I'm happy to see that Hayley Wickenheiser will be carrying the Canadian flag at the Sochi Olympics. Not just because she deserves it. But also because I'm sure if she has a chance she'll let Vladimir Putin know what she thinks about his persecution of Russia's LGBT people.“I am supportive of
Continue readingTag: gay rights
The Disaffected Lib: Archbishop of Canterbury – Homophobes are "Wicked"
Britain’s top prelate, the Archbishop of Canterbury, warns that Christians need to “repent” the mistreatment of gay people and, if they don’t, they’re “wicked.” The Most Rev Justin Welby told an audience of born-again Christians in London that the vast majority of people under 35 find the Church’s beliefs on
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Gwen Landolt: The Hoggy Homophobe Strikes Back
Uh oh. Bacon Bigot Alert. The ghastly homophobic hog Gwen Landolt is honking again.Claiming it was very VERY unfair to criticize her for attacking John Baird for speaking out for gay rights in Russia and Uganda.Because according to her porcine majesty, LGBT people in those countries are not really being persecuted. The Russian law in question concerns itself
Continue readingMontreal Simon: John Baird and the Hoggy Homophobe
Lordy. It's taken me a day to recover from this stunning sight. I haven't seen such a match up since El Macho met La Cuca in the finals of the Tijuana Wrestling League.And I still can't believe it eh?Was that really John Baird doing the right thing for once? By denouncing the anti-gay repression in Russia?
Continue readingREAL Women’s real bigotry
John Baird – doing the right thing Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird has done a commendable job of defending gay rights everywhere from Uganda to Russia. Not everyone agrees, however, with his initiatives. REAL Women of Canada, a group that describes itself as a “pro-family conservative women’s movement,” has roundly
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Desmond Tutu: I’d not worship a God who is homophobic
Iconic retired archbishop Desmond Tutu denounces religions that discriminate against gays, declares he’d not worship a God who is homophobic. The post Desmond Tutu: I’d not worship a God who is homophobic appeared first on The Canadian Progressive.
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Stephen Harper’s Stealth War on Gay Canadians
In just a few hours I'll be following the rainbow, or waving it, at the Toronto Pride parade.Along with about a million gay people and their straight friends and supporters.It's always an awesome spectacle. A chance to celebrate our community, our survival, and in my case at least, send a giant
Continue readingMelissa Fong: “Fight for liberation, not privilege”: For those who fight for Equity, not equality
Sometimes you read something that is so good and encapsulates what your heart has been wrenching about that you must share it. I have followed the Gay rights movement, the Queer rights movement and the general sentiment of “Just let me be a f*cking PERSON” movement for a long time.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – As would-be frackers show us exactly why it’s dangerous to give the corporate sector a veto over government action, Steven Shrybman suggests that corporations are mostly doing only what we’d expect in exploiting agreements designed to prioritize profits over people: Canadian businesses are
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – The Broadbent Institute’s “Union Communities, Healthy Communities” report discusses the significance of the labour movement in achieving positive social outcomes. And Rick Smith concurrently writes that the right’s attacks on unions represent a solution in search of a problem: (W)hen unions are
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Shawn McCarthy discusses the Cons’ latest plan to sell Keystone XL to the U.S. – which involves hoping that the best-resourced government on the planet will be suckered into accepting a transparently false pretense that the Cons have the slightest interest in addressing
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Obama and the Shrinking of Stephen Harper
What a fairy tale day it was. What an awesome spectacle of democracy. What a great day to be a progressive.A black President on Martin Luther King Day standing up for freedom, justice, and equality.A solemn President Barack Obama took the oath of office for the second time in as
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Emerging Consensus on Gay Marriage
Assuming that the world survives this coming December 21, the United States Supreme Court is expected to rule on two cases in June which could result in the nation-wide legalization of gay marriage. I cannot forecast with certainty how the court will decide, but supposing for a moment that it
Continue readingRedBedHead: Joy At Republican Humiliation Shouldn’t Make Us Forget The Choices Sucked
I was in a bar/restaurant near my house on election night, trying to get some work done and watching the results come in. At first it seemed like a nail-biter (though I was convinced that it would be a fairly easy sweep for Obama) and people were texting and Facebooking
Continue readingRedBedHead: Obama’s Betrayals Made Romney Credible
Everybody’s biting their nails and holding their breath. What’s going to happen? Who’s going to win? The “Hollywood liberal” machine is out in full force with clever ads by luminaries like Joss Whedon of Avengers, Buffy and Firefly fame and hipster filmmaker Lena Dunham chiming in. There’s no doubt that
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Free Speech, Hate Speech, and Chick-Fil-A
In honour of Pride Week here in Vancouver, I can think of no better time to wade into the growing Chick-fil-A row currently ruffling the feathers of our southern neighbours. For those who don’t follow American news (it’s not like we’re a different country or anything), Chick-fil-A is a US-based
Continue readingMontreal Simon: The Gays and the Church of the Bigot Chicken
I don't really know what to say about this Made in Amerika story eh? Because it's got EVERYTHING. Bigots, gay marriage, Jesus, and a steaming heap of deep fried chicken. Hundreds of thousands of people across the country headed to Chick-fil-A restaurants on Wednesday, answering a call from Mike Huckabee,
Continue readingArt Threat: Russian LGBT Film Fest pushes ahead despite attacks – A conversation with the founder of the Side By Side Festival
It is an extreme act of bravery and commitment to put on a queer film festival in many parts of the world, where the cultural politics of film festivals play out in ugly and often violent manifestations of hatred and ignorance. Homophobia is rampant the world over, but in countries
Continue readingCANADIAN PROGRESSIVE WORLD: Anderson Cooper: “The Fact Is, I’m Gay”
A couple of years ago, a friend swore to me that the CNN’s Anderson Cooper was gay. And that it was a matter of time before he came out. I argued that Cooper would be gay only after he’d publicly confirmed that he was gay. The essence of the conversation
Continue readingTerahertz: Ontario passes Anti-Homophobia Law, BC next?
Today’s good news is that the Ontario Liberals and NDP cooperated long enough to pass anti-bullying legislation which specifically supports gay rights. Furthermore, the bill forces Ontario’s publicly funded Catholic schools to permit students to form Gay Straight Alliances. While those Catholic schools will continue to receive public money, some
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