Metro Centre report that from feedback from what young people have said during drug and alcohol awareness workshops it became clear that young people wanted a course that not only provides information on alcohol and drug use but would also provide a safe space to explore those issues that contributed to behavior that they deemed to be potentially unhelpful. Therefore to mark the occasion the juice group at the Metro Centre are announcing a brand new initiative from Juice service at the Metro Centre called ‘Smooth Juice’.
Juice is part of the Metro Youth Service and provides Alcohol Counselling and Support to young people who identify as LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and those Questioning their sexual orientation and/or identity) in the South East London area through 1:1 support, therapeutic youth groups and general outreach.
This is an exciting new initiative based on a 6 week course designed to reinforce and support resilience and self esteem. Topics that were thought to be helpful are alcohol and substance misuse, coming out and positive identity, dealing with peer pressure, good decision making, positive communication, stress management and relationship negotiation, these are not concrete as the group will play a huge part in discussion, the topics will be based around their needs. The group meets weekly for 1 hour in Greenwich and there’s also plenty of time to socialize and make new friends.
For more information please contact juice@metrocentreonline.org
We currently have space for a group of 5-10 young people to make a 10 minute documentary on homophobia and what you would like to see change for the gay community over the next 5 years.
The film and its content will be written by the young people who take part. It is a chance work with a well respected production company.
The group will lead all aspects of the project – planning the subject matter, finding contributors, costumes etc, filming, editing and publicising the final project.
The project will run from November – January and the group will meet at times that are convenient for them. You will take part in master classes in camera skills, editing, PR and marketing and event planning. There will also be the opportunity to gain a bronze or Silver Arts Award. At the end of the project there will be a screening of the film at the BFI (organised by the group themselves alongside Paris, a group based in Newham). The screening will be open to all LGBTQ youth groups/organisations across London. Once the project is finished we also hope to have the film shown at the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival (also held at the BFI).
If you or anyone else has any questions please feel free to email ray@boldfaceproductions.co.uk
Homophobia bruises, batters and kills people every day. People we know. People we love. Homophobia is unacceptable and cannot be tolerated. It has never been more important than right now to take action.
Screen and stage legend Sir Ian McKellen and Coronation Street star Antony Cotton, have already signed up to take action against homophobia and both feature in the Enough is Enough! Action Against Homophobia video see below. Over the coming months Enough is Enough! Action Against Homophobia will be at Pride events and Festivals, asking people to sign up to join the movement against homophobia
The hard facts
Lesbian, gay and bisexual people still live with the daily reality of homophobia, and many of us live our lives in secret, not publicly acknowledging our sexual orientation for fear of reprisal, ridicule or attack.
In the UK, we have seen a number of high profile homophobic attacks in recent years.
Ian Baynham, 62, died from fatal injuries sustained in a homophobic attack in London, he wasn’t only a gay man,he was a son, a partner, a friend, and a workmate. He was loved.
Homophobia can be felt all over the world.
In South Africa Eudy Simelane, one of the first women to live openly in her community as a lesbian, was gangraped and brutally beaten before being knifed 25 times in the face, chest and legs. Eudy wasn’t only a lesbian, she was a daughter, she was a partner, and a team mate. She was loved.
In 75 countries across the world, being gay is punishable by imprisonment and hard labour, and in 7 countries across the world being gay means you face the death penalty because of who you love.
On our streets, in our homes, in our schools and at work, homophobia is hurting those who are seen as different from the “norm”. Lesbians, gay men and bisexual people are a target of hatred because of who they love. It’s called homophobia, and it needs to stop.
Messages of support
“Your support means we can continue to spread the word that enough is enough, we won’t stand for homophobia in any form. There’s just one more thing you can do today. Ask your friends and family to sign up too.”
Sir Ian McKellen
“I’m proud to say Enough is Enough! because homophobia in any form or context is unacceptable and needs to stop. Sadly, it is still a daily reality for lesbian, gay and bisexual people and also their family and friends – on the streets, at school, at work and in the home. Sign up to the campaign and take positive action against homophobia.”
Antony Cotton
Take Action
The first action people can take is to sign up to join the movement against homophobia. We want ordinary people; mums, dads, sons, daughters, grans, grandads, husbands, wives, partners, friends, and workmates – to stand shoulder to shoulder and take positive action against homophobia. Go to www.lgf.org.uk/enough to sign up.
Whatever the action, www.lgf.org.uk/enough will be celebrating it; from same sex partners taking a picture of themselves holding hands in public, to people forming gay/straight alliances and LGB groups, to marching against homophobia at Pride festivals across the country.
Why the time is now?
It has never been more important than right now to take action against homophobia.
Too often the victims of hate are forgotten, now is the time to say Enough is Enough! Action Against Homophobia, the stories of Ian Baynham, James Parkes, Michael Causer, Eudy Similane and all those killed or battered by homophobia must be kept alive, and the campaign for justice for each and every one of them will continue.
Too often lesbian, gay and bisexual people tolerate prejudice, now is the time to say Enough is Enough! Action Against Homophobia, we will have the confidence to use our rights, to report homophobic hate crime and demand equality.
Too often homophobia is dismissed solely as a lesbian, gay and bisexual issue, now is the time to say Enough is Enough! Action Against Homophobia, homophobia touches all communities, we must stand together to take positive action against hate.
Join the movement to take action against homophobia now!
“At what point do we say Enough? At what point do we stand up, as a total group, and say we will not allow it to happen anymore? Enough is Enough!” Harvey Milk, 1978
The Equality Bill has passed through its final stages in parliament and will now become law after receiving royal assent.
The bill, which gives new protections to gay people, was sent for royal assent last night.
It is designed to consolidate and simplify existing equality laws, encompassing characteristics such as race, gender and sexual orientation.
A flagship feature of the bill is equality duty on all public bodies, which will require institutions such as schools, councils and the NHS to actively promote equality.
Employers will be permitted to use positive action to select candidates from under-represented groups when two people applying for a job have the same qualifications.
The bill will also prohibit private members’ clubs from discriminating against members or guests based on their sexual orientation or gender reassignment and introduce the concept of “dual discrimination”, where people can show they were discriminated because, for example, they are both gay and of an ethnic minority.
An amendment added last month will allow gay couples to have their civil partnerships in church.
However, the bill has been criticised by gay groups, opposition politicians and secular groups for a number of “grey areas”.
One contentious issue is harassment protection for gay people, which critics say does not exist in the bill. The government has said gay people are already protected from harassment due to direct discrimination laws and that there was a duty for schools to continue the existing ban on discrimination.
Trans campaigners argue that there is not enough protection for the many people who live as the opposite gender but have chosen not to seek medical treatment.
The government said last month it would not continue to fight the House of Lords over an amendment clarifying who churches can refuse employment to.
Provisions in the bill would have clarified the law requiring churches only to discriminate in terms of sexual orientation when hiring those who will teach doctrine or lead worship.
But after the Pope publicly criticised the bill, equality minister Harriet Harman backed down. She is thought to have made the climbdown to avoid a continuing dispute with church leaders.
The new laws will begin to take effect in the autumn. The public sector equality duty will be introduced in April 2011, while provisions to ban age discrimination and force companies to reveal pay packets will come into force in 2012 and 2013 respectively.
This Article was published by Pinknews.co.uk you can visit it here
The Lesbian and Gay Foundation have also written a good article on this which can be viewed here
Kristian had been a Patron of Jigsaw’s partner the Albert Kennedy Trust since 2004. Kristian was an incredible supporter of the work of the Albert Kennedy Trust he had genuine empathy for the homeless LGBT young people they work with. The trust state that:
“It is thanks to Kristian’s talent as a performer that we were able to raise much needed funds at our events where he played the role of both ambassador and auctioneer. At our last fundraiser, we remember Kristian talking to as many people as possible about our work and thanking them for attending. This was the Kristian we knew and loved: always passionate and supportive of AKT. He will be missed by all at AKT and our thoughts and sympathy goes out to his friends and family.”
The property expert, who was born into a family of property developers, worked on a number of other shows including Double Agents, Living In The Sun, House Swap and Buy It, Sell It, Bank It.
A spokesman for the BBC said: “Kristian was a much-loved and talented presenter for BBC Daytime “He brought a real sense of energy and warmth to all the shows he presented for us and will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his family at this very difficult time.”
Dominic Littlewood, who was Mr Digby’s co-presenter on To Buy or Not to Buy, said: “There’s not a bad word I can say about Kristian. He was a lovely fun, nice, jolly, decent person.” Mr Digby’s agent and friend Jo Wander said: “I am devastated by the loss. He was a lovely guy and a very talented presenter and director. I will miss him hugely and my thoughts at this time are with his family and his many friends. He will be sorely missed.”
The Times Online have reported on the arrest of Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjezat:
Since they became the first openly gay couple in Malawi to be engaged, Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza have been arrested, put in prison and charged with offences that could lead to a 14-year jail sentence.
Between true love and gay martyrdom, however, is the brutal reality of life in a Malawi prison. Yesterday, in their first interview since being jailed, the pair claimed that they had been beaten in prison, and demanded to go to court to prove their innocence.
While Mr Chimbalanga, 20, who dresses as a woman, spoke defiantly of his love for the man he plans to marry, Mr Monjeza, 22, said that he was “drunk” when they met and was considering ending their engagement. The couple, who denied three charges of unnatural practices between males and gross indecency, performed a public engagement ceremony in front of 500 onlookers last weekend. They were arrested two days later.
With gay rights campaigners warning that the case marks a new wave of homophobia in Africa, the pair have been held since then at Chichiri prison in Blantyre, where the warders appear bemused by the level of hysteria surrounding their charges.
Related Links
* Passion that separates Africa from the West
* Beacon of hope for poorest villages in Malawi
* Malawi in uproar over its pro-gay bishop
In an interview with The Times at the weekend, Mr Chimbalanga — visibly more at ease than Mr Monjeza, who appeared confused and disorientated — said: “I love my husband and laws should not prohibit love.”
Mr Monjeza said that he was drunk when they first met. But he admitted that he sobered up later. “I love the way he talked, the way he loved me.”
When it was suggested that he sounded apologetic and remorseful, however, he expressed his doubts about the wisdom of their historic confrontation with the conservative southern African state. “Well, I was drunk. I guess I wanted to be famous but I am now regretting. Prison life is no good. I realised we have broken the laws. I am calling this off. I am not crazy. I have another woman I intended to marry but I loved Tiwonge. I guess I should apologise to that other woman.”
Mr Chimbalanga, however, remained defiant. Dressed in a blouse and describing himself as a woman, he said that they became engaged after “my darling, Steven, proposed love to me and we agreed to get married”.
Unlike Mr Monjeza, he refused to accept that he had broken any law. “Which laws? I am a woman, I can do what a woman can do,” he said. “I love Steven for what he is, he doesn’t give me money. In fact, I do everything for him, but love is love.”
But prison is prison. “They beat us up here,” said Mr Chimbalanga. “Why? Why beating us? We have done no wrong. If they say we have broken laws, why not let the courts judge us?”
Reluctant to accept that his relationship was over, he said: “Well, he is the one who proposed to me. I still love him though. Love is between two people, the third one is a spoiler. The police is the spoiler here.”
They are due to appear in court today for a bail application. “I hope they give us bail and let us out of here,” said Mr Monjeza. “It’s terrible here.”
Mr Chimbalanga said: “We are not supposed to be here. You don’t arrest someone because he loves someone.”
The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) has ruled that a Belfast newspaper breached the press code of practice for calling a trans woman a “tranny”
Keira McCormack complained she had been deeply insulted by the November 1st 2009 article in the Sunday Life which described her as “burly”.
She had worked as a rape counsellor in Belfast between 2005 and 2009 but the newspaper questioned whether the “5ft 10in transsexual” was suitable for the job.
The article, titled ‘Tranny worked in rape centre’, was found to be discriminatory and in breach of Clause 12 (Discrimination) of the Editors’ Code of Practice.
The Sunday Life argued that no offence had been intended in the use of the word ‘tranny’ which it considered to be “widely used” in articles about trans people.
McCormack said that the term ‘tranny’ was generally used by transvestites or cross-dressers but was deeply insulting to transgender people.
The PCC considered that the use of the word ‘tranny’ was a needless abbreviation which many found offensive.
It ruled that the word was pejorative and the complaint was upheld on this point.
McCormack made a number of other complaints, both about the article and a follow-up piece, about accuracy, privacy and harassment, but none of these were upheld.
The PCC ruled that the newspaper had a right to report people’s concerns about her suitability for the job counselling vulnerable women and that accurate reporting made reference to her gender reassignment necessary.
It dismissed her claims that the newspaper had harassed her and violated her privacy.
It noted that the Sunday Life had offered to correct as a point of accuracy that McCormack had legally changed her name in 2005 and not 2008 as reported but said there were no other matters under the accuracy clause to pursue.
A vigil for victims of hate crime is due to take place in central London’s Trafalgar Square.
Homophobic attack victims Ian Baynham, who died earlier this month, and James Parkes, who was injured in Liverpool on Sunday, will be among those honoured.
Speeches will be made before the two-minutes silence 2100 GMT.
Organiser Mark Healey said: “If we forget about these victims we could become complacent and fail to learn from the past.”
Mr Baynham, 62, from Beckenham, south-east London, died from brain damage two weeks after being attacked in Trafalgar Square on 25 September.
On Sunday night trainee police officer Mr Parkes, 22, was attacked by up to 20 people outside a gay bar in Liverpool’s Stanley Street. He remains in hospital with multiple skull fractures.
Last week Metropolitan Police figures showed that 1,192 homophobic offences were reported in London in the year to September, up from 1,008 the previous year – a rise of 18.3%.
We hope the vigil will also inspire young people to tackle issues of equality in the community
Vigil organiser Mark Healey
Mr Healey said: “This started off as a vigil for Ian but it soon became clear that it was also important to remember other victims of homophobic attacks and other hate crimes.”
He added: “Whenever someone is attacked, pain and suffering is not just caused to them, but also to their family and the wider community.
“We hope the vigil will also inspire young people to tackle issues of equality in the community.”
National and international equality groups have been encouraged to hold their own vigils to coincide with the London event, which has received the backing of Stuart Milk, the nephew of late US gay rights activist Harvey Milk.
Over the last few weeks we have reported on the growing support for an apology for Alan Turing the a mathematician most famous for his work on breaking the German Enigma codes. Alan Turing was also one of the first people to invent computer type machines, you may not be reading this on your computer now if it wasn’t for him. Alan was also a gay man living in England when being gay was still against the law. He was convicted of ‘gross indecency’ in 1952 and sentenced to chemical castration. As a result of this treatment he grew breast and became deeply disturbed by the what was happening to him.
Gordon Brown’s statement came in response to a petition posted on the Number 10 website which has received thousands of signatures in recent months.
Read the statement
2009 has been a year of deep reflection – a chance for Britain, as a nation, to commemorate the profound debts we owe to those who came before. A unique combination of anniversaries and events have stirred in us that sense of pride and gratitude which characterise the British experience. Earlier this year I stood with Presidents Sarkozy and Obama to honour the service and the sacrifice of the heroes who stormed the beaches of Normandy 65 years ago. And just last week, we marked the 70 years which have passed since the British government declared its willingness to take up arms against Fascism and declared the outbreak of World War Two. So I am both pleased and proud that, thanks to a coalition of computer scientists, historians and LGBT activists, we have this year a chance to mark and celebrate another contribution to Britain’s fight against the darkness of dictatorship; that of code-breaker Alan Turing.
Turing was a quite brilliant mathematician, most famous for his work on breaking the German Enigma codes. It is no exaggeration to say that, without his outstanding contribution, the history of World War Two could well have been very different. He truly was one of those individuals we can point to whose unique contribution helped to turn the tide of war. The debt of gratitude he is owed makes it all the more horrifying, therefore, that he was treated so inhumanely. In 1952, he was convicted of ‘gross indecency’ – in effect, tried for being gay. His sentence – and he was faced with the miserable choice of this or prison – was chemical castration by a series of injections of female hormones. He took his own life just two years later.
Thousands of people have come together to demand justice for Alan Turing and recognition of the appalling way he was treated. While Turing was dealt with under the law of the time and we can’t put the clock back, his treatment was of course utterly unfair and I am pleased to have the chance to say how deeply sorry I and we all are for what happened to him. Alan and the many thousands of other gay men who were convicted as he was convicted under homophobic laws were treated terribly. Over the years millions more lived in fear of conviction.
I am proud that those days are gone and that in the last 12 years this government has done so much to make life fairer and more equal for our LGBT community. This recognition of Alan’s status as one of Britain’s most famous victims of homophobia is another step towards equality and long overdue.
But even more than that, Alan deserves recognition for his contribution to humankind. For those of us born after 1945, into a Europe which is united, democratic and at peace, it is hard to imagine that our continent was once the theatre of mankind’s darkest hour. It is difficult to believe that in living memory, people could become so consumed by hate – by anti-Semitism, by homophobia, by xenophobia and other murderous prejudices – that the gas chambers and crematoria became a piece of the European landscape as surely as the galleries and universities and concert halls which had marked out the European civilisation for hundreds of years. It is thanks to men and women who were totally committed to fighting fascism, people like Alan Turing, that the horrors of the Holocaust and of total war are part of Europe’s history and not Europe’s present.
So on behalf of the British government, and all those who live freely thanks to Alan’s work I am very proud to say: we’re sorry, you deserved so much better.
Pink News has revealed that a centre for homeless gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans young people is to be named after Golden Girls star Bea Arthur.
Arthur died aged 86 in April this year. She had been a generous benefactor to the Ali Forney Centre, the homeless LGBT charity which is naming the shelter after her.
Four years ago, the Tony Award-winning actress flew to New York for a benefit performance for the centre, raising more than $40,000. She told Next magazine the centre was saving lives.
The charity currently has eight residential shelters for LGBT youth in New York City, each of which are rented. It recently received funding from the Oak Foundation to buy housing sites and plans to name the first one the Bea Arthur Residence for LGBT Youth.
“Bea Arthur was tremendously kind and generous to the Ali Forney Centre” said Carl Siciliano, the charity’s founder and executive director. “The caring and concern that Bea expressed for our kids meant the world to us, and we are thrilled to be able to give honour to her memory in this way.
“Before Bea became involved with us, we only had two sites, and could only shelter 12 kids. We were struggling to respond to an epidemic of homelessness that was not very well understood, even in the LGBT community. Bea’s support and advocacy really helped raise awareness in our community. Bea Arthur played a crucial part in our efforts to expand our capacity to respond to the hundreds of LGBT youths who come to us for help. She feels very much like a patron saint.”
The Ali Forney Centre was set up in 2003 and is named after Ali Forney, a young homeless gay man who was murdered in 1997.
