In Venezuela, three men who were arrested when authorities raided a gay sauna on July 23 have been released from jail, per The Washington Blade. Officers in Valencia, the country's third largest city, arrested 33 people during the raid. Ricardo Hung, of the Venezuelan LGBTQI+ group Alianza Lambda de Venezuela, previously told the Blade the arrests took place "without a search warrant, without due process" and violated "the fundamental rights of 33 Venezuelan adults who were in full use of their mental and physical faculties." Hung said authorities charged the men with committing indecent acts in a public place (although the sauna that police raided is a private business), gathering with the intent to commit a crime and violating local noise ordinances.
In India, in the past 16 months, a situation has emerged at a government hospital in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, where 81 pregnant women have tested positive for HIV, The Times of India noted. Among these cases, 35 women who were confirmed to have HIV have already given birth to children. To address this trend, HIV tests for newborn children have been planned when they reach 18 months of age.
GSK (GlaxoSmithKline) raised its full-year profit and sales guidance after its second-quarter earnings beat expectations, helped by strong sales of its shingles vaccine Shingrix and HIV medicines, Reuters reported. The British drugmaker has lagged rivals in recent years, with some investors and analysts concerned about the strength of its drugs in development and costly U.S. litigation over discontinued heartburn drug Zantac. Sales of HIV treatments generated 1.58 billion pounds in the quarter, ahead of the company-compiled consensus of about 1.5 billion pounds in the quarter.
The World Bank plans to halt new lending to the Ugandan government after concluding that its anti-LGBTQ+ law—condemned by many countries and the United Nations—contradicts the bank's values, Reuters reported. A World Bank team traveled to Uganda immediately after the law was enacted in May and determined that additional measures were needed to ensure projects were being implemented in line with the bank's environmental and social standards. The African country called the bank's move unjust and hypocritical.
Another week, another Barbie controversy: The release of Greta Gerwig's blockbuster film (which has already reaped more than $1 billion globally) has been delayed in the Middle East—reportedly amid a censorship battle over perceived LGBTQ+ content in the film, PinkNews noted. Middle Eastern theater chain Vox Cinemas confirmed that the film's release has been pushed back from its initial release date of July 18 to Aug. 31. Saudi film platform Movsto tweeted that the film would not be shown in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain. Previous Barbie releases have been banned in Saudi Arabia due to their portrayal of women in clothing and roles that do not align with the country's conservative values.
Also, Barbie has now been banned in Kuwait, with moves to do the same in Lebanon, per The Hollywood Reporter. In Lebanon,—which has traditionally been considered among the more liberal countries in the region regarding the LGBTQ+ community, Culture Minister Mohammad Mortada said that Barbie "promotes homosexuality" and "contradicts values of faith and morality," by diminishing the importance of the family unit.
A Seattle museum removed all traces of British Harry Potter creator JK Rowling from its exhibition celebrating the schoolboy wizard and his friends because of her transphobic stance, Deadline noted. The Museum of Pop Culture had previously published a blog explaining its decision to airbrush Rowling from its display, due to her "super-hateful and -divisive" views. Project manager Chris Moore, who is transgender, wrote, "There's a certain cold, heartless, joy-sucking entity in the world of Harry Potter and, this time, it is not actually a Dementor."
Hundreds of activists and organizations from around the world attended the Pan Africa ILGA conference that took place in Mauritius, The Washington Blade noted. The conference, which took place at the Ravenala Attitude Hotel | Solitude, focused on the vitality of Pride and resilience amid an environment where LGBTQI+ rights remain under threat. The conference also sought to promote LGBTQI+ rights in Africa as well as highlight the severity of homophobia and transphobia on the continent. British LGBTQI+ activist Dr. Phyll Opoku-Gyimah and special U.S. envoy Jessica Stern were among those who attended.
Beijing concertgoers claimed they were prevented from displaying rainbow imagery at a pop singer's performance in a sign of increasing tightening on LGBTQ+ expression in China, Time Magazine noted, citing Bloomberg News. Fans attending a concert by Taiwanese singer Chang Hui-mei (aka A-Mei) said they were prevented from wearing shirts with rainbows on them inside the Cadillac Arena. An official at the Beijing Cultural and Tourism Bureau, which approved the weekend shows, said that the bureau was only in charge of vetting the eligibility of the concert organizers.
In a profile in Adelante Magazine, Mr. Gay World 2022 Jose Lopez-Duvont discussed his mission to address body dysmorphia. In part, he said, "In the LGBTQ+ community body dysmorphia is very prevalent, and I can say it's a little more delicate because we must add the forces of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity [to] the mix. … Thanks to the magic of social media, I have taken my body dysmorphia platform to every corner of the world, helping hundreds to move forward. But if you have access to professional help, it is the best option. Love yourself as you are, but seek help." Lopez-Duvont admitted that he was bullied as a child because of his weight (as he was obese), orientation and speech impediment.
In Canada, a new drug-testing program in Edmonton was recently launched, CTV News noted. Spectrum Drug Testing is a free, confidential service that's legal thanks to an exemption from the federal government, and the grassroots health organization The Queer and Trans Health Collective (QTHC) offers the program. Its staff was recently given an exemption from federal drug laws to allow them to test illegal substances, making QTHC the first organization in the province of Alberta to be able to offer the service.
Openly gay Oscar-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black (Milk) must wait until November to fight charges of common assault in the UK, Variety noted. Black is accused of throwing a drink on BBC Three presenter Teddy Edwardes in a London nightclub last year. Pointing out that Black had spent significant time and resources flying to the UK to stand trial, his lawyer (Helena Duong) urged for the case to be dismissed. Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring said the line between dismissing the case and allowing it to be heard was "finely balanced" but ultimately said the prosecution should be allowed to put forward its case.
Drag Race Brasil contestant Diva More shared an open letter addressing the long-standing rumors that she voted for vehemently anti-LGBTQ+ candidate Jair Bolsonaro in the last presidential election, Out noted. In part, More stated, "My name is Eduardo Jonata. I'm a makeup artist, actor [and] costume designer, and also known for my drag as Diva More. I'm writing this open letter to inform you that I've never voted in favor of former President Bolsonaro. I was never a 'Bolsonarist,' nor did I campaign for him. … In the 2022 elections, I openly campaigned for Ciro Gomes." More added that she didn't vote for anyone in the election's second round, which Gomes didn't advance to; however, she didn't vote because "I had moved to Buzios after the voting-card transfer deadlines."
And, on a related note, World of Wonder just revealed the 12 queens taking part in the first season of Drag Race Brasil, a media release noted. In addition to Diva More, they are Aquarela, Betina Polaroid, Dallas de Vil, Hellena Malditta, Melusine Sparkle, Miranda Lebrao, Naza, Organzza, Rubi Ocean, Shannon Skarllet and Tristan Soledade. The show will debut Wed., Aug. 30 on WOW Presents Plus in the United States and globally excluding Brazil, where it will air on Paramount+ and MTV. The series will be available on Paramount+ in the U.S. at a later date.
Singer Sinead O'Connor (who recently passed away at age 56) was honored with a memorial service, procession, and burial in her native Ireland, Extra noted. Sky News reported that U2's Bono and The Edge, musician Bob Geldof, Ireland Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and Irish President Michael D. Higgins all attended the funeral. Hundreds of fans also paid their respects at the procession as it traveled past her former home in Bray, County Wicklow. O'Connor's death came less than two years after her son Shane O'Connor took his own life at just 17; she is survived by her three other children: Jake, Roisin and Yeshua.
RuPaul's Drag Race UK season-one winner The Vivienne was attacked by a homophobe in June while inside a McDonald's restaurant—and the encounter affected the All Stars 7 star for some time, according to Out. During an interview with This Morning, The Vivienne said, "It was in broad daylight. I wasn't in drag. … But the police were fantastic, but it did kind of shake me up a little bit. I found myself, even after the attack, I was like, 'Oh, it's fine, I've dealt with this for years,' but then going on a train and hiding around a corner, it did shake me up a bit."
After a 20-year agreement, the Oscars will no longer broadcast on Sky in the UK, Variety confirmed. Although no specific reason has been given for Sky giving up the rights to next year's ceremony, many media companies are feeling the current economic strain and have thus been forced to undergo cost-cutting measures. Also, live ratings of the event have decreased over the years.
Lesbian player Megan Rapinoe lamented ending her final World Cup with a missed penalty as the United States women's national soccer team exited as early as the round of 16 for the first time in its history, ESPN noted. "A sick joke," Rapinoe said. "That's why I had that smile on my face. Like, 'You got to be f—-ing kidding me. I'm going to miss the penalty?'" Rapinoe was one of three U.S. players to miss their penalties in a shootout that ended 5-4 in favor of Sweden after the game was scoreless through regular and extra time.
