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 Russia, hate crimes in Israel, Gus Kenworthy, Indian state
by Windy City Times staff
2022-02-27

This article shared 2721 times since Sun Feb 27, 2022
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


The Russian government made an unsuccessful attempt to shut down one of the country's largest and most prominent LGBTQ-rights groups, but human rights advocates say there are likely more attempts on the horizon, NBC News noted. A court in St. Petersburg sidelined a lawsuit that had been filed by Russia's Justice Ministry; the suit accused the Russian LGBT Network of spreading "LGBT views" and engaging in activities that go against "traditional values." The St. Petersburg-based Russian LGBT Network is known for leading actions against the country's anti-LGBTQ policies and actions, including Chechnya's anti-gay purge, which started making national headlines in 2017.

Also, the U.S. State Department said Russian authorities have drawn up a list of Ukrainians to execute after invading the country and LGBTQ citizens are on it, LGBTQ Nation noted. The list also includes politicians and journalists, along with members of religious and ethnic minority groups. Bathsheba Nell Crocker, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. office in Geneva, warned the High Commissioner for human rights that "abuses in the aftermath of a further invasion are being planned."

Almost 3,000 cases of LGBTQ-phobic hate and violence were reported in Israel in 2021—the highest number reported since the first report was issued for data collected in 2013, according to the ninth annual report on LGBTQ-phobia by the Nir Katz Center of Aguda-The Association for LGBTQ Equality in Israel, The Jerusalem Post reported. The figure marks a 10% rise compared to 2020 and means that, on average, a case of LGBTQ-phobia is reported about every three hours.

Out gay British-American athlete Gus Kenworthy does not feel the IOC's "heart is in the right place," he said recently as he bowed out of the Olympics for good by accusing the governing body of "greed," per france24.com . Kenworthy, a silver medallist in 2014 for the USA before switching allegiance, has been a fierce critic of the International Olympic Committee's decision to award China the Winter Olympics because of its "appalling" human rights record. He finished eighth in the halfpipe final this year.

Police threats, slurs and even violence are all part of LGBTQ+ life in India, but a new rule could ease the onslaught in one southern state, Tamil Nadu, as it becomes a "pioneer" for sexual minorities, Openly News reported. The government of Tamil Nadu recently changed state conduct rules, telling its police officers to stop harassing LGBTQ+ Indians. The state started taking trans-inclusive steps as far back as 1994, when it gave voting rights to trans Indians. Also, trans candidate Ganga Nayak recently won a seat in the Tamil Nadu urban local body polls, according to The News Minute. Trans candidates Jayadevi and Rajamma also vied in the elections, per The Indian Express.

In Senegal, at an event organized by ultra-conservative Muslim groups, men gathered around a burning gay flag in Dakar and chanted, "Senegal will never accept homosexuality," VOA News reported. They were among the thousands who flocked to Place de l'Obelisque to call for harsher penalties for LGBTQ people. Senegal is a 95% Muslim country that already prohibits any "indecent or unnatural acts between individuals of the same sex," as is written in the penal code. Offenders can be punished with up to five years in prison and a fine of about $2,500.

A Swedish government agency recommended that puberty blockers be withheld from trans youth, despite overwhelming evidence that the treatment is "life-saving," PinkNews noted. The National Board of Health and Welfare advised that blockers should only be prescribed in "exceptional cases" and claimed their use is backed by "uncertain science." The agency, also known as the Socialstyrelsen, is responsible for issuing public health advice and its guidelines inform—but do not necessarily dictate—clinical practice.

One year after he resigned over inaction on what he said was racism, former Pride in London communications director Rhammel Afflick has claimed that little has changed, according to PinkNews. Speaking to MyLondon, he said, "Now that it's been almost a year since I resigned, I just wonder what little we have to show for that, and that is really sad to think about. There is no evidence I've seen to suggest that anything is different." At the time of his resignation in February 2021, Afflick was Pride in London's most senior Black staffer, and he had volunteered with the organization for seven years.

The queer French comedy My Best Part is available on VOD nationwide from Altered Innocence, a press release noted. The dramedy stars actor-director Nicolas Maury as a young man who heads home to his mother (10-time Cesar Award nominee Nathalie Baye) amidst an existential crisis.

Eurovision organizers decided not to allow Russia to compete in the contest this year following the country's invasion of Ukraine, PinkNews noted. There was widespread backlash Feb. 24, when Eurovision bosses said Russia would still be allowed to send an entry to the hugely popular competition. The next day, the European Broadcasting Union, which produces the Eurovision Song Contest, announced Russia will no longer be allowed to take part.

In addition, the Russian invasion of Ukraine is hitting the classical music world, where star conductor Valery Gergiev—who has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin—is being forced to cancel engagements at La Scala in Italy as well as Carnegie Hall and other venues in the United States, Variety noted. Gergiev, known to be an old friend and vocal supporter of Putin, last conducted Tchaikovsky's opera The Queen of Spades on Feb. 23 at Milan's La Scala opera house, where he was lightly booed, according to Italian press reports.

Also, Formula One has canceled September's Russian Grand Prix following Russia's military invasion of Ukraine, ESPN reported. F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali and the bosses of the 10 teams discussed the status of the race on a call and later confirmed the race, scheduled for Sept. 25, will not happen. Four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel said he would boycott the event if it went ahead.


This article shared 2721 times since Sun Feb 27, 2022
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

Chicago's LGBTQ+ Advisory Council sets a new course
2024-03-18
Chicago's LGBTQ+ Advisory Council held its first meeting of the calendar year on Feb. 28 at City Hall in the Loop under the leadership of the recently appointed chair Jin-Soo Huh. The LGBTQ+ Advisory Council is ...


Gay News

WORLD Leaked messages, Panama action, author dies at 32, Japan court, out athletes
2024-03-15
Hundreds of messages from an internal chat board for an international group of transgender health professionals were leaked in a report and framed as revealing serious health risks associated with gender-affirming care, including cancer, according to ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Missouri measure, HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, judge, Texas schools
2024-03-15
In Missouri, a newly proposed law could charge teachers and counselors with a felony and require them to register as sex offenders if they're found guilty of supporting transgender students who are socially transitioning, CNN noted. ...


Gay News

College athletes sue NCAA over transgender policies
2024-03-15
Former Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines was among a group of college athletes who filed a lawsuit against the NCAA on March 14, accusing it of violating their Title IX rights by allowing trans swimmer Lia Thomas ...


Gay News

LGBTQ+ people attacked by mobs in Greece
2024-03-14
Just weeks after a landmark law granted same-sex couples in Greece the right to marry, nearly 200 people dressed in black chased a transgender couple through the town square in Thessaloniki, the country's "second city" and ...


Gay News

PASSAGES: Former Chicago Commission on Human Relations chair Clarence Wood
2024-03-13
LGBTQ ally and former Chicago Commission on Human Relations (CCHR) Chair and Commissioner Clarence N. Wood died March 5. He was 83. Wood was born April 14, 1940, in Alabama. While primarily raised in Alabama, Wood ...


Gay News

Longtime LGBTQ+-rights activist David Mixner dies at 77
2024-03-12
On March 11, longtime LGBTQ+ and HIV/AIDS activist David Mixner—known for working on Bill Clinton's presidential campaign but then splitting from him over "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT)—died at age 77, The Advocate reported. ...


Gay News

LGBTQ+ Victory Fund remembers co-founder David Mixner
2024-03-12
--From a press release - Today, LGBTQ+ Victory Fund President & CEO Mayor Annise Parker released the following statement on the passing of LGBTQ+ civil rights activist and LGBTQ+ Victory Fund co-founder David Mixner: "Today, we lost David Mixner, a founding ...


Gay News

Florida settles 'Don't Say Gay' lawsuit
2024-03-11
On March 11, the state of Florida settled a multi-year lawsuit against the so-called "Don't Say Gay" law, which limits how LGBTQ+ topics can be discussed and presented in schools, The Hill reported. The settlement agreement ...


Gay News

"X" gender marker now available on Illinois driver's licenses and state ID cards
2024-03-11
After several years of preparation, the Illinois Secretary of State's office is has been making the X gender designation available for non-binary residents and others not utilizing the M or F designations, since the beginning of ...


Gay News

ELECTIONS 2024 Precious Brady-Davis says climate change is top issue as she runs to finish appointed MWRD term
2024-03-08
Precious Brady-Davis, commissioner for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD), is one of several candidates running to fill three seats on the board in the March 19 election. Brady-Davis was appointed to the role last summer ...


Gay News

ELECTIONS 2024 MWRD's Marcelino Garcia discusses flooding, land use and LGBTQ+ inclusion
2024-03-08
Marcelina Garcia, commissioner for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD), is one of several candidates in the running to fill three seats on the board in the March 19 election. Garcia, who chair's the MWRD's Finance ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Altercation, mpox research, Univ. of Fla., George Santos, tech battle
2024-03-08
Video footage uploaded to Facebook showed an altercation between a state trooper and two prominent Philadelphia LGBTQ+ leaders, the Washington Blade reported, republishing an article from Philadelphia Gay News. Celena ...


Gay News

WORLD Israeli reservist, man detained, Ghana bill, medic denied honor
2024-03-08
Hanania Ben-Shimon—the gay Israel Defense Forces reservist who was wounded as he killed one of the terrorists in the attack at the A-Za'ayem checkpoint near Ma'ale Adumim recently—published a post in which he pleaded that his ...


Gay News

LPAC celebrates historic wins for LGBTQ+ candidates in Super Tuesday primaries
2024-03-06
From a press release: Washington, DC—Today, LPAC,the nation's leading organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary candidates to public office, proudly announces the outstanding victories of 67% of endorsed candidates ...


 


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.