In Spain, a man who claimed eight hooded men carved an anti-gay slur on his butt using a knife in a horrific hate crime later said the act was consensual, according to out.com. According to police reports, the unnamed man said he made up the story so that he wouldn't lose his current boyfriend. The young man initially told police the attackers shouted he was a "sh*t-eater" and a "maricon" (a Spanish slur for a gay man) while using a knife to carve the latter slur into his buttocks. Officials and activists pointed out that hate crimes remain a problem, and that one man's false report should not be used to trivialize the problem of anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes and assaults in the country.
In India, noted historian and queer-rights activist Saleem Kidwai passed away after suffering a heart attack at age 70, The Hindustan Times noted. Kidwai, born in 1951, is the author of Same-Sex Love in India: Readings from Literature and History (2001), which he co-authored with University of Montana professor Ruth Vanita. Kidwai taught Indian medieval history at the University of Delhi's Ramjas College and was associated with the LGBTQ+- rights movement, helping to establish support spaces for the LGBTQ+ community in the national capital.
"Drawing on Style" will celebrate rare and unseen fashion illustrations from post-war 1940s to the present day, a press release noted. The exhibit is returning to London to coincide with London Fashion Week this September at London's new hub for the Arts, Cromwell Place. There will be works shown from such artists as LGBT individual Antonio Lopez—leader of the hedonistic New York fashion crowd who burst onto the scene in the 1970s and who helped introduce Jerry Hall and Jessica Lange to the world; world-famous fashion illustrator René Gruau, who epitomized the glamour and sophistication of '50s couture; and Rene Bouche, particularly known for his work in Vogue between the 1930s and 1960s. With more than 85 unearthed drawings on show, many have since remained in private collections or artists' estates and will be displayed publicly for the first time in the exhibition.
The British LGBT Awards took place in London recently—and Demi Lovato, who came out as non-binary this year and previously said that they were pansexual, took home the Celebrity of the Year award, Digital Spy noted. Russell T Davies' drama It's a Sin, starring Olly Alexander, won the Media Moment award.Comedian, Bake Off: An Extra Slice and There's Something About Movies star Tom Allen won the Broadcaster of the Year award, while This Morning and The Cube's Phillip Schofield was given a Special Recognition after coming out as gay on the ITV daytime show. Meanwhile, Hilary Clinton was named as Global Ally of the Year; UK Black Pride won for Charity or Community Initiative; Melanie C (of the Spice Girls) won for Celebrity Ally; and UK Black Pride co-founder Lady Phyll received a Lifetime Achievement Award. The full list of awardees is at Website Link Here .
Australian airline Qantas, owned by gay executive Alan Joyce, will require vaccines for all passengers on international flights within the coming months—making it the first of its kind in the world, The Hill reported. Joyce said the requirement will help "show that you're flying safe and getting into those countries." The company said documented medical exemptions will be allowed, but said such a situation is "expected to be very rare." Australia's borders are currently closed because of COVID-19. The country is seeing a spike in coronavirus infections, and set a record for the number of cases last month.
Tens of thousands recently protested in Switzerland for the legalization of same-sex marriage in the Alpine country, NBC News reported. The protests came ahead of a national referendum on Sept. 26 on the legalization of same-sex marriage, which has already been introduced in many other European countries including Germany, Austria, France and the Netherlands. Currently, same-sex couples in Switzerland can only get official approval for civil unions, which are not on equal footing as marriages.
In Poland, the Council in Malopolska, which includes Krakow, voted to reaffirm its status as an "LGBT-free zone"—despite the European Union (EU) threatening to remove billions of euros in funding that could affect preparations for the 2023 European Games which it is due to stage, InsideTheGames.biz noted. Jan Duda, the leader of the Malopolska Council and father of Polish President Andrzej Duda, defended maintaining the 2019 resolution in the face of threats from the EU, but also insisted it had been misinterpreted.
The United Kingdom's first LGBT business champion pledged to build a bridge between the government and the LGBT community, the BBC reported. Iain Anderson, the executive chairman of the PR firm Cicero, will focus on improving workplace equality at a small-business level. One report suggested 40% of LGB employees and 55% of trans workers had experienced conflict at work. "I definitely see my role as a link between the LGBT community, government and business and I want to build a bridge between the three parties," Anderson said.
The cast of the CW's Riverdale showed love and support for gay series creator/executive producer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa amid news that his father, Francisco Aguirre-Sacasa, was sentenced in Nicaragua for treason and conspiracy, Deadline reported. The update arrived after the family's two-month-long search for answers regarding the elder Aguirre-Sacasa's whereabouts. Roberto told Deadline, "The bad news is that two days after that visit, my father was officially charged—for treason and conspiracy, which are completely bogus charges. Other political prisoners have also been charged for various made-up crimes. That means my dad's no longer 'under investigation for 90 days,' as he had been, and can now be imprisoned indefinitely."
Mexico's Supreme Court ruled that it is unconstitutional to punish abortion, unanimously annulling several provisions of a law from Coahuila—a state on the Texas border—that had made abortion a criminal act, The Chicago Tribune reported. The decision will immediately affect only the northern border state, but it establishes a historic precedent and "obligatory criteria for all of the country's judges," compelling them to act the same way in similar cases, said court President Arturo Zaldívar.
Out pro Brazilian volleyball player and Olympic champion Douglas Souza used his social-media platform to share about the homophobia he and his boyfriend, Gabriel, recently experienced at an airport in Europe, Queerty noted. Souza explained that they were passing through the Netherlands on their way to Italy when a customs/immigration official seemed to take issue with the fact that they were a gay couple. The athlete stated, "When I said [Gabriel] was my boyfriend, his face changed and so did the treatment," adding that the couple ended up waiting five hours. After several hours, the couple were eventually allowed out of the country, and traveled to their final destination.
River City actor David Paisley, an LGBTQ activist, is planning to leave Scotland because he no longer feels safe in his home, Daily Record reported. Paisley, who plays Rory Murdoch in the soap, revealed his decision to uproot is based on months of harassment and abuse—which even led to the BBC carrying out an investigation into "false malicious" claims against him from members of an anti-LGBTQ organization. He added, "I'm just sad that part of the reason I've had to make these changes is the actions of abusive anti-LGBT+ people online and in Scotland, that make it hard for LGBTQ+ people to live freely and feel safe."
Siblings Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal recently posed together on the red carpet of Maggie's feature directorial debut, The Lost Daughter, at the 78th Venice International Film Festival, people.com noted. The Lost Daughter stars Olivia Colman, who plays Leda, a literature professor and mother of two grown daughters who goes on an extended vacation in Greece. The movie also stars Dakota Johnson, Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Oliver Jackson-Cohen and Ed Harris. The festival ran Sept. 1-11.
And speaking of Maggie Gyllenhaal, she was among the winners at the festival, EW.com noted. She picked up the screenplay prize for The Lost Daughter, her debut as a writer-director, while Jane Campion (who directed The Power of the Dog, in which Benedict Cumberbatch plays a gay rancher in the 1920s) became the second woman to receive the Silver Lion for Best Director since the award was introduced in 1990. Also, for the first time, the festival's top prize went to a film directed by a woman for the second year in a row. The French abortion drama Happening, directed by Audrey Diwan, picked up the prestigious Golden Lion.
