Watch What Happens When Everyday Spaniards Are Confronted With Homophobia: VIDEO

A new video from Spain’s State Federation of Lesbian, Gays Transsexuals and Bisexuals (FELGTB) shows what happens when everyday Spaniards are confronted with homophobia. 

In the video that is evocative of ABC’s What Would You Do?, a young gay American couple arrives in Madrid and ask bystanders for help getting directions to their hostel and translating an email they received from the hostile. While the couple are actors, the people who stop to help the men are not.

As the bystanders read the email, which is filled with gay slurs and hateful speech that the couple cannot read because it is in Spanish, they get emotional. “It’s better if you go to another hostel, because this one is not very good”, one girl says. Another woman becomes so overwrought trying to translate the email she cannot continue. One man says, “Here in Spain, you cannot say this. You can take this to the police and they can close his business.”

And that’s precisely the point of the video. FELGTB wants people to know they have the right to file a complaint with the police against those who threaten, insult or physically assault someone because of their sexual orientation. The campaign uses the hashtags #ConLaVozBienAlta and #SpeakUpLoud to urge people to raise their voices to stop homophobia.

Watch the moving video below:

[h/t Attitude]

 

The post Watch What Happens When Everyday Spaniards Are Confronted With Homophobia: VIDEO appeared first on Towleroad.

Sean Mandell

Watch What Happens When Everyday Spaniards Are Confronted With Homophobia: VIDEO

Hillary Clinton Opposed Pro-LGBT Changes at State Department

There’s word this morning that a newly released batch of emails sent by Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton reportedly show she opposed a policy change at the State Department that would have accommodated same-sex parents, and worried such a change would become fodder for Sarah Palin and Fox News. The terms “mother” and “father” would have been changed to the gender-neutral term “parent,” reports the Washington Blade.

Writing in 2011 in response to a Washington Post story about this proposed bureaucratic change, Clinton expressed her consternation that the modification could be a political hot potato, and made her opposition to the change for non-political reasons clear. The next day, the Washington Post reported that the policy change had been nixed.

“Who made the decision that State will not use the terms ‘mother and father’ and instead substitute ‘parent one and two’?” Clinton wrote in an email to her assistant, Cheryl Mills.

“I’m not defending that decision, which I disagree w and knew nothing about, in front of this Congress. I could live w letting people in nontraditional families choose another descriptor so long as we retained the presumption of mother and father. We need to address this today or we will be facing a huge Fox-generated media storm led by Palin et al.”

At the time, Clinton supported civil unions but still opposed marriage equality, and Republicans had just taken control of the House of Representatives after the Tea Party sweep in the midterm elections. Clinton’s reasons for opposing the change were not made public at that time.

Other emails released this week also touch on LGBT issues. One is from a transgender person praising Clinton for a new policy allowing trans individuals to change the gender marker on their passports. Another reveals Clinton’s unease over getting an award from the State Department’s LGBT affinity group.

“First, we totally get the Secretary’s discomfort with the image of her employees presenting her with an award, especially one named after her,” Jon Tollefson, then-president of Gays & Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies, wrote. “GLIFAA, however, is comprised of employees of all of the U.S. foreign affairs agencies — not just State — as well as even foreign embassies. We have had a history of independence throughout our nineteen years, often criticizing administrations for their lack of attention and even negative actions with regard to LGBT issues. We are so excited to have an Administration and a Secretary who are such leaders on LGBT equality and on the promotion and protection of the human rights of LGBT people.”

Previously released emails document Clinton’s interest in LGBT issues and the high priority placed on improving LGBT rights worldwide. Clinton will address the Human Rights Campaign’s board of directors this weekend at its previously scheduled meeting.

Bil Browning

www.advocate.com/election/2015/10/01/hillary-clinton-opposed-pro-lgbt-changes-state-department

Accused Sex Offender Allegedly Branded Runaways With Signature Tattoo

 An Aurora, Colorado, man accused of taking in male runaways he met on Grindr in exchange for sex allegedly had another requirement — a a tattoo bearing his name.

In an explosive interview above with Denver’s Fox31, a man who dated one of the alleged victims said Sean Crumpler had the friend get the tattoo with the word “Sean” and a picture of a bird that matches a neighborhood logo.

The 23-year-old, whose identity was shielded, showed a picture of his friend’s tattoo, to Fox31. “He told me that it was because they were supposed to get it, and because it kept away all the other ‘sugar daddies’ when they are out partying or at the club,” he said.

Crumpler, 48, is accused of child sex trafficking, child sex assault, trafficking for sexual servitude and sexual offense with notice of HIV. According to an arrest affidavit cited by the Denver Post, he allegedly told one of his teen victims that he finds “young boys to bring back to the house” while “hunting.” 

In court on Monday, Crumpler had his Internet access restored, although the judge warned him that it should be used for work only.

The judge denied a prosecutor’s request that his passport be confiscated, the Post wrote. A prosecutor had argued that Crumpler, who owns a hotel in Thailand, required close surveillance because of his international ties.

NBC affiliate 9News said authorities were embarrassed by Crumpler’s release from the Jefferson County Detention Center despite his being a registered sex offender. He’d been out on bail since Sept. 16.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office told the station in a statement: “The Sheriff’s Office made a mistake when we released Crumpler without requiring him to make a court appearance. HB 1060 requires that, and it should have happened before he was allowed to bail out. As a result we will be reviewing our procedures and making the proper changes to ensure that this does not happen again.”

According to 9News, 12 men and boys between the ages of 16 to 21 were living with the suspect in his rented Aurora home.

Fox31 said Crumpler has been evicted.

Here is the 9 News report on Crumpler:

 

 H/T Queerty

Also on HuffPost:

An Aurora, Colorado, man who allegedly took in male runaways he met on Grindr in exchange for sex apparently had another requirement as well: that at least one be branded with a special tattoo bearing his name.

In an explosive interview with Fox31 in Denver, a man who dated one of the alleged victims said Sean Crumpler had the friend get the tattoo with the word “Sean” and a picture of a bird that matches a neighborhood logo.

The 23-year-old, whose identity was shielded, showed a picture of his friend’s tattoo, telling Fox31, “He told me that it was because they were supposed to get it, and because it kept away all the other ‘sugar daddies’ when they are out partying or at the club.”

Crumpler, 48, is accused of child sex trafficking, child sex assault and sexual offense with notice of HIV. According to an arrest affadavit cited by the Denver Post, he allegedly told one of his teen victims that he finds “young boys to bring back to the house” while “hunting.” 

In court on Monday, Crumpler had his Internet access restored, although the judge warned him that it should be used for work only. In addition, the judge denied a prosecutor’s request that his passport be confiscated, the Post wrote. A prosecutor had argued that Crumpler, who owns a hotel in Thailand, required close surveillance because of his international ties.

NBC affiliate 9News said authorities were still embarrassed by Crumpler’s release from the Jefferson County Detention Center despite his being a registered sex offender. He’d been out on bail since Sept. 16.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office told the station in a statement: “The Sheriff’s Office made a mistake when we released Crumpler without requiring him to make a court appearance. HB 1060 requires that, and it should have happened before he was allowed to bail out. As a result we will be reviewing our procedures and making the proper changes to ensure that this does not happen again.”

According to 9News, 12 men and boys between the ages of 16 to 21 were living with the suspect in his rented Aurora home.

Fox31 said Crumpler has been evicted.

 H/T Queerty

Also on HuffPost:

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Why GLAAD is going global and why it’s starting in the UK

GLAAD, the US organization for LGBTI representation in media, is going global, investing $1million (€900,000) of its funding into international expansion.

It is starting with the UK but will not have staff in the country immediately – the first full timer working on the project will be in their New York office for now.

Even before the formal announcement today (1 October), gossip had been spreading among LGBTI campaigners and business people in London.

GSN spoke with Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD’s president, to find out what she is really planning ­– and, just as interestingly, what she isn’t.

Why are you doing this now?

It is our moral imperative at this stage to expand globally and lock arms with our brother and sister organizations around the world.

Having acceptance move forward in the US and having equality move forward, and in GLAAD’s 30^th year, it is the right time.

What international work have you done before?

We have had a very robust Spanish and Latino media arm and we have done work in Chile and Brazil and a number of places.

One of America’s biggest cultural exports is entertainment so we have worked very closely with Hollywood on that and we are going to deepen that relationship from a global perspective as well.

We have been doing quite a lot of work with activists on the ground and that’s where we are putting more resources.

How do you work with those activists?

In response to activists requests we media train them, we share our best practices – how to shape a narrative, what are the best messaging strategies.

We worked with the Irish activists around the popular vote [same-sex marriage referendum], we are talking to Australians now about their popular vote.

We are working with China activists who are replicating GLAAD’s media awards. We have worked with Nigerian activists to help them replicate a cultural study we did in the United States on where hearts and minds are.

The UK media isn’t perfect but it’s more inclusive than most countries. Why start in London?

The UK is a cultural epicenter of the world. Our job is to move culture forward. Being able to have access to the rest of the world through the UK is a really important piece of the work we do.

As we are expanding and you are dipping your toe into an expansion, being in an Anglo-speaking country is really important.

In the US you have a big supporter base. In the UK people many have heard of GLAAD but you don’t have that base yet. How are you going to build it?

So much of our work is done behind the scenes. Brand recognition is important but really our role is as a support for the activists who are doing the work here.

Building a groundswell is not something we have high on the priority list. We are media and messaging experts in the US so bringing that expertise and sharing it is really our role in the UK.

But don’t you need to ensure your campaigns are what the British LGBTI public wants?

I don’t think our role is to shape that narrative. Our role is to give the activists who know or should know their constituency the tools to shape that narrative. It really does come back to sharing our best practices and enabling the activists.

Ireland is a great example. What we did is talk to them about messaging strategy. In the US what had worked really well was talking about love and family and not talking about protections and equality and policy. Policy doesn’t resonate but love does.

They took that and blew it out of the water with their campaign and did a phenomenal job, probably better than we did in the United States with it. Our job was to share and let them adapt that to their culture.

Where we will continue to shape the narrative is through Hollywood and what they export. We are looking much, much closer at that and are hopefully going to be getting to a level where we can produce a report on what they are exporting.

Beyond Hollywood, how do you work with media that didn’t exist when GLAAD started, like gaming or digital?

We are working very closely with the gaming community. There are some that are very progressive and some that are very behind.

On the digital front we are embedded in Silicon Valley and working very closely. We worked with Facebook last year when they expanded their gender options. Google is one of the biggest funders of our global work.

GLAAD is famous for its glitzy media awards, with a-list celebrities onto your red carpet. Can Britain expect some of that glamor?

That’s what everyone says, they all want the UK Media Awards. We don’t have any short-term plans on that. That is a huge undertaking. The Media Awards in New York and LA take six months of hard work but they garner 5billion media impressions so they are a huge platform to get a message out there and we have done that very strategically.

I think if we looked into doing something like that we would really want to do it on a global level. Culturally it is so nuanced that to do it on a global level may be challenging but it is something we are looking at.

Spirit Day is coming up on 15 October (GLAAD’s anti-bullying action day). What are your plans for that?

Because it’s a digital campaign, Spirit Day is global by its nature. But we are putting way more emphasis on that. We have translated our tool kit into six different languages.

We know bullying of our LGBT youth is an international problem. By building awareness and wearing purple on Spirit Day it helps to ease that.

What do you want the international LGBTI community to know about GLAAD’s expansion?

What’s really important is we are committed to being a cultural change agent, accelerating acceptance for the LGBT community.

Acceptance is the greatest safeguard for the community – you are safer on the streets, safer in your job, safer in your family life. It’s really important for us to support these organizations and help accelerate acceptance globally.

The post Why GLAAD is going global and why it’s starting in the UK appeared first on Gay Star News.

Tris Reid-Smith

www.gaystarnews.com/article/why-glaad-is-going-global-and-why-its-starting-in-the-uk/

Christian Town Official Attacks Gay Teen Denied Homecoming Date: WATCH

Over the past week, Towleroad has reported on Lance Sanderson, a gay student at Christian Brothers High School in Memphis, Tennessee, who was denied when he asked to bring a male date to the Homecoming dance. After he discussed his situation on Facebook and it began to make national headlines, the school suspended Sanderson when he arrived to class the following week.

Clark Plunk (above), a Lakeland, Tennessee Commissioner, attacked Sanderson and the gay community in a Facebook post this week.

Said Plunk:

“It’s a Christian school so i you don’t like the rules don’t go there. As usual you have one person trying to change the rules just for himself. I’m told by the alumni the gay kid is looking for publicity. I hate the term gay. It makes them sound like they are happy and “Gay” And they want to call people that criticize them homophobes to make them sound mean. As a whole, gays are mean, cruel spiteful people with an axe to grind.”

He adds:

“The kids love the school a hate their school is in the limelight over a gay kid and his gay boyfriend….This is not about a homo and his rights it’s about a school that is loved by thousands and their memories and their right to keep their history and Christian values intact.”

Finally, Plunk said:

“I would say let the little homo sue all he wants. The alumni of CBHS will meet him dollar for dollar and lawyer for lawyer. This is a threat to our values, our Christian values. Everyone shudders when the homosexuals say the word sue. They are vicious spiteful people.”

RELATED: Gay High School Student in Tennessee Suspended After Attempting to Bring Male Date to Homecoming

Sanderson responded to hurtful remarks he has received on Facebook:

I have been shown a few intolerant comments that were made against myself and other LGBT people. I have nothing but forgiveness for the people who wrote or agree with these comments. I recognize that we all have different beliefs and were taught from varying viewpoints. I hope that individuals and the community as a whole will use this as an opportunity to learn about other people’s beliefs. I know that through education and acceptance, we will move forward as a stronger community.

Local LGBT advocates in Memphis are outraged.

Said Will Batts, the Executive Director of Memphis Gay and Lesbian Community Center, to WMC:

“So it’s one thing to attack an 18-year-old high school student. That’s a problem in and of itself. But the comments themselves are talking about all of us. All of us in the LGBT community. He has people in his community that are LGBT. People that he serves, pay his salary, and he’s making these hurtful, just dangerous comments,” Batts said. “Because we know there are plenty of studies that show that this type of speech is what causes harm to young people.”

Watch WMC’s report:

WMC Action News 5 – Memphis, Tennessee

Plunk says he stands by what he says:

“You know I said what I said. I stand by what I said and I was standing up for my faith and I still stand up for my faith. What I said, it was personal. It was on Facebook. It was supposed to be just a group of us talking about the situation at Christian Brothers.”

The post Christian Town Official Attacks Gay Teen Denied Homecoming Date: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

Andy Towle

Christian Town Official Attacks Gay Teen Denied Homecoming Date: WATCH

Kim Kardashian is super confused over Caitlyn Jenner’s sexuality

When someone in your life transitions, you’re going to have a lot of questions. And that’s especially true if you are Kim Kardashian and your mom’s ex is now one of the most famous trans women in the world.

The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star was on Ellen to talk about Caitlyn and the questions she still has for her as she’s still confused about a few aspects.

This was clear in the interview as she still refers to Caitlyn using her old name and getting confused between pronouns.

‘I’ve asked Bruce this question – Bruce when he was Bruce so I’m not disrespecting Caitlyn by saying Bruce – I’ve asked Bruce when the transition was about to happen so does this mean you’re a lesbian because you were with my mom for so many years and his ex-wives and whatever? And he said, no I was a heterosexual male.

‘I’ve asked recently, and I think the answer is just still, he hasn’t, that’s not where her mind wants to go.

‘No matter if we don’t understand no matter if people think it’s this crazy concept, it’s not for us to judge. If that’s how Caitlyn wants to live her life, then I support it and I’m so happy for her. I’ll try to do what I can do to make it an easy transition for other family members.’

Watch it below:

The post Kim Kardashian is super confused over Caitlyn Jenner’s sexuality appeared first on Gay Star News.

Joe Morgan

www.gaystarnews.com/article/kim-kardashian-is-super-confused-over-caitlyn-jenners-sexuality/

YouTuber Confronts Childhood Bully To Surprisingly Positive Results

Riyadh K is no stranger to awkward conversations — he’s chatted with Shirley Phelps, taught his dad sex slang and had his mom read his Grindr messages. But he showed real courage and maturity when he recently confronted his childhood bully.

The two talked about things like why bullying is so common, what could have been done differently and why antigay bullying can be so much more harmful than other childish name-calling.

Would you ever consider calling your bully from school to see what kind of person they turned into?

Watch below:

Dan Tracer

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/gDIDvGf9Suc/youtuber-confronts-childhood-bully-to-surprisingly-positive-results-20151001

Tom Daley Announces Engagement to Dustin Lance Black in Newspaper Ad: PHOTO

British diver Tom Daley announced his engagement to screenwriter Dustin Lance Black today in a subtle and old-fashioned way, with a newspaper ad in The Times newspaper.

Said the ad: “The engagement is announced between Tom, son of Robert and Debra Daley of Plymouth, and Lance, son of Jeff Bisch of Philadelphia and Anne Bisch of Lake Providence.”

The Guardian reports: According to the Times website, the engagement announcement would have cost about £200.

Daley and Black have been dating for two years.

Here are two recent Instagrams from the couple.

Daley’s mother spoke with the Plymouth Herald about the engagement:

“The whole family is extremely excited and looking forward to the big day. They are going to wait until after the Olympic Games in Rio before they decide on the date of the wedding and where they want to marry

Debbie also said that the family has taken a shine to Dustin, 41, who she refers to as ‘Lance’, and described him as a “very likeable person that gets along with everybody”.

Tom is currently training at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London, where he is now based.

Debbie continued: “At the moment he is training in Stratford and focusing on competitions to prepare for Rio at the start of August. Training has always come first for him. Once Rio is out of the way, they will properly plan the wedding.”

Daley’s 2013 coming out video announcing he met someone, a guy:

The post Tom Daley Announces Engagement to Dustin Lance Black in Newspaper Ad: PHOTO appeared first on Towleroad.

Andy Towle

Tom Daley Announces Engagement to Dustin Lance Black in Newspaper Ad: PHOTO

Dear TSA, My Body Is Not an Anomaly

“Sir or ma’am or whatever, please step over here,” were not the words I wanted to hear from a blue-clad TSA agent twice my size as I was moving through the security line at Denver International Airport.

I was running late for my flight to Washington, D.C., where I was to start my summer legal internship with the National LGBTQ Task Force. My excitement for the trip was promptly squelched as the giant, red-faced man shouted, loudly enough for the whole terminal to hear, “We have anomalies in the chest and groin area. Private screening, female agent requested.”

Perfect, I thought. I could feel my neck getting hot, and I looked down and away from the other people in line behind me who had suddenly been alerted to my “otherness.”  

Despite having changed my name and gender marker on my Colorado driver’s license a few months earlier, I still wasn’t always read as male at this point in time. My voice had only just deepened, and my facial hair was a far cry from the beard I now regularly wear.

Hustling to grab my carry-on and shoes, two TSA agents escorted me to a private room with fogged glass walls and a small table. Once inside the room, the agents started speaking quietly to themselves. I stood awkwardly, adjusted my shirt, opened and closed my fists.

“Sir, we need to know what’s in your pants,” said the male agent, not at all hiding his lingering gaze at my crotch.

“I don’t think that’s any of your business.” I said, trying (and failing) to hold back my rage.

“Actually, it is our business, because we know it’s not a penis,” said the female agent, smugly, like she’d just discovered an important secret.

Before I could think about what to say or how to say it, I reached into my jeans and pulled out my packer (a small prosthesis) and threw it on the table. “There! Is that what you’re worried about?”

Both agents turned red and started giggling. I was livid. Frantically, I started unbuttoning my dress shirt and lifted up my white undershirt to show them my chest binder. “And this, this is the other thing you’re worried about?” I shouted at them, hoping my newly deepened voice was audible to other travelers beyond the fogged glass walls.

“Now, sir, er, ma’am, uh … there’s no need to get upset,” said the female agent. “We are following protocol.”

“Protocol my ass.” I retorted. “You can’t treat me like this just because I’m transgender. And stop calling me ma’am. I’m a dude.”

“OK, Mister Charles,” the female agent said, mockingly. “No need to get hysterical.”

At hearing that word, I felt the blood rush to my face, and I blinked hard to keep from screaming at both of them, who just eyed me, still suspicious. “Are we fucking done here?” I demanded.

“Yes, sir,” The male agent replied quietly, vaguely aware of the embarrassment and rage I was feeling. “We’ll step out to give you a minute to collect your things.” The female agent glared at me as she left.

I buttoned my shirt back up, stuffed the packer into my bag instead of my pants, and stepped quickly out of the room and towards the throng of people heading to their gates, eager to blend in. It wasn’t until I had reached the relative safety of a stall in the men’s bathroom that I set down my bags and wept into my hands.

I’ve not told many people about this incident, and perhaps it’s clear why: it was demeaning, embarrassing, and most of all, incredibly disrespectful.

Like many trans people who deal with harassment from TSA in the alleged interest of “national security,” I felt powerless. I was left feeling like I had done something wrong just by living my life. I didn’t want to call more attention to myself by reporting what I presumed was just business as usual. I already felt hyper-visible in a world not meant for people living somewhere between the gender binary of male and female. I worried that reporting what happened would lead to TSA agents further dismissing my dignity and humanity. I couldn’t go through that again, and to this day, I avoid air travel whenever possible. But so many trans people can’t avoid air travel, and can’t avoid situations where they risk being outed and shamed publicly.

As long as TSA continues to assert that treating trans people’s bodies as inherently suspicious is “following strict TSA guidelines,” as it did in response to Shadi Petosky’s awful experience at the Orlando airport late last month, we will continue to be subject to discrimination.

Because let’s be real: subjecting me, Petosky, and thousands of trans people around the country to this kind of treatment is not upholding “strict guidelines in the treatment of transgender passengers.” Forcing people to be screened according to their assigned sex at birth, calling their bodies “anomalies,” and laughing at the things we do to be safe and live with dignity in this transphobic world is not “upholding strict guidelines.” It’s perpetuating shameful discrimination and we deserve better. Period.

CARL CHARLES is a Skadden Fellow and staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union’s LGBT and HIV Project. His work at the ACLU focuses on advocating for transgender and gender-nonconforming youth who are homeless, in foster care, or in the juvenile justice system. He is passionate about working for LGBT youth and their families who are impacted by the criminal justice system. Find him on Twitter @rarlrarles.

Carl Charles

www.advocate.com/commentary/2015/10/01/dear-tsa-my-body-not-anomaly

Leading US gay Catholic Father John McNeill has died aged 90

Father John McNeill, a leading and pioneering advocate for the acceptance of LGBTI people within the Catholic Church in America, has passed away aged 90.

Born in Buffalo, New York in 1925, McNeill served in World War II before being captured by the Germans and placed in a prisoner of war camp – an experience that transformed his spirituality.

Returning to the United States, he joined the Society of Jesus in 1948 and was ordained as a Catholic priest in 1959.

McNeill fell in love with a man while completing a Ph.D from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium in 1964 and would later recall of the experience, ‘the joy and peace that comes with that — it was a clear indication to me that homosexual love was in itself a good love and could be a holy love.’

In 1969 he played a part in the establishment of DignityUSA, a support and social group for LGBTI and LGBTI-accepting Catholics to worship together, and founded the group’s New York chapter in 1972 while teaching Christian Sexual Ethics at the Woodstock Jesuit Seminary and Union Theological Seminary in the city.

In 1976 McNeill published the book The Church and the Homosexual with the permission of his Jesuit order – the first non-judgemental work on gay Catholics and their place in the church – and it was translated into several languages.

However McNeill was ordered by the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who would later become Pope Benedict XVI, to stop speaking on the subject or risk expulsion from the church after he came out as gay on national television in the United States that same year in an interview with Tom Brokaw on the Today show.

McNeil continued to minister quietly to LGBTI Catholics for many years while keeping a public silence until Ratzinger issued the Vatican pastoral letter ‘On the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons’ in 1986 which described gay people as having a ‘tendency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil.’

McNeill spoke out against the document in statements given to the National Catholic Reporter and the New York Times but Ratzinger retaliated by ordering him to give up all ministry to LGBTI people and advocacy on their behalf.

McNeill was expelled from the Jesuits and forbidden from saying Mass – though he technically remained a Catholic priest.

However his expulsion freed him to speak publicly again against homophobia in the Catholic Church and he continued to be an advocate for LGBTI Catholics for many years.

In 1987 McNeill was honored by being made Grand Marshal of the New York City Pride Parade and in 1998 he published a memoir, Both Feet Firmly Planted in Midair: My Spiritual Journey.

In the late 80’s he also founded The Upper Room AIDS Ministry as an outreach group for homeless people with HIV in Harlem.

For much of his early career McNeill had publicly said he was celibate but in truth he had been in a same-sex relationship with his long term partner Charlie Chiarelli since 1969 and the pair married in Toronto in 2008.

In 2012 McNeill was the subject of the documentary Taking A Chance On God in which he spoke of having tried ‘with the help of the Holy Spirit to free gay Christians from the lies of a pathologically homophobic religion.’

McNeill passed away with Chiarelli at his bedside at a hospice in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on 22 September.

In a statement announcing his death, DignityUSA executive director Marianne Duddy-Burke praised McNeill as ‘the first major prophet of the Catholic LGBT movement.’

‘His groundbreaking bravery in daring to question official Church doctrine was truly liberating to so many people. The Church and the Homosexual was really the ‘coming-out’ Bible for LGBT Catholics,’ Duddy-Burke said.

‘We offer our deepest condolences to Charlie and commend him for his faithful companionship and care-giving to John over so many years.’

McNeill’s family has established a Father John J. McNeill Legacy Fund in his memory to preserve his written and spoken legacy and to continue his world empowering LGBTI Catholics around the world.

The post Leading US gay Catholic Father John McNeill has died aged 90 appeared first on Gay Star News.

Andrew Potts

www.gaystarnews.com/article/leading-us-gay-catholic-father-john-mcneill-has-died-aged-90/