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Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category

Let’s Hear it for the 80s

Posted on: April 18th, 2012 by History Month
Remember when we all had a friend or friends dying of AIDS? When we marched with the miners to stop Thatcher destroying the working class? When the Daily Mail and the Express and The Sun hated us so much they urged the government to impose Section 28? When Jenny...

National History Project: American President was Gay

Posted on: November 5th, 2011 by History Month
The 15th US President James Buchanan was gay and it was no big secret, according to a new LGBT history site. His partner, William Rufus King, was the longest serving US vice-president. And America’s unofficial anthem America the Brave was written by Katharine Lee Bates, a lesbian. The Project’s...

Belgium to have first gay Prime Minister

Posted on: October 18th, 2011 by History Month
After nearly 500 days without a Government, it looks as if Belgium is about to have a gay prime minister of Italian descent. Elio di Rupo, 59 and the leader of the Francophone socialist party, has been charged to form a government out of the six warring parties and...

Tatchell: Why is Labour not debating same-sex marriage?

Posted on: September 26th, 2011 by History Month
Peter Tatchell has demanded to know why Labour has not supported same-sex marriage when the Green party and the GMB do. Moreover, he says party leader Ed Miliband supports it, and demands to know why it isn’t party policy. To read the full article, go here

Outing comes out in Italy

Posted on: September 24th, 2011 by History Month
An Italian Blog has “outed” 10 MPs as a protest against the state’s homophobic policies and laws. The blog’s authors said the aim was “to bring a bit of justice into a country where people have no way of defending themselves against daily insults and attacks from hypocritical politicians.”...

Tatchell Interviewed on US TV

Posted on: September 18th, 2011 by History Month
Peter Tatchell’s hour-long interview with the New York-based TV programme, Gay USA, conducted by Andy Humm and Ann Northrop. Watch here: http://tinyurl.com/3pu45bl Peter Tatchell, Director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, writes: Ranging over my 44 years of LGBT and human rights activism, this Gay USA interview includes discussions about my...

Scots to be Allowed to Refuse Civil Partnerships?

Posted on: August 18th, 2011 by History Month
Scots registrars with particular religious convictions may be allowed to refuse to conduct civil partnerships if an Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) Member of the Scottish parliament (MSP) gets his way. Glasgow minister John Mason is introducing a motion into Parliament that will allow for people’s bigotry if it is...

Italy Rejects LGBT ‘Hate Crime’ Bill

Posted on: July 28th, 2011 by History Month
Italy’s parliament has rejected a bill to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people from discrimination. The Chamber of Deputies voted yesterday 293 votes to 250 not to approve the legislation. Gay rights campaigners have called on the European Union to step in. Italy already bans discrimination on the...

New York Says Yes to Same-Sex Marriage

Posted on: June 26th, 2011 by History Month
Gay New Yorkers basked on Saturday in the glow of a landmark decision by the state legislature to legalise gay marriage, a powerful victory for rights advocates in one of the most populous US states. Gay rights supporters chanted and danced in the streets of New York City into...

Government Makes new Pledges at Downing Street Event

Posted on: June 23rd, 2011 by History Month
LGBT History Month had a big profile at Downing Street last night when the PM David Cameron hosted an LGBT celebration before the onset of this year’s London Pride. Everyone was delighted with the latest LGBT History Month 2012 badges, which were launched at the event and will go...

Iranian ‘Pride’ Held in Turkey

Posted on: May 29th, 2011 by History Month
Turkish LGBT group Kaos GL reports that a group of Iranian LGBT asylum-seekers took part in the fourth March against Homophobia and Transphobia, held 22 May in Ankara. Amongst their slogans: “Ahmadinejad, we’re here!”; “Iranian queers will not keep silent anymore!”; and “Iranian queers, we’re altogether now!.” They are not...

Equalities Minister IDAHO Statement

Posted on: May 18th, 2011 by History Month
In a YouTube video praising IDAHO, Minister for Equalities Lynne Featherstone promoted the LGBT Sports Charter; the hate crime reporting site True Vision; and re-emphasised her commitment to eradicating homophobia and transphobia in schools. To see the video go here

IDAHO Tuesday

Posted on: May 15th, 2011 by History Month
International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO) is this Tuesday, the 17th of May. Check out the website to see what’s going on.

Uganda Drops Anti-Gay Bill‏

Posted on: May 15th, 2011 by History Month
Uganda has dropped – or shelved it’s proposed anti-gay bill. Parliament closed yesterday after failing to implement it. Although Parliament has been extended to run on Monday and Tuesday, only administrative business will be carried out. Many, however, believe that public pressure scuppered the Bill’s chances, especially the USA’s...
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Anger at “plans to ‘scrap the Equality Act’”

Posted on: April 14th, 2011 by History Month
Equalities and human rights activists went into red alert yesterday at alleged plans to “scrap the Equality Act”. The panic was caused by a Cabinet Office consultation site http://www.redtapechallenge.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/equalities/ inviting comments on the Equality Act, citing a range of questions from whether it should be “scrapped” to whether it...
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Tatchell Reluctantly Withdraws from Election

Posted on: December 22nd, 2009 by History Month
>Peter Tatchell has withdrawn as Green candidate for Oxford East. In a characteristically candid statement, he said that he would not be able to fulfil all the demands of the post, if elected, as a result of brain damage sustained from beatings he received by Mugabe’s henchmen, right wing...
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Queer Question Time @ RVT

Posted on: October 26th, 2009 by History Month
>ANGELA EAGLE MP, Parliament’s only out lesbian, KEN LIVINGSTONE, former Mayor of London, ANDREW BOFF London Assembly Member, DAVID MCALMONT, singer/songwriter, and TIM TEEMAN, Times journalist will come together for an evening of debate of issues concerning the LGBT community. People are invited to submit their questions to Miss...
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Anthony Blunt’s Memoir Goes Public

Posted on: July 24th, 2009 by History Month
>25 years after the death of the former Cambridge professor and renowned art historian who was unmasked publicly as a spy by former prime minister Margaret Thatcher in 1979, the British Library unveiled yesterday a 30,000-word manuscript that amounts to a short account of his life, from birth through...
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13 Love Stories

Posted on: March 23rd, 2009 by History Month
>13LoveStories.com is a multimedia advocacy project that profiles the stories of thirteen couples whose lives were profoundly affected by Proposition 8 – the recent California ballot initiative that eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry. This mobile photo exhibition and video project is presented by UCLA Art |...
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Iceland Selects Lesbian Prime Minister

Posted on: January 30th, 2009 by History Month
>Iceland’s next leader will be an openly lesbian former flight attendant and union organiser. Last night the two parties forming Iceland’s new coalition Government backed Johanna Sigurdardottir, 66, a Social Democrat, to take charge until new elections are held, probably in May. The previous conservative-led Government resigned on Monday...
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Notes to Obama: John Waters

Posted on: January 20th, 2009 by History Month
>As Barack Obama, the 44th and LGBT friendly president of the US is about to take the oath of office, queer filmmaker John Waters, gives him some advice. View the video on the BBC News website here.
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UN Statement Against Criminalisation of Homosexuality Imminent

Posted on: December 15th, 2008 by History Month
>A European initiative spearheaded by France (currently holding the rotating presidency of the Union) is being discussed by a United Nations General Assembly. The Statement, which would not create new rights and be legally binding, is asking for the decriminalisation of homosexuality and the end of discrimination on the...
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Early Day Motion to Mark the Death of Harvey Milk

Posted on: December 10th, 2008 by History Month
>On 3 December, John Barrett, the Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West, presented the following Early Day Motion to the House of Commons. That this House notes that 2008 marks the 30 year anniversary of the assassination of San Francisco Supervisor and gay rights campaigner Harvey Milk; recognises the...
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Protest Against Proposition 8

Posted on: November 14th, 2008 by History Month
>I hope you’re familiar with Proposition 8 in California and the news that it passed, which is very bad news for the LGBT Community. Three other states passed legislation that denies our community equal rights. A grass roots effort was started last Friday that has grown into an international...
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Love Thy Neighbour – Homosexuality and Faith

Posted on: August 14th, 2008 by History Month
>Many faith leaders inadequately reflect their followers’ religious objections to lesbian and gay sexuality, new research has found. Love Thy Neighbour – published by Stonewall and based on interviews with Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Christian participants from across the north of England – found that many hold significantly more...
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Gay Marriages

Posted on: June 16th, 2008 by History Month
>A busy few days for your gay marriage planners. Last week we reported the change of the law in Norway authorising gay marriage. This week=end, we learned that two Anglican priests, Rev Peter Cowell and Rev Dr David Lord, (already united by a Civil Partnership) exchanged vows and rings...
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Lack of Lesbian Representation in Politics

Posted on: January 3rd, 2008 by History Month
>A snapshot of gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans people in British politics has revealed that women are seriously under-represented. Find out more here.
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LGBT Victims of Franco Receive Recognition

Posted on: December 3rd, 2007 by History Month
>Almost tow months ago, we published a post about Spanish people who had been imprisoned by the Franco regime for their sexual orientation and who had been seeking recognition and compensation for this for the past 30 years. On 14 November, the Spanish parliament finally granted financial compensation to...
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LGBT Victims of Franco Demand Recognition

Posted on: October 10th, 2007 by History Month
>On Thursday 4 September, a group of Spanish LGBT associations, the Federación Estatal de Lesbianas, Gays, Transexuales y Bisexuales, (FELGTB: National LGBT Federation), requested compensations from the government for the members of the LGBT community who were arrested under the Franco dictatorship because of their sexual orientation. They also...
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The Black Civil Rights, Women’s Liberation and Gay Liberation Movements

Posted on: October 4th, 2007 by History Month 1 Comment
>On 21 August 1970, Huey Newton, co-founder and leader of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense published an article in “The Black Panther” newsletter. It was titled A Letter from Huey Newton to the Revolutionary Brothers and Sisters about the Women’s Liberation and Gay Liberation Movements and was...
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US Senate Passes Matthew Shepard Act

Posted on: October 1st, 2007 by History Month
>On 27 September, the US Senate voted 60 to 39 in favour of expanding Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act to include protection for LGBT People against hate crimes. The Matthew Shepard Act, named for a victim of homophobia, comes as an amendment to the 2008 Department of...
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Paul Patrick on BBC Lancashire

Posted on: September 3rd, 2007 by History Month
>Tomorrow morning at 8:00am, BBC Radio Lancashire will host an interview with Paul Patrick, Co-Chair of LGBT History Month, on the Wolfendon Report. You can listen to the Breakfast Show online (here) or through the radio. Breakfast ShowBBC Radio LancashireTuesday 4 September8:00am
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Prime Minister Brown on PinkNews

Posted on: August 18th, 2007 by History Month
>When Gordon Brown announced his candidature to the position of leader of the Labour party, in May this year, which would ultimately lead him to assume the position of Prime Minister, questions were raised around his record on LGBT rights. Brown had never voted for gay rights until earlier...
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Jacob Breslow, Intern to Both Schools OUT & LGBT History Month Tells His Story to Pink News

Posted on: August 16th, 2007 by History Month
>Pink News 16th August 2007 13:35CommentArticle available here Jacob Breslow – My Journey from Scared Teen to Gay ActivistThe first time I came to the UK, I was amazed by its history, architecture and bustling cities. Now, over ten years later, I have come back to experience this amazing...
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We Gays Haven’t Won the Battle Yet

Posted on: August 8th, 2007 by History Month
>The era of the ‘post-homosexualist’ isn’t upon usWill Young – Times OnlineArticle available here Last week I found myself in a London taxi heading home after a night out. The cabbie seemed rather perturbed and amused at the same time. “It’s funny, Will,” he said. “I wasn’t gonna pick...
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Archives Reveal Churchill’s Cabinet Discussed Gays

Posted on: August 8th, 2007 by History Month
> The Pink Paper – 6th August 2007 15:45Tony Grew Article available here New documents released by the National Archives give an enlightening account of the views of Prime Minister Winston Churchill and other Cabinet ministers towards homosexual men in 1950s Britain. Prime Minister Winston Churchill bluntly replied that...
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Richmond’s First Openly-gay Mayor Hails Community Concerts

Posted on: August 4th, 2007 by History Month
> Publisher: Ian MorganPublished: 01/08/2007 – 10:59:56 AM24Dash.comArticle available here Cllr Marc Cranfield-Adams, the Mayor of Richmond upon Thames, has announced that his community concerts raised about £4,000 for his Charity Fund. Cllr Marc Cranfield-Adams, theMayor of Richmond upon Thames The three community concerts, held at York House, were...
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Hungarian Politician Coming Out Speech

Posted on: July 19th, 2007 by History Month
>Hungarian Socialist Gábor Szetey, a state secretary at the Prime Minister’s Office since last July, became the first elected political official in Hungary to come out as being gay when he opened Gay Pride 2007 in Budapest on 12 July. Mr Szetey’s announcement came on the same day as junior...
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LGBT History Month Patrons:
John Amaechi, former international basketball player, broadcaster and psychologist, Christine Burns, Equality and diversity specialist, podcaster, campaigner, Dr Harry Cocks, social historian and writer, Angela Eagle MP Work and Pensions, Professor Viv Gardner, Martin Harris Centre for Music and Drama, Professor Martin Hall, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Salford University, Sir Ian McKellen, actor, Cyril Nri, actor, director and writer, Ian Rivers, Professor of Human Development; Subject Leader for Sports Sciences, Brunel University, Professor Sheila Rowbotham, lecturer and campaigner, Labi Siffre, poet, songwriter and singer, Professor Melanie Tebbutt, Director, Manchester Centre for Regional History, Senior Lecturer, Manchester Metropolitan University, Gareth Thomas, rugby international, Jeffrey Weeks, historian, sociologist, author and LGBT activist, Stephen Whittle OBE, Professor of Equalities Law in the School of Law at Manchester Metropolitan University