Leelah’s Law petition breaks 300,000 signatures
A petition to ban transgender conversion therapy in the United States has gathered more than 300,000 signatures in less than a month, more than three times the number required to prompt an official response from the president. “Leelah’s Law” was inspired by Ohio teenager Leelah Alcorn, who killed herself after writing an impassioned blog post about her parents’ attempts to suppress her gender identity.
Sign the petition at change.org.
Singapore gay blogger convicted for contempt of court
Singapore gay blogger Alex Au Wai Pang has been found guilty by the country’s high court for contempt of court. The charges stem from his criticism of judicial handling of Section 377A, a colonial-era law criminalizing consensual sex between men. In Singapore, any criticism of the courts can be prosecuted as undermining the judiciary.
Gay groups unimpressed by Mormon gay rights deal
Leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints have said they now support gay rights, including protections from discrimination in jobs or housing, in what some Utah lawmakers told The New York Times is a “watershed moment” for the state. At the same time, however, the Mormon church demanded equal respect for people who refuse to serve LGBT people because of religious beliefs. The Human Rights Campaign is unimpressed by the announcement and said in a press release that “as a matter of public policy, it appears deeply flawed. Doctors would still be allowed to deny medical care. Pharmacists would still be allowed to refuse to fill valid prescriptions. And landlords, as well as business operators, would still be allowed to reject LGBT people. All in the name of religion.”
Seven percent of Americans oppose same-sex marriage
According to Pew Research, seven percent of LGBT Americans are against gay marriage, and another 18 percent say they favour it but don’t feel strongly. A full 39 percent of LGBT people said the marriage debate is distracting from more important issues. Opposition to same-sex marriage among LGBT people came disproportionately from Republicans, bisexuals and black people.
Read more at The Washington Post.
World remembers LGBT Holocaust victims
Jan 27 marked International Holocaust Remembrance Day, and at Slate, Liam Hoare looks back at the lost representatives of Nazi Germany’s gay survivors; Pink News examines some of the world’s memorials to gay Holocaust survivors; and UK Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg calls on the world to remember gay people among survivors.
Image credit: Leelah Alcorn
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