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Arrest gays, Kenyan PM orders
At a public rally on Sunday, Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga ordered police to arrest anyone engaging in homosexual activities and to take appropriate legal action upon them.
According to the report by Capital News, the rally was held at Kamukunji grounds in his Langata Constituency. Raila Odinga expressed that “such behaviors” will not be tolerated:
“The constitution is very clear on this issue and men or women found engaging in homosexuality will not be spared. Any man found engaging in sexual activities with another man should be arrested. Even women found engaging in sexual activities will be arrested”
He questioned why people should engage in homosexual activity, citing the equal ration of men and women, according to the most recent census results.
According to a 2007 Pew Research study, 96% of Kenyans said that homosexuality “should be rejected by society,” making it one of the highest rejection of homosexuality in the 44 countries surveyed.
(Photo: Stephen Mudiari)
Two men use Skype to have a legal wedding in Texas
Mark Reed and Dante Walkup just got legally married in Texas, where gay marriage is not legal. How did they do it? It’s called “e-marriage.”
They found a creative way around inequality. The two men and their families joined together in Texas. The wedding was officiated by a woman who was in Washington D.C.—where gay marriage is legal—using Skype.
According to the report by Dallas Voice, the couple wanted to have their wedding in Texas to be with their families and friends.
“It was very important that all of our family came. It was the first time they actually met, even though we’ve been together 10 years. If we had to go to D.C., there’s no way we could have had the people there who we wanted to be there.”
The couple were married on October 10th, 2010 (10/10/10) at a hotel in Dallas, Texas, with a projection screen behind them.
According to the report, there are no laws against e-weddings in Washington D.C., so the men understand that their marriage could be debated in court.
The couple had to first go to Washington D.C. to register. The marriage license was then mailed to them a few days after their wedding.
Infographic: Top Fortune 500 companies and their LGBT equality rankings
Designer Tiffany Farrant created an infographic overviewing the top 100 Fortune 500 companies and their LGBT equality rankings.
The infographic, which was designed for Meet The Boss TV, highlights the best and worst US companies to work for in regards to LGBT equality.
Equality rankings are based using the Human Rights Campaign’s 2011 Corporate Equality Index. This index evaluates companies on their employment policies and practices pertaining LGBT people.
(via fastcodedesign)
Pope visits Spain, greeted by gay kissing flash mob
The Pope visited Barcelona, Spain on Sunday, and was greeted by gay kissing flash mob. Participants were protesting the Pope’s condemnation of gay marriage laws in Spain.
The flash mob, which was organized on Facebook, attracted around 200 participants, according to the New York Times.
“Many gay Spaniards don’t see why they should pay for the Pope’s visits, only to have their way of life criticized”
During the Pope’s homily on Sunday, he defended traditional families and denounced Spanish laws allowing gay marriage.
The protest gained more media attention last week, when Facebook shut down the event’s page, but was later reinstated. A Facebook official stated that the event was created by a fake account, which violates Facebook’s policies.
Gay marriage has been legal in Spain since 2005. A 2007 Pew Research study showed that 82% of Spain supported homosexuality and 9% did not (9% were unsure).
George Takei’s hilarious response to anti-gay Arkansas school board member
George Takei, known for his role as Hikaru Sulu in Star Trek, has responded to the recent news about Arkansas school board member Clint McCance.
McCance recently announced on Anderson Cooper 360 that he would resign after posting homophobic comments and encouraging gay people to commit suicide.
In the video, George Takei calls McCance a “douchebag,” implies that he is in the closet, and references the George Rekers rentboy scandal.
McCance drew international media attention after encouraging gay teens to kill themselves. He posted, “It pisses me off though that we make a special purple fag day for them. I like that fags cant procreate. I also enjoy the fact that they often give each other aids and die.”
ABC stages gay bullying to see how bystanders react
ABC News staged a gay bullying scene with hidden cameras on a busy boardwalk of Long Beach, New York to see how people would react.
Their show, “What Would You Do?” is a hidden camera show that captures people’s reactions to everyday scenarios. In this segment, they hired teenage actors to play bullies picking on another teen for being gay.
In 2008, ABC News did a similar segment on public displays of affection in Birmingham, Alabama and compared people’s reactions to straight couples and gay couples.
The 2008 experiment didn’t have such a positive reaction, causing a few people to make some inappropriate remarks. One woman even called 911 to report that two men were kissing each other.
UPDATE: The video has been updated. Thanks to sun_wyvern for providing a link to the full length segment.
WATCH: Katy Perry’s new “Firework” video, dedicated to the “It Gets Better” Project
Katy Perry just released a music video for her song “Firework,” which she dedicated to the It Gets Better Project.
On October 28, she posted on her Twitter account:
I am officially dedicating my new video to #itgetsbetter, because everyone has the spark to be a FIREWORK.
Dave Meyers, the director of the video, wanted it to be “100% real,” so they moved away from the Hollywood feel and found real people rather than actors.
“Finding two gay guys in Budapest was a challenge, because it’s not as accepted there as it is in West Hollywood. I found an actual, real couple.” Meyers said in an interview with MTV.
Recently, Pink told indemand.fm that her "Raise Your Glass" video will celebrate gay rights by featuring a gay wedding.
Ugandan newspaper outs the country’s 100 “top homosexuals”
The names, addresses, and photos of 100 “top homosexuals” in Uganda were published in a front page story of a Ugandan tabloid, alongside a banner that read “Hang Them.”
AP reports:
In the days since it was published, at least four gay Ugandans on the list have been attacked and many others are in hiding, according to rights activist Julian Onziema. One person named in the story had stones thrown at his house by neighbors.
The report states that the paper’s managing editor claims that the article was “in the public interest.”
The international media attention around Uganda has spiked since the Uganda Anti-Homosexuality Bill was introduced over a year ago. Gays in Uganda have been subject to increased harassment in the past year.
“Before the introduction of the bill in parliament most people did not mind about our activities. But since then, we are harassed by many people who hate homosexuality,” said Patrick Ndede, 27. “The publicity the bill got made many people come to know about us and they started mistreating us.”
Nelly Kabali, 31, describes his experience: “One time I was in a night club with a friend when someone who knew me pointed at me shouting ‘There is a gay!’ People wanted to beat me up but I was saved by a bouncer who led me out.”
Additional links:
- Sexual Minorities Uganda
- Equalitopia's Voices Against Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill Facebook page
(Photo: AP)
US Marines Chief: 90-95% of Marines are homophobic, according to “informal polls”
Gen. James Conway told Fox News that “90 to 95 percent of the Marines” would be uncomfortable serving with openly gay Marines, according to his “informal polls.”
The polls Conway is referring to are impromptu surveys by a “show of hands” in town hall style meetings.
Conway is against repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, since he believes his Marines are.
Out of the 20,000 United States Marines in Afghanistan, he said he “wouldn’t hazard a guess” as to how many are gay. He said the number is probably in the “low single digits.”