News: Chris Kelly, South Africa, Miley Cyrus, Kalamazoo, Twitter

South African teens die after alleged abuse at reported gay conversion camp. More here.

Kris Kross rapper Chris Kelly dead of possible drug overdose: "Kelly, 34, died Wednesday at an Atlanta hospital after he was found unresponsive at his home, police said."

David Tutera's My Fair Wedding divorce gets very messy.

InfoWars truther Alex Jones unleashes transphobic rant: "During the April 30 edition of his radio show, Jones launched a screed against the 'globalist mafia,' which he blamed for efforts to reduce discrimination against transgender people. After claiming that he isn’t bothered by transgender people – but that their 'fake rights' don’t exist – Jones warned that 'transvestites' would 'throw up all over the walls' in public bathrooms. He continued by peddling a number of outrageous, damaging stereotypes about transgender people."

Book of Mormon creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone to bring Scientology musical to Broadway?

How to Survive a Plague director and Kalamazoo College alum David France returns to his alma mater and praises the changes that city has gone through: "The city itself was a place where it was dangerous to walk as a gay person in the streets of most neighborhoods, many neighborhoods, in Kalamazoo, and even dangerous at times on campus. There were repeated acts of violence. There wasn’t the consciousness among the administration and the school, and the city itself, for how to counter that or what to do to change that kind of culture. It’s taken a concerted effort over the last couple decades, but it’s really paid off. I think Kalamazoo is now a model for how a community can turn around and go from one extreme to full acceptance."

Will.i.am is producing Britney Spears' next album.

Orlando Cruz speaks out about Jason Collins: “Coming out does not make him less of a man because he is a great athlete,” explained Cruz. “He is living the dream of every high school kid who wants to play basketball. He should always keep his self-esteem up because he has the right to be where he is like any other athlete.”

Australian Catholic priest signals support for gay relationships.

Documentary about gays and surfing in production.

Two additional states pass marriage equality in Brazil: "...marriage continued moving forward in Brazil when the Corregedor Geral de Justiça in two additional states - Paraíba and Santa Catarina (Articles in Portuguese) - authorized marriages between same-sex couples. Now, fourteen of the 27 jursidictions in Brazil (13 states and the Federal District) have approved the freedom to marry. Earlier this month, Rio de Janeiro and Rondônia saw similar developments."

Miss Botswana finalist enrages audience by saying “Homosexuality is a disease that can be cured”.

JetBlue, Absolut, Nike stand with Jason Collins.

April 15, 2013: Twitter's saddest day.

Miley Cyrus in V magazine:  “I’m going to change, I’m going to be different, I’m going to do what I want to do. I chopped my hair and bought a pair of Docs and never looked back.”

Giant rubber duck comes to Hong Kong.

New SAGE report looks at LGBT elders of color.

Leading Cambridge lecturer faces calls for dismissal over anti-gay remarks: "Tim Winter, who is director of studies at Wolfson College  as well as Dean of the Cambridge Muslim College, said the controversial remarks were made 15 years ago when he was at a retreat in the US and 'in the grip of a kind of zealot enthusiasm.'"

Houston Boy Scouts troop votes to keep discriminating.

Former Dallas Cowboy Tony Casillas says he played with gay players in the 90's: “I know that I played with homosexual players and I knew this when I was playing. There’s a certain amount of intimacy in the locker room, I’m not talking in a personal way, but intimacy as far as working hard and being that close together, as far as accomplishing something on the football field. The problem is this society. That’s why I applaud Jason Collins for coming out. Being a professional athlete people expect you have this shield around you where you can’t pretty much show your true nature, if you will, and you’re feelings and I think for him to be able to do that — I think there may be a domino effect with this."

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Talk to Colbert About Homophobia, Perform Gay Marriage Anthem: VIDEO

"I think that in the last year alone hip-hop has made great strides in terms of being more open-minded," Macklemore tells Stephen Colbert before he and Ryan Lewis performed "Same Love", their anthem about marriage equality.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

The Colbert Report
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Toronto-Area RE/MAX Real Estate Agent Distributes Homophobic Flyer Promoting 'Traditional' Families

A RE/MAX Real Estate agent in the Toronto-area city of Mississauga is under fire for distributing sales brochures which included an article promoting "traditional families" as the best for the future of children, the Mississauga News reports:

The piece in question is a study conducted by a sociology professor from Texas University that says unemployment is three times higher among offspring of homosexual couples than those of heterosexual couples. The brochure cites the report as having been originally published in Social Research Science.

Lorne Park resident Jon McDonald, a retired elementary school teacher, was outraged by the material and sees no reason for such information to be printed in a real estate brochure.

"It just makes no sense whatsoever," McDonald told The News. "On the inside is information on how to maintain your air conditioner, how to save money, what you should know about air conditioners, all things you need to know if you're looking to purchase a home. The back (of the brochure) just seems so incongruous and offensive."

The Toronto Star adds:

Const. George Tudos said the Criminal Investigation Bureau looked into the incident and spoke to Ciastek about the impact of the literature. No charges will be laid, he said.

Christine Martysiewicz, director of internal and public relations for RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada, said “the views and opinions expressed in this piece do not reflect those of RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada or our agents.”

She said Ciastek will issue a public apology and make a donation to a local charity of the company’s choosing.

Watch LIVE: Rhode Island Final House Vote on Marriage Equality

The Rhode Island House is set to make history with a final procedural vote on the marriage equality bill.

Watch LIVE HERE.

UPDATE: The bill is passed!

Western Evangelical Group Pushing Ethiopia to Impose Death Penalty for Gays

Will Ethiopia consider imposing the death penalty for homosexuality? Bikya News seems to think so:

An anti-gay organization that held a recent workshop on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues in Ethiopia is reporting that the death penalty against gay people in Ethiopia may be on the horizon.

The workshop reportedly looked with the social ‘evils’ and ‘disastrous’ effects of homosexuality in Ethiopia, and was led by United for Life Ethiopia, a Western Evangelical Christian organization with local representation.

Government officials, religious leaders, leading heath professionals, charities and members of the public attended the event at the Bethel Teaching Hospital in Addis Ababa, last week. In the workshop police alleged ‘homosexual family members and neighbors’ have sexually abused 117 boys last year. It comes on the heels of much antagonism toward the LGBT community in Ethiopia.

GSN adds:

At the conclusion of the workshop, the EICAH representative stated that the council is ‘making progress’ in convincing the government to be stricter on homosexuality and introduce the death penalty to punish ‘such acts’.

The ECIAH representative added that prospects for capital punishment being legislated against gays ‘seems promising’.

The United for Life Ethiopia (ULE), led by Dr Seyoum Antonios, sponsored the event as well as ECIAH.

ULE is a Western Evangelical organization that receives funding in the UK and US and offers to ‘cure’ gayness as well as campaigning aggressively against LGBT people in the country.

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings Calls Resolution Supporting Marriage Equality a 'Waste of Time'

The Dallas City Council is planning to take up a resolution supporting same-sex marriage and reportedly has the votes to pass it, the Dallas Voice reports:

Dallas City Councilman Scott Griggs says he has the eight votes needed to pass a resolution in support of marriage equality and statewide LGBT employment protections.

Griggs has said he didn’t want to place the item on the agenda until he was sure it had the eight votes needed to pass.

Mayor Mike Rawlings (pictured) told the Dallas Morning News that he thinks the resolution is a waste of time:

This afternoon, Rawlings stressed that he is “an unequivocal supporter of marriage equality.”

But the Dallas City Council should not spend its meetings debating political questions that it has no power over, he said.

“I don’t want to be talking about late-term abortions, or gun control, or Gitmo,” he said.

To do so is “a misuse of City Council time.” ... “To do this for what seems to be political purposes is not good judgment,” he said.