Canadian LGBT community creates world’s first real ‘Gay’ item to end misuse of word ‘Gay’.
TODAY, the world’s first and only ‘gay’ object – a sweater knitted from the donated hair of more than 100 LGBT people – maked its debut during Toronto Fashion Week.
Appearing ahead of this summer’s upcoming Pride Week celebrations in Toronto, New York, San Francisco and London, The Gay Sweater was created to make people everywhere understand that it is incorrect and offensive to use language like “that’s so gay” to negatively describe something. #TheGaySweater also aims to raise awareness of the detrimental effects that such misuse of the word gay has on LGBT youth.
The project is an initiative of the Canadian Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity (CCGSD). The centre intersectionally promotes diversity in gender identity, gender expression, and romantic and/or sexual orientation in all its forms on a national level through services in the areas of education, health, and advocacy. As a leader in anti-discrimination work, CCGSD runs programming all over Canada and the United States, reaching 250,000 people annually. The CCGSD is also a proud leader in the International Day of Pink (DayOfPink.org) engaging millions of people in wearing pink and running programmes that stand up to bullying.
Jeremy Dias
Jeremy Dias, director of the CCGSD, said:“The idea for the sweater was born from a desire to educate and encourage everyone to use ‘gay’ the correct way.”
“We want the conversation that surrounds the gay sweater to inspire those who are using ‘gay’ in a detrimental way to both realize the negative impact their words and actions are having and change their behaviour.”
Along with the sweater, a short film at thegaysweater.ccgsd-ccdgs.org gives voice to youth who have been impacted by the derogatory use of the word ‘gay’ and showcases the process that went into creating the one-of-a-kind sweater.
Using the sweater and the film, the CCGSD is hoping to start a much-needed conversation that encourages everyone to think before they use hurtful words like ‘gay’ in a negative way. Readers can follow that conversation and all sweater-related content on the website and by searching the hashtag #TheGaySweater.
The International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA) Foundation has announced the names of the five recipients of the third annual Building Bridges Scholarships.
THE 2015 winners, from China (2), Colombia, Jamaica and Japan, will each receive an all-expenses-paid trip and conference registration for the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association’s Annual Global Convention in Los Angeles, April 8-11.
The scholarship program was created to support the next generation of LGBT travel professionals and allies. This year, scholarships went to three students and two small business owners.
John Tanzella
“We’re thrilled about this diverse group of well-deserving scholarship recipients,” said IGLTA President/CEO John Tanzella. “This is the first time we’ve had Asia represented in the programme, and the two small business owners we selected are developing tours for Bucaramanga (Colombia) and Jamaica, reinforcing our commitment to assist LGBT businesses in emerging destinations or places with governmental challenges. We hope the conference experience will help lead them to bright futures in our industry.”
This year’s Building Bridges Scholarship recipients are:
Kan Kikumoto: Kan is a student at Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan. He hopes to lead LGBT tours in Japan, his home country, when he completes his studies.
Wang Hao: known as Charlie, Wang Hao was born and raised in China where he took an internship at the Beijing LGBT Centre. He is now an economics student at the University of Tokyo and is pursuing interests in LGBT tourism and marketing.
Ena Yanagi: Ena studies tourism and gender and LGBT issues at Meiji Gakuin University in her home city of Yokohama, Japan. She wants to become a travel agent.
Olubode Shawn Brown: Olubode founded BLOOM Jamaica in 2010 to safely take gay and lesbian travellers to his home country for an annual party in Negril. This year he is launching BLOOM Escapes, to offer small, customized tours to Jamaica with an insider’s LGBT perspective.
Fabio Rugeles: Fabio owns a small business called Cibum S.A.S. which is developing a gastronomy tour route to showcase his home city of Bucaramanga, Colombia, to LGBT travellers.
The International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association is the leading member-based global organization dedicated to LGBT tourism and a proud Affiliate Member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization. The association’s membership includes LGBT and LGBT-friendly accommodations, destinations, service providers, travel agents, tour operators, events and travel media in 80 countries.
In 2012, the philanthropic IGLTA Foundation was launched to support the mission of the association and its membership through scholarships, marketing assistance in emerging destinations, and research.
Liberal Democrats in Brighton and Hove are supporting moves to get the Hippodrome declared an Asset of Community Value (ACV) as part of efforts to save the historic building as a live music venue for future generations.
WITH the Hippodrome petition due to be presented to Brighton & Hove City Council later this week, Brighton and Hove Lib Dems want the council to review its decision not to apply for ACV status.
The historic building in Middle Street is in urgent need of repairs. A recent proposal from the Vue cinema group met with massive local opposition as it would leave only the shell of the historic building intact and stop the venue ever returning to a live music venue in the future.
Jeremy Gale, the Liberal Democratic candidate for Central Hove, said:“We Lib Dems introduced the Asset of Community Value protection in the 2011 Localism Act precisely for cases such as this,”
“There is a possible rescue scheme proposed by the Our Brighton Hippodrome group, but in order to have a chance of succeeding, we need the six-month moratorium that ACV status would bring.
“The council must apply for this without delay as the building is in urgent need of repairs.”
Brighton Pavilion Lib Dem parliamentary candidate Chris Bowers. added:“People may have heard the term ‘Asset of Community Value’ being bandied about, but I suspect few really know what it means.
“The Lib Dems in government got it included in the Localism Act to give local communities a greater chance to find buyers for pubs and other facilities that might otherwise be sold off for development. Like the Hippodrome, many pubs are privately owned, but if a pub or facility is an Asset of Community Value, the owners have to notify the local council if they want to sell; and if a group of citizens wants to buy the asset, they are allowed six months to prepare their bid. The measure is really helping communities – so far, well over 100 pubs have been declared ACVs as well as certain theatres and sports stadiums.”
The Hippodrome is privately owned, but it is currently unclear what the owners of the Hippodrome intend doing next. Efforts by the local media to contact them have so far come to nothing.
JUSTIN Utley was welcomed to Brighton’s newly refurbished Rialto Theatre by a packed and enthusiastic mainly gay audience. This highly talented musician – singer, guitarist, pianist, activist and lovely gay guy- enthralled his audience as his life unfolded through his music.
His act took a brilliant form of telling his story in musical narrative. Pouring his heart out, often through humour, he took us to places that were uncomfortable, challenging, sexual and revealing.
Brought up as a Mormon in Utah USA his tale exposed the unforgiving nature of some of the challenges of being a Mormon – his father’s attitudes, his mother’s journey, the hypocrisy of religious bigotry towards sexuality and biblical practice of polygamy brought up a number of delicious songs and brilliant audience atmosphere. A very special evening.
Justin currently lives in New York, has positively rejected his religion, though not his family, and now celebrates his gayness through his music and high profile campaigns for LGBT equality.
He generously donated half the proceeds of this gig to support Hand in Hand- the biggest ever UK and Ireland LGBT choral festival coming to Brighton on the weekend of June 12-14.
Don’t miss the chance to see some of the very best Choirs in the UK perform at the Hand in Hand concert in the Brighton Dome, Saturday 13th June 7.30pm. Tickets cost £10/£14/£17 and are available from 01273 709709 or www.brightondome.org
REVIEWER: Finola Brophy, Co-Chair Hand In Hand Brighton
Given his background, to describe Justin Utley’s music as “a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll” (to quote the Donny and Marie Osmond hit) might almost be thought an insult.
The hunky singer/songwriter from Utah very publicly ‘self-excommunicated’ himself from the Mormon church after enduring its ex-gay conversion therapy following two years of mission service. The resulting performer is a world away from Mormonism’s famous Osmond family, with clean-cut toothy smiles replaced by rough edges and a down to earth reality.
Out and proud, Justin Utley remains a man on a mission, with activism for civil rights and LGBTQ equality firmly on the agenda. Unsurprisingly, this dedication is found in his music but these are not so much songs of protest as songs about real lives being lived in a real world.
The immediately likeable personality allows for some daring when it comes to choice of songs. Undoubtedly, numbers such as the acclaimed Stand for Something pack a punch musically and lyrically with the message of standing up for what you believe but as he sings you sense Justin Utley is investing more in the performance than simply what makes a good song – these are songs that tell his story, react against the bad and encourage the positive.
The stories behind many of the songs are as interesting as the music is catchy: Goodbye, Goodbye, for example, is written and sung with a deep understanding following a brief and far from affirming foray into relationships with the opposite sex (“You should never make someone a priority if they’re only considering you an option,” he says by way of introduction).
If Brighton bears were enticed in to this concert persuaded more by Justin Utley being drop dead gorgeous, they undoubtedly left inspired, challenged and affirmed by a beautiful, affable, charismatic and engaging performer who can’t come back too soon.
More than 130 people have been supported through the city’s first-ever drop in Domestic Abuse Surgery in 12 months.
THE majority – 95% – have been female, according to new statistics which are unveiled as key city partners consolidate the city’s drive to tackle domestic violence and abuse.
The Domestic Abuse Surgery is run by Sussex Police and RISE, the Brighton & Hove domestic abuse charity, and supported by Brighton & Hove City Council.
The Surgery is available at the Customer Centre at Hove Town Hall, every Wednesday morning between 9am and 12 noon.
Through the Surgery, which adds to the ongoing talk to us campaign by Sussex Police, women and men of all ages are able to access expert information and advice from Sussex Police staff and RISE volunteers.
The Surgery offers people a safe space to talk through their concerns, a chance to find out more about the options available to them as well as access to assistance with their housing options and finances.
This service has strengthened the support in the city to end Violence Against Women and Girls.
In 2014/15 the council sustained existing levels of funding for specialist service with the budget standing at £750,000. In this year, working with the Office of the Police & Crime Commissioner, the authority has been able to provide additional resources to victims of domestic and sexual violence in response to increasing demand, totalling just under £100,000.
The council is also leading a joint commission with East Sussex and associate partners from the Office of the Police & Crime Commissioner, Kent Surrey and Sussex Community Rehabilitation Company and Brighton & Hove Clinical Commissioning Group. The total contract is expected to be in the region of £1.1 million per year.
The aim is to bring together a range of existing services, creating simplified care pathways and reduce duplication. This is to better meet the risk posed to, and needs of, victim/survivors and their families in the context of increasing demand.
The council are also working to develop services for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, to improve access to support for victim/survivors who have experienced, and those at risk, of violence and abuse, including Female Genital Mutilation. This project totals £59,000 and involves associate commissioners include East Sussex County Council, West Sussex County Council, the Office of the Police & Crime Commissioner and Sussex Police.
As part of the 16 days of Action, RISE & Impact Initiatives held sessions with young people around the White Ribbon Campaign supported by funding from Brighton & Hove City Council. This reached 80 young people in sessions supported by Young People’s Outreach Workers within Rise in partnership with the young people’s organisations involved. Young people made statements and pledges about abuse, relationships, and consent and each group created a ‘White Ribbon’ display.
Cllr Ruth Buckley
Cllr Ruth Buckley, who is Brighton & Hove City Council’s Violence Against Women and Girls lead, said: “Violence Against Women and Girls destroys lives and is unacceptable. We have worked with our key city partners to end it.
“Our key priorities are to prevent it and ensure earlier intervention through immediate and ongoing support. We know that this makes all the difference and our new Domestic Abuse Surgery is proving that.
“We are also committed to providing protection for those that are suffering violence but also we are determined to work with survivors to prosecute offenders where possible.”
RISE chief executive officer Gail Gray, added: “The Domestic Abuse Surgery has proved to be a vital and much-needed resource for survivors in our city. It’s an additional, community access point, and effective partnership working with Sussex Police.”
Chief Super Nev Kemp
Chief Superintendent Nev Kemp from Sussex Police, concluded: “Every day of the year, voluntary and statutory organisations work in our city to encourage people to access support and advice as early as possible and before abuse escalates. The surgery is another way that people can talk to us and our partners at RISE. It is an additional service being offered and is open to everyone in the city.”
CASE STUDY
Ayla (not her real name) attended the Domestic Abuse Surgery with the youngest of her children. She is not a British National and was concerned that if she left her husband he would carry out his threat to have her deported and permanently separated from her young children.
The RISE IDVA explained the client’s options, that the threats could not be carried out and that she had rights to remain in the country. The woman was able to identify that returning to the home address would be unsafe, that she and her children had suffered enough so the RISE IDVA worked with Brighton & Hove Council Housing Department to ensure the client did not return to the family address. Arrangements were made to collect her older children from school safely and travel to accommodation in East Sussex where the client chose a refuge outside of Sussex. Below is a message from the client to an advice worker at the Domestic Abuse Surgery.
“Thanks Rebecca (advice worker with name changed). We’re now happy in this place. I’ll never forget you and the day you helped me. My 9-year-old son said ‘it felt like we were trapped in a cage for a very long time and now someone has opened it with a key and now we’re free and can breathe properly’. I meant every word I said.
“I’ll be grateful to you for the rest of our lives. We may not see each other again I know, but always remember you have touched our lives so much. One day I’m sure I will be telling my children the story of this journey and even if they haven’t met you personally, I’m sure they will realise how big a part you played in our lives. I admire how people like you at RISE spend time helping people in situations like ours.”
MindOut, the LGBT mental health project have been awarded a grant from the Mental Wellbeing Innovation Fund to deliver a series of weekly peer support groups for LGBTQ people who are juggling paid employment with mental health concerns.
Work it Out will run after work once a week, offering an opportunity to meet, share experiences, learn coping strategies, build confidence and find support.
Jason Saw, Groups Facilitator, says:“So many people who are in paid employment really struggle to get the mental health support they feel they need and want. They may find it difficult to access services or to get time off work for appointments and if offered support find that it is not available outside of working hours. Many LGBTQ people with mental health concerns are not out at work about their mental health or about their sexuality or gender status either, which can really affect people’s wellbeing. Work it Out offers an opportunity to bring people with very similar situations and experiences together to support one another around issues relating to work, mental health, wellbeing and life in general.”
A MindOut service user, said:“Mental health services tell me that I’m well because I am working and it has been so hard to convince them about just how depressed I am. I am not out about being gay or about having mental health problems at work. I am a manager and I am successful professionally, but outside of work everything just falls to pieces. I have nowhere to go where I can talk to people struggling with similar issues”.
MindOut services are free, confidential, non-judgemental and person centred.
For more information on Work It Out and other MindOut services, click here:
LGBT organisation Proud2Be Project has launched a new campaign in support of its Patron, Aderonke Apata, who is currently under threat of forceful deportation back to Nigeria, a country where LGBT people are politically persecuted, imprisoned and murdered.
Aderonke Apata
DURING a recent judicial review, a barrister acting on behalf of the Home Office questioned whether Aderonke could claim asylum on the grounds of being a lesbian when she has children.
Aderonke’s barrister, Abid Mahmood, responded that these were “highly offensive… stereotypical views of the past”.
He continued: “Some members of the public may have those views but it doesn’t mean a government department should be putting these views forward in evidence”.
Now Proud2Be’s WEAREHERE campaign has been launched to support Aderonke by highlighting to government and the general public that many LGBT people are parents, carers and guardians too.
Proud2Be co-founder Mat said:“We are very proud to know Aderonke. She has shown so much support to Proud2Be and we are honoured to call her a friend. This is our way of demonstrating our solidarity with her and those like her who are seeking asylum in the UK on the grounds of sexual orientation and/or gender identity. We are inviting all LGBT people to send in photos of them with their children or alternatively, pictures of their family drawn by their children.”
Identical twin brothers Mat and Jon Price founded Proud2Be nearly four years ago in their mum’s spare room, when they recorded a short video explaining why they are both proud to be gay. Since then a number of high profile LGBT figures, including Stephen Fry, have contributed to what has now become an international campaign.
To join the WEARHERE campaign, email your photos or pictures to info@proud2beproject.org or share them via Twitter using the hashtag #WEAREHERE.
For more information about the campaign click here:
MPs Dr Hywel Francis and Siân James have presented a cheque for £4,000 to sexual health and HIV charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT).
THE funds were raised through the Mark Ashton Red Ribbon Fund at a recent event in Onllwyn to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the miners’ strike and the historic alliance between the Neath, Dulais and Swansea Valley Miners’ Support Group and the London-based Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (LGSM).
The event also saw the launch of a new edition of Dr Hywel Francis’ book on the miners’ strike, History On Our Side, the proceeds of which will also benefit the Mark Ashton Red Ribbon Fund.
(Left) Dr Hywel Francis MP, Ray Goodspeed, (far background) Dr Shaun Griffin, Executive Director of External Affairs at THT (centre) Siân James MP, (right) Dr Rosemary Gillespie.
The story of LGSM inspired last year’s hit film Pride. One of the central characters in Pride is Mark Ashton (played by Ben Schnetzer). Mark set up LGSM to help the miners in the mid-1980s, but died just 12 days after being diagnosed with late stage HIV in 1987. The Red Ribbon fund was set up in his memory. Mark’s friend Chris Birch set up the fund which has raised £15,610 to date.
Dr Francis, MP for Aberavon and Siân James, MP for Swansea East (who is played by Jessica Gunning in Pride) – along with Ray Goodspeed, one of the founding members of LGSM – visited THT on Grays Inn Road, London, on Wednesday, March 18, where they presented a cheque for £4,000 to the charity.
The MPs said:“It was our great pleasure to present this cheque to the THT in memory of Mark Ashton who was one of the founders of the LGSM and this vital link with our community in South Wales. Their generosity and sense of solidarity was a real lifeline for our community during what was a very difficult time.”
Ray Goodspeed said: “It is tragic that Mark died from an AIDS-related illness in the prime of his life, and we hope that this donation will help the important work that the trust is carrying out to help those suffering with HIV/AIDS.”
“I am really moved that the solidarity work of LGSM during the Miners’ strike is still remembered today and that it has allowed us to contribute to the vital work of THT in this way.
“This donation is also the perfect way to honour the vital work that Mark Ashton did during the strike as well as a way to remember the tragic, untimely death of someone who was a force of nature and a really dear friend and comrade.”
Dr Rosemary Gillespie, Chief Executive of THT, added:“We are so delighted for the support of the Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners’ Group and the Neath, Dulais and Swansea Valley Miners’ Support Group through the Mark Ashton Red Ribbon Fund. THT is immensely proud to be part of Mark’s legacy. It is inspiring to see that 28 years after his death, Mark’s activism still moves people to make a difference to the lives of people living with HIV.”
Last Friday, Simon Kirby, MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, visited Coastway Hospital Radio, the radio station that provides 24 hour a day entertainment for patients of both the Royal Sussex County Hospital and the Sussex Eye Hospital.
DURING the visit, Mr Kirby was a guest on one of the afternoon shows, talking about his work as the MP, his campaign for the £468 million redevelopment of the Royal Sussex and he answered questions on a range of other issues.
Simon also took the opportunity to discuss his own background as a businessman in the city, before taking over the DJing duties to play some of his favourite songs.
The songs that Simon played included: Bob Marley and the Wailers – Could you be loved; Toploader – Dancing in the Moonlight; The Beatles – Here comes the Sun; James Blunt – You’re beautiful and Survivor – Eye of the Tiger.
After his visit, Mr Kirby said:“I was delighted to be invited to visit Coastway Hospital Radio, and to meet with the staff there who bring entertainment to the patients and staff at the Royal Sussex and the Sussex Eye Hospital.
“I enjoyed being able to talk about my campaign to see the Royal Sussex redeveloped, and how proud I am to be the Member of Parliament for this area.
“Of course, it wasn’t all about politics, as I also was able to tell them more about my own personal background, and play some of my favourite songs. I think that some of my choices may have shown my age, but I hope that my choices brought some smiles to the faces of the listeners!”
Supporters of Brighton’s music scene are asking you sign an online petition to help stop the closure of the city’s music venues.
CAMPAIGNERS, led by local promoter Mark Stack, want an end to the ‘insanity’ of the current practice, where someone can deliberately move next door to a long established music venue and then force its closure by complaining to the council about noise levels.
On March 26, Mark will be presenting the petition to the full council meeting at Brighton Town Hall. Councillors will then be obliged to debate the issue.
The 1990 Environmental Protection Act primarily deals with controlling toxic emissions in the environment, but also includes measures to deal with areas such as littering, animal welfare, and, crucially, noise abatement. Mark believes that this legislation is now being systematically abused, “Clearly it is designed to protect residents from unruly neighbours and extreme noise from industry. I can’t believe it was intentionally worded to destroy our music venues. This is our cultural heritage we are losing and it needs protecting with as much endeavour as historic buildings, twee streets and Battersea chimneys.”
Brighton is well known as a haven for musicians of all ages. A local music magazine quotes that half of the city’s youth between the ages of 12 and 24 at some point join a band. Protecting the city’s venues is vital if Brighton wants to remain a place where live music can thrive.
Campaigners point out that it’s not just smaller venues that are being affected by this negative trend. Last year saw the closure of the Blind Tiger Club in the heart of the city. Brighton & Hove council issued a noise abatement notice in response to complaints by someone who had moved into the flat above it. The story went viral on social media and was reported in national newspapers. Over 15,000 people signed a petition to save the long-standing venue, but it was finally closed on May 16, 2014
The venue campaign has also received the backing of Mike Weatherly, MP for Hove.
Mike Weatherley MP
Mike said:“Protecting live music venues is crucial. Brighton & Hove has a wealth of established music venues that contribute a huge amount to our city and it would be a tremendous shame to see any of them threatened. I recently raised the importance of live music venues across the country to our economy with the Chancellor of the Exchequer and hope that councillors in Brighton & Hove will protect these important local institutions.”
Mark Stack is keen to point out that he’s not asking for a noise-makers charter: “We just want the council to redress the balance, working together to remove the ability for somebody to move close to an established venue and then have it closed down. The local music scene has a vitality that is so important to the city’s economy, tourism and ability to attract investment.”
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