A gay magazine being published in Arabic and made available across the Middle East was hailed as progress by commenters around the world, Gay Star News noted. However, while it was a landmark moment for LGBTI rights, the magazine's founders are now facing potential lawsuits and death threats from people furious over the "promotion of homosexuality." My Kali, an online magazine in Jordan, has only ever been published in English. Ther May/June issue is the first time in its nine-year history was available in both English and Arabic. See www.gaystarnews.com/article/outrage-gay-magazine-published-arabic-made-available-middle-east/ .
Egypt's grand mufti has said while homosexuality is not accepted in Islam, gay people are not second-class humans, Gay Star News noted. Shawki Allam, who was appointed in 2013, told a German newspaper about the openness and the cooperation with people of other faiths as pillars of moderate Islam—something Allam says extends to homosexuality. In Sunni Islam, the grand mufti is the highest official of religious law and often cited as the most valuable source of information on how to practically apply Islamic law.
At the International AIDS Conference in Durban, South Africa, actress Charlize Theron made her thoughts known, The Huffington Post noted. "The real reason we haven't beaten this epidemic boils down to one simple fact: We value some lives more than others," Theron said at the conference, according to Mic. "We value men more than women. Straight love more than gay love. White skin more than Black skin. The rich more than the poor. And adults more than adolescents." A native of South Africa, where 7 million people live with HIV, Theron went on to identify the specific groups who are disproportionately affected by the disease.
Also regarding the event, Elizabeth Taylor's grandchildren have not only become HIV activists in their own right, but they dove right into an HIV protest that took over the main stage at AIDS2016 in Durban, South Africa, Queerty noted. Recently, three of Elizabeth Taylor's grandchildren and one of her great-grandchildren visited Nkosi's Haven and attended a performance by artsINSIDEOUT in Johannesburg, Times Live reported. Nkosi's Haven is a recognized NGO in South Africa that has been in operation since 1999, an offers holistic care and support for destitute HIV/AIDS-infected mothers, their children and resulting AIDS orphans ( infected or not ).
The badly burned remains of Paulett Gonzalez, 24, a trans woman from Puerto Vallarta, was found in the Mexican city of Celaya, SDGLN.com reported. Gonzalez, the winner of last year's Gay Beauty Queen in the state of Nayarit, was last seen by a friend in Guanajuato earlier last month. It has not been determined if she was the target of a hate crime.
Three Ugandan lesbians are to be deported from Denmark after having their asylum requests denied, according to PinkNews. Authorities said they found inconsistencies in the women's accounts, but gay-rights groups have criticized the decision, saying sexual orientation should qualify them for asylum. If their final appeal is unsuccessful, they will be deported Aug. 2.
The youngest MP in France has voiced her opposition to same-sex marriage, saying it will "open the door to polygamy," PinkNews reported. Marion Marechal-Le Pen is the granddaughter of Front National ( FN ) founder Jean-Marie Le Pen and the niece of the far-right party's current leader Marine Le Pen. She was elected in 2012 at age 22—the youngest MP in France's political history. Same-sex marriage was legalized in France three years ago.
A gay Church of England ( CoE ) priest has quit in order to marry his long-term male partner, Christian Today reported. The Rev. Clive Larsen left his position in the diocese of Manchester July 22 so he could get married July 25 without having to face disciplinary action. Larsen is believed to be the first priest to resign over the issue, although four other CoE priests have ignored the ban imposed by bishops—and been punished as a result.
The executive director of the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles said he could hear gunshots from his Istanbul hotel room as members of the Turkish military staged a recent coup attempt, The Washington Blade noted. Chris Verdugo told the Blade during a Facebook interview from his hotel room that he and the three friends with whom he is traveling had just finished dinner at a restaurant when their waiter told them to "go home." The Associated Press reported that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the unsuccessful coup as "an attempt at an uprising by a minority within our armed forces" during a FaceTime interview with a Turkish television station. He also urged his supporters to take to the streets.
In London, alleged serial killer Stephen Port is now facing a total of 29 charges, including the murder of four gay men, PinkNews reported. Port was charged last year with the alleged murders of Anthony Walgate, Gabriel Kovari, Daniel Whitworth and Jack Taylor. Port allegedly used GHB to poison a number of victims, after meeting them on gay hook-up apps. The four bodies were found in and around the St Margaret's Churchyard, Barking, between June 2014 and September 2015.
All Out, in collaboration with Gay SA Radio, launched a global petition campaign asking the Minister of Home Affairs, Malusi Gigaba, to deny pastor Steven Anderson entry into South Africa, according to a press release. Anderson recently said that the Orlando, Florida, mass shooting at the Pulse Nightclub resulted in "50 less pedophiles in the world." South Africa's constitution is the first in Africa that guarantees the rights of LGBT people. The Inquisitr reported that Africa's department of home affairs responded, with spokesperson Mayihlome Tshwete telling City News that the department supported the petition, but that it might not have the power to prevent the pastor from visiting since his anti-gay remarks were not made on South African land.
The Tanzanian government has reportedly banned the import and sale of personal lubricants as part of an ongoing crackdown on the country's LGBTI community, QNews reported. "It is true that the government has banned the importation and use of the jelly to curb the spread of HIV. "I have instructed stakeholders working with gay people to remove the products from the market," Health Minister Ummy Mwalimu is reported as saying. She reportedly said that the lubricants encourage homosexuality, which is illegal in the east African country and is punishable by life imprisonment.
In Canada, Gay Day at Wonderland was cancelled, The Hamilton Spectator noted. LGBTQ advocacy group PFLAG announced it had nixed the eight-year-old annual event at Canada's Wonderland after a park employee told a gay couple to stop hugging while they waited in line for the Lazy River last month. Bev Belanger, president of PFLAG Canada, said she couldn't, in clear conscience, agree to continue Gay Day at the park without assurances of strong sensitivity training.
ABC's How to Get Away With Murder is sparking a rallying cry for gay rights in Italy and forcing state broadcaster Rai to change what critics charge are its homophobic ways, Variety reported. Rai, which is the country's top free-TV service, came under fire after the show's pilot episode aired in primetime on its Rai 2 channel. Viewers noticed that a sex scene between Connor ( Jack Falahee ) and Oliver ( Conrad Riamora ) in a flashback cutaway had been removed. The episode had previously aired unedited for Italians on paybox Sky Italia's Fox platform.
The St. Kilda Football Club and the Sydney Swans will compete in the first annual Australian Football Leage Pride game this August in an attempt to break down the anti-LGBT stereotypes of the sport, NewNowNext noted. When the two clubs meet for the game Aug. 13 in Melbourne, they'll be decked out in full rainbow regalia, with rainbow-colored socks, jerseys and even playing balls.
Tina Gorjanc, a student at London's Central Saint Martins art school, plans to create a leather handbag using the skin of dead fashion designer Alexander McQueen—complete with the famous artist's tattoo, LGBTQ Nation reported. McQueen, an alumni of the school, included his own hair in the labels of his graduate fashion collection, "Jack the Ripper Stalks His Victims." Gorjanc plans to extract the DNA from the hairs and use it grow skin which could be harvested, tanned, and tattooed. McQueen committed suicide in 2010.
