Saudi Arabia: YouTube stars call for gays to be executed

Popular Saudi Arabian YouTubers posted a shockingly homophobic video to YouTube. Uploaded by Fe2aFala – popular Arabic vloggers who have more than 500,000 subscribers, racking up over 45 million views 

In a shocking video uploaded to the video site, the young men rant about “Deviant marriage in Riyadh”, apparently after a local raid of a ceremonial gay wedding. They added: “We would like to thank the police for beating their asses.”

The men continue to insist that gays are “disgusting and nasty”, asking Allah to send his “godly wrath” upon them. The men then discuss whether gays are “mentally ill” and needing a “cure” – or whether they are “animals” who need to be “executed in the most horrific ways”. After outcry, YouTube took action to pull the video, with a message now explaining though it has been re-uploaded. Read more via Pink News 

UK: Absolute fear’ keeps gay athletes in the closet

Athletes, business leaders and influential figures from the world of sport took part in a ground-breaking conference yesterday at the Aon offices in the iconic Leadenhall Building in the city of London. Team Pride: LGBT in Sports was created to bring the business world and sports world together to share resources, best practice and open up a dialogue on LGBT inclusion in the sporting world.

Why should the business world care about LGBT inclusion in sport? Chiefly because commercial sport depends on major sponsorship. According to former NBA player John Amaechi, ‘the business world is starting to look at the people they’re spending £45billion worth of sponsorship on, and they’re saying “How can we spend with you if what you stand for is opposed to what we stand for?”’ Read more via Gay Star News

Spain: Free metro passes for transgender people

Madrid's metro has announced it will give away a batch of free annual travel passes to transgender people in the city. Thirty-eight passes will be distributed as part of an effort to promote the social integration of transgender men and women across the Spanish capital, according to the metro's website. "Madrid Metro considers it a priority to raise awareness among the public so as to avoid any type of discrimination and prejudice," it says.

The scheme is a collaboration between the local government-run transport network and the non-profit Spanish Association of Transsexuals (AET), which campaigns for transsexual, transgender, gay and lesbian equality across Spain. The organisation doesn't specify how the recipients of the passes will be chosen, simply saying that they will be people "experiencing social exclusion".

Some social media users have reacted warmly to the plan, with one tweeting: "What a beautiful initiative! Everything that improves human relations is welcome!" But other comments are more negative. Some users think giving travel benefits to one group is unfair to everyone else, while others say that rather than being inclusive, the scheme singles out transgender men and women as different. Read more via BBC 

US: Religious Freedom Act cost Indy up to 12 conventions and $60M

The furor surrounding last year's Religious Freedom Restoration Act might have cost the city of Indianapolis as many as 12 conventions and up to $60 million in economic impact, the city's nonprofit tourism arm confirmed Monday evening.

Though they come with some caveats, the numbers from Visit Indy represent the most tangible effects yet of a controversy that city officials and business leaders long warned would cause real damage to Indianapolis' reputation. When Gov. Mike Pence signed RFRA into law last March, it was met with fierce backlash from civil rights groups across the country, who worried that it would allow Hoosiers to discriminate against LGBT people on the basis of religion. Days later, a so-called "fix" was signed into law to clarify that the state law was not intended to override local civil rights protections.

"It’s baffling how delusional Mike Pence is on his claim that there’s no direct correlation between LGBT rights and the Hoosier economy," Drew Anderson, spokesman for the Indiana Democratic Party, said in a statement. "In fact, Pence’s out-of-touch ideology comes from an ideologue — not a governor. When he signed RFRA last year, Mike Pence threw Indiana directly into a $250 million economic panic, including Indianapolis’ $60 million.” Read more via Indy Star  

India’s first LGBT radio taxi service announced

The initiative by Wings Travels and Humsafar Trust will have taxis chauffeured by the LGBT community members, and is expected to start functioning in 2017.

India’s first radio taxi service for the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) community, Wings Rainbow, was flagged off on Wednesday. The initiative by Wings Travels and Humsafar Trust will have taxis chauffeured by LGBT community members, and is expected to start functioning in 2017. On Wednesday, five volunteers from The Humsafar Trust, an LGBT rights organisation, signed up to drive radio cabs.

Under the pilot programme, five members of the gay and transgender community will apply for a learner’s licence, and complete their training in getting the All India Driver’s Licence. Read more

Australia: Atari launches new LGBT game ahead of worldwide release

An original mobile LGBTI game inspired by pride marches around the world was recently launched by Atari in Australia ahead of its worldwide launch. Pridefest sees players work through missions as the mayor of a city that has lost all of its fun and colour overnight.

Atari chief executive Fred Chesnais said the game was inspired by the LGBTI community and aims to bring their colourful atmosphere and inclusive spirit to a game for the first time: “Pridefest provides the first LGBT-focused game that represents a passionate cause...Pridefest is designed to emulate that sense of joy and fanfare year-round through a social-sim mobile game."

“Our vision for Pridefest is that it can also become a means for isolated LGBT individuals lacking a supportive LGBT network to come together in a safe, welcoming, and fun atmosphere.”

Chesnais said the gaming landscape has changed in recent years around LGBT representation: “GaymerX [queer gaming convention] is in its third year now and growing, which speaks volumes to the number of gamers out there that are interested in playing games that include characters or themes specifically relevant and relatable to the LGBT community.” 

Read more via Star Observer
 

How Twitter quietly banned hate speech last year

Seven years ago, Twitter began its rise to prominence by billing itself as a space where people could speak freely because nobody was censored. The company's rules enshrined this ideal, promising "we do not actively monitor and will not censor user content, except in limited circumstances." But in 2015 all of that changed.

There were changes in Twitter's rules here and there before 2015, usually to make it easier for the company to ban people engaging in spam and fraud. But as more high-profile Twitter users began to experience abuse and harassment firsthand, the company began to reverse its earlier policies.

Without ever touching the language in its rules page, Twitter began to add links out to other documents that explained the "limited circumstances" that could lead to censorship. In March, the company banned revenge porn. In April, they banned any speech that could incite terrorism, or violence against people "on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, age, or disability."

Essentially, writes Jeong, they banned hate speech. Read more via Ars Technica 

Netherlands: Advertising watchdog defends gay hook-up ads at train stations

Adverts for a gay hook-up app will not be banned in the Netherlands, despite a number of complaints. Gay cruising app Squirt had put up the large signs and posters at major train stations across Rotterdam, Amsterdam Utrecht and The Hague. 

Despite a number of complaints, the Advertising Standards Board has ruled in favour of the site – and will allow the campaign to continue.  One complainant claimed that the ad was designed to entice children into visiting the website, while a third said it was “truly sickening and shocking”.
The ASB found that the ads met “the necessary precautions… in the context of good taste and public decency.”

The app’s ads were previously removed from trains in Canada – after the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) claimed they encouraged gay commuters to “break the law”. TTC spokesperson Danny Nicholson said: “The ad was taken down as it promoted sex in public places, which is against the law.” Read more via PinkNews

UK: Crimes linked to Tinder and Grindr increase seven fold

Crimes linked to dating apps Tinder and Grindr, including rape, child sex grooming and attempted murder, have increased seven fold in just two year. More than 400 offences with a connection to users of the apps were reported to police last year and campaigners warned many more could go unreported.

Andy Cooke, deputy chief constable of Merseyside Police national police lead on violence and public protection, said: "The rising popularity of online dating apps and websites has contributed to an increase in the number of recorded crimes. We strongly encourage users to report offences and seek support if they become a victim of any type of crime.

Gay and human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said: "Closeted gay and bisexual men who use Grindr may be especially vulnerable to targeting because criminals know they will be less likely to report crimes to the police. I suspect these figures are just the tip of the iceberg." Read more via Telegraph

China: Gay dating app Grindr gets $93-million investment from Chinese company

Grindr has handed majority ownership to Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun World Wide Technology Co. for $93 million, valuing the Hollywood start-up at $155 million post-investment.

The app has become a go-to hookup app for men looking for same-sex relationships, getting about 2 million daily users. But the company has sought to play a bigger role, beyond matchmaking, in the lives of its users and the investment is aimed at accelerating that process. Grindr, launched in 2009, also has faced competition from apps like Scruff and Tinder since then.

The investment is noteworthy because Chinese authorities do not recognize same-sex marriages or civil unions, and being publicly gay remains taboo in China. But Chinese gay rights activists have scored some recent victories, and the increased pressure may begin to open some doors. Read more via LA Times 

Davos 2016: US Vice President Joe Biden urges world business leaders to do more for LGBT rights

Speaking at WEF, Joe Biden has urged business leaders to do more to promote the rights of LGBT people in the workplace. The Democrat said: "When it comes to LGBT rights in workplace, the world is looking to you. I know that sounds like hyperbole, sounds like an exaggeration. But they look to you. You have more impact than anything the federal government has done, or the Supreme Court of the United States has done, or that Barack Obama or Joe Biden have done lighting up the White House. You have more impact. You have more impact in countries around the world than we do on those social issues".

Speaking to a number of business leaders from companies including Microsoft, Google and Coca-Cola, the 73-year-old also addressed issues of human rights and discrimination around the world.

He said: "Mistreated by cops, denial of health care, isolation – always in the name of culture. Culture never justifies rank, war, discrimination or violation of human rights. There is no cultural justification – none, none, none. And think of the countries behind 'this is our culture'.  Watch his remarks via IBT