Stories about LGBTQ+ from April, 2011
Syria: A hero father
A Gay Girl in Damascus writes about how her father stood up for her, when officers came knocking on her door one night.
Panama: Challanges for the LGBT Community
Blogger Erasmo Prado R. [es] writes about the challenges the Panamanian LGBT community is currently facing.
Malaysia: Boot Camp to “Help” Effeminate Boys
Based on their effeminate tendencies, 66 schoolboys from the state of Terengganu in Malaysia were recently sent to a boot camp aimed at "helping them behave in a proper manner". The boys were identified by their schools, who were instructed last year to identify students who displayed feminine qualities. The blogoshere in Malaysia is divided over this issue.
Australia: Crusading Christian Lanced by Own Tweets
Australian Christian Lobby Director Jim Wallace tweeted on ANZAC Day that Australians didn't fight during World War I for gay marriage and Islam. He has since then deleted his tweet and apologized for his remark. Here are some online reactions from Australia.
India: Gay Community Shown Support after Video Screening
Citizen video's power to promote change has been proven in Raipur, India. A screening of a video showing the hardships faced by the gay community enabled audience members from diverse backgrounds to relate to the discrimination and show their support by organizing a peaceful demonstration.
Brazil: LGBT Scene Under Discussion
With recent legal advances and a proposed bill that criminalises homophobia in the Brazilian Senate, cases of violence against LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) groups and expressions of prejudice and heterosexism have come under focus. The online arena has been used to expose many reflections on the right to sexual orientation in the country.
Colombia: Teen Produced Web Series about Gay Youth
Nineteen year old Jhoncito Arango's most recent web project has certainly caught the local media's eye in his native Colombia, where his web series Yonkis has had a very good reception considering that it tackles a topic that is still considered highly sensitive in this Catholic country: homosexuality.
Nicaragua: Experiences of Online Citizen Participation
The web in Nicaragua is increasingly active, with projects for social events or small businesses finding niche markets to serve online. In order to learn a little more about these practices, Rodrigo Peñalba presents five videos considering the topics of tourism and the web, the social integration of migrants and people with limited resources, gender and sexual diversity and initiatives from the free software community in Nicaragua.
Belarus: Sickening statement on homosexuality
Ihar Ivanou of Belarus Digest reports from a medical conference in Minsk where homosexuality once more has been characterized as an illness that needs treatment, despite the fact that same-gender...
