New Zealand: STI/HIV health alert issued in Auckland

Syphilis and gonorrhoea cases are on the rise in Auckland, where gay and bisexual men are being urged to get a sexual health check-up. Average monthly syphilis cases have increased 120% over the last 18 months, and average monthly gonorrhoea cases by 170% in the last six months. Recent data from University of Otago shows an increase in HIV diagnoses among gay and bisexual men across New Zealand.

“The STI epidemic is very worrying” says Executive Director of the New Zealand AIDS Foundation Shaun Robinson. “There have been several significant breakouts of STIs amongst men who have sex with men over the last two years and the situation appears to be getting worse. We know that over 85% of syphilis cases in New Zealand affect gay and bisexual men and we are also seeing major outbreaks of gonorrhoea. These can do serious health damage if untreated and spread very rapidly in the community. It is very important that men who have had anal sex without condoms get an STI and HIV test.” Read More 

UK: STIs soaring in gay men - warning

The number of sexually transmitted infections being spread in gay men is soaring, according to Public Health England. Figures for 2014 showed a 46% increase in syphilis infections, 32% in gonorrhoea and 26% in chlamydia. The report said there were "high levels of condomless sex" in general and "rapid" transmission of infections in HIV-positive men.

Dr Michael Brady, the medical director of the Terrence Higgins Trust, said: "The continued rise in both syphilis and gonorrhoea is a worry and evidence that we still have much to do to address the nation's poor sexual health and rates of STIs in those most at risk. We should make better use of new technologies and approaches - local awareness raising through targeted social media based on the geographical breakdown of the data we are seeing today and an offer online testing - to reach those who are not accessing 'traditional' services"  Read More

Greece: Interview with Diorella, a trans sex worker in Greece

Imagine that your country is suffering the worst crisis in decades and you're a transsexual prostitutes. Welcome to Diorella's life. In Greece, they distributed food to the needy during the day, and spent the night selling their bodies. But because of the economic crisis, this business goes bad.

21 Eye-Opening Confessions From People Who Are Genderfluid

Genderfluid [or gender fluid] is a type of identity which refers to individuals who have different identities at different times. A genderfluid individual's gender identity may be multiple genders at once, and then switch to none at all, or move between single gender identities. 

“I’m genderfluid and I don’t know how to correct people when they use the wrong pronouns.”  Read More 

The Girl Scouts Support Trans Girls, Even When It Costs

A $50,000 donation is cause for celebration at the Queen Anne offices of the Girl Scouts of Western Washington. “We have these little clapper thingies, and the clappers go mad when we get that kind of gift,” says the council’s CEO, Megan Ferland. So when Ferland came back to the office earlier this spring and announced that she’d just landed a $100,000 donation, the place went mad. Not only did it represent nearly a quarter of the council’s annual fundraising goal, it would pay to send 500 girls to camp. “We were thrilled,” Ferland says.

Except there was a catch. In late May, as news of Caitlyn Jenner’s transition was blowing up your Facebook news feed, she received a letter from the donor with a brief request: Please guarantee that our gift will not be used to support transgender girls. If you can’t, please return the money.

Ferland chooses her words carefully when discussing the donor, whose identity she won’t reveal out of respect for their privacy. “The relationship is complex,” is all she’ll say. But she does admit to being “very sad” upon receiving the letter. Shortly after that, though, she made up her mind about how to respond: In a short letter, she informed the donor that she would, in fact, be returning the money.  Read more

Uganda: Filmmaker comes out as a gay man to local Ugandans.

The Yes Men's Andy Bichlbaum comes out as gay in "Kill the Gays Bill" Uganda - and makes another stunning revelation as well. 

The Yes Men's Andy Bichlbaum comes out as gay in "Kill the Gays Bill" Uganda - and makes another stunning revelation as well. See more in The Yes Men Are Revolting, out this June in theaters and online!

Japan’s bridal industry starts accepting LGBT couples

The bridal industry in Japan has started accepting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) couples as understanding of sexual minorities increases in society.

Hotel Greges in the city of Munakata, Fukuoka Prefecture, which offers bridal services as part of its operations, has been conducting a training program for its staffers, inviting as a lecturer a transgender man who will marry this autumn.

In a survey of 70,000 people ages 20 to 59 conducted by the ad agency Dentsu in April, 1 in 13, or 7.6 percent, said they are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.  Read More

A Canadian history of AIDS activism

Thirty years ago, a dramatic movement erupted on the Canadian scene as people with AIDS demanded treatment, an end to stigma and a host of revolutionary innovations, many of which we take for granted today.

That period of AIDS activism is now the subject of a major historical investigation that is plumbing the memories of those who were involved at the time. The AIDS Activist History Project, headed by Carleton University sociologist Alexis Shotwell, has begun interviewing AIDS activists across Canada and collecting documentary materials. Her research partner is Gary Kinsman, retired Laurentian University sociologist and one of Canada’s leading scholars on LGBT history. Read more

Sweden: National all-LGBT handball team

Known for its revolutionary attitude on LGBT issues, Sweden has yet another breakthrough to report – for the first time in history, a national federation will sponsor an entirely LGBT team in the sport of handball. 

On June 10, the “Stockholm Snipers” were declared to be an official team by the country.
Led by team founder Andreas Carlsson, the organization will make their first public appearance on August 5-9, competing in the EuroGames Stockholm 2015.

Carlsson’s reasoning behind establishing the sports group was to provide LGBT athletes with an outlet, where they would be accepted for their sexualities and skills on the court. He also intended to set an example for the younger generation of players, encouraging them to be content in coming out. Read More

Get To Know The Badass Queer Women In The 2015 World Cup

The Women’s World Cup is well underway, with the quarter finals occurring this week. There were many footballers out and proud in the women's 2015 World Cup, including Abby Wambach who celebrated the US 5-2 victory over Japan in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup final, running to the sidelines to share a kiss with her wife. Read more

Nigeria: Football team Falcons openly discuss faith, but not sexuality

For Nigeria's women's national soccer team, the word "inclusive" has different meanings. Nigeria is a deeply faithful team, praying in small groups on the field before beginning warm-ups for each match and dropping to their knees to do the same following goals they score, including both Muslim and Christian faiths. Yet, a source says that at least two players who would be on the team for the 2015 World Cup are not because they are thought to be gay.

"If a player comes out and says, 'I'm gay,' then the trouble doesn't just start and end with the player," the source tells Wahl. "It goes all the way back to the family: parents, sisters, brothers, cousins, everything. One person just sparks off a chain reaction. That's why it's so tough."

Asked about the topic in a press conference on Monday, Okon said he does not address sexuality within the team. "I don't know what you mean by 'homosexual,' he said. "I don't deal with personal lives. I think of the game proper. I only think of what they do on the pitch. That is what concerns me."  Read More