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Gay Soldier to be Paid for Sex Harassment (Big Gay News)
Study Checks Toll of S. Africa’s AIDS Plan (Big Gay News)
‘Ladyboy’ protests amidst Thailand’s political chaos (Pink News)
Gay marriage backers to protest at Mormon display (KTAR 92.3 Phoenix)
HIV incidence among gays increasing fast in China (China Daily)
Rugby League signs up to kick homophobia out of sport (Daily Telegraph)
Transgender player tees off golfers (Daily Telegraph)
Jackman: ‘I used gay rumours to bed girls’ (Yahoo! UK & Ireland News)
Two U.S. states see boost from gay weddings (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
India’s hijras spread safe sex message in life or death AIDS fight (TODAYonline)
Gay meet in Hyderabad urges society to accept them (Calcutta News)
Graham Norton to star in La Cage Aux Folles (Daily Telegraph)
Adoption requirements shouldn’t exclude gays (Independent Florida Alligator)
Gay icon’s life yields lessons after 30 years (AP via Yahoo! News)
Policeman sacked for homophobic emails (Guardian Unlimited)
Gay-lesbian group moves headquarters in Lake Worth (Sun-Sentinel)

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LEEDS, England, Nov. 26 (UPI)

A British employment tribunal ruled Wednesday that the Ministry of Defense must pay heavy damages to a lesbian soldier harassed by a male colleague.

The tribunal found that Lance Bombardier Kerry Fletcher is entitled to almost $290,000, the BBC reported.

“This is as severe a case of victimization following an allegation of sexual harassment as one could see in an employment tribunal,” the ruling said. “The claimant was subjected to a sustained campaign of victimization over a lengthy period. The victimization extended to imposition of disciplinary sanctions, impinging the claimant’s mental stability and obstructing her transfer to a more suitable posting.”

Fletcher, 32, who is open about her sexual orientation, has served for more than a decade in the Royal Artillery. She testified in 2007 that a staff sergeant at a stables in North Yorkshire began a campaign of harassment that included sexual invitations and explicit text messages, the BBC said.

When she rejected his advances and complained to superiors, the sergeant and others destroyed her career, she said.

Fletcher submitted her resignation from the army in February, effective next year, the BBC said.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

BOSTON, Nov. 26 (UPI)

The South African government could have prevented thousands of premature, AIDS-related deaths if it had provided antiretroviral drugs, a U.S. study says.

The Harvard University study concluded the policies arose from former President Thabo Mbeki’s denial of well-established scientific data about the viral cause of AIDS and the vital role of antiretroviral drugs in treating it, The New York Times (NYSE:NYT) reported Wednesday.

After Mbeki left office in September, his successor, Kgalema Motlanthe, replaced health minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, who proposed garlic, lemon juice and beetroot as AIDS treatments, replacing her with Barbara Hogan.

“I feel ashamed that we have to own up to what Harvard is saying,” Hogan told the Times.

The South African government for years did not provide antiretroviral medicines even though neighboring countries with AIDS epidemics of similar scale did, the Harvard study reported.

By their calculations the Harvard researchers estimated by 2005, South Africa could have been helping half those in need but had reached only 23 percent. The 330,000 South Africans who died because they lacked treatment and the 35,000 babies who died because they were infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, together lost at least 3.8 million years of life, the study said.

Max Essex, the virologist who has led the Harvard School of Public Health’s AIDS research program for the past 20 years and who oversaw the study, called South Africa’s response to AIDS under Mbeki “a case of bad, or even evil, public health.”

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The Fight Over Gay Adoption Heats Up (Time Magazine)
Lesbian soldier gets £190k payout for sexual harassment (Yorkshire Post)
Embracing gays in the family (Cleveland Jewish News)
LGBTs clash with Mormons (YourNabe.com)
Trans ex-MP triumphs as Italy’s newest reality TV star (Pink News)
Weighing the Arguments Against Gay Marriage (Time Magazine)
Gay-rights advocates to protest Boulder movie theater (Rocky Mountain News)
Obama adviser on gays in the military criticised for sexist attitudes (Pink News)
Pc sacked for ’sinful gay sex’ e-mail (BBC News)
French politician vindicated over homophobic comments (Pink News)
Sean Penn Shines as Murdered Gay Leader in ‘Milk’: Rick Warner (Bloomberg)
Young Gays Take Reins From Elders on Prop. 8 (LA Weekly)
Gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk remembered 30 years on (AFP via Yahoo! News)
The Second Coming (Out) (Mail and Guardian)
L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center Hosts Virtual Prop. 8 Town Hall (The Advocate)
Silverton rebuffs protests of mayor-elect (KOIN News 6 Portland)
Out Lesbian Christine Quinn to Fill Hillary Clinton’s Senate Seat? (Gay Wired)

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Florida Same-Sex Adoption Ban Struck Down (Big Gay News)
Police Suspect Prop. 8 Behind Vandalism (Big Gay News)
Hollywood Divided Over Proposition 8 (Big Gay News)
Suit Says HIV-Positive Girl Bullied (Big Gay News)
Judge rules against Fla. gay adoption ban (WTSP-TV Tampa)
Silverton rebuffs protests of mayor-elect (KMTR Eugene)
Is Harvey Milk still a force for change? (San Francisco Chronicle)
Australia moves to give rights to gay couples (International Herald Tribune)
Transsexual’s death draws Human Rights officials to Syracuse (The Post-Standard)
European Symposium on Gay & Lesbian Tourism (Yahoo! Finance)
Gay rights advocates wait for action (Politico via Yahoo! News)

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MIAMI, Nov. 25 (UPI)

A Miami child welfare judge ruled Tuesday that a Florida law banning adoption by same-sex couples is unconstitutional, observers said.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Cindy Lederman said the law had “no rational basis,” WFOR-TV, Miami, reported. Her decision supported efforts by Frank Gill, 47, and his unidentified partner to adopt two young boys they have been raising as foster children since 2004.

The ruling is expected to set off a protracted legal battle pitting state child welfare officials against civil libertarians. Analysts told The Miami Herald that Lederman’s decision is likely to be appealed to the Florida Supreme Court.

Witnesses for the Florida Department of Children and Families testified that children raised by same-sex parents are at significantly higher risk of mental illness and substance abuse than those raised by heterosexual couples. Such children, they say, also face social stigmas from a disapproving culture, the Herald reported.

But social scientists testifying for Gill said such children have no disadvantages compared with their peers.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 23 (UPI) — Hollywood industry officials say the U.S. entertainment industry has been in turmoil since California passed Proposition 8 banning same-sex marriage.

Film distributor Howard Cohen said the Election Day outcome left Hollywood filled with conflict between those who supported the ban and those who opposed it as a violation of civil rights, the Los Angeles Times said Sunday.

Some of the biggest names at the center of the controversy are Los Angeles Film Festival Director Richard Raddon and Film Independent, the Times said.

Raddon donated $1,500 in support of Proposition 8 and despite criticism by same-sex marriage supporters, Film Independent has defended his position with the festival.

“There is still roiling debate within the organization,” Cohen said of the Hollywood conflict. “Is it OK to let this go? There are a lot of gay people who work at Film Independent. The issue has not been closed.”

The Times said adding to the controversy are the notable names who are part of the group’s board including actors Don Cheadle, Forest Whitaker and Fox Searchlight President Peter Rice.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

FARMINGTON, Utah, Nov. 24 (UPI) — Police in Utah say a recent rash of vandalism in parts of the state may be motivated by California’s passage of Proposition 8.
Wayne Hansen, police chief of Farmington, Utah, said police are concerned that acts of vandalism in the state’s Wasatch Front could have been brought about by Proposition 8’s ban on same-sex marriages in California, The Salt Lake Tribune said Monday.

The new rash of vandalism appears to be targeting churches in Utah and California including sites belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which backed Proposition 8.

Ogden Police Lt. Scott Sangberg said while Utah authorities suspect the targeting of churches to be a response to the same-sex ban, there has been no definitive evidence for such a claim.

“Does it look a little suspicious that all these things are happening since Proposition 8? It sure does, but we don’t have any witnesses to help pinpoint, accuse or even make an

arrest,” Sangberg told the Tribune.

Among the vandalism acts were a burning Book of Mormon and an LDS church being tagged with the line “Nobody is born a bigot.”

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

INDIANAPOLIS, Nov. 21 (UPI)

An Indiana woman has sued her daughter’s former school, saying teachers and staff allowed the HIV-positive girl to be bullied.
The mother withdrew her daughter from Westlane Middle School in Washington Township and is now teaching her at home, The Indianapolis Star reported. The lawsuit claims the Washington school district violated the Americans With Disabilities Act.

In court papers filed Tuesday, the mother, who was not identified by the Star, said her daughter’s troubles began when the girl told a friend she had been diagnosed with the virus that causes AIDS. The friend told a sister and the news spread quickly from there.

On one occasion, the girl found a sign on her locker — “No AIDS at Westlane” — the suit said.

Jeanne White Ginder, whose son, Ryan White, became a national icon after he was banned from an Indiana school, said people fear the unknown. Ryan White died in 1990.

“In a way, we were fortunate because Ryan’s identity was known at the beginning,” Ginder said. “When the identity is a secret, all of a sudden, in one day, you can face hostility and discrimination.”

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

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Military Gay Issue Delay Expected (Big Gay News)
Magazine Editors Undergo Plastic Surgery (Big Gay News)
Indian Defends Production of ‘Dostana’ (Big Gay News)
Minorities fear trend from gay marriage ban (Independent Online)
Prop. 8 backers splinter as court fight resumes (San Francisco Chronicle)
Rally held to support gay marriage (The Patriot-News)
Boyzone – Keating Gay Video Is Beautiful (ContactMusic)
WA govt vows to separate lesbian killers (The West Australian)
Eye on Gay Shanghai: The Bund gets a lesbian nightclub (Shanghaiist)
LGBT students protest discrimination at fitness center (The Kaleo Voice)
Love, protest and Proposition 8 (Massachusetts Daily Collegian)
Navratilova urges gays to come out (Press Assoc. via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News)

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WASHINGTON, Nov. 21 (UPI)

President-elect Barack Obama is expected to delay until 2010 a decision to seek an end to the ban on open gays in the military, transition team advisers say.

Obama made repealing the ban a campaign promise. But, advisers told The Washington Times the incoming president first wants to form a consensus among the Joint Chiefs of Staff and his new Pentagon appointees before going to Congress on the potentially explosive matter.

Currently, a compromise policy known as “don’t ask, don’t tell” says gay service members must keep their sexuality private or face expulsion from the U.S. armed services. About 12,500 people have been discharged under the policy.

Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said he had held “informal discussions” with the Obama transition team on how the to proceed on the issue, which he also expects to come up in 2010.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

MUMBAI, Nov. 21 (UPI)

Indian producer-director Karan Johar said his latest production of “Dostana” isn’t offensive to gays and lesbians, as some media have reported.

He said the production was screened before members of the gay and lesbian community, Press Trust of India reported Friday.

“I only wish I had called (members of the media) to a recent screening we had for members of the gay community in (Mumbai), who laughed and laughed, cried and left the cinema hall gratified. I don’t need to say any more about this because our work here, to put it very simply, is done,” he wrote in his blog.

He said the number of repeat viewers in the first weekend is a “true testament to the success of the film and more importantly, to the way it’s been treated.”

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Nov. 21 (UPI)

A Swedish magazine geared toward gay men said members of its editorial staff underwent cosmetic surgery for an article about the practice.

The editors of Dorian Magazine, which bills itself as a commercial lifestyle magazine for gay men, said they underwent procedures including nose jobs, lip augmentations, liposuction, facelifts and muscle enhancement surgery for the article, which appears in the current edition of the magazine, The Local reported Friday.

“Dorian Magazine represents an artistic fantasy world with an idealized beauty. Having the editorial team undergo plastic surgery in order to get insight into the ideal we promote was almost a question of credibility,” said creative and fashion director Jake Rydqvist, who had some excess skin removed from above his eyes for the cosmetic surgery feature.

Editor-in-chief Benjamin Falk, who had liposuction performed on his chin, said that while cosmetic surgery can be beneficial, it will not automatically cure self-esteem problems.

“I absolutely recommend it to people who want to freshen up their looks a little, but people shouldn’t believe that plastic surgery will change one’s life if they are not already happy and feel good about themselves,” he said.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

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233,000 Americans Don’t Know They Have HIV (Big Gay News)
Penn: Milk Would’ve Helped in AIDS Crisis (Big Gay News)
Josh Brolin: ‘Milk’ Story Made Me Cry (Big Gay News)
More At-Risk Teens Engaging in Anal Sex (Big Gay News)
Embracing gays in the family (Cleveland Jewish News)
Gay Activist Protests (WILX 10 Lansing)
US braces itself for Day Without A Gay protest (Pink News)
Florida gay rights activists ready to fight threat to benefits (Miami Herald)
Same-Sex Couples First Must Find A Willing And Able Cleric (Hartford Courant)
70 hold vigil at SU for transgender victims (The Post-Standard)
Violence against Amsterdam gays a problem (MSNBC)
Vermont legislator plans push for gay marriage (AP via Yahoo! News)
Ten Years of Transgender Remembrance (The Advocate)
The homosexual agenda — is your town next? (Salon.com)
Doraville adds policy on transgender employees (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

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WASHINGTON, Nov. 21 (UPI) — Some 1.1 million people in the United States are infected with HIV and nearly 233,000 are unaware of their infection, a forum on HIV research said Thursday.

Major barriers still stand in the way of making testing for the human immunodeficiency virus the norm, despite the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation of routine HIV testing of people age 13 to 64.

The Forum for Collaborative HIV Research is holding a two-day National Summit on HIV Diagnosis, Prevention and Access to Care in Washington.

HIV is a virus that can lead to AIDS, which causes the human immune system to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections.

More than one in five people with HIV remain unaware of their status and fail to get life-extending medical help, and many infected people unknowingly spread the virus, contributing more than a third of new infections, experts at the forum said.

The summit brings together some 300 leading HIV researchers, healthcare providers and policymakers to examine the state of the “neglected” U.S. HIV epidemic and the critical role of routine HIV testing.

Testing barriers will be identified and a national plan of action will be presented, organizers said.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.