Protests against Rentboy crackdown
Federal agents raided the offices of Rentboy.com this week, charging money laundering and prostitution. “Rentboy.com attempted to present a veneer of legality, when in fact this Internet brothel made millions of dollars from the promotion of illegal prostitution,” said a federal attorney. The raid has prompted LGBT legal aid group Lambda Legal, the Transgender Law Center, and male escorts themselves to call for an end to anti-prostitution laws. Lambda writes: “For many LGBT people, participation in street economies is often critical to survival, particularly for LGBT youth and transgender women of color who face all-too-common family rejection and vastly disproportionate rates of violence, homelessness, and discrimination in employment, housing, and education.”
Oxford English Dictionary adds “Mx”
The gender neutral honorific “Mx” has gained entry to the authoritative Oxford English Dictionary, alongside other new words such as “mic drop” and “awesomesauce.” Mx first appeared in the late 1970s, according to the dictionary’s blog, but has recently gained enough traction to make it into the big leagues.
Escape from Gambia
When Alieu Sarr was arrested, tortured and imprisoned by Gambia’s viciously anti-gay regime, he thought he would never escape alive. Now on the run in Senegal, Sarr is still a long way from safe. “My life is not safe in the whole of Africa,” he says.
Venice mayor refuses Pride parade
Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro has continued to wage a war against LGBT people, this time telling a newspaper that Pride parades are “the height of kitsch” and that “there will never be a gay Pride parade in my city.” Brugnaro recently drew fire from Elton John for banning children’s books with LGBT-friendly content.
Virginia shooter said he was attacked for being gay and black
The Virginia cameraman who shot and killed two journalists during a live TV report said he had been victimized for being gay and black. “Yes, it will sound like I am angry . . . I am. And I have every right to be,” Vester Lee Flanagan II wrote in a note. Flanagan also believed he was participating in a race war, taking revenge for the church shootings in Charleston, South Carolina.
Why you can trust Xtra
