US refuses UN gay rights Declaration MWC News

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"The US government is one of the only western democratic nations that has declined to support a United Nations Declaration calling for the global decriminalisation of homosexuality. The Declaration will be put before the UN General Assembly this Wednesday, 10 December, which is Human Rights Day and the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights," reports British gay human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell of the London-based LGBT rights group, OutRage!

"It will be the first time in its history that the UN General Assembly has ever considered the issue of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) human rights," he said.

Read more at MWC News

Irish gay marriage activists stage registry office "break in"

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A group that advocates full civil marriage for same-sex couples in Ireland demonstrated in Dublin at the weekend.

In June Ireland's Justice minister published a draft bill that will grant gay and lesbian couples legal recognition in areas such as pensions, social security, property rights, tax, succession and the payment of maintenance.

Read more at Pinknews

Pro-Gay U.S. Catholic Groups to Target Vatican in Wednesday Vigils

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DignityUSA, New Ways Ministry, and Call To Action, three Catholic groups that support gay equality, will hold vigils in five U.S. cities protesting the Vatican's opposition to a UN declaration formally condemning discrimination against gays. The resolution will be presented to the UN tomorrow.

Read more at Towleroad

Openly gay marchers debut at Haiti AIDS rally

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ST. MARC, Haiti (AP) — A dozen men in T-shirts declaring "I am gay" and "I am living with HIV/AIDS" marched with hundreds of other demonstrators through a Haitian city on Sunday in what organizers called the Caribbean nation's first openly gay march.

The march, held a day ahead of World AIDS Day in the western city of St. Marc, called for better prevention and treatment in a country long plagued by the virus.

Organizers said they hoped the march will break barriers to reach more HIV-positive people and gay men with programs that have helped decrease the country's infection rate by two-thirds in the last decade.

Read more at The Associated Press

British Rugby League Says No to Homophobia

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Inspired by former Australian rugby league player and actor, Ian Roberts, who came out in 1995, the Rugby Football League of Britain is hoping to promote LGBT equality in sport.

League officials say posters and logos carrying the message, "Some people are gay. Get over it!" will be displayed at rugby league grounds, in programs and fan areas, as a bid to promote LGBT integration in the sport.

Forums will also be set up for gay, lesbian and bisexual players and staff.

Read more at Lez Get Real

Gays in Vancouver Defy 'No-Show' Westboro Baptist Church

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Fred Phelps' hateful Westboro Baptist Church failed to make good on a promise to picket a performance of The Laramie Project at Havana Café in Vancouver on Friday night, but they would have been stopped in their tracks:

"The church's threat to interfere with the play triggered a huge response from Vancouver's gay community, whose members showed up at the café Friday night to counter any protest by the church. 'It's really important that we take a stand but not a stand out of anger, a stand out of caring and kindness,' said Jim Deva of Little Sister's bookstore, which sells gay and lesbian-related literature. 'I think you defy hatred by love. That's how you deal with hatred, and you open up the dialogue and you begin conversing and talking,' Deva said."

Read more at Towleroad

Hundreds attend memorial for murdered gay teenager

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Liverpool's Anglican cathedral held a well-attended memorial service for a young gay man on Saturday.

Michael Causer, 18, was seriously injured on 25th July this year in an allegedly homophobic attack.

Despite brain surgery, he died in hospital on Saturday 2nd August.

More than 200 people attended the service at the cathedral, among them local gay politician councillor Steve Radford.

Read more at Pinknews.co.uk