Italian supreme court rules public masturbation not a crime
A man who was caught masturbating in public on a university campus is not guilty of a crime, the Italian supreme court has decided. While masturbating in the presence of minors is still criminal, the man will only have to pay an administrative fine.
America’s 19th century trans man
The Washington Post looks back at the unusual story of Joseph Lobdell, a hunter and music teacher who dressed, married and lived as a man despite his society’s insistence that he was a woman.
Finns launch counter initiative on equal marriage
After Finland successfully changed its marriage law to include same-sex couples based on a citizen initiative, another citizen initiative has popped up to change it back again. Supporters of the anti-equal marriage initiative say they have 100,000 signatures for their petition, which would have to be ratified by parliament.
I Am the Ambassador debuts on Netflix
Rufus Gifford is a gay man, TV star and activist. He’s also the US ambassador to Denmark. A documentary about Gifford and his unusual career, I Am the Ambassdor, has just debuted on Netflix.
Phyllis Schlafly dead at 92
Arch-conservative writer and activist Phyllis Schlafly has died at the age of 92. Schlafly was known as the “first lady of the conservative movement,” and vigorously opposed gay rights, even though she had a gay son.
Read more at the New York Times.
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