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US: City Council hopeful may lose place after allegations of using homophobic slurs
During the council meeting, Friedman said: I wouldn t bring this up if this was not a very long series of posts around the Internet on blog sites, on YouTube, that are extremely disturbing, that are racist, homophobic, misogynist, threatening and really beyond something that we as a city can afford to have associated with one of our commissioners. A user named Zareh Sinanyan, had been posting comments on Youtube, as well as other websites, including homophobic, Islamophobic and racist views, up until around five years ago, according to an email sent to at least three City Council members. The allegations arose after a Glendale Blog, sent screenshots of the comments to the council.
Some of the comments were posted in response to other users, however a Facebook comment from September 2012, allegedly left by the City Council hopeful, on the Armenian National Committee of America included a racial slur against mongolians. Another reads: Fuck you, fucking faggot. Name the place bitch.
Tell me where you are and I will be happy to meet you and shove a big tennis racquet up your vratsi ass. Most of the original comments had been removed from Facebook and YouTube. Both Friedman and Councilman Ara Najarian had moved to have the City Council consider taking the accused off the city Community Development Block Grant Advisory Committee at Tuesday s meeting.
In an election on 2 April, both Najarian and Friedman are seeking re-election, and are among 12 candidates, including Sinanyan, running for three seats. Sinanyan was appointed to the committee in November 2009 by Najarian and he served as chairman between 2009 and 2011. Friedman and Najarian declined to comment on the case ahead of Tuesday s meeting.
A spokesman for the council said that some people believed the comments were placed there as a cruel hoax . Scott Lowe, a blogger who reported the images, said that it appeared the posts were made anonymously, but that when Sinanyan linked his YouTube and Google+ accounts, the site retroactively connected his name to all comments made prior. He said the comments were removed this week, as emails began circulating.
The agenda for Tuesday s meeting read: City staff has not verified and does not and cannot represent that these posts or any other posts were made by Mr. Sinanyan. The accused s campaign director, Elen Asatryan, said: Since the City Council has chosen to place this on its agenda, he will address those concerns on Tuesday.
Several local leaders have pulled out from supporting Sinanyan, until it is proven that he did not write the comments. They include Representative Adam Schiff, Los Angeles mayoral candidate Eric Garcetti, and City Councilman Paul Krekorian. Krekorian wrote to Sinanyan on Friday to say that he was withdrawing his support.
He said: While I very much hope that the facts will demonstrate that you have no connection to these vile comments, until such time I cannot even impliedly lend my support to intolerant viewpoints and language that are contrary to everything I believe. On the campaign Facebook page for Sinanyan, his supporters have referred to these allegations as a smear campaign . Unfortunately it has become a common practice in this town that if you cannot beat an individual and/or when you feel that you have no possible chance against a candidate of Zareh s caliber, start spreading lies and rumors in order to distract people from the real issues, posted Sam Manoukian, a current member of Glendale s Civil Service Commission.
I promise you that we will diligently work to find out who is behind this smear campaign and hold them responsible for their actions.
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Update: Vote on removal of pro-same-sex marriage Illinois Republican chairman cancelled
It strengthens and reinforces a key Republican value that the law should treat all citizens equally. He was justifying his backing of a bill to legalise same-sex marriage in Illinois. The Chicago Tribune reports that the committee has cancelled today s meeting to discuss Mr Brady s support, and has said in a statement: We are sorry for the late notice but we wanted to give the chairman every opportunity to respond to our request that he be present in person or by telephone at this meeting.
However, Mr Brady had given notice to the party that he would be away this weekend on vacation several weeks ago. Sources within the Republican party said the committee had found it difficult to secure the 60% of the weighted vote they would need to oust Mr Brady, suggesting they had cancelled the meeting to prevent embarrassment. There were also said to be those questioning whether the special meeting could take place under Illinois Republican party rules.
Mr Brady said of the special meeting that it enforced public perception that the Republican party is a group of old white guys , but said he would respect the decision of the committee. Committeeman Jim Oberweiss backed calls for Mr Brady to be removed, saying: When you start publicly lobbying against a plank in our state and national party platforms, without even discussing with or advising the board of directors, I think he s gone too far. Other Republicans were concerned that the meeting would deepen divides within the party and harm its public image.
Former Republican Governor Jim Edgar, who is anti-marriage equality, said he felt Mr Brady had done a thankless job , and cautioned against ousting him from his role, saying the party would be damaged if it fired a major figure over a social issue. If you re concerned about the future of the party, if this is how it s perceived, We got rid of him because he s for same-sex marriage, long term that could have a detrimental effect on the party, he said. The same-sex marriage bill Mr Brady backed was cleared by a House Executive Committee late in February.
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US: Illinois Republican party chairman may be ousted for same-sex marriage support
It strengthens and reinforces a key Republican value that the law should treat all citizens equally. Mr Brady said of the special meeting that it enforced public perception that the Republican party is a group of old white guys , but said he would respect the decision of the committee. State Central Committeeman Jim Oberweiss predicted that the special meeting would get the required three-fifths of committee support needed to vote Mr Brady out of the position.
When you start publicly lobbying against a plank in our state and national party platforms, without even discussing with or advising the board of directors, I think he s gone too far. We d have exactly the same reaction if suddenly Pat decided to talk about the merits of Obamacare, Mr Oberweiss added. The National Organisation for Marriage (NOM) organised a campaign to flood committee members with emails calling for Mr Brady to be ousted.
In February NOM pledged to spend $500,000 ( 329,000) to defeat any pro-equal marriage Republicans. Former Republican Governor Jim Edgar, who is anti-marriage equality, said he felt Mr Brady had done a thankless job , and cautioned against ousting him from his role, saying the party would be damaged for firing a major figure over their a personal view on a social issue. If you re concerned about the future of the party, if this is how it s perceived, We got rid of him because he s for same-sex marriage, long term that could have a detrimental effect on the party, he said.
In many ways Mr Brady s support echoed that of the British Prime Minister David Cameron who said I don t support gay marriage in spite of being a Conservative. I support gay marriage because I am a Conservative. Just like the Conservative back-benchers in the UK who oppose David Cameron s support for equality, Republican politicians have condemned Mr Brady s support.
I was shocked, Mr Oberweiss said: Very surprised. Did not expect that and didn t know why he would have done that. There were even calls from within the party for Mr Brady to resign, which he resisted.
Mr Brady stood by his support saying: If people want to throw me out because I took on an issue of discrimination as the chairman of the Republican Party, the party founded by Abraham Lincoln, then that s that s up to them and they re free to do it. But I m not backing down. Discuss this Get the latest LGBT headlines in your inbox with our free daily newsletter!
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London: Anti-gay marriage public meeting at Tooting Mosque in response to Muslim MPs support for equal marriage
According to the organisers, it s in response to the huge controversy of last month s decision of the majority of British Muslim MPs to support the government same-sex marriage bill. Muslim MPs Rushanara Ali (Labour), Sajid Javid (Conservative) Shabana Mahmood (Labour) and Anas Sarwar (Labour) voted in favour. Britain s most senior Muslim MP, shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan, has recently received death threats for voting in support of the bill.
The Chair of the Wandsworth LGBT forum, David Robson, became aware of the meeting on Friday afternoon after a member of the forum came across an advert near his home. Mr Robson told PinkNews.co.uk that the forum was worried about what potentially could be said at the meeting and the impact on the reputation of the borough as the meeting sends out an anti-gay message . According to Mr Robson, the Metropolitan Police has been informed of the meeting.
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FBI investigates gay and racist hate incidents at Ohio s Oberlin College
In one instance, a note was left in the Multicultural Resource Center that read Nigger + Faggot Center. In the same month, a poster was defaced to say Year of the Queer . Oberlin College was one of the first university s in America to allow racial integration between white and black students.
Classes were cancelled on Monday 4 March after a report of someone wearing what looked like a Ku Klux Klan-type hooded robe on campus. Oberlin College declared Monday a Day of Solidarity and President Marvin Krislov said in a statement: We hope today will allow the entire community students, faculty, and staff to make a strong statement about the values that we cherish here at Oberlin: inclusion, respect for others, and a strong and abiding faith in the worth of every individual. Indeed, the strength of Oberlin comes from our belief that diversity and openness enriches us all, and enhances the educational mission at its core.
Campus Pride previously gave Oberlin 5-out-of-5 for gay-friendliness.
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US: Texas woman charged for beating son with electrical cable for gay sex act
Moore said: My cousin, at the time, he was 18. My son he was 15, and I had walked in the room on my cousin giving oral sex to my son and I started whooping my son, and I m the one who got in trouble as a result of me whooping him. She added: It was just disgusting to me, the way he was looking and my cousin was looking, and my cousin immediately ran out the door.
The police department told me that it was consensual, but they was committing a homosexual act in my house and we are totally against that. So I whooped my son and about three or four months later they came and arrested me for abuse. As well as justifying her actions based on her disgust , Moore said she had beaten her son because she had also been beaten that way as a child.
She added that she did not discriminate, as she would have done the same thing if she had caught her daughter in a similar position. She said: What do you do in a situation like that where I m catching my son having sex? It would be no different than me catching my daughter and she had a boy in the house and me disciplining her for having a boy in the house.
Moore is facing a Class-A misdemeanour assault charge, which has the potential to result in a jail sentence. She remains adamant that she did not act wrongly, and claims that the police officer who charged her had said that, off the record, he would have done the same. This was denied by the Police Department.
Moore said: Even that day when the police officer came out here, he told me out of his own mouth, If it was me and I walked in on my child, he said, parent to parent I probably would have shot him. I probably would have shot both of them. But with the law you can t, you re not allowed to put whoops on him.
He said you can whoop him, but you re not allowed to leave any marks on him. Chief Dan Dennis of the Forest Hill Police Department said that Moore had lied about the officer s comments. He told CBS: Miss Moore s statement of the officer s alleged inappropriate comments are simply untrue.
The conversation was recorded. The officer s conduct was entirely professional. The Forest Hill Police Department does not discriminate against any citizen based on sexual orientation.
The 18 year old cousin could potentially be charged, but Moore has refused to allow police to interview her son. The Police Department said The fact that we couldn t interview the victim hindered us from furthering the case. Discuss this Get the latest LGBT headlines in your inbox with our free daily newsletter!
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Zimbabwean PM Morgan Tsvangirai accused of hate speech by gay rights group
Why do you want to sleep with another man? Zimbabwe is to hold a referendum this Saturday on its draft constitution. It explicitly bans same-sex marriage.
On Friday, Gay and Lesbian of Zimbabwe (GALZ) described Mr Tsvangirai s comments as reckless and going against the inclusive legal spirit of the constitution. In a statement it said: GALZ is of the view that Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai s statements fuel public prejudice against LGBTI individuals and contradict the very preamble of a draft constitution that he is seemingly promoting . It added: The PM has been jolted into castigating violence in Headlands recently however we find him equally guilty of inciting violence and advocating hatred and hate speech on the LGBTI community in Zimbabwe.
Male same-sex sexual activity is illegal in Zimbabwe and since 1995 the government has carried out campaigns against gay men and lesbians. Robert Mugabe, president since 1987, has been a staunch promoter of homophobic persecution. He marked his 88 th birthday party in February 2012 by urging gay people to go to hell in a public speech.
President Mugabe has also said gay people are worse than pigs and dogs . Over the past few years, Morgan Tsvangirai appears to have done a U-turn on gay rights. Speaking to the BBC in October 2011, he said gay rights were a human right that should be respected by Zimbabweans and that freedom of sexual orientation should be protected in his country s constitution.
However, Gay and Lesbian of Zimbabwe said his latest comments prove the PM has failed to uphold his commitment to human rights and the acceptance of diversity.
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Poll: Support for same-sex marriage among US Catholics rises to 54%
Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said: Catholic voters are leading American voters toward support for same-sex marriage . Among all Americans, it s a closer margin, with 47% supporting and 43% opposing equal marriage. Meanwhile, as the Vatican prepares to select a new Pope, most American Catholics believe the leadership of the Catholic Church is out of touch with their views.
52 % of US Catholics say the leaders out of touch, while 40% say they re not. Following last month s resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, LGBT Catholics in the US and around the world have stated the importance of the Vatican moving away from its current anti-gay doctrine. The poll also shows that 52% of Catholics want the new Pope to take the Catholic Church in a new direction.
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US: Family file lawsuit against school for barring their trans daughter from using girls bathroom
After seeking medical advice they learned Coy had gender dysphoria, and followed the recommendations of doctors who told them she should be allowed to live as a girl. At first this recommendation was also supported by Eagle Elementary, who registered Coy as a female student and allowed her to use the girl s bathrooms while in Kindergarten. However, in December 2012 the school told Coy s parents she would no longer be allowed to use the girls bathrooms and would have to use facilities in the nurses offices, teachers bathrooms, or boys bathrooms instead.
Coy is not sick, she is not an adult, and she is not a boy, her parents responded. They took Coy out of Eagle Elementary for homeschooling and in February lodged an official complaint against the school. Eagle Elementary has rejected calls to mediate over their treatment of Coy, prompting her parents to file a civil rights lawsuit.
If the school separates her from all her classmates to use the bathroom, they are singling her out for mistreatment, and teaching her classmates that it s okay to discriminate. We are saddened that her school will not even come to the table to talk about this issue, they said. The Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund (TLDEF) have pointed out that Colorado s laws prohibit discrimination against transgender pupils.
They said: We are shocked that her school will not even meet to talk about this so that Coy can quickly return to school. Nothing should be more important to a school than ensuring that students can attend safely and without discrimination. TLDEF Director Michael Silverman added: For many transgender people, discrimination is a daily part of life.
Unfortunately for Coy, it has started very early. The school have said that their decision took into account not only Coy, but other students in the building, their parents and the future impact a boy with male genitals using a girls bathroom would have as Coy grew older . Kathryn Mathis has dismissed the school s response, saying they should not discriminate against Coy based on speculations.
Her body development is none of their business. That is up to her and her doctors in the future, she said. Right now we need to be protecting a 6-year-old, not a middle-schooler or a high-schooler.
The case will now be investigated by the Civil Rights Division (CRD), a regulatory agency in Colorado. The CRD will have 180 days to investigate before making a ruling, which can then be appealed by the party that is ruled against. From there the case will be referred to the courts.
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London vicar: Gay marriage is a sin and people can be cured from being gay
Speaking to the Barking and Dagenham Post, Reverend Hanna said: I am not saying that being gay is a sin. I am saying gay practice is a sin and gay marriage is a sin. There is a difference between having gay thoughts and performing gay practice.
I can have adulterous thoughts and yet not commit adultery. People can be cured from being gay. Not everyone is but everyone can be.
The letter released by the 21 church leaders reads: We believe marriage to be holy matrimony between a man and a woman. We believe that civil partnerships and gay marriage are not holy and are against God s word. We believe that church leaders, politicians and government ought not to be promoting them and that to do so will bring God s judgment upon us.
It continues: Jesus spoke tough truths yet was still able to love people. We urge all churches and Christians to do the same in the knowledge that there is transforming grace and forgiveness. Reverend Hanna also defended the letter against suggestions that it was anti gay.
He said: It is not against the gays. God loves the sinner but hates the sin. It is like me saying murder is a sin, but the murderer can be helped.
With God you don t have to live like that. Jesus is the friend of sinners because he wants to help us not sin. In February, MPs in the British Parliament voted in favour of the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill by 400 to 175, a majority of 225.
The bill is currently receiving greater parliamentary scrutiny after the Commons committee has completed its work the bill will then be subjected to another vote (third reading) by MPs and it will then undergo a similar process of approval in the House of Lords.
Clause 1 of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill passed committee stage 13 votes to 4, and is being considered by the Public Bills Committee in the House of Commons.
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