Vatican Says Transgender Man Cannot Become A Godparent

VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican has rejected a request by a transgender man in Spain to become a godparent, ruling that his sexual identity means he is incapable of carrying out the task.

Alex Salinas was asked by his family to be godfather to his nephew, but the bishop of his local diocese on Spain’s southern coast questioned his gender identity.

Salinas was born a woman but has since undergone hormone therapy and has a male ID in Spain. He is now waiting for gender surgery, The Local Spain reported.

Bishop Rafael Zornoza Boy of Cadiz and Ceuta rejected the family’s request to name Salinas as a godfather. Then, after a media storm, the bishop wrote to the Vatican for advice.

In a statement Tuesday (Sept. 1), the bishop said he turned to the Vatican due to “confusion among some of the faithful” and “the complexity and media attention garnered by this issue.”

Zornoza also published the Vatican’s reasoning for rejecting Salinas’ wish.

It said transsexual behavior “reveals in a public way an attitude opposite to the moral imperative of solving the problem of sexual identity according to the truth of one’s own sexuality.”

The statement from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, responsible for enforcing Catholic doctrine, concluded: “It is clear that this person does not meet the requirement of carrying out a life conforming to the faith and the position of godfather.”

It also said the decision was not intended to be discriminatory.

In commenting on the decision, Zornoza noted that Pope Francis had addressed gender issues in his encyclical on the environment. While not referring to transgender people specifically, the pope wrote: “The acceptance of our bodies as God’s gift is vital for welcoming and accepting the entire world as a gift from the Father and our common home.”

Still, the pope has welcomed transgender people with symbolic gestures.

In January, Francis met with a transgender Spaniard at the Vatican.

In March, transgender prisoners near Napes, Italy, were invited to lunch with Francis.

And on Tuesday, Francis met privately with renegade French Bishop Jacques Gaillot at the pope’s Vatican residence. Gaillot, who was sidelined by Pope John Paul II, has welcomed and blessed LGBT people. His visit with Francis was a sign the pope wants to reach out to people on the margins.

Also on HuffPost:

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Which is the most homophobic place to live in London?

Homophobic crime in London has increased by 30%, police figures have revealed.

According to official data released by the Metropolitan Police Service, figures for the 12 months up to July showed 1,667 homophobic crimes, compared with 1,289 for the previous year.

Westminster, which includes London’s gay capital Soho, had the most out of every borough with 166 crimes against LGBTI people.

This was followed by Lambeth, which includes Vauxhall, with 150 homophobic crimes.

Bromley saw the biggest rise in homophobic attacks, at an increase of 217.6%.

The borough with the least homophobic crimes was Sutton, with only seven happening for the 12 months up to July 2015.

The Met defines a homophobic offence as any crime which is perceived to be homophobic by the victim or any other person, that is intended to impact upon those known or perceived to be lesbian, gay or bisexual.

The Met has attributed the increase in attacks in part to a willingness of victims to report crimes, and an awareness of police staff in being able to identify those particular offences.

The full list is here:

• Barking and Dagenham: 13 (12 months up to July 2015) – 13 (12 months up to July 2014) 0%
• Barnet: 26 (12 months up to July 2015) – 20 (12 months up to July 2014) +30%
• Bexley: 20 (12 months up to July 2015) – 14 (12 months up to July 2014) +42.9%
• Brent: 58 (12 months up to July 2015) – 34 (12 months up to July 2014) +70.6%
• Bromley: 54 (12 months up to July 2015) -17 (12 months up to July 2014) +217.6%
• Camden: 88 (12 months up to July 2015) – 76 (12 months up to July 2014) +15.8%
• Croydon: 60 (12 months up to July 2015) – 21 (12 months up to July 2014) +185.7%
• Ealing: 36 (12 months up to July 2015) -40 (12 months up to July 2014) -10%
• Enfield: 23 (12 months up to July 2015) -14 (12 months up to July 2014) +64.3%
• Greenwich: 33 (12 months up to July 2015) -44 (12 months up to July 2014) -25%
• Hackney: 90 (12 months up to July 2015) -69 (12 months up to July 2014) +30.4%
• Haringey: 46 (12 months up to July 2015) -24 (12 months up to July 2014) +91.7%
• Harrow: 18 (12 months up to July 2015) -12 (12 months up to July 2014) +50%
• Hammersmith and Fulham: 53 (12 months up to July 2015) -36 (12 months up to July 2014) +47.2%
• Havering: 26 (12 months up to July 2015) -22 (12 months up to July 2014) +18.2%
• Hillingdon: 53 (12 months up to July 2015) -30 (12 months up to July 2014) +76.7%
• Hounslow: 29 (12 months up to July 2015) -32 (12 months up to July 2014) -9.4%
• Islington: 79 (12 months up to July 2015) -82 (12 months up to July 2014) -3.7%
• Kensington and Chelsea: 55 (12 months up to July 2015) -35 (12 months up to July 2014) +57.1%
• Kingston upon Thames: 24 (12 months up to July 2015) -12 (12 months up to July 2014) +100%
• Lambeth: 150 (12 months up to July 2015) -120 (12 months up to July 2014) +25%
• Lewisham: 70 (12 months up to July 2015) -64 (12 months up to July 2014) +9.4%
• Merton: 24 (12 months up to July 2015) -15 (12 months up to July 2014) +60%
• Newham: 57 (12 months up to July 2015) -37 (12 months up to July 2014) +54.1%
• Redbridge: 19 (12 months up to July 2015) -32 (12 months up to July 2014) -40.6%
• Richmond upon Thames: 14(12 months up to July 2015) -12 (12 months up to July 2014) +16.7%
• Southwark: 95 (12 months up to July 2015) -60 (12 months up to July 2014) +39.7%
• Sutton: 7 (12 months up to July 2015) -14 (12 months up to July 2014) -50%
• Tower Hamlets: 78 (12 months up to July 2015) -65 (12 months up to July 2014) +20%
• Waltham Forest: 37 (12 months up to July 2015) -42 (12 months up to July 2014) -11.9%
• Wandsworth: 63 (12 months up to July 2015) -33 (12 months up to July 2014) +90.9%
• Westminster: 166 (12 months up to July 2015) -135 (12 months up to July 2014) +23%

The post Which is the most homophobic place to live in London? appeared first on Gay Star News.

Joe Morgan

www.gaystarnews.com/article/which-is-the-most-homophobic-place-to-live-in-london/

Longtime Companion, The First Major Motion Picture About AIDS, Turns 25

In 1989, playwright and screenwriter Craig Lucas and director Norman René set their sights on creating a movie that would chronicle the first years of the AIDS crisis. The project would face an uphill battle getting made and finding distribution since Hollywood wasn’t very keen on bringing a story about gay men dealing with AIDS to the big screen at that time. Taking its title from the term used by The New York Times’ obituaries section to reference the surviving partner of a deceased gay man, Longtime Companion premiered in May of 1990. The film follows a group of friends over an eight-year period from 1981 to 1989, with the movie beginning on the day The New York Times published the first article about what would go on to become the AIDS epidemic.

Yahoo! Movies interviewed the film’s screenwriter Lucas and several other people involved in Longtime Companion including actors Dermot Mulroney, Campbell Scott, Mary-Louise Parker, and Bruce Davison (who won a Golden Globe and received an Oscar nomination for his work in the film) to discuss the making of the film and its impact. Among the many difficulties the project faced, Lucas shared that the property association of the Pines in Fire Island was initially resistant to allowing them to shoot scenes there. It wasn’t until he threatened to tell the press that a place run by gays didn’t want to be associated with a movie about AIDS that the cast and crew were given the green light to film.

Casting also proved to be tough. Hollywood actors weren’t jumping at the chance to play gay like they are nowadays. Interestingly enough, Alec Baldwin had agreed to be in the movie at one point, but had to back out because of scheduling conflicts.

Watch the original theatrical trailer for Longtime Companion below:

Many of the film’s main characters pass away as the movie progresses, but to counterbalance the sadness of those moments, Lucas and director Norman René incorporated humor as much as possible. “Norman felt very strongly that when people are under duress, they survive by laughing and seeing the absurdity in the situation they’re in,” Lucas explained.

Sadly, Norman René passed away in 1996. He discovered he was HIV-positive shortly before filming on Longtime Companion began. René did not disclose his medical condition at the time since it would have prevented him from getting the required insurance for the shoot.

The film was a critical and commercial success upon its release; however, it still faced some backlash from activists within the LGBT community who felt the movie wasn’t political enough and lacked diversity in its representation of people with AIDS. Nevertheless, Longtime Companion remains an important part of queer cinema.

Unfortunately, the movie has become hard to find these days. It is not available in DVD or digital format, nor can it be found on streaming websites such as Netflix. Ira Sachs, assistant to the director, stated, “What’s interesting to me is the disappearance of the film. I feel like it hasn’t been canonized in a way that I would like it to be. It is a really accurate depiction of a time and a group of people and a crisis.”

Watch the final scene of Longtime Companion in which three of the characters wonder if a cure for AIDS will ever be found. In a time when advances in HIV medication are being made, it is a poignant scene that still resonates.

Jeremy Kinser

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11 stunning pictures of Vermont to get you in the mood for fall

It’s always been known for its awe-inspiring autumns – no surprise, given three quarters of the US

state of Vermont is forested.

What’s more, according to the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing, 3.5m travelers spend around $460m (€412m, £301m) during foliage season every year.

So, as the temperature drops and the nights draw in (in some parts of the world at least), we take a look at some of the destination’s most amazing autumnal landscapes…

1 Peacham Church by David McMasters

2 Clock Tower on Burlington’s Church Street by David Juaire

3 Trapp Family Lodge by Stephen Goodhue

4 Tonal contrast by Mitchel Moraski

5 Moosalamoo region by Dennis Curran


6 Vermont landscape by Kurt Budliger

7 Cambridge by Skye Chalmers

8 Maple trees by David Juaire

9 Old First Church in Bennington by Dennis Curran

10 Vermont lake by Kurt Budliger

11 Lake Elmore by Kent Shaw

The post 11 stunning pictures of Vermont to get you in the mood for fall appeared first on Gay Star News.

Jamie Tabberer

www.gaystarnews.com/article/11-stunning-pictures-of-vermont-to-get-you-in-the-mood-for-fall/

Your Guide To The Debauchery Otherwise Know As Folsom Street Fair, 2015

It’s been quite a summer. We’ve window shopped for go-go boys, indulged a merman trend, and celebrated Pride with a purpose following the landmark marriage ruling.

But in San Francisco, there’s still one more rite of Summer passage waiting in the wings — the annual Folsom Street Fair, the largest fetish wonderland of its kind in the world.

Here’s a look at what makes Folsom weekend shine like polished leather boots:

Leather Walk – Sunday Sep 20 from 10 am-2pm

Can’t wait for the fair? Folsom Street Events presents LeatherWalk as the official kick-off for SF’s Leather Week which culminates one week later at the fair.  Participants walk together to celebrate leather, kink, family and community — all while raising funds for three great agencies. Each year, hundreds  of LeatherWalkers take over Market Street and march from the Castro to SoMa. The route includes stops at some of San Francisco’s favorite watering holes including Powerhouse, Oasis and BeatBox and ends with raising of the Leather Pride Flag at the SF Eagle.

Bearracuda – Friday Sep 25 from 9pm-4am

As the name suggests, this party is all about embracing bears, whether you are one or just want to, well, embrace one.

Full Fetish – Friday Sep 25 from 10pm-3am

Gear up as RECON returns to SF to host the “men only” Friday night play party of Folsom weekend. Recon expands on their sleazy, Euro-style playroom, cruising maze and dungeon to build the atmosphere for what is sure to be one of the hottest fetish, kink and underground play parties during Folsom.

Magnitude – Saturday Sep 26 from 9pm-4am

An infamous, expanded play space returns along with massive laser light shows, hardcore video projections, and men from the hottest studios. Magnitude is the official Folsom eve party.

The Fair – Sun Sep 27, 2015 from 11am-pm

Join nearly 250,000 fetish enthusiasts for interactive demos, shopping at over 220 exhibitor booths, hot food and cold drinks, and much, much more. Don’t miss the main stage entertainment and two sun soaked dance areas. If you think you’ve seen it all, come prepared to be proven wrong.

Deviants – Sunday Sep 27 from 6pm-2am

Want to keep the vibe of Folsom Street Fair going all night long? Well, that’s exactly what you get at Deviants. All the fun, scary, and crazy sights and sounds are on display for you at this official closing party. Join for an amazing spectacle of debauchery just blocks from the fairgrounds. Pups, ponies, and leather folks of all persuasions will be present.

Check out the GayCities complete 2015 Folsom Guide

Dan Tracer

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Ghana’s presidential candidate, if elected, will kill gay people by firing squad

A Ghanaian politician fighting to be president has said, if elected, he would have all gay people killed by firing squad.

George Boateng has vowed to unseat President John Mahama in the National Democratic Congress party’s presidential primaries in November.

And in doing so, has already started making pronouncements about what he will deliver if he is elected.

Speaking on Kasapa radio, he said it was time to ‘eradicate’ homosexuality from Ghana.

He said: ‘There is too much indiscipline in Ghana, under my presidency when a corrupt person, gay or lesbian are arrested the law will make it possible for the courts to sentence the offender to death by firing squad.

‘It will be a public event to be witnessed by all to serve as a deterrent. There must be a house cleaning exercise to clear all such terrible acts from the society’.

Gay sex is currently illegal in Ghana, punishable by up to three years in jail if it is consensual. There is uncertainty over whether female homosexuality is illegal. Violence against LGBTI people is widespread but highly under-reported and not prosecuted.

The post Ghana’s presidential candidate, if elected, will kill gay people by firing squad appeared first on Gay Star News.

Joe Morgan

www.gaystarnews.com/article/ghanas-presidential-candidate-if-elected-will-kill-gay-people-by-firing-squad/

Caitlyn Jenner Waffles on Her Name and Wows 'Em at the ESPYS

This week’s I Am Cait episode is part one of the season-ending finale, and gives viewers a behind the scenes look at Jenner’s struggles with her transition. 

read more

Dawn Ennis

www.advocate.com/commentary/2015/09/06/caitlyn-jenner-waffles-her-name-and-wows-em-espys

Trans Indians beg for mercy killing rather than life of discrimination

Three Indian transgender women have begged for mercy killing rather than live lives of discrimination.

Frustrated with the government assistance and job opportunities, Grace Banu, Living Smile Vidya and Angel Glady submitted their petition to Tamil Nadu state on Friday (4 September).

‘If we are considered third rate citizens, if we can’t sustain our livelihood with dignity, then let us die with dignity,’ Vidya wrote on Facebook.

The Supreme Court recognized transgender people as a ‘third sex’ in April 2014, and ordered central and state governments to set quotas for them in education and employment.

But the women said little has changed since the landmark ruling.

‘I tried to get financial assistance from the government to lead my life with dignity,’ Banu, who is studying engineering, told The Hindu newspaper.

‘I do not want to beg or carry on with the other tasks traditionally associated with transwomen in society. I have never thought of doing such work for a living.’

Even highly-educated transgender women are denied jobs because of their gender identity, and many are forced into begging or sex work.

Vidya holds a postgraduate degree from Tanjavur Tamil University but said she did not earn enough to make ends meet.

The post Trans Indians beg for mercy killing rather than life of discrimination appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/trans-indians-beg-for-mercy-killing-rather-than-life-of-discrimination/

Edward Snowden: Russia’s treatment of gays is ‘fundamentally wrong’

US whistleblower Edward Snowden has said Russia’s treatment of LGBTI people is ‘fundamentally wrong.’

The fugitive, who has been living in an undisclosed location in the country since he was granted asylum there in June 2013, made the comment while accepting the Norwegian Academy of Literature and Freedom of Expression’s Bjornson prize by videophone.

Snowden described the country’s crackdown on internet freedom as a ‘mistake in policy.’

‘It’s wrong in Russia, and it would be wrong anywhere,’ the Guardian quoted him as saying.

‘I’ve been quite critical of [it] in the past and I’ll continue to be in the future, because this drive that we see in the Russian government to control more and more the internet, to control more and more what people are seeing, even parts of personal lives, deciding what is the appropriate or inappropriate way for people to express their love for one another… [is] fundamentally wrong.’

Russia passed a gay ‘propaganda’ law in 2013, banning the ‘promotion’ of homosexuality to minors.

The founder of a LGBTI youth website was fined under the law last month.

The post Edward Snowden: Russia’s treatment of gays is ‘fundamentally wrong’ appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/edward-snowden-russias-treatment-of-gays-is-fundamentally-wrong/

Madonna’s Brother Christopher Sticks Up For Kim Davis, Calls Gay People “Sore Winners”

— Christopher Ciccone, Madonna’s younger brother who is gay, has worked with his superstar sister as both a backup dancer and set designer and wrote a scorching tell-all in 2008, in a logic-defying, spelling error-riddled message about Kentucky clerk Kim Davis posted on his Facebook page (he posted a sarcastic follow-up that reads: I love everyone and everything and I have no opinion whatsoever about anything. Everyone happy now?)

Jeremy Kinser

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