MALTA – A transgender man in Malta has won the right to have his birth certificate changed to “male.” The man, whose name cannot be published by court order, was born on May 22, 1984 as a girl, but said in his writ that he had “male inclinations, behavior and orientation both psychologically and externally”…
FINLAND – Thousands of people have reportedly left the Lutheran Evangelical Association of Finland after a campaign against homosexuality. The week-long campaign, which was drawn up by several Christian groups, was met with anger. Called “älä alistu” (“don’t acquiesce”), it claimed that gay people can become straight and urged youths not to give in to…
Joseph Lelyveld, Pulitzer-Prize winner and author of Great Soul: Mahatma Gandhi and His Struggle With India, found his book officially banned last week in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The Gujurat state assembly reached a unanimous decision to enact the ban of the book. Additional bans have been suggested throughout India, where until only…
SCOTLAND – Police have confirmed that a retired lecturer found dead at his Edinburgh flat was murdered. Roger Gray, a retired lecturer, is the third gay man to have been killed in the Scottish city of Edinburgh in the last month; however, police say there is no evidence to link the deaths. Gray was found…
GENEVA – More than 80 countries have signed a UN gay rights resolution to end homophobic violence and laws against gay sex. The resolution was presented at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The resolution calls on states to, “Take steps to end acts of violence, criminal sanctions and related human rights violations committed…
The UK Gay News reports that Friday, April 1 will mark the tenth anniversary of the world’s first legal gay marriage. On the same date in 2001, four couples – one female and three male – tied the knot in Amsterdam in a joint ceremony presided over by the city’s Mayor, Job Cohen. The ceremony…
Anton Hysén, son of Swedish soccer legend and former Liverpool defender Glenn Hysén, has become the second openly gay high-level soccer player in the world. Hysén, who plays left-sided midfield for Sweden’s Utsiktens BK club, claims that he is confident in his decision to come out despite the rampant homophobia present in traditional European soccer…
Close on the heels of this week’s U.S.-led move at the United Nations condemning violence against the LGBT community, a long-standing and infamous bill advocating life imprisonment and possible execution for Ugandan homosexuals appears to be dead. Ugandan officials have made comments to the media indicating that the proposed legislation duplicated other extant laws. “I…
VANCOUVER – The Canadian citizenship guide has been updated to include the fact that Canada upholds gay and lesbian rights. People hoping to become Canadian citizens will now learn that, but they won’t get much more information, as history about gay rights milestones and the same-sex marriage law has been removed from the guide, despite…
INDIA – A transgender woman has filed an application to contest the upcoming elections in Tamil Nadu, the 11th largest state in India by area (about the size of Greece) and the 7th most populous state. Representing the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) party, Rose Venkatesan said, “Tamil Nadu is one of the foremost states…
