· June, 2008

Stories about LGBTQ+ from June, 2008

Bulgaria: More on June 28 Sofia Gay Pride

What's Going Down? writes about the opposition to Bulgaria's first-ever Gay Pride Parade, which is set to take place in Sofia on June 28: “…local right-wing political groups have, predictably, begun publicly denouncing the event in ways that range from the merely embarrassing and depressing to the downright alarming.”

Azerbaijan: Media Concerns

Writing on AFP's Correspondent blog, the news organization's Caucasus Bureau Chief, Michael Mainville, laments the state of the media in Azerbaijan. The post recognizes the pressures and restrictions in place on local journalists in the oil-rich country and comments on the case of Agil Khalil who has been recognized by...

India: On Homophobia

  19 June 2008

Remains of the Day from India lists various reasons for the prevalence of homophobia, both in the law and popular culture.

Bulgaria: Gay Pride on June 28

Petya of Bighead writes about the upcoming gay pride parade in Sofia: “… I've already seen notes from the Bulgarian major nationalist party urging their supporters to organize a counter-protest…At any rate, it is so insane, I am embarrassed to even translate it.”

Armenia: New LGBT Blogs

Unzipped: Gay Armenia points its readers to two new LGBT blogs. The first, Hye Trent is by a Lebanese-Armenian transexual, while the second, Pink Armenia, is from a newly established LGBT NGO in the country.

Kazakhstan: Gay Parade Cancelled

KZBlog says that the hearsay on the first Kazakhstani gay pride event was reported by the news agencies, but later both the LGBT umbrella organization and the city administration disproved the information, calling it a provocation and hoax.

Bahamas: Somewhere Over The Rainbow

  12 June 2008

“The conversation about the rights of gays and lesbians in this country is stuck in a Christian fundamentalist scriptural war that cannot see gays and lesbians, bisexuals or transgender people as integral to the wide spectrum of human existence”: The Gaulin Wife writes a stirring tribute to slain AIDS activist...

Jamaica: Living with HIV

  12 June 2008

Geoffrey Philp highlights the reporting of poet Kwame Dawes, who has been examining the HIV/AIDS crisis in Jamaica, while DigiActive says that “the Jamaican government went as far as preventing its country’s leading gay rights group from even attending the (UN AIDS) New York meeting”.

Armenia: Liberalism and Gay Parades

Unzipped: Gay Armenia comments on the reaction of a local theatre director to to much “liberalism” in Armenian society. In addition to warning that the situation will result in more pornography, the director also warned that Yerevan will eventually hold it's own gay parade. The blog disagrees with the conservative...

Bahamas: Women's Rights

  5 June 2008

Amnesty International‘s 2008 report reminds Bahamian blogger Lynn Sweeting “that women’s rights are human rights and that human rights are in peril the world over.”