Gay Man Arrested After Homophobic Incident at Madonna Concert

Jerome Schroeder was arrested after police were unable to properly handle an anti-gay bias incident at a Madonna concert at Denver's Pepsi Center last month, he says. Schroeder claims he and his boyfriend and a female friend were escorted from their seats following verbal anti-gay harassment from another concert-goer. When Schroeder refused to leave the venue, he was arrested:

"Police arrest documents say only that Schroeder, a Denver radiologist, was taken into custody after he refused to leave and told officers to 'arrest me.'...'We were clueless as to why we were being removed from our seats,' Schroeder said. He said police told him, 'the Pepsi Center wants you to leave.' Police wouldn't say why, telling him only that he could leave or be arrested. 'Since I had done nothing, I said, 'Arrest me,'' Schroeder said. He said a heterosexual couple was seated in front of him at the concert and that the man repeatedly called him and his boyfriend a derogatory name under his breath, but loud enough to hear. The woman then complained that Schroeder had shoved her. He says the allegation is 'ludicrous.' ...'We had no interaction with the female,' Schroeder said. 'I couldn't even tell you what she looked like.' When Schroeder was handcuffed, he said an officer yelled at him and repeatedly poked him in the chest after he asked for the officer's name. Schroeder was taken to the city jail and held for six hours before he posted $100 bail."

It's not the first time Denver law enforcement has been accused of ignoring anti-gay bias crime. In March 2007, it was reported that Denver police officer Richard Boehnlein was under investigation for refusing to take action against a gay basher. Nima Daivari, a law student visiting the city from New York, claimed the officer refused to do anything after Daivari was assaulted.

Denver law enforcement officials say the case is under investigation.

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Christian right launches 'Protect DOMA' site designed to build opposition in minority communities to the repeal of the Defense Of Marriage Act: "All of the photos and quotes on the main page are from black and Latino people, including the notoriously closeted Mexican-American actor Eduardo Verastequi. Funded by the Alliance for Marriage Foundation, the site's list of their board of directors is a who's who of black, Latino, and Asian religious leaders, as well as one Muslim imam. The logo for the Hispanic Evangelicals Coalition is on the main page." Divide and conquer, indeed.

You never know when there's a security camera around.

Obamafy yourself, become a Fairey.

Sasha Fierce does the "Single Ladies" moves for Meredith Vieira...

Obama team denies it will delay repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell": "An Obama transition team spokesperson, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the decision on how to approach repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which prohibits gays from serving openly in the military, would be made after more experts have joined the Obama administration. 'These decisions will not be made before the full national security team is in place,' the spokesperson said. The Washington Times reported last week that two people who have advised Obama’s transition team said the president-elect “will not move for months, and perhaps not until 2010” to repeal the 'Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell' law, which Congress passed in 1993."

Napping boosts 'sophisticated' memory: "Indeed, scientists increasingly are focusing less on sleep duration and more on the quality of sleep, what's called sleep intensity, in studying how sleep helps the brain process memories so they stick. Particularly important is 'slow-wave sleep,' a period of very deep sleep that comes earlier than better-known REM sleep, or dreaming time."

Don't get too close to Valentino. He may rub off on you.

Italian transgender former MP Vladimir Luxuria wins "Celebrity Island" reality show: "The 43-year-old served in parliament for two years as a member of the Refoundation Communist Party before losing his bid for re-election in April. Over the past six weeks Luxuria, whose real name is Wladimiro Guadagno, has been a star on reality TV, trying to survive living on the beaches of Honduras with other celebrity 'survivors'. In the end viewers picked Luxuria as their favourite. 'I admired his capacity to defy the prejudices of his companions,' said Giorgio Gori, the show's producer."

Iran sees rise in sexually-transmitted HIV: "Sexually transmitted HIV infections are on the rise in Iran and the Islamic Republic is setting up telephone hotlines to help fight the problem, a senior official said in comments published on Tuesday. Injecting drug users are the main risk group in Iran, which is on a heroin smuggling route to the West from Afghanistan, but officials are also concerned about the number of people who are infected with the AIDS virus through sexual contacts." Well, Ahmadinejad knows who he can't blame.

Former South African President Thabo Mbeki's crimes against humanity.

WHO researcher: HIV could be eliminated within decade "if all people living in countries with high infection rates are regularly tested and treated."

Britney Spears announces first dates on tour....

Brian Urlacher's wife demands the Chicago Bear stop painting their toddler son's toenails and dressing him in pink: "The mother, Tyna Robertson, threatened to block Urlacher from seeing the boy if the beefy linebacker kept up the alleged effeminate antics."

Hate vandalism at Skidmore College in upstate, New York: "An upstate college is investigating a possible hate crime after anti-gay sentiments and other vulgarities were written outside the school's Center for Sex and Gender Relations. Skidmore students say the vandalism is the latest in a series of similar incidents at the private liberal arts college in Saratoga Springs."

Former Project Runway finalist Daniel Vosovic has four roommates, and they keep their Lower East Side apartment very clean.

British police officer fired over anti-gay emails: "Norfolk police said Graham Cogman, 49, had been dismissed after a misconduct hearing yesterday. He faced disciplinary action for sending emails to colleagues quoting biblical texts and condemning homosexual sex, police sources said. He forwarded details of a group offering to 'cure' homosexuality, the sources said."

So is he or is he not?

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Friday Night Anti-Gay Hate Crime Murder in Syracuse, New York

Dwight DeLee, a 20-year-old Syracuse man attending a Friday night party where guests were making anti-gay remarks about two of the party's invited guests, brothers Mark and Moses Cannon, stepped out of the party when the Cannons arrived and shot Moses, who identified as female and was known as to friends and family as 'Teish', point-blank with a 22-caliber rifle. Both Cannon siblings are gay Mark was grazed by the bullet and Teish was killed:

"Cannon, 22, and his brother, Mark Cannon, 18, both of 404 Arthur St., were shot as they sat in a car parked in front of 411 Seymour St., where they had been invited to a party. The bullet grazed the left arm of Mark Cannon, who was in the driver's seat, and hit Moses Cannon in the chest, police said. Police have charged DeLee, 20, of 420 Gifford St., with second-degree murder. DeLee went into the home at 411 Seymour St. to get the rifle after guests at the party started "making profane and vulgar comments in regards to the sexual preference of our two victims,' police Chief Gary Miguel said. 'There was no previous argument between these individuals, there was no previous fight, there was no bad blood,' Miguel said. 'Our suspect took a rifle and shot and killed this person, also wounding his brother, for the sole reason he didn't care for the sexual preference of our victim. Isn't that sad? Isn't that a sad situation that that's the sole reason why? I talk to you about this atmosphere of violence and that certain individuals believe that violence is the answer no matter what, and here's just another example,' Miguel said."

Cannon family and friends accepted Teish's choice of gender identification and sexual orientation.

[Roxanne Green, the victim's mother] talked lovingly about Moses Cannon and said she accepted who he was. 'That's the life he chose. That's who he wanted to be,' Green said about her son. Green said her son was very outgoing. 'He got along with everybody,' she said. Cannon's family accepted his sexual orientation. Pictures of Cannon in women's clothing were on display in the family's living room, and the family selected one for The Post-Standard to publish. Often when family members spoke of Cannon, they used 'she' to refer to him. Dante Haynes, who described himself as Cannon's lover, sat at the dining room table tonight with Cannon's parents and family. 'Teish' is tattooed on his right forearm. 'I loved her, too,' Haynes said. 'She will be missed.'...'Teish was loving, caring and compassionate,' said Rhonda Gary, Cannon's aunt. 'She carried herself with respect.'"

The incident has not yet been classified as a hate crime, although that looks likely.

Syracuse man was killed for being gay, police say [syracuse now]
Police: Shooting Victim Targeted For Being Gay - VIDEO [wtvh]
Family says Moses Cannon was shot because he was gay, and his killing should be treated as a hate crime [syracuse now]

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News: Leonard Matlovich, Bulgaria, Focus on the Family, Connecticut

Comprehensive Prop 8 Update HERE.

Obama to take presidential radio address to YouTube, beginning this Saturday.

Memorial plaque to civil rights activist Leonard Matlovich to be dedicated tomorrow. From a press release: "The author of a November 12 article in The Washington Post wrote, "His last speech was in the rain in Sacramento, six weeks before he died, and he was hoarse and tired and dying, and he talked about love. A Georgia native who grew up in the military, he had the knack for taking your heart and making it catch for a moment, like the way he announced on national television that he had AIDS. He seemed to make people want to be braver than perhaps they were." The public event will begin at noon, Saturday, November 15th, in the Spencer Andrew Ceremonial Room of San Francisco's LGBT Community Center, 1800 Market Street at Octavia."

Connecticut: 66 marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples since Wednesday. "The state Department of Public Health has received data from 130 of the state's 169 cities and towns so far. A total of 94 licenses were issued Wednesday from those municipalities, including 28 to opposite-sex couples. Public Health Department spokesman William Gerrish says couples have 65 days to have their nuptials 'solemnized' by a minister, justice of the peace or other officiator."

Anderson Cooper visits The Tonight Show - VIDEO.

Ryan Gosling's bringing sexy back.

Focus on the Family planning layoffs.

Swastika and anti-gay slur drawn on Jewish student's locker at Saugus High School in California: "Her son Todd, a 15-year-old sophomore, is Jewish, but he is not gay, she said. 'They were mortified. They were frightened by the experience,' said Marcia Davis, who works as an instructional assistant at Saugus. 'It's not random. Somebody knows he is Jewish and is intentionally doing this.' Lt. Brenda Cambra of the Santa Clarita sheriff's station said the department is investigating the incident as a hate crime."

25-year-old Brazilian sentenced to 27 years in jail for murder of French tourist during Sao Paulo Gay Pride weekend in 2007.

Jared Leto has GQ Style.

Governor of Russian Tambov region cleared of criminal complaint over remarks: "The governor of the Tambov region of Russia has been cleared of charges by an appeals court following an anti-gay outburst reported in the daily newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda last May. And in a separate, but related case, the Tambov city authorities give the reason that they banned a gay march was because the closure of streets 'breaches the rights of drivers'...'Tolerance? To hell! Faggots must be torn apart and their pieces should be thrown in the wind,' the newspaper reported the Governor as saying."

Entertainment Weekly: Neil Patrick Harris is #25 of top 25 entertainers of the year.

Daniel Craig gets waxed.

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U.S. Rapper Trick Trick Tells Gays Not to Buy His Homophobic Album

The rapper Trick Trick,who is a long-time collaborator with Eminem, has a new album out called The Villain. He tells music site All Hip-Hop:

"I’ma go on the record right now with this. Homosexuals are probably not gonna like this album. Fa**ots hate me and I don’t give a f**k. I don’t want your fa**ot money any goddam way. I don’t like it. Carry that shit somewhere else.… It’s just that every time that you turn on the the TV, that sissy s**t is on. And they act like it’s f***ing okay. The world is changing for the worst when s**t like that happen. And I address that issue. I address it hard as hell…"

According to music site Gigwise, "'The Villain', which is out now, contains a wide range of homophobic lyrics. In one song, Trick Trick refers to talk show host Ellen DeGeneres and... Rosie O’Donnell as 'dyke bitches' and promises to send a 'scud missile right through their fucking cruise ship.'"

Koch Records is the largest independent record label in the U.S. In the U.S. it is distributed by Epic Records.

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News: Mars, Brokeback Opera, Arson, Louis Vuitton, Mormons

Michelangelo Signorile talks to a Mormon from Texas who donated to 'Yes on 8'. This is what we're up against.

Brokeback Mountain opera shelved.

Now we know who can play 'Joe the Plumber' in the McCain biopic.

Australian LGBT youth suicides at disturbingly high levels: "Open Doors surveyed 164 LGB students across the state, and 37 per cent of respondents said they had attempted suicide in the last 12 months, with 82 per cent considering taking their own life. The report also revealed a general attitude of fear among LGB students, with 81 per cent saying they had experienced bullying based on their sexuality."

Anti-gay graffiti discovered at torched home near Charlotte, North Carolina: "Fire investigators declared the home a total loss and sent samples from a bedroom to an SBI lab for testing. Meanwhile, sheriff's Maj. Coy Reid said detectives have one suspect in the case after conducting interviews. Found on a back wall of the house were graffiti of slang words referring to homosexuality. 'We're trying to figure out where that came from and if that is tied in with the fire,' Bump said."

Mayer in training.

Madonna to be the next face of Louis Vuitton? "According to tipsters, the Material Divorcée will be the face of Louis Vuitton’s Spring 2009 campaign and has already been shot by photo wonder duo Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott."

Holocaust survivors to Mormons: stop Baptisms of dead Jews.

Fear in Florida that the state could become home to immigrant population of five-inch Madagascar hissing cockroaches. In related news, Kentucky man moving to Florida.

Stevens vs. Begich: 90,000 more votes to be counted tomorrow in Alaska Senate race.

Mission over for Mars Lander: "Engineers have not heard from the craft since Sunday 2 November when it made a brief communication with Earth. Phoenix, which landed on the planet's northern plains in May, had been struggling in the increasing cold and dark of an advancing winter. The US space agency says it will continue to try to contact the craft but does not expect to hear from it."

McCaskill being discussed as DNC Chair Howard Dean's replacement when he steps down in January: "In sheer political terms, the choice really wasn’t Dean’s to make. Indeed, any decision on who will serve as the next DNC chair will come with directives from Obama and his aides. And a name being floated around as a possible Dean replacement is one of the president-elect’s closest allies: Claire McCaskill, the junior Senator from Missouri and a national co-chair of the Obama campaign."

CG Animated Wizard of Oz in the works: "The English-language adaptation maintains the tale's main characters and settings. Unlike the MGM classic, however, it's not a musical."

Levi's presents the "People's Premiere" of Milk. Blogger Joe.My.God attended it and has photos.

Naked Boys Singing and ACLU sues the city of Milwaukee for shutting down their show three years ago: "The city temporarily shut down performances of 'Naked Boys Singing!' in August 2005 while it considered the Milwaukee Gay Arts Center's application for a theater permit. The group later received a permit and reopened the show. Larry Dupuis, legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin, which is handling the case, said the city's enforcement seemed unusually zealous, even given the musical's content."

Brad Pitt roughed up by his own security detail?

Study on the failure rates of mobile phones.

Georgia GOP congressman calls Obama Marxist, warns of dictatorship.

Vancouver to rally against Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church, which continues its crusade against The Laramie Project.

Regular: Palin to have rummage sale?

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Mickey Rourke Apologizes for 'Faggot' Slur

Yesterday I posted about actor Mickey Rourke telling the paparazzi outside of Hyde nightclub in L.A. to "tell that faggot who wrote all that shit in the paper I'd like to break his fucking legs."

To whom Rourke was referring remains unclear.

Rourke has issued a statement of apology for the remarks. Said the actor: "I want to sincerely apologize for the derogatory word I used. It was insensitive and inappropriate of me and I am deeply sorry that I may have offended anyone."

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Mickey Rourke Threatens to Break 'Faggot' Writer's Legs

Actor Mickey Rourke makes a threat to an unidentified writer as he enters Hyde nightclub in L.A. on Sunday night. When a paparazzo asks him about a rumored relationship with actress Evan Rachel Wood, Rourke responds:

"She's a good friend, that's it. And tell that faggot who wrote all that shit in the paper I'd like to break his fucking legs."

If you'll remember, in an interview in October 2006, Rourke clarified his use of the word "Fag" : "Look, I’m not afraid to say the word fag. I’m not gonna walk on glass because maybe some dude is gonna be offended if I say the word fag. I’ve got plenty of gay friends. We toss the word around. If I wanna say fag, I’m gonna fuckin’ say it. And if somebody has a problem with that, they can kiss my fuckin’ ass!"

Watch it, AFTER THE JUMP...

Perez Hilton thinks he may be the target of Rourke's homophobic wrath.

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Schwarzenegger releases positions on California ballot measures.

Life? Electricity seen on Saturn moon.

Brit tabloid: Madonna made Guy Ritchie sign a marriage contract which included rules on how they should argue and what words they could use.

Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes.

Cindy Sheehan's night with Sean Penn at the Milk premiere.

Homophobic little league coaches un-suspended: "Garbacik’s [the superintendent who originally suspended the coaches] decision came after a two-month investigation that started with complaints a 12-year-old baseball player was being harassed. The boy’s parents contacted Garbacik in June after finding out their son was being called names such as 'gay, fag, homo and queer' by other players. Kaletha told Garbacik he was aware of the comments, but called it 'joking and humor' and 'just boys being boys.'"

Attorney General: Justices of the Peace in Connecticut must marry same-sex couples.

Manuel Muñoz wins Whiting Award for story collection The Faith Healer of Olive Avenue.

TIME: The Gay Mafia that's redefining politics.

Florida writer for the Huffington Post Carol Anne Burger murders former lover, then kills herself: "Burger killed her former lover by stabbing her 222 times with a Phillips-head screwdriver and then took pains to hide her crime, police said Wednesday. Jessica Kalish, who shared a house with Burger despite breaking up with her more than a year ago, was found last Thursday stuffed in the backseat of her gun-metal BMW sedan, abandoned behind a medical office at 2300 S. Congress Avenue. Her blood was splashed around the rear end and undercarriage of the car, as if her killer had tried to load her into the trunk. The driver-side window was shattered."

Ellen DeGeneres goes after Zac Efron's coiffure.

Long Island gay plumber poisons his ex-wife: " The mother of two, Maureen Steeves, 41, suffered massive damage to major organs and is brain dead. She isn't expected to recover. David Steeves said he hatched the plot to poison her because 'I can't stand the thought of her being with someone else,' according to Suffolk County police."

Daniel Craig is back as James Bond. Quantum of Solace premieres in London.

UK announces new rules barring spreaders of "extremism, hatred, and violence" from entering the country: "One of the main targets of the crackdown will be militant Muslim extremists, such as the radical preacher Omar Bakri Mohammed who is already banned from returning to Britain under existing rules. The curbs could also apply to extremists from other religions as well as neo-Nazis, animal rights activists and those with virulently anti-homosexual views whose inflammatory words might incite violence."

A fuzzy balls letdown.

U.S. Civil War vs. 2008 Election maps. (via Sullivan)

Gay man attacked in Plumstead UK suffers broken collarbone.

Researchers: Dogs only animals that can read emotion in human faces. "Research findings suggest that, like an understanding best friend, they can see at a glance if we are happy, sad, pleased or angry." Or when there are sausages coming.

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Jerry Lewis Still Loves 'Fag' Jokes

Remember last year, when Jerry Lewis pointed out the "illiterate fag" in his telethon audience and then issued a public apology for it?

I guess he wasn't sorry enough to not do it again.

Same Same reports on a press conference he held earlier today in Sydney:

"While speaking with a journalist from Channel Ten News, Lewis was asked 'What do you think of cricket?' His response was, 'Oh cricket is a fag’s game!' Lewis then proceeded to flounce about, using camp, effeminate gestures, pretending to hold a bat with a limp wrist, squealing in a high pitched voice 'Ah! The ball is coming towards me!' He may have intended for it to be amusing, but not everyone is laughing."

Jerry Lewis Still Thinks You're A Fag [same same]

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Gay Bashing Colorado Police Officer Reinstated

Kell Hulsey, a sergeant in the police force in Greeley, Colorado who reportedly threw the first punch in a bar fight back in July, has been reinstated to his job.

If you'll remember, Hulsey and his son Daniel went after a man, Brian Carter, they thought was gay because he was looking strangely at Daniel in the bar. Turns out the man just had a lazy eye. Following the brawl, Kell Hulsey and his son fled the scene. The younger Hulsey was later arrested and the elder Hulsey reportedly fired from the force pending an investigation.

There were plenty of witnesses.

Now, the Greeley Tribune reports: "While his fate in an assault investigation is still unsettled, Greeley police officer Kell Hulsey has been reinstated to his job after he appealed his firing last month. According to sources, Hulsey has been reinstated as a patrol officer, and could earn his sergeant rank back within a few months. Meanwhile in Larimer County, Sheriff’s spokeswoman Eloise Campanella said they completed their investigation of the Hulsey case had turned it over to the Larimer County District Attorney’s Offices for charges. That investigation included DNA samples from the scene."

The city's HR director won't comment, and the DA is reviewing evidence in the case.

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Georgetown Gay Bashers Beg Judge to Release Them

Two men arrested for attacking two Georgetown University students in an anti-gay hate crime last weekend begged a judge to release them in a court appearance yesterday, FOX DC reports:

"Prosecutors say 19-year-old Saad Elorch and 19-year-old Abdulgader Ruddad targeted and taunted their victims, then assaulted one of them because they are gay. In court on Wednesday, Elorch, the alleged ring leader, jumped up and begged the judge to let him go. But the judge in the case denied his request. After the hearing, the parents of one of the men charged in the attack ran from cameras without saying anything to the media. Both Elorch and Ruddad were denied bond by the judge in the case...Both Elorch and Ruddad have prior convictions on charges like drug possession and assault. Elorch was on probation in Virginia at the time of the incident. The two men are also now wanted by ICE and the U.S. Marshall Service for deportation, but that will wait until the outcome of the current proceedings. Elorch and Ruddad will be back in court on November 12."

The students were attacked on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal path after being asked if they were gay, and then, after replying 'yes,' being told by their attackers that they would be stoned to death in their home country.

Check out a more extensive video report on the attacks from WJLA, AFTER THE JUMP...

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That's So Gay: Hillary Duff and Wanda Sykes Fight Homophobia

The Ad Council and GLSEN have teamed up for a campaign, ThinkB4YouSpeak, intended to educate young people about homophobic language and its consequences. To that end, they've enlisted Wanda Sykes and Hillary Duff to appear in two PSAs that draw attention to the phrase "that's so gay" and its interpretations.

The campaign will utilize print, internet, and radio, and television spots.

Watch Sykes and Duff hand it to some teens, AFTER THE JUMP...

A third video can be viewed at ThinkB4YouSpeak.

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News: Dubai, Sarah Palin, AIDS Vaccine, Guatemala, David Geffen

Nobel Prize winner Luc Montagnier: 'therapeutic' AIDS vaccine in 3 or 4 years.

British gay pub hit by "butt pirate" graffiti. Landlord: "I don’t think it’s homophobic, it’s just little minds, 11 or 12 year old boys who think ‘there’s a gay pub, let’s write on it’. They’ll probably be in here in 10 years’ time. If they want to hide in their closets let them. The people that are most anti are normally hiding from their gayness."

Saturday Night Live working to book Sarah Palin for spoof of Tina Fey.

Tax experts: Todd and Sarah Palin owe thousands of dollars in back taxes.

World Conservation Union: 1 in 4 mammals being pushed to extinction.

Gay Guatemalan man who changed a story about political persecution in his home country to one of sexual persecution loses U.S. asylum appeal: "Two judges with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals said in an opinion filed Monday that it would be a 'manifest injustice' to allow Saul Martinez to benefit from gaming the system after he lied under oath. A third judge disagreed, arguing that it was easy to understand how a man who was persecuted because of his sexual orientation felt compelled to invent a story to escape from that persecution."

FOX planning remake of Absolutely Fabulous.

Kevin Sessums on J Lo's nervous breakdown and her relationship with Scientology: "I do know a lot about Scientology. And I know about the practices. I know all about what the technology is and all that kind of stuff. It’s very helpful. So in a sense, yeah, you do call on it."

New 'world's tallest skyscraper' planned for Dubai.

Dubai resort Palm Atlantis refuses to release whale shark captured in the waters of the UAE: "Whale Sharks are protected by CITES (Convention for the International Trade of Endangered Species) and apparently the hotel was urged to release the animal. Environmentalists have hit out at the management of Atlantis hotel for performing an apparent change of mind by deciding to keep a whale shark caught off Jebel Ali."

Fish filmed alive at greatest-ever depth.

Trial underway for former Mr. Gay UK who killed his lover and the tried to eat him.

Hollywood Reporter reviews W: "It's a gutsy movie but not necessarily a good one. Its greatest strength is that it wants to talk about what's on our minds right now and not wait for historians. In an election season, people will have opinions about 'W.' before even seeing it -- or not -- so boxoffice may be erratic. It deserves a fair hearing by American audiences, for Stone goes out of his way to give Bush a fair hearing."

Lance Bass wants to be in a sitcom as J.C. Chasez launches acting career...

Scientists detect massive baffling object around distant star.

Georgia Supreme Court finds that transgender candidate did not mislead voters when she ran as a woman: "In their suit, Fuller and Harris allege Bruce’s name is Michael Bruce. Their attorney, new Clayton school board member Michael King, argued that Bruce’s birth certificate lists her as Mickey Dwayne Bruce and a man. Bruce, who identifies herself as transgender and a woman, said she changed her name in Clayton County Superior Court in 1980 to Mickey Michelle Bruce and goes by Michelle Mickey Bruce."

David Geffen ends relationship with DreamWorks.

Arkansas judges oppose ban on foster care, gay adoption: "Thirteen retired Arkansas judges, including three former chief justices of the state Supreme Court, announced their opposition Monday to a ballot initiative that would ban unmarried couples from adopting or foster parenting children in Arkansas. Proposed Initiated Act No. 1 would limit the ability of every Arkansas judge to choose custodial parents who would serve the best interests of vulnerable children, the group said in a statement."

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Georgetown Med Student Assaulted in Anti-Gay Hate Crime

Two suspects are in custody after assaulting two men near the Georgetown University campus over the weekend, The Hoya reports:

"While walking along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal path by the 1100 block of 34th Street, the victim, who wished to remain anonymous, and his friend were approached by two unknown males of Middle Eastern descent in their 20s, as described by the MPD report. It stated that the suspects then asked both of them about their sexual orientation, and the victim replied that he was gay. According to the report, the victims were called 'fucking faggots' and 'fucked up' and were told by the suspects 'that [the victims] would be stoned in their country of origin.' These statements were followed by a series of other homophobic comments, the report states. Following the verbal abuse, one suspect began urging the other suspect to hit the victims with a glass vodka bottle, the report states, leading the suspect to hit the complainant on the left cheek with the bottle. The victim was knocked unconscious from the blow."

The university has sent out an email regarding the assault, which police are treating as a bias-reelated assault with a deadly weapon and a hate crime.

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Vancouver Man to Undergo Surgery After Anti-Gay Assault

There was a violent anti-gay assault by a group of men in Vancouver over the weekend. One man has been arrested, charged, released, and is due to appear in court today.

According to the Vancouver Sun, "Jordan Smith, 27 (pictured), had been holding hands with a male friend as he walked down the 900 block of Davie Street just after midnight Saturday. A group of four or five men started following the pair, yelling abuse, Smith said. 'Everything you could think of - it was just a slew of obscenities with connotations that were quite obviously anti-gay,' Smith said. 'One got in front of my face,' he continued, 'and the other, I guess, just sort of punched me in the side of my face. I didn't really see it.' The next thing he knew, Smith woke up in hospital, his jaw broken in three places. Monday he's slated for surgery to have it wired shut for six weeks, he said. Shortly after the attack, police arrested 20-year-old Michael Kandola of Vancouver. Kandola was released from custody Saturday but is due to appear in court Monday facing charges of assault causing bodily harm." Additional reporting here.

The Globe and Mail reports: "Vancouver Police Inspector John McKay told CTV News that police will recommend that the charge be treated as a hate crime, which could result in a stiffer sentence on conviction."

In August, a Vancouver man went on a hammer attack on the day of Gay Pride in the city, also on Davie Street. Other publicized attacks on gays in Vancouver occurred in 2005 and 2001, according to the Sun.

Vancouver police seek hate charge [vancouver sun]
Gay-bashing incident was hate crime, police say [globe and mail]

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ACLU: McDonald's Employees Served Up 'Faggot' Slurs

The ACLU has stepped in to help five men in Louisville get an apology and refund form McDonald's after they say employees at the restaurant referred to them with anti-gay slurs:

"Ryan Marlatt, Teddy Eggers, and three other friends had stopped for lunch at a McDonald's restaurant on East Market Street on July 26, 2008 while visiting Louisville for the weekend. While they waited for their food to be prepared, an employee behind the counter referred to them as 'faggots' to another employee. Marlatt and Eggers then approached the cashier, said they didn't come to the restaurant to be insulted, and asked to speak with a manager. As they waited for the supervisor on duty to appear, the employee who had called them 'faggots' started arguing with them, repeatedly calling them 'faggots' in front of other customers and calling one of them a 'cocksucker' and 'bitch.'...'Nobody should be treated the way my friends and I were at that McDonald's,' said Eggers of Indianapolis, Indiana. 'When we finally got to speak with a supervisor, she said she didn't see what the big deal was. I couldn't believe what was happening.'"

According to the ACLU, the McDonald's supervisor refused to issue Marlatt a refund and his attempts to contact management higher up were met with silence. The ACLU has filed a complaint with Louisville's Human Relations Commission.

Ironically, McDonald's has been the target of right-wing Christian group American Family Association recently for its pro-gay agenda.

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Gay Florida Couple Say Anti-gay Neighbors Bullying Them

Perry Hogg and Jesse Worf, a gay Tampa-area couple who have been together for 20 years have decided to move from their neighborhood because of continual harassment from their bigot neighbors, they say:

"Hogg says it began on Christmas Eve of 2006, when their neighbor confronted him to say he was disturbed because he'd seen the two men naked in their bedroom. 'He said, 'We don't approve of your lifestyle. We don't agree with it. And put drapes up on your house,'' Hogg recalled. Tampa Bay's 10 contacted the neighbor, who said that he was, indeed, very disturbed to see the couple in their bedroom. He denies telling the couple that he disagreed with their lifestyle. Hogg says another disagreement had to do with the sprinklers. He recalls hearing the sprinklers on in the backyard. He says he peeked outside to make sure they weren't his, since someone in the neighborhood had been calling on anyone who used sprinklers outside of approved hours. Again, Hogg said the neighbor lashed out. 'He said, 'That's right I'm watering my [expletive] yard, and there's not a [expletive] thing you can do about it, you faggot,'" Hogg recalled. 'I was so stunned.' The neighbor denies ever using those words."

The ACLU suggested the couple contact a lawyer if the situation worsens. Worf says they'd rather leave: "We would just like to be left alone."

News clip, AFTER THE JUMP...

Gay couple: "We're being harassed" [tampabays10]

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Des Moines Teen Arrested After Anti-Gay Brick-Throwing Incident

Sander "Sam" O'Dale Johnson, a teen who threw bricks at a group of men outside Blazing Saddle, a Des Moines, Iowa gay bar, while using anti-gay slurs, has been arrested for assault with a hate crime and violation of individual rights, the Des Moines Register reports. The teen was with three others. Only Johnson could be positively identified:

"The episode Friday night was reported by three Des Moines men who were standing in the 400 block of East Grand Avenue about 10:45 p.m. when they saw four teenagers throwing bricks and knocking over planters, a police report states. The three men told the four youths to quit. The teens then whipped bricks at all three men and called them 'faggots,' a police report states. A piece of brick struck the thigh of one of the men, a 46-year-old Des Moines resident, police said. Soon after, police caught four teens a short distance away and brought the man who was struck and the other two witnesses to the scene."

Des Moines' gay community says it's time for more awareness and education.

Police suspect another incident outside the Blazing Saddle bar a week earlier may also have involved Johnson and his friends.

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Gay Man Sues, Claims McDonald's Fired Him Because He's HIV Positive

Dubuque, Iowa's Telegraph Herald online reports that a local man is suing McDonald's, saying they fired him from his job because of his HIV status after months of anti-gay sexual harassment:

"Daniel Carver, 46, of Epworth, detailed the discrimination allegation in a complaint filed with the Iowa Civil Rights Commission. He claims it started with a failed promise to be promoted to manager and a full-time schedule slashed to 10 to 15 hours per week. A manager punched him in the stomach and a fellow employee called him a 'faggot rat' and slapped him with a piece of cheese, Carver wrote. Then, the discrimination escalated into death threats from fellow employees, he said. 'In November 2007, I was threatened by other employees because of my HIV status and my sexual orientation that I, 'better watch my back or I might get shot,'' Carver wrote. He reported the comments to a manager, but the problem continued, he said. A toll-free number for employees to report sexual harassment had been removed from the store, he said. Carver was fired in February 2008, after nearly four months of employment at the McDonald's restaurant."

Neither McDonald's or Carver's lawyer are discussing the case. According to the paper, "Under Iowa law, it's illegal to discriminate against an employee because of perceived sexual orientation or gender identity."

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Gay Man Stabbed Seven Times by Gang in East London

A gay man is in critical condition a week after being stabbed seven times by a gang of youths in east London. Police are treating it as a homophobic crime:

"Detectives are treating the street attack as attempted murder. The 20-year-old, known as Olly, was stabbed seven times behind Shoreditch Church on his way to a ‘gay friendly’ pub. Both Bethnal Green & Bow MP George Galloway and the leader of his Respect group on Tower Hamlets council have appealed for calm following last Thursday’s stabbing...Olly had been walking with a woman companion to the George & Dragon pub in Hackney-road, where many of the gay community meet, when he was attacked in nearby Boundary-street on the corner of Austin-street, around 11pm last Thursday (August 28). He was hounded by a group of five youths, then hit over the head with a glass bottle before being stabbed seven times in the back and torso. He had life-saving surgery at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel the next morning, but still remains in a critical condition one week on. The stabbing is also being linked to an assault in the same area 24 hours before when a couple were kicked and punched by youths."

Said Detective Inspector Howard Way: "We are investigating this attack as attempted murder. What we’re concentrating on is tracking down and bringing to justice the people who committed this evil crime."

Added MP George Galloway: "This is a sickening and vile assault. A near fatal knife attack on a defenceless man is horrific enough. The fact that this also appears to be a homophobic hate crime compounds the evil."

Gay fears rise after street gang’s murderous attack [east london advertiser]

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Man Arrested in Homophobic Boston Assault Free on Bail, Curfew

Fabio Brandao, the 28-year-old man arrested in connection with an anti-gay assault against 4 others in Boston's South End over the weekend, has been charged with four civil rights violations, four counts of assault and battery and three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. He was released on $10,000 bail Tuesday and given a 10 pm curfew pending an October 10 pretrial conference, and been banned from entering the South End.

Three other suspects have not been apprehended and Brandao's attorney denies his involvement: "Brandao and other men allegedly got out of the car and attacked the four before speeding off. Two of the victims were able to get the car’s license plate number, [Assistant District Attorney Vincent] DeMore said. Also, a cell phone found at the scene belongs to Brandao, he said. The defendant’s attorney, Francis Doran, said neither of those things proves that Brandao was involved in the attack. Doran said his client is a father with no history of violence. Brandao worked for Brooks Brothers for 10 years, in addition to working as a chimney sweep."

Meanwhile, one of Brandao's alleged victims spoke out after the hearing, saying he wants to start carrying pepper spray: "I'm very, very nervous. I am going to be very cautious."

Previously
Man Arrested in Connection with Anti-Gay Boston Assault [tr]

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Man Arrested in Connection with Anti-Gay Boston Assault

Fabio Brandao, a 28-year-old man from Framingham, Massachusetts, has been arrested in connection with an attack by four men on three gay men and a woman in Boston's South End:

"'They started yelling out slurs directed to my friends, calling them 'faggot' and 'better not look over here [expletive] faggots,'' Jenna, a 23-year-old Jamaica Plain resident, said yesterday as she described the Aug. 25 attack. Jenna said she stepped in front of one of the men, hoping to defuse the situation, and was stunned when he attacked her. 'He punched me directly in the face as hard as he could,' she said. Within seconds, Jenna said, she was knocked to the ground; one of her friends was unconscious and being kicked and beaten about the head; a third had fled, bleeding profusely from a scalp wound; and a fourth was frantically calling police on his cellphone. 'It wasn't a fair fight at all,' said Jeff, the man who was trying to summon help on his cellphone. 'None of us are big, muscley guys or into karate or something like that.'"

Brandao was arrested Friday night and charged with assault and battery with a deadly weapon. No word yet on the status of the other suspects.

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UK Politician Under Fire for Using Gay Slur at Rival's Mother

A British councillor has been cautioned after being accused of a hate crime for hurling an anti-gay slur at a rival's mother:

"Deputy leader of Barking and Dagenham council Liam Smith is said to have told the 60-year-old 'shut up you f***ing fat dyke' and 'go back to the farmyard' after a trivial argument in the council chamber. The Labour councillor lost his temper after watching the Conservatives snatch a seat in a by-election last month. When Sue Connelly, mother of local Tory councillor Neil, got into a minor row with him at the count he verbally abused her in front of shocked onlookers. Mrs Connelly, a married grandmother of eight who is not gay, was shocked by the tirade. She said: 'I was so stunned that I didn't know what to say in reply. To be spoken to like that in the council chamber in front of so many people was awful. I felt humiliated. I am not a lesbian but I have nothing against them and that word should not be used to insult anyone. It was vicious, nasty and homophobic. He should step down or be told to go.'"

Smith was ordered to write a letter of apology.

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