Gay activists rejoice at Centre's move

NEW DELHI: Buoyed by the news that the Centre is considering repealing a controversial section of the penal law which criminalises homosexuality, members of the gay community on Sunday held parades in several cities but the idea did not go down well with religious leaders.

In Thiruvananthapuram, the Union Law Minister, Mr Veerappa Moily said a decision on repealing the section would be taken only after considering concerns of all sections of society, including religious groups like the church. Upbeat gay rights activists welcomed the move and some of them even wanted a change in the law instead of a repeal. “It’s a very dark area... I know politicians, ministers who are gay. The Article 377 doesn’t matter anymore. No one really cares,” said fashion designer, Mr Rohit Bal. Thousands of gay rights activists took part in queer marches here and in Bangalore and Chennai. This kind of law should go. We are very happy that the government seems to be taking steps towards that,” said Mr Manohar, founder of gay rights group Sangama, in Bangalore. Article 377 should be read down till we have a comprehensive law which looks at sexual violence, where children are concerned, male rape is concerned...” said Mr Vijay Reddy, an activist in Chennai. Meanwhile, religious leaders have expressed their reservations over the move. While Rev Abraham Mar Paulos Episcopa, head of Marthoma Syrian Church of Malabar diocesan, said homosexuality is not at all acceptable and agreeable as it is against the tenets of Bible, according to Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, repeal of the section would create “sexual anarchy” in the society.

Gay community to celebrate 'Delhi queer pride' in July

Buoyed by the response they got last year, the gay community will celebrate its diversity by taking out marches, singing and making speeches in the national capital on July 28.

'Delhi Queer Pride' will be a public celebration by lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders (LGBT) and intersexed communities, said Arif Jafar, head of Naaz Foundation's Lucknow chapter.

"This year it will be held on July 28. The entire community can gather as it will be a Sunday," Jafar said.

"It is our celebration. It is about loving who we are, whether lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, eunuch or straight, and affirming everyone's right to be respected for their own sexuality and identity. It's a celebration of our diversity and an acknowledgment that this diversity is a gift," he said.

The three-hour celebration will take off at 5.30 pm from Barakhamba Road before concluding at Jantar Mantar.

PN agrees to sign gay rights petition

At a meeting held among five PN candidates for MEP and members of the Malta Gay Rights Movement (MGRM) yesterday afternoon, incumbents Simon Busuttil and David Casa, and candidates Roberta Metsola Tedesco Triccas, Alan Deidun and Edward Demicoli all agreed to sign a petition endorsing formal recognition of same-sex couples, among other things. The MGRM is now hoping that all PN candidates sign the petition, as seems to have been promised at yesterday’s meeting.

Until yesterday, the candidates who signed ILGA-Europe’s petition were AD candidates Arnold Cassola and Yvonne Ebejer-Arqueros, Liberal candidate John Zammit, and Labour candidates Sharon Ellul-Bonici, Claudette Abela-Baldacchino, Marlene Mizzi, and Joseph Cuschieri.

For the PN yesterday’s move marks a different direction in its campaign. According to the International Lesbian-Gay Association (ILGA-Europe), PN frontrunner Simon Busuttil has the worst track record on gay-friendly resolutions and reports in the European Parliament.

On seven items listed by ILGA on its website, Busuttil and Casa did not vote in favour of any of the resolutions and reports. Busuttil and Casa abstained on the Lynne report for a new anti-discrimination law to outlaw discrimination outside employment on access to goods and services on grounds of sexual orientation, amongst others.

Busuttil also abstained on the Buitenweg report calling for a law to enforce equal treatment between persons, irrespective of religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation, while Casa was not present for the vote. In the petition, the MGRM is calling for stricter laws regarding homophobic and trans-phobic violence and bullying; legal protection against discrimination in the delivery of goods and services to homosexuals; an extension in the remit of the National Commission for Protection of Equality to cater for the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression; as well as the inclusion of gender reassignment surgery and hormone therapy for transgender persons as part of the public health services.

Week of May 25: Gay travel on the cheap - coast to coast and around the globe

Here are this week's money saving finds for gay travelers:

From Atlanta to Amsterdam, GayTravelocity is offering a discount when you book a Pride-filled getaway hotel and flight packages to select US and international destinations, saving $75 to $150. Just be sure to enter the special promotional code when making your booking. Complete details are available here. Pearl's Rainbow, the Key West award-winning lesbian resort and member of World's Foremost Gay and Lesbian Hotels, is offering 15% off three or more nights stays between June 15 and September 7, 2009. Use promotional code SSAV09 when you make your reservation online. Reserve any balcony stateroom on either of Atlantis' two summer cruises and you can receive free airfare for one guest for free from any North American or European destination. To qualify, you must make a new reservation by June 2, 2009 and purchase one airline ticket at Atlantis' contracted fares. This special applies to the Grand Baltic Cruise, July 22 to August 1, and Italy, Egypt and Greek Isles Cruise, August 29 to September 7. Additional conditions and restrictions apply.

Suited to a T: Tips for picking the right suit for you

We wanted tips on how to buy a suit, and who better to go to than the men's fashion director for Neiman Marcus: the sophisticated Colby McWilliams, who grew up in Wichita Falls, Texas, but got to the big city as soon as he could.

When fashion's a passion, you know it early, he says.

"When I was in my teens, my dad used to bring me to Neiman's and I'd say, 'Someday I'm going to work here,'" says McWilliams, who made good on that promise to his teenage self and has been with Neiman Marcus for 37 years. He spent 10 years as a buyer and worked his way up to vice president.

Actually, "good taste" -- make that "great taste" -- might be a better description for McWilliams than "fashion follower," since fashion implies something temporary and McWilliams' eye is for quality and clothes that will stand a man strong through a variety of situations.

Looking to build a suit wardrobe that will be appropriate for a multitude of circumstances? Make a dark gray suit with two buttons and flat-front pants your starting point, McWilliams says.

That's your basic suit. It's versatile. You can wear it with brown shoes; you can wear it with a pop of color. It looks very professional. We used to sell a lot of black suits, but now we sell more gray."

To make your charcoal-gray suit look current, McWilliams recommends trimmer trousers. "It's very flattering, no matter who you are," he says.

"If you look at the series 'Mad Men,' that was what they all wore. The '50s, early '60s look, that's all in now. The Kennedy look."

Padres face possible protest

To quote baseball great Yogi Berra, "It's like déjà vu all over again." The San Diego Padres are facing a possible protest again over their decision to allow San Diego LGBT Pride to buy up a block of tickets for the June 7 game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Notorious ex-gay advocate James Hartline is trying to get everyone fired up about the event. He has spent a great deal of time on his blog recently ranting about "the evolving relationship between the San Diego Padres and a homosexual organization that has a history of employing dangerous sex offenders to work in its annual festival." He seems to feel that the Padres are trying to push gays and children together by scheduling a free picture frame giveaway for kids on the same night that Pride bought tickets to sell.

The exact same thing happened two years ago when Pride bought tickets for a game that also featured a giveaway for kids. Hartline organized a protest then as well. And you know what happened? The game was a near sellout. The Pride block was acknowledged on the scoreboard along with other large groups that happened to be in attendance that night. Padres fans enjoyed a San Diego victory. And no impressionable children were corrupted. No big deal.

This whole thing is just ridiculous. It presupposes that gay people are incapable of attending a baseball game without running amuck. Let's be realistic here. Every time you go to a Padres game, there are gays and lesbians in attendance. Contrary to stereotypes, many of us actually do enjoy sports. The event on June 7 is just a fundraiser for the San Diego Pride organization and will look like any other game you attend.

Hollywood hunk Colin Farell set to be best man at his gay brother's wedding

He's the perpetual bachelor who's yet to find a woman who can make an honest man out of him, but ladykiller Colin Farell is set to walk down the aisle - as the best man at his gay brother's wedding. The Hollywood star's brother Eamon Farrell, who will be marrying partner Steven Mannion in front of a host of family and friends at a European hotspot this summer, has revealed that Colin may play the key role at his upcoming nuptials.

Colin, who will be attending the wedding along with other close family and friends, is also likely to be heading down the aisle with his two sisters who will be bridesmaids.

This will be the first gay wedding in his Irish family, but professional choreographer Eamon has expressed dismay at being unable to marry in his home country saying: 'We have to get married abroad. It's absolutely terrible. We have to go somewhere legal, which narrows it down to about five countries.' Speaking at his partner's art exhibition at the Oriel gallery in Dublin, Eamon said about his long-term partner: 'I can't wait to marry him. He is the most wonderful, happy person. He is always so full of positive energy.'

And joking about his decision to opt for a full marriage instead of a civil union, he said: 'I don't really like civil union cake -- I want a wedding cake at my party. Who wants a civil union? It's just so legal.

Family pressure is disgusting: Indian gays

According to Ranjan, 43, who works with an NGO in the capital, family pressure in India is "disgusting".

"Family pressure in India is disgusting. As a gay, I am not supposed to disrespect my family reputation even though I am feeling miserable from inside," Ranjan said.

"The law can't make any difference till we help ourselves and get support from society and our family. There is a lot of discrimination against us and no law can change that attitude of people towards us. The need of the hour is to garner support from society to live a normal life like other human beings do," said Ranjan."

There is no official data on the country's gay population, according to UNAIDS officials. The Indian Penal Code holds homosexual acts as an offence, with Section 377 providing punishment up to life imprisonment for indulging in them.

For 44-year-old prince Manavendra Singh Gohil from Rajpipla in Gujarat, it wasn't easy to disclose the fact that he was gay, but after a failed marriage that lasted 15 months, he decided that succumbing to peer pressure would do no good to his own life.

"Initially, I didn't have the courage to be open about my identity but as I came out of a failed marriage, I decided not to take it any more. After this, my mother had almost disowned me for some time. But slowly everyone around me accepted me," Gohil explained.

"What I realised was that by getting married I was not only failing myself but also my wife and my family. Being a gay is no threat to our values and tradition. Most of us shy away from accepting our selves because of the dilemma of social acceptance," he added.

History lecturer and gay activist Rajarshi Chakrabarty told IANS on phone from Murshidabad in West Bengal: "There is so much struggle and stigma associated with homosexuality that it becomes difficult for a gay to survive."

Church of Scotland to establish commission to examine gay clergy issue

Just days after the Church of Scotland's General Assembly voted to approve the ordination of an openly gay minister, it has decided to avoid a potentially damaging debate on the issue of gay clergy.

The assembly is meeting in Edinburgh decided that a commission should be establish to examine the issue and report back in 2011.

On Friday night, the openly gay Scott Rennie was approved by 326 votes to 267 to become the new minister at Queen's Cross Church in Aberdeen.

The Queen's Cross Church congregation had earlier voted overwhelmingly to select him as their minister but the move was opposed by anti-gay traditionalists.

Rennie said: "I am humbled that the General Assembly has recognised God's call upon my life as well as the rights of the congregation of Queen's Cross Church in Aberdeen.

"I am grateful that the nature of the discussion tonight was measured and respectful of different views shared amongst us. advertisement

"I'm looking forward to moving to Queen's Cross, getting on with the task of serving my new parish. "My prayer is that now the members of the Church of Scotland can journey together and focus on providing pastoral care, meaningful worship and a prophetic voice of hope in our nation."

Gay domestic violence campaign to be launched at Birmingham Pride

A new campaign is urging gay and lesbian victims of domestic violence to report it to the police.

'Unzip the Silence' is to be launched at Birmingham Pride this weekend and has been organised by Pink Shield, a forum aimed to promote understanding and trust between the city's gay community and West Midlands Police.

It is estimated that one in four gays and lesbians suffer from domestic violence at some point in their lives and a similar proportion say they expect to be treated less well by a police officer than other victims of crime.

The campaign posters will be unveiled at Birmingham Pride on Sunday and have been designed to raise awareness of the different forms domestic violence can take.

Pink Shield chair Angela Gilraine said the organisation was making "tremendous steps" in working with West Midlands Police in changing attitudes to same-sex domestic violence.

She added: "People who are vulnerable to domestic abuse from partners or from homophobic family members are often confused about their situation. They may see their experience as being unique to their situation and do not understand that violence and abuse is just as unacceptable in same-sex relationships as it is anywhere else in our society.”

Jean McEntire, member of West Midlands Police Authority said: “The Authority takes these issues very seriously, which is why we were keen to support this campaign through our Community Initiatives Fund.