Out gay U.S. theater and film star Harvey Fierstein is criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin for declaring "war on homosexuals," according to Gay Star News. Fierstein—whose stage hits include the current Kinky Boots as well as Torch Song Trilogy and Hairspray—said Putin wants to distract his people. Fierstein added, "Mr. Putin's campaign against lesbian, gay and bisexual people is one of distraction, a strategy of demonizing a minority for political gain taken straight from the Nazi playbook. Can we allow this war against human rights to go unanswered?"
A rural township in northern Mexico has elected the country's first openly gay mayor, according to an Advocate.com item. Benjamin Medrano, 47, will assume office in September in the township of Fresnillo, a region troubled by drug trafficking and "full of tough country people," he said. Medrano, the owner of a gay bar and a singer, ran for office on a public-safety campaign for Fresnillo, whose 230,000 citizens have to deal with police corruption and violence from warring drug cartels.
Two members of an Al-Qaeda-linked group fatally shot a man in Yemen after accusing him of being gay, according to Advocate.com . Members of Ansar al-Sharia, a group on the U.S. terror list, gunned down 20-year-old Hashem al-Asmi in the provincial capital of Huj. Homosexuality is not considered to be legal in Yemen, and the punishment for same-sex relationships between men is death, the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association has stated.
Air New Zealand plans to hold the country's first same-sex wedding ceremony at 30,000 feet above ground, according to Pink News. New Zealand passed its equal-marriage bill in April, and wedding ceremonies can begin Aug. 19. The airline has launched a competition aimed at same-sex couples wanting to get married. The winner will be one of the first in the country to get married on an early-morning flight from Queenstown to Auckland. U.S. actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family) and his partner, Justin Mikita, will be present.
A study shows that an astounding 10 percent of lesbians is South Africa are HIV-positive and the likely cause for the rising number of infections is rape, HIVPlusMag.com reported. The study, "Forced Sexual Experiences as Risk Factor for Self-Reported HIV Infection among Southern African Lesbian and Bisexual Women," was conducted in collaboration with community-based organizations in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. In South Africa, more women are sexually assaulted than almost anywhere in the world; lesbians are the most targeted for "corrective rape," whereby a rapist believes his assault will cure her of homosexuality.
Religious opposition to James "Wally" Brewster's nomination as U.S. ambassador to the Dominican Republic continues to build, as that country's leaders organized a "Black Monday" protest demonstrating their disapproval of the openly gay nominee, according to Advocate.com . The leaders asked religious Dominicans to dress in all black, wear a black armband, or display a black banner or ribbon on their cars.
Gay and transgender migrants face a staggering amount of violence in Mexico, The Atlantic reported. Nearly 36 percent of transgender people who stayed in a migrant shelter in Mexico reported experiencing some form of violence, according to a 2013 study. Meanwhile, 57 percent of transgender migrants who did not stay in a shelter reported violence. The prevalence of violence among this particular group—which accounted for roughly 3 percent of all migrants—surpassed that of women, another vulnerable population.
The International Peace Bureau is awarding its 2013 Sean MacBride Peace Prize to out U.S. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning, currently undergoing a military trial that could result in a life sentence, according to a press release. The 25-year-old army analyst has been nominated three times for the Nobel Peace Prize and has been in pre-trial imprisonment for more than three years. Founded in 1892, the International Peace Bureau, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1910.
Alan Turing, the legendary World War II-era codebreaker who was convicted of "gross indecency" after engaging in a same-sex relationship, may finally receive a posthumous pardon from the British government, the Huffington Post reported. Officials have indicated they would support a bill that would pardon Alan Turing, who commit suicide in 1954 after being subjected to "chemical castration" two years earlier after it was discovered he was gay. Often referred to as the "Father of Computer Science," Turing is best remembered for helping to crack Nazi Germany's secret codes.
In England and Wales, Sikh temples are stopping all civil ceremonies over same-sex marriages becoming law, according to Gay Star News. Sikhs in England, a specialist advisory body, has told the places of worship to de-register as a venue for civil weddings. Ceremonies that then take place there would have no legal bearing, and couples would have to attend another ceremony in a registry office or other registered venue in order to have a legally binding marriage.
Jamaican LGBT-rights advocates have expressed outrage over the reported murder of a cross-dressing teenager near the resort city of Montego Bay, according to the Washington Blade. Radio station Irie FM reported that after 17-year-old Dwayne Jones was discovered to be a male dressed in traditional female garb, a group of partygoers fatally stabbed the teen. The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG) has called "for a thorough investigation ... and hope that the family and loved ones of the [slain] teen will find the justice they deserve."
An Out Traveler item spotlights the various LGBT-related aspects of Zurich, Switzerland—including its lesbian mayor. Corine Mauch is also the city's first female mayor; moreover, her election is a significant development as Swiss women have only had the right to vote since 1971. Other highlights include gay and gay-friendly establishments such as the sushi bar/lounge Barfusser, the bar Cranberry and the boutique hotel Hotel Platzhirsch.
In Moldova, legislators quietly passed a measure similar to Russia's anti-gay propaganda law, according to Advocate.com . The new law does not specifically mention homosexuality, but it would punish anyone who distributes public information "at the propagation of prostitution, pedophilia, pornography, or any other [intimate] relations [other] than those related to marriage or family." Angela Frolov, the head of GenderDoc-M, said she believes that this law likely violates the Moldovan constitution.
Four Dutch tourists who were arrested for "gay propaganda" in Russia are now banned for three years, Gay Star News reported. Even though the visitors were told they were free to go back to the Netherlands after being fined, the Russian Federal Migration Service has said they are blacklisted from the country. Even though their visas said they "wanted to 'acquaint themselves with Russian culture," the tourists were filming a documentary in Murmansk about the anti-gay laws in Russia.
British actor Benedict Cumberbatch—who stars in TV's Sherlock and was the villain in this summer's Star Trek movie—married a gay couple in Ibiza, according to Gay Star News. The British actor was asked by one of his closest gay friends to oversee his civil ceremony July 20. Cumberbatch, 37, was unable to attend the San Diego Comic Con because he wanted to attend his friend's ceremony.
