PHOTOS: Getting Wet and Wild in Honolulu

www.advocate.com/pride/2016/6/28/photos-getting-wet-and-wild-honolulu

India’s Supreme Court to Hear New Challenge to Law Criminalizing Gay Sex

India’s Supreme Court on Wednesday will hear a new challenge to Penal Code Section 377, the colonial-era law criminalizing gay sex, thanks to a fresh petition from some leading Indian figures.

The Times of India reports:

The petition by dancer N S Johar, journalist Sunil Mehra, chef Ritu Dalmia, hotelier Aman Nath and business executive Ayesha Kapur will come up for hearing before a bench of Justices S A Bobde and Ashok Bhushan on June 29, when the SC resumes business after a 45-day vacation. Leading lawyers Kapil Sibal and Arvind Datar will argue for the petitioners.

The paper adds:

The present petition changes the contours of a decade-and-a-half old legal fight on two counts. One, well-known LGBT personalities who have till now lived in fear of social persecution have overcome the fear of public humiliation to assert their sexual preference. Second, this is the first time people who are directly aggrieved by Section 377 have challenged its constitutional validity.

Their petition’s first paragraph is a bold declaration-“The petitioners are lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGBT) citizens of India whose rights to sexuality, sexual autonomy, choice of sexual partner, life, privacy, dignity and equality, along with the other fundamental rights guaranteed under Part-III of Constitution, are violated by Section 377.”

India’s law criminalizing gay sex was restored in a shocking ruling by the Indian Supreme Court in 2013 after being struck down in 2009.

The post India’s Supreme Court to Hear New Challenge to Law Criminalizing Gay Sex appeared first on Towleroad.

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Gay Vlogger Calum McSwiggan Beaten Up Following Vidcon Conference

London-based YouTuber Calum McSwiggan says he was beaten after being separated by his friends while visiting a gay bar after Vidcon, the annual multi-genre online video conference for creators and users in Anaheim, California.

We’ve published several of Calum’s videos HERE. You may remember the one posted here, which generated a lot of commentary.

Writes McSwiggan in an Instagram post:

Last night was the worst night of my life and I’m really struggling to find the words to talk about it. After one of the most wonderful weekends at VidCon we went out to a gay club to celebrate, and towards the end of the evening I was separated from my friends and beaten up by three guys.

The authorities should have been there to help and protect me but instead they treated me like a second class citizen.

With three broken teeth and six stitches in my forehead, I’ve never felt so terrified to be a gay man in the public eye. All I can do is thank my wonderful friends @riyadhk, @melaniiemurphy and @douga_ for being with me the whole way. I’d be lost without them. Right now I don’t feel that I’m in the right place to talk about this but I will be addressing this fully in the future.

A follow-up post and a few tweets by Riyadh K,, whom we’ve also featured, suggest it wasn’t a random attack but that the attackers had been following the group on social media and knew where they were.

Added Riyadh:

Terrifying to see this shit still goes on in today’s world and to one of my closest and dearest friends. He has three cracked teeth and

— Riyadh Khalaf (@RiyadhK) June 28, 2016

Stitches in his head but is safe and somewhat well with us now. Please please be safe when out with friends and don’t get separated

— Riyadh Khalaf (@RiyadhK) June 28, 2016

These people knew where we were going to be because of our posts on social media before we went out and even said our names as they beat him

— Riyadh Khalaf (@RiyadhK) June 28, 2016

No doubt we’ll be hearing more from Calum about the incident.

Calum’s most recently published is called The Gay Agenda which is about gay stereotypes vs gay reality.

Best wishes to Calum for a quick recovery.

The post Gay Vlogger Calum McSwiggan Beaten Up Following Vidcon Conference appeared first on Towleroad.

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Letter From the Editor: On Orlando and Its Aftermath

You cannot decry the “lifestyle” of queer people and then wring your hands when someone takes you seriously and tries to end our lives.

www.advocate.com/current-issue/2016/6/28/letter-editor-orlando-and-its-aftermath

Laverne Cox Has Powerful Message For Incarcerated Trans Man Ky Peterson (Video)

The 25-year-old black trans man’s story of discrimination, bias-motivated violence, and incarceration has caught the eye of Laverne Cox and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. 

www.advocate.com/transgender/2016/6/28/laverne-cox-has-powerful-message-incarcerated-trans-man-ky-peterson-video

Wounded but Unbowed, LGBT Orlando Tries to Carry On

Victims and hostages speak out after the deadliest mass shooting in American and LGBT history claimed 49 lives at Pulse nightclub in Orlando.

www.advocate.com/current-issue/2016/6/28/wounded-unbowed-lgbt-orlando-tries-carry