Monthly Archives: July 2015
Gay couple finally holds wedding ceremony in Beijing despite police intervention
Gay couple finally holds wedding ceremony in Beijing despite police intervention
A gay male couple held their wedding ceremony at a park in Beijing despite warnings from the local police not to do so.
Ling Jueding, 34, and Gino, 27, finally had their wedding ceremony on 27 June after having to change the venue nearly 10 times due to intervention from local police, according to China’s Global Times.
The couple found themselves without a venue the day before their scheduled ceremony. With less than five hours to the ceremony, a private club agreed to host their wedding.
Although same-sex marriage is not recognized under Chinese law, the couple, who are both internet entrepreneurs in businesses related to China’s LGBT community, said their vows in the presence of some 200 family and friends.
In a caption for a photo series in China’s Global Times, Gino said while posing for wedding photos at Beijing’s Yongdingmen Gate, ‘We’re used to getting strange looks.’
‘We had this wedding not only for ourselves, but also to help change people’s prejudices,’ he added.
The two men, who have been dating for two years, say they are planning to register their marriage in Los Angeles in the US in August.
On 2 July, a lesbian couple in Beijing held a symbolic marriage ceremony with friends and reporters in attendance to push for legal recognition of gay marriage in China.
To view more photos, click here.
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Sylvia Tan
Cab driver in Canada suspended for calling gay passengers ‘disgusting’ for kissing
Cab driver in Canada suspended for calling gay passengers ‘disgusting’ for kissing
A cab driver in Calgary has been suspended for discriminatory behavior after two men complained they were insulted and kicked out of the vehicle for kissing.
Nolan Hill, one of the passengers, complained on social media and to the City of Calgary’s livery transport services, which issued a suspension to driver Stephen Eze.
The investigation included a review of the cab’s surveillance video.
Hill said the Calgary United Cabs driver lashed out when he kissed his friend, telling them, ‘No two men cannot be kissing in my cab. It’s disgusting.’
‘I was just kicked out of a taxi and told that I was disgusting for kissing another man. I have lived in Calgary my whole life, and have never been disrespected as much as I was tonight,’ he said in a Facebook post that has been shared hundreds of times.
Drivers must be professional and courteous and Eze’s actions were neither, said a news release from the city.
‘Calgarians and visitors alike should feel safe when travelling in Calgary by taxi,’ said Mario Henriques, Calgary’s chief livery inspector, according to CBCNews.
Eze must appear in front of a review hearing to determine the future status of his licence once the suspension is up on August 5.
His licence could ultimately be revoked, or he could receive additional suspension time or training related to diversity sensitivity, according to local media reports.
Hill said in statement he appreciates the ‘incredible support’ he’s received since bringing the issue forward and noted he wanted to share his story to ‘highlight a broader issue in the city.’
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Sylvia Tan
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American Samoa Questions If Gay Marriage Ruling Applies To Territory
American Samoa Questions If Gay Marriage Ruling Applies To Territory
PAGO PAGO, American Samoa (AP) – American Samoa stands as the only U.S. territory to hold out against the recent Supreme Court ruling that legalized gay marriage.
But as the Pacific island’s attorney general reviews the decision, legal observers and gay rights advocates are saying it should go into effect immediately.
“It should be unquestioned,” said Rose Cuison Villazor, a professor at University of California, Davis’ law school and an expert on territorial law. “The Supreme Court’s decision was pretty strong.”
American Samoa Attorney General Talauega Eleasalo Ale, however, hasn’t been ready to take that step.
“We’re still reviewing the decision to determine its applicability to American Samoa, and I have no specific comments at this time,” he said.
Asked if same sex marriage is legal in the territory, Ale said, “I don’t know. We’re reviewing the law.”
U.S. territories have some self-governance rights. The right to marry, however, isn’t a question of self-governance, said Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, staff attorney for national gay rights group Lambda Legal. “This is a question of individual right, individual liberty.”
Other U.S. territories have voluntarily complied with the Supreme Court decision.
In Puerto Rico, Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla signed an executive order soon after the ruling. U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Kenneth Mapp has said he would issue a similar executive order. In Guam, there is no effort to ignore or challenge the ruling, said territorial legislative Vice Speaker Benjamin F. Cruz, who is gay. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is also supporting the decision.
As of Thursday, no one has applied for a same sex marriage license in American Samoa, according to the island’s Office of Vital Statistics.
Christian churches with conservative social views dominate in American Samoa, home to about 50,000, and the government’s motto is “Samoa, Let God Be First.” Yet the territory has a tradition of embracing faafafine – males who are raised as females and take on feminine traits.
There are many faafafine who aren’t supportive of gay marriage out of “respect for our Samoan culture and religious beliefs,” said well-known faafafine Princess Auvaa.
The lack of marriage license applications by same-sex couples shouldn’t be taken to mean no one in American Samoa desires gay marriage, Villazor said. The attorney general’s review may have a chilling effect, she said. “I would think there are cultural barriers to begin with. The AG might present some other legal and social barriers, too,” she said.
For gay marriage to be recognized in American Samoa, there needs to be a voluntary decision or litigation, said Chimene Keitner, an expert on territorial status issues at University of California, Hastings College of the Law.
Litigation would require “plaintiffs who have been denied the right to marry and are willing to take a public position on that and challenge their inability to marry,” she said. Plaintiffs could also be those who were married elsewhere and want the marriage recognized in American Samoa, she said.
Auvaa said she wants gay marriage to be legal in American Samoa. If it’s determined that it is, she said, “I would be the first person to apply for a marriage license – if I had a boyfriend who would agree to marriage.”
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Kelleher reported from Honolulu. Graces Garces Bordallo in Guam and AP National Writer David Crary contributed to this report.
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canine pride
Outrageous Comments by Tennis Pro: ‘There Are Definitely No Gays’ in Top 100
The Subtle Language Of Sounding Gay
The Subtle Language Of Sounding Gay
David Thorpe has a “gay voice.” For the filmmaker’s latest endeavor, an autobiographical documentary, he embarked upon a long-delayed confrontation with his own “internal homophobia.” He was in his early 40s, recently single and he was bitter about “sounding gay.”
For the project, Thorpe sets out to change the way he speaks. He meets with a Hollywood voice coach and a speech pathologist. “Do I sound gay?” he polls strangers on the street in Times Square, echoing the title of the film.
Often humorously, the film explores the origins of an effeminate manner of speaking, taking an unexpected approach rooted in the study of linguistics as Thorpe learns about his own speech patterns and acoustics. It’s hilarious, thought-provoking and ultimately heartening. Thorpe dives deep into issues of self-loathing, stereotyping and the idolization of hyper-masculinity.
“I’m embarrassed to say this but sometimes somebody will say, ‘I didn’t know you were gay.’ It’s like, why does that make me feel good? I hate myself for thinking that,” says author David Sedaris in the film. (Sedaris first broached the topic of “sounding gay” in his essay “Go, Carolina” from Me Talk Pretty One Day.) “It’s very disturbing I thought I was beyond that. Whats the problem if somebody assumes that I’m gay when I open my mouth. Why do I have a problem with that?”
The film works to detach shame associated with the “gay voice,” and replace it with pride. But where did the shame come from? Why do gay men demean other gay men for their perceived effeminacy? Dan Savage nails it: “Misogyny,” he says. “They want to prove to the culture that they’re not not men — that they’re good because they’re not women. They’re not like women, they don’t want women, they don’t want to sleep with women, they don’t want to act like women. And then they’ll punish gay men who they perceive as being feminine in any way.”
Savage’s assertions could be the foundation of an entirely separate documentary. But for gay men and boys who face the brunt of criticism and violence at hands of their straight counterparts, punishment is a constant consideration. Thorpe notes that voice can give away sexuality long before a boy has the courage to come out, exposing him to consequences. “I think that there are a lot schools where kids feel safe and are able to be gay and express themselves, but I don’t think that’s always the case,” said Thorpe, adding: “It’s a heavy burden for young people to bear.”
“Do I Sound Gay?” endeavors to show how Thorpe, once a child with a similarly heavy burden, comes to terms with the complexities of his outward identity. Ultimately, he recognizes the importance of being part of a greater “chorus of gay voices,” because what’s so wrong with sounding gay? “If you can’t handle the answer,” he says, “that’s a question you’ve got to ask.”
“Do I Sound Gay?” opens July 10 at IFC Center in New York City.
— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Crowd at Comic Con cheers when gay make-up artists proposes to boyfriend on stage
Crowd at Comic Con cheers when gay make-up artists proposes to boyfriend on stage
Billy Brooks did not expect to walk out of Hall H at San Diego Comic Con this week an engaged man.
But it happened on Thursday (9 July) after his partner, make-up artist Barry Bishop, decided to pop the question while the two were on stage for a panel for the web series Con Man.
In front of a crowd of 7,000, Bishop said: ‘They were asking the cast a minute ago who was the most amazing person in Hollywood you’ve worked with and I just want to say Billy Brooks I love you baby with all my heart and soul and will you please marry me?’
Brooks said ‘yes’ and the couple got a standing ovation.
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Greg Hernandez
Virgin Islands Governor Issues Executive Order to Ensure SCOTUS Same-Sex Marriage Compliance
Virgin Islands Governor Issues Executive Order to Ensure SCOTUS Same-Sex Marriage Compliance
On Thursday, Virgin Islands governor Kenneth Mapp signed an executive order to ensure the U.S. territory falls in line behind the Supreme Court’s ruling on marriage equality.
St. Croix Source reports:
The measure now awaits the signature of Senate President Neville James, who is acting lieutenant governor while Lt. Gov. Osbert Potter is out of the territory.
According to the statement from Government House, the lieutenant governor is required to “attest,” or witness, the governor’s signature.
Previously, Virgin Islands Senate President Neville James raised eyebrows for his statement issued after the SCOTUS ruling saying “I’ve always known marriage to be an act between a man and a woman. Notwithstanding the Supreme Court decision, that is how it will remain. Call me old-fashioned, but it is what it is.”
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Kyler Geoffroy
Virgin Islands Governor Issues Executive Order to Ensure SCOTUS Same-Sex Marriage Compliance
