Gay News: 2007


	Gay News 2007

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28th December

Censorial MPs Don't Like being Censored...

And for once oppose censorship

Full story: Gay Hate Law in the UK...Christian MPs and ban on anti gay speech

Based on an article from Pink News see full article

A group of nutter MPs has tabled an amendment designed to ensure that homophobic Christians can continue to express their views on gay people.

Devout Roman Catholics Ann Widdecombe and Jim Dobbin are among the MPs attempting to amend the government's proposal to make incitement to hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation a criminal offence.

Christian Concern for our Nation, a pressure group which attempts to stand up against a tide of unChristian legal and political changes in the United Kingdom, is urging its supporters to pressure MPs into supporting the new amendment.

Stonewall, the gay equality organisation, have been giving evidence to parliament's scrutinising committee about the sort of incitement to homophobic murder and hatred that goes unchallenged. Chief executive Ben Summerskill quoted extensively from the homophobic lyrics of dancehall star Beenie Man and others to demonstrate the nature of their comments about gay men and lesbians.

Summerskill rejected concerns that a law banning incitement to religious hatred would be used to silence the voices of religious people who regard homosexuality as a sin: We are crystal clear that people are perfectly entitled to express their religious views. We are also crystal clear that the temperate expression of religious views should not be covered by the legislation. One might also want to look at the context in which any expression is made that people should be killed or put to death because they are homosexual.

The homophobic incitement provisions were later passed by the whole committee, and none of the Tory MPs voted against them.

The new amendment from Christian MPs reads:

Nothing in this part shall be read or given effect in a way which prohibits or restricts discussion of, criticism of or expressions of antipathy towards, conduct relating to a particular sexual orientation, or urging persons of a particular sexual orientation to refrain from or modify conduct relating to that orientation.

Among the MPs asking for the right to show antipathy towards their gay constituents are: Lib Dems Colin Breed (South East Cornwall) and Alan Beith (Berwick Upon Tweed); Conservatives Philip Hollobone (Kettering) and Ann Widdecombe (Maidstone and the Weald); and Labour MPs David Taylor (North West Leicestershire) and Jim Dobbin (Heywood and Middleton).

26th December

Update: Brighton Music Censors...

Brighton council on dodgy grounds for music censorship

From the The Argus see full article

Brighton council is trying to ban anti-gay music in clubs yet is loaning CDs from its libraries of artists who have penned homophobic lyrics.

Pubs and clubs which play or allow artists to perform songs inciting homophobic acts face having their licence taken away in Brighton and Hove.

But it has emerged that work by Buju Banton, who recorded a song called Boom Bye Bye which advocates the shooting of gay men, and an album of songs by rapper Eminem, which includes homophobic lyrics, are available for loan at Brighton and Hove City Council libraries.

The CDs were initially withdrawn yesterday after The Argus contacted the council but tonight a spokesman for the authority said: We've not banned any acts from nightclubs and it's not our role to provide artistic taste police in our cultural facilities either.

The council last week voted to tackle so-called "murder music" with a new section to its licensing policy. Although the new council policy cannot legally ban any form of music, it was specifically designed to discourage murder music acts and allows licences to be reviewed if performances include incitement to violence.

The council spokesman said: A small section in the council's new licensing policy is aimed at preventing crime and antisocial behaviour in licensed premises. There is no ban or censorship on any particular artist or song and this section of the policy is not there to prevent people being offended - its sole purpose is to prevent crime and disorder.

This is a separate issue to the library service, which also does not aim to censor material which is legally available to the public. The library service sets out to maintain a balanced stock of material, offering a wide range of materials reflecting a broad spectrum of views and opinions. The Eminem Marshall Mathers LP was released over seven years ago, the lyrics are controversial and the CD is labelled with an explicit content warning."

19th December

Update: Faggot Back on Christmas Menu...

BBFC relent on censorship of Pogue's song

From the Telegraph see full article

BBC Radio 1 has bowed to mounting pressure to play the uncensored version of Fairytale of New York after a flood of complaints from listeners and the mother of the singer Kirsty MacColl.

Andy Parfitt, the station controller, admitted that the decision to bleep the word “faggot” from the iconic Christmas song had been “wrong” and said the uncut version would from now on be broadcast. He backed down, saying that the singers did not use the word with any “negative intent”.

The station's head of music, George Ergatoudis, had ordered the word to be removed from the single, which is in the running to be this year's Christmas number one, for fear of upsetting homosexuals.

MacColl's mother, Jean, had dismissed the move as “pathetic and ridiculous”, saying that some of the world's most famous writers used bawdy language: Shane has written the most beautiful song and these characters live, they really live, and you have such sympathy for them.

Radio 1 listeners also inundated the station's website with complaints about the decision. Even gay rights campaigners had criticised the decision as “misguided”.

Andrew Gilliver, spokesman for the Lesbian and Gay Foundation, said: I have spent hours ringing around and trawling the internet and I can't find anyone in the gay community who is offended by this song, in fact it is well loved.

19th December

Archbishop of Intolerance...

Latvian cardinal calls for anti-gay prime minister nominations

From Pink News see full article

A Roman Catholic Cardinal has suggested that gay people should be banned from political office.

Latvia's Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis resigned last week and the Archbishop of Riga Janis Pujats warned new candidates not to support LGBT related issues.

He asked that all candidates running for the post of Prime Minister state whether they intended to defend the Latvian nation against the invasion of homosexuality in public life. Anyone who is not a stern advocate of the people's moral values, must neither run nor be nominated for prime minister, he said, urging candidates to give a public answer on the issue, as he said people were entitled to it.

18th December

Christmas Puddings...

The BBC bleep 'faggot' from Pogues song

From the Telegraph see full article

Fairytale of New York , by The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl, has been re-released for the festive period and is a contender for the coveted Christmas number one slot.

It tells the story of two lovers who trade insults on Christmas Eve and one verse ends with the memorable line: You scumbag, you maggot you cheap lousy faggot, Happy Christmas your arse I pray God It's our last.

Radio 1 bosses have bleeped out the word faggot from the song, for fear it will offend homosexuals, but have provoked the ire of one of their own leading DJs as well as listeners.

The decision was criticised as "ridiculous" by Chris Moyles, the Radio 1 DJ, who is leading a campaign to make the 1987 song the Christmas number one.

The BBC said: This is not a blanket ban but a station by station decision.

18th December

Offsite: Customarily Targeting Gays...

Full story: Canadian Customs...Taking a particular interest in banning gay material

Canadian Customs impound shipments to gay book shops
See edgeboston.com

16th December

Toyota, Greek God of Litigation...

Toyota harangue porn star named Lexus

From the Edmunds.com see full article

Toyota's US attorney has sent a cease-and-desist letter to EBoys Studio, based in Switzerland, telling the company to "immediately and permanently cease all use of the name Lexus" in its gay-themed adult films, including DVDs, and the EboysStudio.com Web site, or face legal action.

EBoys president Daniel Grangier, quoted by the GayWired news service, says the performer chose to be called "Lexus" because it is "the name of a Greek god," not because of the cars. Grangier said his company's own attorney is "now in negotiation with Toyota's legal team" and will resist demands for a worldwide recall of two films starring the controversially named actor.
Comment: Porsche Lynn
16th December 2007
Thanks to Alan
Fascinating! I wonder whether they've also considered clapping a writ on the American film star called Lexus Locklear. What about Porsche Lynn?
Moving away from silly stage names, m'learned friends ought to be able to sue a few vintage erotica sites over images of Alana Ford. I'm sure that Spanish and Latin American pornographers must engage the servces of ladies called Mercedes. And no doubt some "AV idols" serving as bukkake targets are surnamed Honda or Suzuki.....

9th December

No Longer Moralising...

Nicaragua legalises gay sex

From Bay Times see full article

Nicaragua's sodomy ban is history. A rewrite of the nation's Penal Code, which takes effect in March, simply left the ban out. We are not wanting to moralize, explained José Pallaís, president of the National Assembly's Justice and Legal Issues Committee. The state should not be regulating conduct or giving moral indicators of how citizens should behave.

We are not making a code of the Catholic Church here, he said. We are making a democratic code under modern principles and principles of legality.
Old Penal Code Article 204 stated: Anyone who induces, promotes, propagandizes or practices in scandalous form sexual intercourse between persons of the same sex commits the crime of sodomy [and] will incur a penalty of one to three years in prison.

At least three nations in Central or South America continue to ban gay sex — Belize, Guyana and Panama — along with several Caribbean islands, including Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.

5th December

Brighton Ear Muffs...

Brighton council ban homophobic songs from pubs and clubs

From the Daily Mail see full article

Homophobic rap music has been banned in Brighton in case it offends the city's large gay population.

Music venues in the city have been ordered not to play certain tracks by artists such as Eminem and 50 Cent.

If pubs and clubs flout the ban, they can be stripped of their licence and closed down.

All music - whether played live or from a recording - that "incites hatred towards minorities" on religious, racial or sexuality grounds is affected.

The move follows an outcry last year over a scheduled performance by the notorious Jamaican artist Buju Banton.

Brighton and Hove's head of licensing, Dee Simson, said: We have a good record on equality and we felt it was important to include this in the licensing policy.

But Trevor Madison, production co-ordinator at Concorde 2, said: Who knows where these things are going?

26th November		Staging Repression ...

	St Louis police halt stage performance
	From The Vital Voice
	The curtain went down on Ronnie Larsen's play, Making Porn, only shortly after it opened over the March 11 weekend at SPOT, 4146 Manchester Street. According to a press release by SPOT owner Thomas Long, St. Louis police halted the show during its second performance on Saturday night. The show is a comedy about the pornographic industry that does contain on-stage nudity, Long said in the release. That nudity allegedly broke the ordinance, according the city. It is unclear whether the nudity in Making Porn or its gay-themed subject matter was the catalyst for this action compared to other shows. Long pointed out that Making Porn was being produced at SPOT by a California-based production company who had leased the space for a three-week run. The show has been produced in numerous other cities in the United States and internationally.

17th November		Contradictions ...

	Jumping on the bandwagon of telling other people what to do
	Very confusing. An obviously well meaning and articulate guy has made a film asking for the freedom to do what he wants to do yet he is now asking for others to be denied their freedom of expression. From the Independent
	Western documentary makers should think twice about making films about Islam because they do not understand the issues as well as their Muslim counterparts, a leading Muslim film-maker has said. Parvez Sharma, whose documentary about what it means to be gay and Muslim had its European premiere at the Sheffield International Documentary Festival recently, said Western non-Muslim film makers were jumping on the "Islamic bandwagon": Post 11 September, [Islam] is suddenly very hot , and he cited the "plane-loads" of documentary makers who flew from New York to Afghanistan after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. For many documentary film-makers there's very little understanding of the complexities. Everyone has been jumping on the Islamic bandwagon. Very few of those films do justice [to Islam]. They suffer from a lack of comprehension. There's this need to cash in on the Islamic theme. Sharma, whose documentary, A Jihad For Love includes emotional interviews with gay Muslims from around the world, torn between their homosexuality and their faith, said there was a "paucity" of Muslim film-makers and called on Islamic documentary producers to make their own voices heard to combat Islamaphobia. His Jihad, filmed over six years, reveals the often shocking treatment meted out to homosexuals in Islamic states such as Iran, where one of the men featured was flogged for attending a gay party, and in Egypt, where another interviewee was thrown into prison, where he was raped, then fled to France. For Sharma, a gay Muslim from the north of India who now lives in the US, making the film was an intensely personal experience. It was very important for me as a Muslim film-maker not to deal with Islam as a problematic monolith, which is how many people in the west see Islam, he said.

8th November		Forgiving Unforgiving Christians ...

	Swedish forum admin freed after jail for anti-gay incitement
	From the Times see full article
	A Christian website editor who was sentenced to two months in prison for inciting hatred against homosexuals has been cleared by the Supreme Court in Sweden. Leif Liljeström, who had already had his sentence cut to one month by the Court of Appeal, was cleared after the court ruled that he may not have been aware that anti-gay comments posted by visitors to his website, Bibeltemplet or The Bible Temple, consituted incitement to hatred. Liljeström said: I actually had a feeling that it would turn out like this. I did what Christians do and asked God. I then got a feeling that it was going to work out well. Liljeström told the court that he had thought long and hard about removing the offending posts before eventually allowing them to remain on the site where they could serve to generate further discussion. One of the more extreme comments was posted by a visitor to a discussion forum thread entitled "Sodomy". The commenter stated that men who cannot summon up the energy to abstain from intercourse with other men should be sentenced to death and hanged from posts in the town square. Although he did not remove it, Leifström did in fact criticise this statement and several others on the site's discussion forum. According to the first court to hear the case, Stenungsund District Court, as website administrator he was guilty of incitement against a group of people for statements he himself had written, and for crime against the law on electronic bulletin boards for guest-messages which he neglected to delete.

15th October		Promotion of Homophobic Standards ...

	New Zealand nutters spout unacceptable bollox
	Based on an article from Gay NZ
	New Zealand's chief censor Bill Hastings is again under fire from nutters who say his decisions are seriously clouded by a 'gay agenda' and years of watching porn. The Society for the Promotion of Community Standards' executive director David Lane believes all hard-core pornography should be banned under New Zealand's censorship laws which guard against 'degrading, dehumanising or demeaning' content. [Hastings] makes it very clear that being gay is a very significant part of his being, of how he addresses and perceives the world, Lane told this weekend's NZ Herald Canvass magazine. Clearly, this does influence the way he assesses what's in the public good… When it comes to watching videos with scene of gay sex, he would have to be looking at that in perhaps a different way to a person who holds to a heterosexual understanding of marriage or fidelity to their spouse, concluded Lane. In response, Hastings points out that banning everything with explicit content is against the principle of freedom of expression, which is a foundation of democracy: I'm not a moral guardian. I just apply the law… I couldn't do my job if I was on some pro-gay crusade. Those claims are always based on really hurtful stereotypes, which are totally ridiculous and false.

15th October		Nutter Man vs GI Jonn y...

	Nutters whinge at safe sex viral video
	Based on an article from News.com.au
	Parent and media nutter groups have branded a BBC HIV awareness video disgusting and degrading. The video, created by BBC Learning with the help of sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust, is part of an interactive online campaign aimed at 16-to-24 year olds. The video, starring action heroes GI Jonny and Captain Bareback, features explicit references to sexual acts, along with the need for safe sex. Mediawatch-UK spokesman David Turtle told Metro the video degraded women and encouraged casual sex: There is no hint of a loving relationship in this film. It is highly irresponsible of the BBC . National Parent Teachers Association Margaret Morrissey said the video was a waste of money: I think the BBC needs to have a long hard look at itself if it thinks this is the best education it can provide for our teenagers with licence payers' money. . Terrence Higgins Trust spokeswoman Genevieve Clark told Metro: It's clear that we need new ways of getting those safer sex messages out to young people and we know that light-hearted virals like this can be really effective at getting more serious messages across.

9th October		Inciting More Laws

	Straw proposes to make it a crime to incite hatred over sexual orientation
	I thought we had such laws already From the Times see full article
	The Government is to make it a crime to incite hatred because of a person’s sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation, Jack Straw announced last night. The offence will carry a maximum sentence of seven years. Straw, the Justice Secretary, outlined the plans to MPs but the details of the measure are yet to be finalised. He will insert a clause to create the offence when the Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill, which had its second reading last night, reaches committee stage. Under the proposal it would be considered a crime to incite hatred against homosexual, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered and heterosexual people. Prosecutions will be brought only with the agreement of the Attorney-General. The new crime will cover people using threatening words or written material, or recording visual images or sounds that incite hatred because of sexual orientation. Evangelical Christian groups was concerned that people who said gay sex was wrong could end up in jail. Colin Hart, director of the conservative evangelical Christian Institute, said: In a democratic society people must be free to express their beliefs without fear of censure. A homophobic hatred law would be used by those with an axe to grind against Christians to silence them. There have already been high-profile cases of the police interfering with free speech and religious liberty regarding sexual ethics. People shouldn’t face prison for expressing their sincerely held religious beliefs. Andrea Minichiello Williams, of the Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship, said: If such an amendment is put forward, it is likely to be in the form of the existing incitement against racial hatred law. The type of actions targeted would not only be violently homophobic words, but would no doubt cover any criticism of practising homosexuality, homosexual acts and lifestyles. Leading gay rights campaigners insisted that the proposed offence would not lead to the prosecution of people expressing religious views. It will not apply to those who temperately express religious views, a leading campaigner said.

10th October	Update:	Ban on Gay Hatred Incites Religious Hatred

	Preaching gay abomination = incitement of hatred
	Based on an article from the Express see full article
	Nutters could face up to seven years in jail for simply preaching from the Bible under Government plans to criminalise incitement of homosexual hatred. Jack Straw announced proposals similar to the controversial incitement of religious hatred laws to target those who stir up hostility based on sexual orientation. Religious groups warned it could lead to preachers being prosecuted for emotionally expressing their firmly-held beliefs and will restrict freedom of speech. They said gay rights were being given priority over Christian values and that believers felt under threat. Ministers insisted any new law is aimed at extremists, and that people would not be prosecuted merely for expressing an opinion. But sources admitted it would be up to police and the Crown Prosecution Service to decide whether charges should be brought in any individual case. Colin Hart, director of The Christian Institute, said: In a democratic society people must be free to express their beliefs without fear of censure from the state. A homophobic hatred law would be used by those with an axe to grind against Christians to silence them. People shouldn’t face prison for expressing their sincerely-held religious beliefs. An Institute spokesman added: The criminal law will extend to the pulpit and we could have vicars standing before a court trying to defend themselves. Massoud Shadjareh of the Islamic Human Rights Commission said: If someone is reading the Bible and calls homosexuality an abomination, is that going to be incitement? There are similar passages in the Koran and the Talmud. I was against the incitement to religious hatred legislation. Either you water it down until it becomes pointless or you have a situation where you deprive people the right to have access to freedom of speech.

12th October	Update:	Incitement of Biblical Proportion

	Incitement law won't protect gay people
	From Index on Censorship by Brett Lock
	The government's proposed law against homophobic hate speech is unworkable and disingenuous. Unless the government has it in mind to ban the Bible, the new law announced by the government this week proposing to outlaw homophobic hate speech will be ineffective. The major source of homophobic hatred in our society is from religious groups. Almost every single anti-gay group in Britain is religious. These groups hide behind their 'holy' texts, and unless the law has the backbone and resolve to ban these texts and to prosecute the priests, imams and rabbis who quote them, it is wasting its time trying to clamp down on anti-gay hate-speech. The proposed law will bring itself into disrepute and serve only to trivialise homophobic violence if it were only ever used against dim-witted Big Brother contestants and drunk Oxford students, while ignoring religious leaders - the most guilty.

1st October

Australia 'Bans' Gay Videos ...

Video store investigation reveals that niche videos are effectively banned due to small customer base
From The Age see full article
A small Melbourne video store, Out Video, drew the attention of the federal Attorney-General's Department for selling and renting imported titles that have not been classified in Australia.
Bureaucrats may be doing their job, but by acting against a small niche video shop, they have inadvertently exposed critical flaws in our film classification laws.

Out Video markets films primarily directed at the gay and lesbian community. Many are produced overseas and never achieve general or selected release in Australia. And because of the prohibitively high cost of classification, they never get classified.

As a result of the Attorney-General's intervention, Out Video says nearly half their stock will have to be shelved permanently.

This highlights two major flaws in Australia's classification regime:

1. The regime has not adapted to a marketplace that allows media to be accessed through more than just domestic broadcasters and distributors. Consumers demand access to an increasingly wide selection of entertainment from overseas, and they can get it through the internet.

2. Our classification laws are not designed to accommodate small markets. Instead, the classification processes are optimised for large, general-release films. The system simply doesn't lend itself to small-run films, and the law unfairly harms businesses trying to service niche markets.

The targeting of Out Video by the A-G's Department should give it and the OFLC impetus to review the classification laws. With a vibrant and diverse international entertainment sector, these laws should not blanket-ban content. Such a policy makes a mockery of the liberal legal principle that all things should be legal unless there is a reason to make them illegal.

Many of the films these niche providers import have already been classified in the UK, US and Canada. So one possible solution is to recognise comparable classifications from other media-exporting countries.

But a preferable outcome would be the elimination of mandatory classification. If consumers demanded classification to guide their decisions, then distributors would have a commercial incentive to seek it.

28th September

Beer and Bellyaching ...

Gay Last Supper advert winds up christian nutters
Fom CNS News
Organizers of San Francisco's Folsom Street Fair have portrayed Christ and his disciples with gay theme in the event's promotional advertisement, and the nutter group, Concerned Women for America (CWA), is complaining about the hypocrisy of it.

The bread and wine representing Christ's broken body and lifegiving blood are replaced with sadomasochistic sex toys in this twisted version of Da Vinci's The Last Supper , CWA said on its Web site.

Gay activists disingenuously call Christians 'haters' and 'homophobes' but then lash out in this hateful manner toward the very people they accuse, said said Matt Barber, CWA's policy director for cultural issues.

CWA is calling on California politicians to publicly condemn this unprovoked attack against Christ and His followers: We further challenge the media to cover this affront to Christianity with the same vigor as recent stories about cartoon depictions of Mohammed and other items offensive to the Muslim community.

The Folsom Street Fair describes itself as "the world's largest leather event" . We hope to see the fairgrounds filled with people in their most outrageous leather/rubber/fetish attire enjoying the worlds largest and best loved Leather fair, the Web site says.
From CNS News
The leader of the Catholic League on Thursday urged more than 200 religious organizations to join his group in refusing to buy products from the Miller Brewing Company because of the company's sponsorship of the Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco this weekend.

Never have we experienced greater corporate arrogance than in this dispute with the Miller Brewing Company, said Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League: This all started when we learned that Miller was sponsoring an event that featured an obscene ad thrashing the Last Supper. After being pressured, Miller offered a lame statement of regret and said it was pulling its logo from the ad.

Donohue called the Folsom Street Fair an incredibly outrageous and palpably anti-Christian event.

Miller Brewing told Cybercast News Service that although it has supported the Folsom Street Fair for several years, we take exception to the poster the organizing committee developed this year. We understand some individuals may find the imagery offensive, and we have asked the organizers to remove our logo from the poster effective immediately.

To top it off, when we informed them that some of the money being raised at this festival was being funneled to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.

The Catholic League president described the Sisters as "an anti-Catholic group" that is holding a mock Last Supper dinner. The group is not an actual church order but is instead a group of homosexuals who dress as nuns and use names such as "Sister Hysterectoria" while taking part in events that promulgate universal joy and expiate stigmatic guilt.

Accordingly, Miller leaves us with no options, Donohue said. We are calling on more than 200 Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu organizations to join with us in a nationwide boycott of Miller beer.

20th October	Update:	Folsom Support ...

	Enjoy a Miller Beer and wind up the nutters
	From X Biz
	Folsom Street Events (FSE) Board of Directors has issued a statement addressing protests by various religious groups of the organization's flagship event, the Folsom Street Fair, which was held on Sept. 30 in San Francisco. The FSE also has asked its supporters to contact Miller Brewing Company, a vendor and fair sponsor, and encourage the beer company not to “cave in” to pressure from right-wing groups to stop its participation in the fair. FSE said: We have worked successfully with this company for many years, and they have been very supportive. This is no longer an issue of our poster image, but it is an issue of free speech and freedom of expression. We think it's important for Miller to hear from you — the people who enjoy the Fair. Please contact Miller spokesman Julian Green at green.julian@mbco.com to let them know how much you appreciate their support. FSE named the Catholic League as chief among the groups that are protesting the street fair, which is one of the largest outdoor events held annually in California. The event is the culmination of Gay Leather Pride week in San Francisco. We can no longer stand by while Folsom Street Fair remains under attack. The Catholic League insists upon provoking its followers, resulting in emails and phone calls threatening us with everything from ill-will to bodily harm, FSE Board of Directors' President Andy Copper said. We understand that The Catholic League believes it is doing ‘the right thing’ but they are attacking our San Francisco values of community, diversity, education and freedom of self expression. If they do not share in our values or do not understand them, that’s fine; but they have never opened up a dialogue with us. They have only stood in judgment, making threats. We can no longer remain silent on the issue, Copper said. Today, the Catholic League posted another statement, declaring that it will petition rabbis and Muslim imams in the Milwaukee area, to support the boycott of Miller Brewing Company. Last week we sent some photos of the Miller-sponsored Folsom Street Fair to all the pastors of the 166 Protestant churches in Milwaukee. Today we are blanketing all the synagogues and mosques in Milwaukee; we are asking rabbis and imams for their assistance in protesting Miller’s anti-religion agenda. Next week we will target another segment of the Milwaukee community, the League said. Our anti-Miller PR campaign and boycott of Miller beer will continue on a weekly basis until such time that the Miller Brewing Company issues a statement reassuring Americans that it will never again promote an anti-religious event.

21st September

Bishop Gets Arsey ...

Offended by Ibiza art exhibition
From News.com.au
The Roman Catholic bishop of Ibiza has demanded that a collage depicting the late Pope John Paul II being sodomised be removed from an exhibit held at a former church.

The work is one of three collages by Ivo Hendriks that are part of a showcase of art by 15 Dutch artists with ties to Ibiza made over the last 50 years that opened on September 7 and is due to run until the end of the month. The other two collages also depict religious figures in homosexual positions.

Bishop Vicente Juan Segura said the works "offended Catholic sentiment'' and he called for their: immediate and urgent withdrawal. He threatened to take the issue to court if his demand was not met. The bishop claims that Ibiza town hall had violated the terms of the 1997 agreement which allows it to use church buildings since it had not informed the church of the contents of the exhibit as required.
Ibiza's town hall, which approved the exhibition, said it would not remove the works. Ibiza has never and will never exercise any form of censorship of artistic expression,' the town's councillor for culture, Sandra Mayans, was quoted as saying.

7th September

2257 Reasons to Worry ...

The impact of 2257 regulations on social networking sites
From X Biz
The National Gay and Lesbian Taskforce has voiced concerns about the potential impact of 2257 regulations on social networking sites like Manhunt.com or AdultFriendFinders.com, where users post explicit photos of themselves online.

In a statement posted on OutInAmerica.com, the NGLTF gives a brief overview of 2257 regs and raises the prospect of social networking sites being required to keep records of users personal information and copies of photo identification.

These sites will have the same record keeping requirements as other adult businesses. For sites like Manhunt and AFF, it is virtually impossible to comply. The regs seriously compromise their business model, Free Speech Coalition executive director Diane Duke told XBIZ.

In July, the Federal Register published amended 2257 regs. Since then, the Department of Justice is required to accept public commentary for a period of time that will end Sept. 10.

The NGLTF is calling for concerned individuals to contact the DOJ by email: The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is involved in this fight because we believe sexual freedom is a fundamental human right and we don't think the government has any place in relations between consenting adults.

These regulations are part of our government's hypocritical and punitive views about sex, sexuality, and reproductive rights. All of this – from abstinence-only sex education programs to the elimination of funding for accurate and explicit HIV prevention programs – fall hardest on gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

Issues pertaining to how 2257 impact secondary producers, as well as amendments that would include simulated sexual activity under the definition of “explicit” material, are pointed out by the NGLTF as having a chilling affect, not only on the adult entertainment industry but on networking sites, that might be considered secondary producers under 2257.

The NGLTF goes on also to say that while the government claims 2257 is being implemented under the guise of protecting under-age individuals ostensibly being exploited in adult productions, that clearly is not the case: Obviously, none of this has anything to do with child pornography. Instead, it is a blatant attempt to end the ability of consenting adults to use adult social-networking sites to meet other people for sex. Obviously, if these regulations go into effect, they will kill this industry .

Comments may be submitted electronically to the DOJ via Admin.ceos@usdoj.gov or to www.regulations.gov by using the electronic comment form provided on that site. Comments submitted electronically must include “Docket No. CRM 104” in the subject box.

28th August

Defending the Right to Spout Shite ...

Pipex censors quick to pull the plug on Christian Voice
From the Freethinker see full article
One of Britain’s most hate-filled websites, Christian Voice, was temporarily silenced last week following a complaint to Pipex, which hosts the website via a subsidiary company.

The homophobic website, run by Stephen Green, was closed down for four days pending investigations by Pipex into a complaint lodged against it by the Brighton-based gay newspaper, One80News after it had been contacted by a reader, Angie Rowland-Stuart.

She told the paper that she was disgusted by the “spiteful lies” on Green’s website. She said: I do think that Christian Voice has broken the rules of the ISPs (Internet Service Providers) they use. The site should be pulled or become a subject for investigation by the police.

The paper revealed that, following Ms Rowland-Stuart’s complaint, it emerged that Pipex supports the sexual health charity The Terrence Higgins Trust, which is described on Green’s website as a homosexual AIDS charity that promotes homosexual perversion.

In a statement posted on the CV website, Green said: Initially, a Sarah Cooper said Pipex had received a letter of complaint ‘of an official nature’ requesting removal of the website, which suggested some Government involvement. It also spoke of ‘the defamatory material’ on the site without specifying it, so we didn’t have a clue what their problem was.

But now Pipex are speaking of ‘a number’ of individual complaints, which would be consistent with us accidentally ruffling the feathers of some humourless gay activists.

Pipex are under notice of legal action as a result of the down time. A commercial company cannot act as judge and jury unilaterally cutting off valuable web traffic on a whim or because of behind-the-scenes politicking. If they get away with it, every politically incorrect website is at risk.

18th August

Fighting for Intolerance ...

Religious censors attack "gay Jesus" exhibition
From the National Secular Society
A fight involving as many as 30 people broke out at a photographic exhibition in the Swedish city of Jonkoping. The controversy surrounds the Ecco Homo exhibit, which portrays Jesus Christ as a gay man. Ecco Homo has long been a source of disagreement among Swedish Christians.

The series of 12 images was exhibited at the nation's leading cathedral in Uppsala with the permission of the archbishop and toured the country. The Local, a Swedish paper, reported that on Sunday a group of young people tried to set fire to a poster at the Jonkoping cultural centre where Ecco Homo was on display.

The paper said the city is a centre for evangelical Christians. Staff intervened and a fight broke out, according to the centre's director, Tony el Zouki: If this is some Christian group, then I really do not understand them. The message of Christianity is that people should understand and love each other.

The previous pope cancelled an audience with the Protestant Archbishop Hammar of Uppsala for supporting the exhibit – which has been touring for ten years – and allowing it to be shown in churches across Sweden.

4th August

Censorship Discussion Censored . ..

More bans in Singapore's Gay Pride
From Gay 365
Censors have refused to allow an LGBT book reading event and an LGBT human rights forum at gay pride celebrations in the conservative city - the second such bans in a week.

The Media Development Authority balked at a book by author Ng Yi-Sheng about a young man's fictional sexual adventures with older men including military officers and government officials.

The authority said that the book went beyond good taste and decency and disparaged public officers. The board said it would allow the book reading to go on but only with a guarantee Ng's book was not included.

Pride organizers cancelled the event.

In addition, police ordered the cancellation of a human rights forum that was to have featured Douglas Sanders, a professor emeritus in law at the University of British Columbia, Canada, and Thailand's Chulalongkorn University.

The forum, titled Sexual Orientation in International Law: The Case of Asia, was deemed contrary to public interest.

Our laws are an expression and reflection of the values of our society; the discourse over a domestic issue such as the laws that govern homosexuality in Singapore must be reserved for Singaporeans ... foreigners should refrain from interfering, the Home Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

17h July

Pope Pantyhose . ..

Nutters claim blasphemy and art exhibition is cancelled
From Art Forum
Spotted by MediawatchWatch
Vado Retro —an exhibition with 150 works about art and homosexuality, from Da Goeden to Pierre et Gilles—has been cancelled at Milan's Palazzo della Ragione.
The exhibition was already installed when protests were voiced about a "blasphemous" sculpture of the Pope made by the Milan artist Paolo Schmidlin. The sculpture—titled Miss Kitty —features a likeness of the Pope dressed in pantyhose. Another piece showed the Italian Premier Roman Prodi’s spokesman talking to a transvestite.
The Miss Kitty exhibit prompted the Catholic Anti-Defamation League to complain: It is a vulgar offence against Christ’s Vicar and the feelings of the Roman Catholics.

To calm critics, Vittorio Sgarbi, the city's councilperson for culture who is responsible for the exhibition, had already announced that visitors under the age of eighteen would not be allowed to visit the exhibition. But the measure was not enough. The opening was delayed after Miss Kitty and two other works were taken out the exhibition. That measure was also insufficient, at least for Milan mayor Letizia Moratti, who requested that another twelve works be removed from the show, due to their pornographic and pedophilic nature. Sgarbi refused—a refusal that led to the cancellation of the exhibition.

Vado Retro will be shown in its entirety in Naples.

28th May

Offensive Revelations ...

Ofcom find offensive language on Revelation TV
From Ofcom

Revelation TV is a religious channel that often features live phone-in programmes and discussions which from time to time deal with controversial and topical issues. Ofcom received seven complaints from viewers who alleged that some presenters and contributors during some editions of the programmes World in Focus and R Mornings used offensive language when discussing homosexuals, homosexual behaviour and immigrants.

In an edition of the programme World in Focus a panel of three contributors criticised the newly implemented Equality Act and, in particular, the associated Sexual Orientation Regulations, which they alleged would force schools to teach children about homosexuality as part of the national curriculum. Three viewers complained that the discussion was wholly against the new Regulations, with no balance or opposing points of view were given, and that some of the remarks were disparaging and offensive to the gay community.

Four other viewers complained of offensive comments made by Howard Conder, the owner and presenter of Revelation TV, and some of his guests concerning homosexuality and also immigrants in various other programmes.

Ofcom asked Revelation TV to comment with regard to the following Rules in the Broadcasting Code (“the Code”): 2.3 (generally accepted standards) and 5.5 (due impartiality on matters of political or industrial controversy and matters relating to current public policy).
Decision

Ofcom understands that the issue of homosexuality is a contentious one both within and outside religious communities, and that a number of opposing views are held. The expression of such sincerely-held and controversial views may give rise to the potential for offence.

It is therefore important that, where there is the potential for offence, broadcasters must comply with Rule 2.3 of the Code which states that: “…in applying generally accepted standards broadcasters must ensure that material which may cause offence is justified by the context. Such material may include but is not limited to, offensive language…discriminatory language…on the grounds of age, disability, gender, race, religion, beliefs and sexual orientation”.

The issue of the treatment of homosexuality (in relation to the Equality Act and the Sexual Orientation Regulations) was a matter of political controversy and/or matter relating to current public policy at the time it was discussed on Revelation TV. Due impartiality was therefore required. The discussions of the topic on the channel however did not include any representation at all of alternative views. The content therefore breached Rule 5.5.

Breach of Rules 2.3 and 5.5