords may veto same-sex marriage bill. Others say that risk is tiny – although amendments are likely

Veteran gay rights activist Peter Tatchell wants supporters to lobby the House of Lords warning they may veto same-sex marriage bill for England and Wales.

The upper house of the UK parliament will likely debate the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill next month, although dates have not yet been set.

But while it is possible the Lords may amend the bill’s details, other experts believe the chances of a veto are tiny.

April 19, 2013
Archbishop Welby in more secret talks with gay Christians

LGBT Christians have met the new head of the Church of England. And gay Christians are also meeting with bishops in Nigeria and Kenya, it has emerged

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has had a second secret meeting with gay rights campaigners as he re-thinks the Anglican Church’s attitude to LGBT people.

And it has emerged that Anglican bishops in Africa – where the church has been criticized for promoting LGBT persecution in some places – have also started to meet with gay Christians.

April 18, 2013
Malaysian political parties neglect LGBT votes in manifestos

General election fever hits Malaysia but both main parties neglect the LGBT vote

Neither of the main political coalitions in Malaysia has mentioned LGBT rights in their manifesto, neglecting a key group who could make all the difference to winning or losing the election, activists say.

'I think they see us as a minority and a negligible minority,' said LGBT rights activist Angela Kuga Thas, speaking on a Kini TV show examining the issue.

April 18, 2013
Tatchell v Welby: talks start but Archbishop won’t shift on gay marriage

Veteran gay rights activist Tatchell meets head of the Anglican Church worldwide, Archbishop Justin Welby: No compromise but ‘constructive’

New Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby admits gay relationships have value but won’t shift on same-sex marriage, activist Peter Tatchell has said after meeting with him.

Tatchell urged Welby to reconsider gay marriage equality, apologize for past church persecution of LGBT people and engage with activists in Africa where parts of the Anglican church are leading a wave of homophobic hate.

But Tatchell emerged from meeting Archbishop Welby this afternoon (18 April) with an agreement to further dialogue as the biggest concession he could secure.

April 15, 2013
Turkish LGBT activist Yasemin Oz wins human rights award

Lawyer Oz, who has been active in LGBT rights for 18 years, wins the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission's Felipa de Souza Award

Yasemin Oz, who has campaigned for LGBT-rights in Turkey since the mid-1990s, is being honored with a human rights award.

The Felipa de Souza Award, given by the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) every year, recognizes courage and activism in LGBT human rights work.

Oz was chosen as this year's recipient of the award because of her dedication to improving LGBT rights in Turkey.

April 13, 2013
Zambia threatens further criminalization of gays after human rights activist’s arrest

The Zambian Government has suggested that it will introduce harsher punishments for LGBT people after a human rights activist appeared on television to discuss gay rights

Zambian Government ministers have suggested that penalties for LGBT people may be increased following the arrest of human rights activist Paul Kasonkomona after he appeared on Zambian television to discuss gay rights.

Kasonkomona was arrested last Sunday directly after he appeared on Zambia’s MUVI television channel and was held for three nights before police charged him with being 'idle and disorderly in a public place.'

April 3, 2013
Gay activist arrested for one man protest in Russia

Russian human rights activist was arrested and fined after staging a demonstration against a far-right group in Syktyvkar

A Russian gay activist was arrested and fined for carrying out a one-man protest against an extreme right-wing group on 31 March.

Vyacheslav Slyusarev, head of a Russian LGBT rights group, was fined 30,000 rubles (£629, €740) after protesting 'Frontier North'.

Lesbian activist, Clare Dimyon MBE, told Gay Star News Slyusarev took to the Syktyvkar streets after the group decided to rally in one of the city’s parks.

March 25, 2013
Irish veteran gay rights activist Christopher Robson dies

'Brave, principled and passionate' gay rights activist, who fought decriminalization and the AIDS crisis in the 1980s in Ireland, died on Saturday

Irish gay right activist Christopher Robson died on Saturday, leaving behind his partner of 35 years Bill Foley.

Robson was co-founder of Ireland's Gay and Lesbian Equality Network (GLEN) in 1988.

'Chris’s generosity of spirit was the bedrock of GLEN’s approach to social change,' said Kieran Rose, chair of GLEN.

March 22, 2013
$50,000 raised for trans activist Kate Bornstein's cancer treatment in two days

Half of target raised in two days, but crowd-funding project seeks $100,000 in total to help legendary gender theorist, who has 'saved thousands of lives' from suicide

Well-wishers have raised over $50,000 (US dollars, €38,600) in two days to fund cancer treatment for veteran trans rights activist and academic Kate Bornstein.

Bornstein's friend Laura Vogel started a page on Go Fund Me crowd-funding site on Wednesday. After one day over $40,000 was raised.

'We are all blown away by how fast this sum has grown, and by how many people have stepped up to stand by Kate's side as she goes through this difficult process of healing,' said Vogel.

In answer to why she started this campaign for Bornstein, Vogel said:

March 20, 2013
Archbishop Justin Welby to meet gay activist Peter Tatchell

Head of the Anglican church worldwide says Tatchell’s letter to him urging better LGBT rights ‘requires much thought’ and raises ‘powerful’ points

The head of the Church of England Justin Welby will meet with gay activist Peter Tatchell to discuss gay marriage and LGBT rights in Africa.

Welby, who became Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican church worldwide this year, pledged to meet Tatchell today after the veteran campaigner sent him an open letter questioning the church’s attitudes on LGBT issues.

Welby described Tatchell’s letter as ‘thoughtful’ and said he would meet him after Easter.

March 19, 2013
Phyllis Schlafly attacks Senator Rob Portman as 'dumb' for supporting gay marriage

Conservative activist wonders if Portman was pressured by his gay son

Conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly is blasting Ohio Republican Senator Rob Portman for coming out in support of gay marriage last week - two years after learning his son is gay.

Schlafly, 88 and the mother of a gay son herself, said in an interview this week that she believes Portman will suffer in his next election.

March 14, 2013
Indonesian judge apologizes to LGBTs for anti-gay comments

An Indonesian judge has made a public apology to the country’s LGBT community, but maintains his stance against the idea of same-sex marriages

Indonesian Constitutional Court judge Arief Hidayat has apologized to that country’s LGBT community after a gay activist wrote to him to tell him of his struggles as a gay Muslim living in Indonesia.

Hidayat had spoken out against the idea of same-sex marriage during a confirmation hearing in the Indonesian House of Representatives, which prompted LGBT rights activist Hartoyo, the secretary general of the group Ourvoice, to write an open letter to the judge.

March 9, 2013
‘We hate fags’ printed on Puerto Rico ATM receipt

The homophobic message printed on an ATM receipt has sparked local concern and international outrage

Police are investiagting an ATM machine in Puerto Rico that has caused international uproar.

Outside the bar El Ocho De Blanco in San Juan, Puerto Rico, an ATM machine has been printing receipts with the message ‘We hate fags’.

According to LGBT activist Pedro Julio Serrano neither the bar’s owners nor the ATM’s operators claim responsibility for the homophobic message.

March 4, 2013
Groups demand priest ‘sex acts’ Cardinal says sorry for gay hate

Gay rights group demand that Cardinal Keith O'Brien apologizes for his anti-gay stance. Suggestions he may need therapy

LGBT rights campaigners have demanded Cardinal Keith O'Brien apologizes for his 'vicious' gay hate propaganda after he admitted he had engaged in sexual 'acts' with his own male priests.

While O'Brien has come forward, acknowledging and apologising for sexual misconduct following the allegations by four priests and one former priest, LGBT rights campaigners says this does not go far enough.