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Alan West: Being Gay is Like Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Wednesday, August 10th, 2011

Florida Rep. Allen West has compared being gay to liking chocolate chip ice cream.

The 50-year-old conservative politician, who is African-American, told the Fort Lauderdale-based Sun Sentinel that he believes being gay is a choice.

“You cannot compare me and my race to a behavior. Sexuality is a behavior. And so yeah, I said I can’t change my color. People can change their sexual behavior. And I’ve seen people do that. I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, so I’ve seen a very different perspective on human behaviors. So that’s where I’m coming from on that.”

Full Story from On Top Magazine

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Being Gay in Cuba

Friday, June 3rd, 2011

Being Gay in CubaIn Part 1, photographer & journalist Byron Motley described the sea change in the Castro government toward LGBT Cubans and those with HIV and AIDS, as well as an organization formed with government approval and a member of the Castro family advocating for gay rights. In Part 2 of this EDGE exclusive look at an island nation still officially off limits to Americans, he looks at the lives of ordinary Cubans and how this change in attitude is affecting their daily lives.

“The people in Cuba have learned what homophobia is.” These are the words of Cuban National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX) co-director and one of its founders, Camilo Garcia. The lanky, handsome 40-year-old activist has shared a 12-year relationship with his partner, Dr. Alberto Roque, who is also a staunch advocate for LGBT rights and a CENESEX co-founder. “Five years ago (Cubans) didn’t know anything about homophobia,” Garcia proudly states. “Now, they know it’s not a good thing and does not form positive human values.”

Similar to any gay and lesbian center in the United States, CENESEX is the place where Cuba’s LGBT community can be themselves, find a safe haven from harassment and judgment, and openly discuss issues relevant to their lives. Housed in a three-story former family-owned mansion, the government-owned edifice has been transformed into offices and multi-purposes rooms that the CENESEX staff utilizes to conduct a variety of informational programs, including safe sex classes, health care services and social events.

Full Story from Edge Boston

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Being Gay in Egypt, Tunisia

Sunday, May 22nd, 2011

While many of their compatriots savor a new political era, gays in Egypt and Tunisia aren’t sharing the joy, according to activists who wonder if the two revolutions could in fact make things worse for an already marginalized community.

In both countries, gays and their allies worry that conservative Islamists, whose credo includes firm condemnation of homosexuality, could increase their influence in elections later this year.

“Our struggle goes on – it gets more and more difficult,” Tunisian gays-rights and HIV-AIDS activist Hassen Hanini wrote to The Associated Press in an email. “The Tunisian gay community is still seeking its place in society in this new political environment.”a

Full Story from the Sioux City Journal

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Being Gay in Sri Lanka

Saturday, May 14th, 2011

Being Gay in Sri LankaI am from a family of seven from the countryside of Kotahena. When I was young, it was a very crowded area where low class people, who earned only for their daily needs, lived.

The area had very strong Catholic families, Colombo Chetties and Burghers. That was the environment in which I grew up.

St. Lucia’s Cathedral was walking distance to us. I had a lot of connections with the church in terms of attending daily mass and becoming an altar servant. Most of my relations lived around Kotahena. I did not do what they called “the usually done thing”, which was playing football or cricket with the boys. I was close to the church. I studied in a small public school in the city. During the riots in 1983, even though it did not directly affect us, we had to leave town to a different suburb of Colombo.

Full Story from The Sunday Leader (Part 1)

Full Story From The Sunday Leader (Part 2)

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Being Gay in El Salvador

Wednesday, May 11th, 2011

“Coming Out To America,” this week’s cover story, follows two GLBT immigrants as they apply for asylum in the United States. One immigrant, a transgender woman named Kassandra, is afraid to return to her native El Salvador for fear of persecution.

And for good reason. A 2010 report by several human rights organizations details horrors suffered by gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people there.

“The Violation of the Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Persons in El Salvador” was compiled for the United Nations Human Rights Committee by several organizations, including the International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School and “Entre Amigos,” a GLBT rights organization in El Salvador.

Full Story from Westword

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Being Gay in Africa

Wednesday, May 4th, 2011

In 2004, leading African gay rights activist Fannyann Eddy was brutally murdered while she worked alone in the office of the gay rights organization she founded in Sierra Leone. She was a courageous crusader for the rights of Africa’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Years after Fannyann’s death, the state of LGBT rights in Africa may at first blush seem woefully bleak, but in fact now is a time for cautious hope.

African NGOs and community groups championing the rights of Africa’s sexual minorities are publicly condemning institutionalized homophobia, filing lawsuits arguing for the recognition of LGBT rights, and taking their grievances directly to government officials — collective action that was exceedingly rare at the time of Fannyann Eddy’s death.

In spite of ongoing discrimination against Africa’s sexual minorities, fearless advocates fighting for LGBT rights continue to win small but significant victories. As the law school human rights program I lead grew, I remembered Fannyann and looked for opportunities to collaborate with some of those brave protest voices.

Full Story from The Huffington Post

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Being Gay in Rural Ireland

Wednesday, April 27th, 2011

YOUNG rural lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered people are seven times more likely to commit suicide and 14 times more likely to inflict self harm than their straight counterparts.

This is according to a new study titled “Coming Out – LGBT Young People: Challenges and support needs in rural Ireland”, which was launched in the Derby House Hotel, Kildare town last Wednesday April 20. The study had a strong local influence as it was commissioned by Kildare Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Group (LBGT).

Author of the report, Bernadette Smyth pointed out the issues faced in rural areas, like Kildare, were different to those faced in urban areas.

Full Story from the Leinster Leader

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Being Gay in Myanmar

Sunday, April 17th, 2011

Gay MyanmarTin Soe was just four when he realized he was different to other boys in his neighborhood, but growing up in conservative and army-ruled Myanmar, he struggled to be accepted as gay by his relatives.

“My granddad’s sister said that if I became a monk my sexuality would change. So I was a monk for three months, but my sexuality never changed,” the 30-year-old said, asking for his real name to be withheld.

A repressive mix of totalitarian politics, religious views and reserved social mores has kept many gay people in the closet in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.

Full Story from Inquirer.net

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Being Gay in Kenya

Wednesday, April 13th, 2011

Being Gay in KenyaThe murder of gay rights activist David Kato brought attention to the injustice and violence LGBT people face every day in Uganda. In Kenya, Uganda’s neighbor, homosexuality is illegal and punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

The Pew Global Attitudes Project released a study four years ago which found that 96% of Kenyans said homosexuality should be rejected by society, one of the highest percentages of the 44 countries surveyed.

Last fall, Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga publicly condemned gays and lesbians. According to the Associated Press, Odinga said: “The constitution is very clear on this issue and men or women found engaging in homosexuality will not be spared.”

Full Story from GayTravel.com

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Being Gay in Mongolia

Tuesday, April 12th, 2011

Being Gay in Mongolia“He came to me and beat me pretty bad. He asked if I was gay, if I was a lesbian. I was so scared I told him I wasn’t,” explains the 25-year-old with cropped black hair, who like many people in Mongolia goes by one name.

Zaya, who lives in the capital Ulan Bator, says while her mother and sisters have gradually accepted her sexual orientation, her father is not so understanding and she continues to hide the truth from him.

“We’re scared of what will happen. He’s an aggressive man, he just wouldn’t understand,” says Zaya, who wears a T-shirt with the slogan ‘Let peace begin with me’ on the back. Zaya is not alone in her fear. Discrimination and abuse toward sexual minorities in Mongolia is widespread, according to a report presented to the UN Human Rights Council in November last year.

Full Story from MSN

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