{"id":10119,"date":"2014-11-07T04:20:15","date_gmt":"2014-11-07T09:20:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/latvian-foreign-minister-comes-out-in-a-tweet-i-proudly-announce-i-am-gay\/"},"modified":"2014-11-07T04:20:15","modified_gmt":"2014-11-07T09:20:15","slug":"latvian-foreign-minister-comes-out-in-a-tweet-i-proudly-announce-i-am-gay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/latvian-foreign-minister-comes-out-in-a-tweet-i-proudly-announce-i-am-gay\/","title":{"rendered":"Latvian Foreign Minister Comes Out In A Tweet: 'I Proudly Announce I Am Gay'"},"content":{"rendered":"

Latvian Foreign Minister Comes Out In A Tweet: 'I Proudly Announce I Am Gay'<\/b>
\nLatvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs apparently came out of the closet<\/a> in a single, sunny tweet on Thursday. <\/p>\n

\n

I proudly announce I’am gay<\/a>… Good luck all of you…<\/p>\n

— Edgars Rinkēvičs (@edgarsrinkevics) November 6, 2014<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\nHis announcement — which is particularly astonishing given Eastern Europe’s conservative, and largely anti-gay<\/a>, political environment — has made Rinkēvičs “the highest-profile gay man<\/a>” in the region, noted Mediaite. <\/p>\n

A constitutional ban on same-sex<\/a> marriage has been in effect since 2005 in Latvia, where anti-gay sentiment is rife<\/a>. Similar bans exist in other countries in the region, including Lithuania and Belarus<\/a>. Russia, with whom Latvia shares a border, has long been unapologetic about its virulently anti-gay<\/a> stance. <\/p>\n

Rinkēvičs, who has served as Latvia’s foreign minister since 2011, said in an earlier tweet Thursday that his country “has to create a legal status for all kinds of partner relationships.” <\/p>\n

“I will fight for this,” he wrote, according to a Washington Post translation. “I know that there will quickly be mega-hysteria, but #Proudtobegay<\/a>.” <\/p>\n

The Post reported that a spokesperson confirmed the authenticity<\/a> of Rinkēvičs’ announcement. On Friday morning local time, the minister tweeted a message of gratitude<\/a>, thanking people for their support.<\/p>\n

As Buzzfeed notes, the minister’s words could “cause a furor<\/a>” within Latvia and with its neighbors. Rinkēvičs’ announcement came just a day after his position as foreign minister was confirmed as part of Latvian Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma’s newly-formed government. Straujuma’s three-party coalition, which clinched 58 percent of the vote at last month’s general election<\/a>, took the helm Wednesday, per the Wall Street Journal.<\/p>\n

www.huffingtonpost.com\/2014\/11\/07\/latvia-minister-gay-tweet-edgars-rinkevics_n_6119066.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Latvian Foreign Minister Comes Out In A Tweet: 'I Proudly Announce I Am Gay' Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs apparently came out of the closet in a single, sunny tweet on Thursday. I proudly announce I’am gay<\/a>… Good luck all of you… — Edgars Rinkēvičs (@edgarsrinkevics) November 6, 2014 His announcement — which is particularly … Continue reading Latvian Foreign Minister Comes Out In A Tweet: 'I Proudly Announce I Am Gay'<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2466,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-misc"],"yoast_head":"\nLatvian Foreign Minister Comes Out In A Tweet: 'I Proudly Announce I Am Gay' - GAYFRIENDSCHAT.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/latvian-foreign-minister-comes-out-in-a-tweet-i-proudly-announce-i-am-gay\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Latvian Foreign Minister Comes Out In A Tweet: 'I Proudly Announce I Am Gay' - GAYFRIENDSCHAT.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Latvian Foreign Minister Comes Out In A Tweet: 'I Proudly Announce I Am Gay' Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs apparently came out of the closet in a single, sunny tweet on Thursday. 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