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GAY. LET'S GET THE MEANING STRAIGHT!
NEW GUIDE FOR
INTERNATIONAL
EQUALITY ACTIVISTS
BEN SUMMERSKILL
) Stonewall, the LGB equality charity, launched a new campaign in November
2013, with pop star Will Young and Mumsnet, to tackle homophobic language in
Britain’s schools. The campaign, devised by young people, is in response to
research conducted for Stonewall by the
University of Cambridge that showed that
99% of gay young people still regularly hear
phrases like ‘that’s so gay’ and that 84% of
those young people are distressed by it.
) Stonewall, the LGB equality
charity, has launched a guide for
equality activists worldwide on
how to engage with the UK
government. It provides the
practical information they need to
work effectively with the UK
Foreign & Commonwealth
Office and the Department for
International Development to
advance the human rights of
LGB&T people in their countries.
The guide, being sent to over
1,500 activists as well as British
High Commissions and
Embassies around the world,
features case studies of how the
UK government has supported
LGB&T activists to date.
Ben Summerskill, Chief Executive of Stonewall,
said: “Homophobic language has a devastating impact on gay
young people’s self-esteem. With your support, we’ve already
been able to send our resources to over half of all secondary
schools in Britain. But we know there’s still much more to do. We
want to ensure that every secondary school can access our
posters and new guidance for teachers and young people.
To help Stonewall make this possible:
• Make a donation – just £5 allows Stonewall to send these materials to a
secondary school, ensuring that hundreds of pupils understand why it’s wrong
to say ‘that’s so gay’. Simply text GAY to 70500 or to donate £5
online, view: www.stonewall.org.uk
• Buy a ‘Gay. Let’s Get The Meaning Straight’ t-shirt to show your support
to young people.
• To take action to help tackle homophobic language in your local school or
workplace, view: www.stonewall.org.uk
Stonewall has worked with
activists in over 35 countries
worldwide since 2011 to support
them in their own campaigns and
share their expertise from over two
decades of campaigning.
JASMINE O’CONNOR
Ben concluded: "Since launching the campaign we have received cross-party
support and commitments from schools up and down the country to tackle the
problem. With your support they will be able to turn those commitments into real
action so they can realise their ambition that every single child in Britain should be
able to reach their full potential – regardless of their sexual orientation.”
GAY HUMANISTS DISMAYED
AT INDIAN COURT RULING
George Broadhead, PTT’s Secretary, said: “This ruling is a
terrible setback for the struggle to secure equal rights for LGBT
people, not just in India, but in many of the Commonwealth
countries that still enforce colonial era draconian restrictions on
rights of LGBT people. It will inevitably provide encouragement
to the many African states like Nigeria and Uganda which are
viciously hostile to LGBT relationships and rights.
GEORGE BROADHEAD
) The Pink Triangle Trust (PTT), the UK gay Humanist
charity, has expressed its dismay and outrage at the news
that India’s highest court has upheld a colonial era law
which criminalises gay sex. The Supreme Court threw out a 2009 New Delhi
High Court decision that ruled the law was unconstitutional and this change could
see gay people jailed for up to 10 years.
Jasmine
O’Connor,
Stonewall’s
Senior
International
Officer,
said: “We know from our work
with dozens of LGB&T
organisations globally that they
look to the UK as a beacon of gay
equality and therefore a key ally in
their own campaigns for
fundamental rights. The UK
government has said it wants to
work with activists in their own
countries and we hope that this
guide will help bring activists and
the UK government together on
the ground.”
“As in these countries, where religious organisations, including the Anglican
Churches, strongly support anti-gay legislation, the ruling in India has been
welcomed by religious groups, particularly leaders of India's Christian, Hindu and
Muslim communities, who had challenged the 2009 New Delhi High Court ruling
which described Section 377 as discriminatory and said gay sex between
consenting adults should not be treated as a crime.
ZAFARYAB JILANI
“The PTT fully endorse the statement made by G Ananthapadmanabhan of [[