BBC claimed its 1970s gay actors were ‘just waiting for the right woman’

The BBC claimed gay actors like John Inman were just ‘waiting for the right woman’ as no one was openly gay, according to a former newsreader and current MP.

John Nicolson, who left BBC Breakfast to become a MP for the Scottish National Party, has reflected on when he came out in 1999.

When he originally revealed his sexuality, he said he was tired of people assuming he was straight and that he wanted to show kids that camp figures like Dale Winton are not the only role models for LGBTI youth.

Taking part in a debate in parliament on diversity in public sector broadcasting, he said the BBC told him ‘no one in any field had ever been openly gay’ and effeminate 1970s like Are You Being Served’s John Inman was just ‘waiting for the right woman’.

He said: ‘When I came out as gay when I was presenting BBC Breakfast on BBC 1, which I did for a number of years, I found that I was the first mainstream TV news presenter to do so.

‘When I told the press office staff that I had given an interview to the Daily Mail, and that when asked about my home life I had been honest, they were aghast and told me that no BBC presenter had ever been openly gay before.

‘I said: “Perhaps in news nobody has been openly gay before, but what about other fields?”

‘They said that no one in any field had ever been openly gay. Larry Grayson and John Inman were, according to their BBC biographical notes, apparently just waiting for the right woman to come along.

‘That was in the year 2000, and I am not sure that much has changed.’

Nicolson insisted all faces and voices should ‘reflect the society in which we live – It is all about trust’.

The post BBC claimed its 1970s gay actors were ‘just waiting for the right woman’ appeared first on Gay Star News.

Joe Morgan

www.gaystarnews.com/article/bbc-claimed-its-1970s-gay-actors-were-just-waiting-for-the-right-woman/

YouTube Star Joey Graceffa Came Out To Make You Feel Less Lonely

With his gaming channel and daily vlog, Joey Graceffa has over six million subscribers on YouTube. He recently released a song and music video titled “Don’t Wait,” which depicts his character falling in love with another man. The video generated quite a response, including a parody reaction from popular YouTuber Miranda Sings. Two days after its release, Joey officially came out as gay.

Joey recently sat down with GLAAD’s Claire Pires to discuss his coming out and the response both the music video and his personal video received, as well as his memoir In Real Life: My Journey to a Pixelated World. The book chronicles Graceffa’s difficult relationship with his mother, dating experiences and the heartbreak that went along with them, and is a detailed account of his road to self-acceptance.

When asked about the goal for his music video, Graceffa explained, “I needed something to encompass my book in a video format … so I thought it would be really cool to incorporate three main things in the music video — bullying, dealing with alcoholism, and coming to terms with your sexuality and accepting yourself.”

Joey described the writing process for In Real Life as therapeutic. “Talking about my history with my mom and her alcoholism was definitely really tough reliving those moments because there was a lot of stuff that I kind of like pushed aside and didn’t process,” he explained. “I guess I just have this thing of just like pushing things aside in the back of my mind and writing this, I had to go back through it all and re-read it, and re-read it, and re-read it, and I’ve finally like processed it.”

The YouTuber-turned-author hopes that people find his story relatable. “I remember growing up and feeling like my story was so different from everyone else’s because there wasn’t really anyone openly talking about what was going on in their life. Like, celebrities or people. I mean, there wasn’t really a YouTube at the time to hear people talk about their stories, so, yeah, I guess I just want people to not feel so alone.”

Graceffa also voiced his support for GLAAD’s #GotYourBack campaign, which empowers LGBT people and their allies to speak out in support of acceptance. Watch the full video interview below.

Jeremy Kinser

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/UkQ26jAlN-I/youtube-star-joey-graceffa-came-out-to-make-you-feel-less-lonely-20150716

Changing the T for LGBs

The nationwide discussion surrounding trans visibility is essential for other queer people, too.

read more

Dana Beyer

www.advocate.com/transgender/2015/07/16/changing-t-lgbs

29 Kenyan teens sent home from school on suspicion of being gay

Twenty-nine Kenyan teens were sent home school in the last seven days, purely on the suspicion that they are gay.

Principal Matthew Namunwa from St Mary’s Kibabi Boys High School in Bungoma County told the 29 boys to report next week with their parents.

The young teens had been involved in a debate over homosexuality, in which they argued that LGBTI people should be given rights and homosexuality should not be illegal.

Other students and teachers then accused these pro-gay teens of being gay themselves.

‘We all know this a societal issue, and we cannot pretend or run away from it but discuss it and find a way out,’ Namunwa told Kenyan newspaper the Star yesterday, adding any students ‘found to be gay’ would be ‘cured’.

Tensions have been rising over LGBTI rights in Kenya as it prepares for US President Barack Obama’s visit on 25 July. A couple were evicte last month and told to ‘wait for your Obama’, while a political party has announced a 5000 strong naked march to protest against homosexuality.

Speaking to Gay Star News, Kenyan LGBTI rights activist Denis Nzioka said: ‘This is the real world of living in a homophobic society. The anti-LGBT crusade is still very much here.

‘There have been more beatings, evictions and attacks when public discourse focuses on the community. It gets heightened, and it will only increase momentum as Obama’s visit gets closer.’

Lawmakers have threatened to tell Obama to ‘shut up and go home’ if he mentions the ‘gay agenda’, and the Kikuyu Council of Elders has said they will throw ‘rotten eggs’ at the president.

When questioned about what Obama will speak about during his visit, White House Press Secretary Joshua Earnest said he was confident the president will ‘make clear that the protection of basic fundamental human rights in Kenya is also a priority and consistent that we hold dear here in the United States of America’.

The post 29 Kenyan teens sent home from school on suspicion of being gay appeared first on Gay Star News.

Joe Morgan

www.gaystarnews.com/article/29-kenyan-teens-sent-home-from-school-on-suspicion-of-being-gay/

Siri will correct anyone who dares to use Caitlyn Jenner’s old name

Siri will correct anyone who dares to use Caitlyn Jenner’s old name.

The former Olympian came out as transgender earlier this year and revealed her new name as Cait on a Vanity Fair cover in June.

Tumblr user LastNovember4 was the first to discover that Apple’s voice-activated assistant had Caitlyn’s back and posted screenshots of questions she posed to her iPhone.

‘What is Bruce Jenner’s real name?’ she asked.

Siri’s answer: ‘The full name of Caitlyn Jenner is Caitlyn Jenner.’

She then asked: ‘How tall is Bruce Jenner?’

To which the voice recognition software replied: ‘Caitlyn Jenner is 6′ 2′ tall.’

But Siri it is not consistent with its answers.

Ask ‘Who is Bruce Jenner?’ and it brings up excerpts from an out-of-date Wikipedia.

Similarly, the query ‘How old is Bruce Jenner?’ will not acknowledge her transition.

It seems Siri was not programmed to be progressive but its answers, rather, depend on the sources used.

In April, the Russian Siri was accused of homophobia after it outright refused to discuss anything gay.

The post Siri will correct anyone who dares to use Caitlyn Jenner’s old name appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/siri-will-correct-anyone-who-dares-to-use-caitlyn-jenners-old-name/

WATCH: Caitlyn Jenner Tears Up, Asks For Acceptance of People 'For Who They Are'

The former Olympian spoke in public for the first time since her transition, calling it ‘harder for me than anything I could have imagined.’

read more

Dawn Ennis

www.advocate.com/transgender/2015/07/16/watch-caitlyn-jenner-tears-asks-acceptance-people-who-they-are-0

Caitlyn Jenner delivers powerful speech at ESPYs: ‘Trans people deserve respect’

Caitlyn Jenner delivered a powerful 10-minute speech at ESPY Awards on Wednesday (15 July) night in Los Angeles that brought the former Olympian to tears.

Jenner, 65, was given a standing ovation as she walked on stage to accept the Arthur Ashe Courage Award in what was her first major public appearance as a transgender woman.

After pleading with the fashion police to go easy on her and giving a shout out to the US women’s soccer team (‘Ladies, you clean up very well’), Jenner assumed a more serious tone.

The reality TV star said until a few months ago, she had never met another transgender person.

‘I dealt with my situation on my own in private and that turned this journey into an already incredible education,’ she said.

‘It’s been eye-opening, inspiring, but also frightening.’

But Jenner said that journey is even more frightening for youths.

‘All across this country, right now, all across the world, at this very moment, there are young people coming to terms with being transgender,’ she said.

‘They’re getting bullied, they’re getting beaten up, they’re getting murdered and they’re committing suicide.’

She then paid tribute to transgender teenagers Mercedes Williamson, who was murdered in Alabama last month, and Sam Taub, who died by suicide in Michigan in April.

Jenner said her transition had ‘been harder on me than anything I could ever imagine.’

‘For that reason alone, trans people deserve something vital,’ she said.

‘They deserve your respect. And from that respect, comes a more compassionate community, a more empathetic society and a better world for all of us.’

Watch her speech in full below:

The post Caitlyn Jenner delivers powerful speech at ESPYs: ‘Trans people deserve respect’ appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/caitlyn-jenner-delivers-powerful-speech-at-espys-trans-people-deserve-respect/

Caitlyn Jenner Delivers Spellbinding, Groundbreaking Speech at the ESPY Awards: VIDEO

Caitlyn Jenner’s acceptance of the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYs on Wednesday night was unusual, emotional, groundbreaking, educational and thoughtful, and a must-watch.

Said Jenner to the room of celebrity athletes and the international TV audience:

“It’s been eye-opening, inspiring, but also frightening. All across this country, right now, all across the world, at this very moment, there are young people coming to terms with being transgender. They’re learning that they are different and they are trying to figure out how to handle that, on top of every other problem that a teenager has.

“They’re getting bullied, they’re getting beaten up, they’re getting murdered and they’re committing suicide. The numbers that you just heard before are staggering, but they are the reality of what it is like to be trans today.

“Just last month, the body of 17-year-old Mercedes Williamson, a transgender young woman of color, was found in a field in Mississippi stabbed to death. I also want to tell you about Sam Taub, a 15-year-old transgender young man from Bloomfield, Michigan. In early April, Sam took his won life. Now, Sam’s story haunts me in particular because his death was a few days before my interview with Diane Sawyer. Every time something like this happens, people wonder, ‘Could it have been different, if spotlighting this issue with more attention could have changed the way things happen?’ We’ll never know.

“If there is one thing I do know about my life, it is the power of the spotlight. Sometimes it gets overwhelming, but with attention comes responsibility. As a group, as athletes, how you conduct your lives, what you say, what you do, is absorbed and observed by millions of people, especially young people. I know I’m clear with my responsibility going forward, to tell my story the right way — for me, to keep learning, to reshape the landscape of how trans issues are viewed, how trans people are treated. And then more prominently to promote a very simple idea: accepting people for who they are. Accepting people’s differences.

“My plea to you tonight is to join me in making these issues your issues as well. How do we start? We start with education. I was fortunate to meet Arthur Ashe a few times and I know how important education was to him. Learn as much as you can about another person to understand them better.

Watch it, below:

The post Caitlyn Jenner Delivers Spellbinding, Groundbreaking Speech at the ESPY Awards: VIDEO appeared first on Towleroad.

Andy Towle

Caitlyn Jenner Delivers Spellbinding, Groundbreaking Speech at the ESPY Awards: VIDEO

Caitlyn Jenner Takes ESPYs By Storm: 'Trans People Deserve Something Vital. They Deserve Your Respect'

In her first public appearance since announcing her decision to transition, Caitlyn Jenner mesmerized the crowd at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on Wednesday as she accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2015 ESPY Awards.

Jenner spoke about her own personal experience so far as a transgender woman. But she also dedicated a significant percentage of her speech to a thoughtful and touching discussion of the vast number of issues facing the larger transgender community. 

“Trans people deserve something vital. They deserve your respect,” she said. “And from that respect comes a more compassionate community, a more empathetic society and a better world for all of us.”

“At this very moment there are young people coming to terms with being transgender,” she added at another moment, noting the high levels of bullying, homicide and suicide the transgender community must grapple with still today.  The trans community, she said, needs the American community’s empathy and understanding.

Jenner admitted she had never talked with another transgender person up until very recently, in what she said was a truly educational experience. “It’s been eye-opening inspiring but also frightening,” she said of her overall experience since she told ABC’s Diane Sawyer in April that she would be transitioning from male to female.

In a video about her experience preceding the speech, Jenner discussed about what she has learned about trans-related issues since then and how she decided over time she would become not just a trans woman, but a trans advocate.

“I came to kind of a revelation that out of all the things I have done in my life, that maybe this is my calling,” she said. “To take my struggle, throw it out in front of the world, maybe I can bring understanding on this subject. It’s time that I do my best. This is an issue we can deal with. This is not something people have to die over.”

Maura Mandt, the ESPYs co-executive producer, told Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch in the lead up to the show that Jenner’s decision to transition in such a public forum “displayed enormous courage and self-acceptance.”

“Bruce Jenner could have easily gone off into the sunset as this American hero and never have dealt with this publicly. Doing so took enormous courage,” Mandt told Deitsch. “He was one of the greatest athletes of our time. That is what the Arthur Ashe Courage Award is about, somebody from the athletic community who has done something that transcends sport.”

Jenner became a household name in 1976 when she won the men’s decathlon at the 1976 Summer Olympics. But after ESPN announced the selection of Jenner in June, the network faced large amounts of backlash from those who believed there were more deserving candidates. Bob Costas called the decision “a crass exploitation play” and criticism became so loud that ESPN issued a follow-up statement several days after the initial announcement:

 The Arthur Ashe Courage Award is meant to honor individuals whose contributions transcend sports through courageous action. Sometimes that courage is demonstrated over the course of a lifetime and sometimes it is demonstrated in a single act that shines a light on an important contemporary issue. At all times, there are many worthy candidates. This year, we are proud to honor Caitlyn Jenner embracing her identity and doing so in a public way to help move forward a constructive dialogue about progress and acceptance.

The award is given to those “possessing strength in the face of adversity, courage in the face of peril and the willingness to stand up for their beliefs no matter what the cost.”

 ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne summed up the feelings of many on Wednesday:

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