Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

WORLD ROUNDUP
Online Special
by Rex Wockner
2008-03-12

This article shared 2677 times since Wed Mar 12, 2008
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email


Sydney Mardi Gras

biggest ever

Organizers said Sydney's 30th gay Mardi Gras parade held March 1 was the biggest ever.

The 1-mile ( 1.6 km ) spectacle attracted 10,000 participants, 150 floats and hundreds of thousands of spectators.

A contingent of 200 '78ers,' people who marched in the first parade in 1978, drew raucous applause. That first parade ended in a clash with police and 50 arrests.

Other contingents of note included official entries by the New South Wales Police Force and the Australian Defence Force, and a group of some 100 Christian pastors who marched to 'apologize' for past treatment of LGBT people by Christian churches.

Mardi Gras pumps an estimated $45 million ( US$42 million ) into the local economy.

Brit Tory MP to

enter civil partnership

A senior member of Parliament for Britain's Conservative Party will be the first Tory MP to enter a same-sex civil partnership.

Alan Duncan, who has been in Parliament since 1992, will tie the knot with James Dunseath, spokesman for London's financial futures exchange, this summer at the Westminster register office in London.

The couple met 14 months ago at a dinner party and Duncan, 50, asked Dunseath, 39, to marry him this past Valentine's Day as the couple vacationed in Oman.

'You could not find two more conventional people to enter into a civil partnership,' Duncan told local media.

Dunseath told The Daily Telegraph: 'Our friends say we are inseparable. He may be a politician but he's great fun. We both feel it's so right and we're very lucky.'

Tory leader David Cameron said he was 'thrilled' to learn of the couple's engagement and plans to attend the ceremony.

In 2002, Duncan became the first Tory MP to publicly come out of the closet.

'Living in disguise as a politician in the modern world simply isn't an option,' he said at the time. 'The Tory view has always been, 'We don't mind, but don't say.' Well, that doesn't work anymore. The only realistic way to behave these days is to be absolutely honest and upfront, however inconvenient that may be at first.'

In a new interview with the Telegraph on March 5, Duncan added: 'I knew that one day I would have to say something, because I believed honesty to be the best policy. But I wanted to do it when I was sufficiently well-established as an MP for it not to be my only label thereafter. I didn't want to be known just as 'the gay MP Alan Duncan.' To me, I'm an MP who happens to be gay.'

Duncan also noted: 'This is not a wedding. You really just go into the register office and sign. There will be no Elton John-style stuff: no white suits, no John Inman, no flouncing about.'

The United Kingdom's Civil Partnership Act, which took effect in December 2005, grants registered same-sex couples all rights and obligations of marriage.

Nearly 500 Czech

gay couples have registered

By the end of last year, 487 same-sex couples had taken advantage of the Czech Republic's registered-partnership law, the Czech News Agency reported Jan. 28.

Gay-male partnerships outnumbered lesbian couplings 353 to 134.

Eight of the couples later cancelled their registrations.

The law took effect in July 2006 after the Chamber of Deputies overrode President Vaclav Klaus' veto of it.

The statute grants many of the rights and obligations of marriage but withholds equality in the areas of adoption, pensions, taxation and joint ownership of property.

Argentine couple seeks

recognition of

Spanish marriage

Argentine gay activists César Cigliutti and Marcelo Suntheim got married in Spain on Jan. 21 and plan to demand that Argentina recognize their marriage.

The Argentine capital of Buenos Aires and the province of Río Negro have same-sex civil-union laws, but there is no established mechanism anywhere in the nation for recognizing same-sex marriages from the six countries that allow them.

Anyone from the European Union can marry in Spain. Suntheim and Cigliutti were able to tie the knot because Suntheim has dual Argentine and German citizenship.

Same-sex marriage also is legal in Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, South Africa and the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Canada has no citizenship or residency requirements for getting married, and foreign same-sex couples often accomplish the deed in a one-day visit.

Kuwaiti cross-dressers

arrested, abused

At least 14 cross-dressers have been arrested under a new Kuwaiti law that criminalizes 'imitating the appearance of the opposite sex ... in public.'

They are being held in a special ward of Tahla Prison, where guards have shaved off the detainees' hair and subjected them to other psychological and physical abuse, Human Rights Watch said Jan. 17.

'Transgender people in Kuwait tell Human Rights Watch that they are now afraid to leave their homes—even for work or to meet basic needs—for fear of arrest and ill-treatment,' the organization said in a statement.

'The wave of arrests in the past month shows exactly why Kuwait should repeal this repressive law,' said Joe Stork, deputy director of the group's Middle East division.

Article 199 of the Criminal Code, approved by the National Assembly on Dec. 10, states, ' [ A ] ny person committing an indecent act in a public place, or imitating the appearance of a member of the opposite sex, shall be subject to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year or a fine not exceeding one thousand dinars,' which is about $3,680.

HIV cases set record

in Japan

Japan saw more than 1,000 new HIV cases in 2007, the first time the tally has crossed that threshold.

The Ministry of Health and Labor counted 1,048 new infections, bringing the total for all years to 9,392, according to Gay Japan News.

Ninety-three percent of the new cases were in men, and at least 70 percent involved gay sex.

'It is urgent that we should develop our support, counseling and medical care systems further ... in accordance with local needs and situations,' said Aikichi Iwamoto, chair of the ministry's AIDS Trends Committee.

—Assistance: Bill Kelley


This article shared 2677 times since Wed Mar 12, 2008
facebook twitter google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

'Rumors' performers create alternative drag playground 2024-03-24
- At first glance, Dorian's Through The Record Shop (1939 W. North Ave.) looks like a brightly-lit shop with a handful of records on the wall, but there's a secret world behind those unassuming shelves. Visitors are ...


Gay News

Queer Eye's Jai Rodriguez is set to slay at The Big Gay Cabaret 2024-03-05
- Out and proud performer Jai Rodriguez is set to play at The Big Gay Cabaret this March for three days. Presented by RuPaul Drag Racer Ginger Minj, this monthly series highlights the wide world of cabaret ...


Gay News

GLAAD releases report on LGBTQ+ inclusion in video games 2024-02-19
- LGBTQ+ media-advocacy organization GLAAD has released a report on queer inclusion in the world of video games. Among the key findings in "Gaming: The State of LGBTQ Inclusion in Video Games" is that 17%—nearly one in ...


Gay News

$200,000+ raised at AIDS Foundation Chicago's World of Chocolate Fundraiser to fight HIV/AIDS 2024-02-13
--From a press release - (Chicago, IL) More than 950 guests gathered at Chicago's famed Union Station (500 W. Jackson) for Chicago's Sweetest Fundraiser, AIDS Foundation Chicago's (AFC), World of Chocolate on Friday, February 9. ...


Gay News

Carisa Hendrix mesmerizes as Lucy Darling in Teatro ZinZanni 2024-02-12
- Since 2019, Teatro ZinZanni has gathered together amazing performers from all over the world to create an experience in Chicago under the Spiegeltent in the Cambria Hotel building, 32 W. Randolph St. Over the years, ticket ...


Gay News

Chicagoans indulge in a World of Chocolate 2024-02-11
- AIDS Foundation of Chicago hosted its 2024 World of Chocolate celebration the evening of Feb. 9 at Union Station. Top chocolatiers from across the city allowed guests to sample numerous confections, hors d'oevres and libations for ...


Gay News

GLAAD remembers Cecilia Gentili, transgender Latina, actress, activist, health care activist, journalist 2024-02-06
--From a press release - (New York, NY - February 6, 2024) GLAAD, the world's largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization, is responding to the death of transgender actress and advocate Cecilia Gentili and elevating voices of transgender and political leaders honoring ...


Gay News

SAVOR Chocolatier Uzma Sharif on being part of World of Chocolate 2024-02-03
- AIDS Foundation Chicago will hold its annual World of Chocolate event on Friday, Feb. 9, at 6 p.m. at Union Station, 500 W. Jackson Blvd. Attendees will embark on a global tour of chocolate—but there will ...


Gay News

Mr. Chicago Leather 2024 at Touche, Vince Jay takes title 2024-02-02
- A diverse group of people from around the world gathered at Touché Chicago for the Mr. Chicago Leather 2024 Contest the evening of Jan. 27. Ammar Houssamo hosted the event, at which Mr. Chicago Leather 2022-23 ...


Gay News

SAVOR Going 'Underground,' change at Skylark and Mango Pickle closing 2024-01-29
- Pop(-up) life: Chef Mariya Moore-Russell—who guided the local spot Kikko to a Michelin star, becoming the first Black woman to helm a kitchen with one of the food world's highest honors—is returning to Chicago to lead ...


Gay News

WORLD Arrest in Brazil, athlete dies, Ghana attack, World Economic Forum 2024-01-26
- A 30-year-old man was arrested in Brazil on Jan. 18 for his alleged role in the stabbing murder of prominent NYC art dealer Brent Sikkema, Gay City News reported. Authorities took Cuban resident Alejandro Triana Trevez ...


Gay News

WORLD World leaders, Namibia attack, Taiwan electoral win, Irish LGBTQ+ groups 2024-01-19
- In the wake of Gabriel Attal being named France's newest prime minister, PinkNews published a list of every out LGBTQ+ world leader to date. They include ex-San Marino head of state Paolo Rondelli, former Iceland Prime ...


Gay News

SAVOR World of Chocolate, Jaleo and 'Superhot' 2023-12-31
- World of wonder: I am excited to announce that I will be a judge at AIDS Foundation Chicago's World of Chocolate fundraiser! Join me in sampling delicious chocolate from local chefs and help support a great ...


Gay News

Pope Francis changes policy, allowing priests to bless same-sex unions; GLAAD responds 2023-12-18
--From a press release - GLAAD: "By removing barriers to priests blessing LGBTQ couples, the Pope accurately recognizes that LGBTQ people and our relationships are worthy of the same affirmation and support in the Church, and this strengthens couples in their ...


Gay News

Chicago hosting World Gay Boxing Championships in 2024 2023-12-12
- Chicago will host the World Gay Boxing Championships (WGBC) next year. On June 20, 2024, Strong Hands Gym, 3924 N. Broadway, is set to host the second annual championship, Block Club Chicago noted. The first took ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.