Mississippi elects first openly gay state lawmaker ever

 

Mississippi will have its first-ever openly gay state legislator after a House candidate won his Democrat primary election runoff.

Fabian Nelson, a 38-year-old realtor from Byram, prevailed over Roshunda Harris-Allen, an education professor at Tougaloo College and alderwoman in Byram.

The race to represent the House district in the south Jackson metro area was decided in a runoff after neither Nelson nor Allen received a majority vote. Republicans did not field a candidate for the general election, so Democrat and openly gay Nelson will go on to represent the district.

The Hinds County district includes Southwest Jackson and part of Byram, Salem and Terry. Nelson said he connected with voters by relying on his deep local ties. In office, he wants to increase health care access for low-income people by pushing for Medicaid expansion.

Nelson’s victory comes on the heels of a historic wave of restrictions passed by Republican-controlled legislatures targeting the rights of transgender people. There have seen a record number of measures against LGBTQ community in Mississippi in 2023.

So glad in a time when we are seeing attacks legislatively and through violence against the LGBTQ community that the majority of people reject that kind of animus.

Congrats rep. Nelson!!!

Repeal the Uganda anti-gay law and death penal for 'aggravated homosexuality'

 

A 20-year-old man is facing a potential death sentence after he became the first person to be charged with “aggravated homosexuality” under Uganda’s new law that calls for the death penalty for some same-sex sexual relations.

The unnamed man was charged with aggravated homosexuality after he "performed unlawful sexual intercourse" with a 41-year-old man. 

The man’s lawyer told four other individuals have been charged under the new law but that her client is the first to be charged with aggravated homosexuality.

The Anti-Homosexuality Bill was passed by the Uganda Parliament and signed into law by President Yoweri Museveni in May 2023. People found to be “engaging in acts of homosexuality” can be sentenced to life in prison

The law calls for the death penalty in cases of “aggravated homosexuality,” which refers to repeat offenders and people living with HIV engaging in same-sex sexual relations. 

Awful!!!

Brazilian Supreme Court rules homophobia punishable by prison

 

The Brazilian Supreme Federal Court ruled homophobia now punishable with up to five years in prison. The justices ruled by a 9-1 margin. Their decision equates homophobia to racism in terms of prison time.

The Supreme Federal Court issued its ruling less than eight months after President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office in Brazil. His predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, faced sharp criticism over his rhetoric against LGBTQ and intersex Brazilians and other groups. 

"Such a decision brings legal certainty and reinforces the court’s understanding with regard to the principle of equality and nondiscrimination," said the National LGBTI+ Alliance in a statement. "It is an important step in the civilizing process and in the fight against hatred in Brazilian society."

President Lula da Silva defeated Bolsonaro in October 2022

A gay policeman gets paternity leave to take care of his daughter for first time in Brazil

Sergeant Valdi Barbosa, from the Military Police of Pernambuco, had a victory. Together with her husband, Rafael Moreira, he took a six-month paternity leave to take care of their newborn daughter, Sofia, the result of a "solidarity belly". This is the first time that such a case has happened in Brazil.

Valdi's battle to secure his paternity leave has not been an easy one. He faced bureaucracies, institutional resistance and a legal system that often showed that it did not know how to deal with new situations. 

Legally in Brazil, he would be entitled to 20 days of leave, until a longer term is released. The state tried to appeal the sentence, but the appeal was denied. The sergeant combined the six months of leave with his vacation and managed to spend eight months taking care of Sofia. 

"It's not my right, it's my daughter's. Some people might think that I wanted a right that belongs to mothers, but in fact it's the child's right, to have someone fully dedicated to her for six months", said Valdi.

Valdi always had the dream of being a father and his sister served as a supportive belly, in vitro fertilization, to give birth to his niece. The couple had to face many prejudices during their management and they would not stop fighting for paternity leave after everything they had been through.

Congratulations to the newlydads!!!

Gay Japanese assemblyman call on Japan to legalize same-sex marriage after tying knot in Taiwan

 

An openly gay assemblyman from Japanese Aichi Prefecture and his Taiwanese partner, having just registered their union in Taiwan, called on Japan to swiftly legalize same-sex marriage to ensure equality for sexual minorities.

Takahama city assembly member Masahiro Shibaguchi, 53, of the Japanese Communist Party, and his spouse Ariel Ling-chun Liu, 38, who also lives in Japan, traveled to Taiwan to register their marriage in Taipei City's Datong District.

In 2019, Taiwan became the first place in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage for its citizens. Instead, Japan remains the only Group of Seven nation that does not recognize same-sex marriage. 

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who heads the party, remains cautious about legalizing same-sex marriage in Japan and has called for further debate, saying doing so "could extensively change society as it concerns the lives of the people."

It's time Japan!!!

Several chess federations will not exclude trans women despite international ban

Chess skyrocketed into the media spotlight this week after the world’s top chess federation, known as FIDE, said it will ban trans women from participating in women’s competitions. The policy would also see players who held women’s titles and later transitioned to male removed. 

The English Chess Federation (ECF) has said it won’t be a pawn in the FIDE’s anti-trans game and will continue to welcome all players. Trans women have worked on behalf of the ECF and played in ECF events, as have trans women in various other chess federations.

A similar positions have been adopted by the German Chess Federation, the French Chess Federation, and the United States Chess Federation. The Finnish Chess Federation wrote on social media that FIDE’s anti-trans policy is “incomprehensible” and assured trans women that they’re still welcome in their competitions. 

Cathy Renna, communications director for the National LGBTQ Task Force, called FIDE’s policy “a case of trans panic with no justification, not grounded in reality and once again marginalising trans people.”

“The new guidelines on trans competitors in chess are infuriating, confusing, contradictory and a sign that the anti-trans movement, particularly those who are promoting exclusion in sports, is spreading into other areas of competitive sport and is a very disturbing development,” Renna told.

There are no reasons to ban trans women from sports, according to science and experts.

UN human rights experts denounce Taliban's treatment of women and LGBTQ people in Afghanistan

United Nations (UN) human rights experts sharply criticized the Taliban over its treatment of LGBTQ and other groups in Afghanistan.

“Two years ago, the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan. Since then, the policies they have imposed on the Afghan population have resulted in a continuous, systematic and shocking rescinding of a multitude of human rights, including the rights to education, work and freedoms of expression, assembly and association," reads a statement.

"Consistent credible reports of summary executions and acts tantamount to enforced disappearances, widespread arbitrary detention, torture, and ill treatment, as well as arbitrary displacement have caused increased concern.” 

“The hardest hit are women and girls, ethnic, religious and other minorities, people with disabilities, displaced persons, LGBTQ persons, human rights defenders and other civil society actors, journalists, artists, educators and former government and security officials.”

Under sharia, conviction of same-sex sexual conduct is punishable by death, flogging or imprisonment. Individual Taliban members made public statements reiterating that their interpretation of sharia includes the death penalty for homosexuality.

A 2022 report and video already showed the desperate situation of LGBTQ people in Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover in 2021.

#FreeAfghanistan

To be gay in Afghanistan is a death sentence now

Red, White, & Royal Blue: the gay rom-com to watch this summer

Red, White, & Royal Blue is a gay romantic comedy, directed by Tony Award-winning playwright Matthew López and written by him and Ted Malawer.

The movie is an adaptation of the New York Times best-sellingnovel by Casey McQuiston, which follows the story of the first son of the President of the United States of America and the second in line to the British throne, as the two transform their rivalry into a budding romance after a tabloid scandal.

Starring Nicholas Galitzine as Britain’s Prince Henry, Uma Thurman as the President of the United States, and Taylor Zakhar Perez as her son Alex Claremont-Diaz. 

A disastrous and very public altercation between Alex and Prince Henry at a royal event becomes tabloid fodder driving a potential wedge in U.S./British relations at the worst possible time. 

Going into damage control mode, their families force the two rivals into a staged ‘truce.’ But as Alex and Henry’s icy relationship unexpectedly begins to thaw into a tentative friendship, the friction that existed between them sparks something deeper than they ever expected.

Red, White, & Royal Blue is streaming exclusively on Prime Video. Watch a trailer below:

Barry Keoghan and Jacob Elordi stars in the new Emerald Fennell's movie: Saltburn

 

Directed by the Oscar-winning director Emerald Fennell, Saltburn is the obsessive thriller the gays have been looking for, and described as “a wicked tale of privilege and desire”.

The movie casts The Batman star Barry Keoghan along with Euphoria fame Jacob Elordi.

Oliver (Barry) is studying at Oxford University in the early Noughties, and struggling to find his tribe. Before long, he becomes obsessed with fellow student, the charming and aristocratic Felix (Jacob).

Felix invites Oliver to meet his eccentric family on their huge estate in Saltburn, the British town which gives the film its name. The pair will then embark on a summer never to be forgotten, which somehow sounds as ominous as it does erotic.

Barry Keoghan was nominated for best supporting actor at this year’s Oscars and bagged a BAFTA for his role as Dominic Kearney in comedy drama The Banshees of Inisherin. While Euphoria villain Jacob Elordi is one of the most sought-after young actors in recent years. He’s currently gearing up to star as Elvis Presley in Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla.

Saltburn has been confirmed to premiere on 24 November in Los Angeles before a wider rollout on 1 December.

This movie smells an Oscar run!

FIFA can't stop love in Women's World Cup

Alba Redondo is having a great FIFA Women’s World Cup. The forward for Spain has scored three goals in four matches in Group C and the knockout stage, scoring twice against Zambia and once against Switzerland.

After her big match against Zambia, a 5-0 win for Spain, she showed the world her love for her girlfriend, laying a big kiss on Cristina Monleón as she leaned out of the stands. 

Alba is one of almost 100 publicly out gay, lesbian, bi, trans and queer athletes Outsports has identified at this World Cup.

The two have not been shy on Instagram about sharing their love for one another. Both of their feeds, and in particular Cristina’s, are chock full of loving photos of the two women together.

FIFA confirmed that players at the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand would not be able to wear the rainbow armband in support of LGBTQ rights, but they can't stop love.

Proud on top of the world

Aidan Hyman celebrated his 20th birthday in unprecedented fashion. The queer extreme athlete climbed the second-highest mountain on earth; and when he reached the elevation of the base camp, stuck down a rainbow flag to represent the LGBTQ community.

The University of California student started his odyssey in mid-June, when he joined a mountaineering expedition in Pakistan with the goal of reaching the base camp of K2. With its elevation raising to 8,251 feet, it only trails Mount Everest in terms of stature.

It wasn’t an easy trek. After landing in Pakistan, Aidan and his team drove eight hours through the desert toward the Karakorum Mountains before beginning a 100-mile hike just to reach K2. The mountain itself is one of the most deadly on earth, but Aidan was determined. 

Congratulations Aidan!!!

Gay Days 2023 at Disneyland resort confirmed and dates revealed

Gay Days has officially announced that the fan meetup will return to Disneyland Resort from September 22 to 24, 2023. 

In the 1990s, the inaugural Gay Days hit Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort, thousands of members of the LGBTQ community held an unofficial meetup at Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park. Since then, Gay Days has remained a Disney Parks fan-favorite event.

Gay Days isn't presented by Disneyland, hence why it's "unofficial". This event is a "mix in," meaning gay people and straight people mingle together; the park is open to the general public so that our chosen families are mixing with the families of the other guests.

Gay Days is not a single event, it's comprised of multiple events staged at world famous attractions, gay & lesbian clubs, and unique venues secured for the purpose of creating a gay and lesbian atmosphere at greatest theme parks and at multiple parties occurring during this long week.

Check the schedule here.

Gay Days draw crowds of over 30,000 people annually