Gay rights groups condemn Ferguson decision
After a grand jury decided not to indict Darren Wilson, the police officer who shot to death black teenager Michael brown, LGBT groups have joined the uproar. The National Center for Lesbian Rights writes in a press release, “Injustice is too tame a word for what today’s decision represents.” Lambda Legal writes, “As an organization fighting for the rights of LGBT people and people living with HIV, we know that bias and prejudice can lead to injustice.” The Human Rights Campaign writes, “The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community cannot be silent at this moment, because LGBT people come from all races, creeds, faiths and backgrounds, and because all movements of equality are deeply connected. We are all part of the fabric of this nation and the promise of liberty and justice for all is yet to be fulfilled.”
Aravosis: Terry Bean’s ex-boyfriend has zero credibility
The man who contacted police about gay rights activist Terry Bean’s alleged sex with a 15-year-old boy has “zero credibility,” AmericaBlog’s John Aravosis concludes after digging into his criminal past. Bean was arrested for sex with a teen but has denied any wrongdoing. The charges against Bean can be traced back to his ex-boyfriend, Kiah Loy Lawson, a man with a history of violence, stalking and tampering with evidence. “I don’t know any more than the rest of you what actually happened back in 2013,” Aravosis writes. “I do know that the one person who got this entire accusation rolling is the least credible person in this entire story.”
New Ugandan anti-gay bill will be a “Christmas present”
Ugandan lawmakers say they will have a new anti-gay bill ready to pass before the end of the year, as a “Christmas present” to Ugandans. A previous version of the bill was quashed by a court because of procedural technicalities. That bill would have increased punishments for “aggravated homosexuality,” meaning repeated offences of gay sex, sex with minors, or sex while HIV-positive. The authors of this year’s bill say it is even stronger than the last and will maintain a ban on all gay sex, even between consenting adults.
Gay entrepreneur announces bid for mayor of London
Ivan Massow, a gay entrepreneur who made millions by setting up a financial advising firm aimed at gay clients, will run for mayor of London in 2016. Massow has also been an influential civil rights campaigner and a political activist for the Conservative party. He once briefly defected to the Labour Party in 2000 to pressure his own party into a better stance on gay rights.
Read more at the London Evening Standard.
British Football Association will allow trans players
Britain’s Football Association has announced it will allow trans players in its league. Trans players will have to consult with the association first, to ensure that their participation in safe and fair. The new policy states, “The FA will now approve a player’s application to play in their affirmed gender if they can demonstrate that hormonal therapy appropriate for the assigned sex has been administered in a verifiable manner and for a sufficient length of time, or the individual has had gonedectomy so that any gender-related advantage in football is minimised.”
Read more from the Football Association.
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