Judge Judy Loves the Gays

Ellen De Generes Attacks Proposition 8

Ellen De Generes of course is famously gay and married to her partner Portia de Rossi, and is directly affected by the passing (at least for now) of homophobic ballot Proposition 8 in California. It's unthinkable to me as well that anyone could vote for people's rights to be rescinded. Gay people getting married threatens noone and undermines nothing. I remain hopeful that the legal challenges against Prop 8 bring about a happy ending to this battle for civil rights and equality before the law.

John Barrowman: What About Us? (Video)

Übergay John 'Captain Jack' Barrowman's video for his new pop song "What About Us?", released 17th November:

Haider Was Gay

I'd known this for some time, so it wasn't a surprise to hear confirmation after his death that he was gay, it's just a strange way for the news to be made public:

The successor to the Austrian rightwing populist Jörg Haider, Stefan Petzner, has shocked the staunchly conservative country by revealing in a tearful interview that they shared a "special relationship".

Petzner, 27, who was confirmed yesterday as the leader of the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZO) after Haider's death in a car crash two weeks ago, made the admission on Austrian radio, effectively confirming long-standing rumours that he and Haider were lovers.

It's always the paradox with the far right - that they can't help being what
they despise and rail against. And ironic too that Haider's wish that Petzner
should succeed him should be undone by this revelation:

Outraged by the interviews, the party felt compelled yesterday to dismiss its leader amid reports of his alleged role in Haider’s tragic death. Local papers said that, on the night of his accident, Haider and Mr Petzner had a row at a magazine launch party.

Bill Shatner vs George Takei

An amazing rant, really amazing. I love the Shat, but someone has to stop giving him Emmys until it can be proven that he's actually acting in Boston Legal. From the looks of this performance he really is Denny Crane!

Clay Aiken Comes Out

A story about as shocking as Will Young coming out in 2002, I know. But Clay Aiken has finally admitted to the world that he's a raving poofter. Simon Cowell's response?

"Wow. That's a shock. It's like being told Santa Claus isn't real," he told "Extra." "Unbelievable."

But he did offer some words of support for the singer: "Good for him. If he said it, it's the right thing for him. Good for him." Cowell added that he didn't think the singer's fans should be shocked by the revelation, saying, "I don't think anyone cares. Let's face it: It's 2008. You know. Who cares?"

He's right of course. The attention grabber though is that Clay, American Idol runner-up in 2003, has just become a father. May he and his son be blessed with success and happiness.

George Michael...on Crack!

This isn't a surprise but it's still disappointing. George Michael, he of the multiple drug busts whilst driving his car, and cottaging which he's since attributed to being down to depression at the death of his mother, has been busted yet again. Apparently this time it was in a notorious 'cottage' at Hampstead Heath, and he was in possession of cannabis and crack cocaine. Really sad news, but his constant protests of how happy he's been since his infamous 1998 'outing' always sounded too much, particularly in his music.




He's a great man, one of the finest pop singer song writers ever, but I really tire of this self-loathing. Some people can indeed handle their drugs, and even keep them in perspective; he clearly can't. I wonder how much better his music would become if he got clean, but remember an interview in the 'Big Issue' during the period of his masterpiece 'Older', where if I recall correctly he, like Paul McCartney before him, attributed much of his creative success to drugs. It remains a huge shame, and is quite revealing, that he's not released anything even approaching that quality since then.

Of Gay Judges and Pink Glass Ceilings

Excellent news!

Sir Terence Etherton, pictured, will be the first openly gay judge to be sworn in as Lord Justice of Appeal when his appointment is confirmed later this month.

It's a very important development for an area of civil society marked by both significant homophobia and an even greater expectation of homophobia. He's not notably the first gay judge, but the Court of Appeal has only 36 members, and is the second highest court in the land, making this quite important. As the article goes on to show, it puts him in line to become the first out gay law lord.

This was nice too:

One of the most interesting things about him is that he was the first High Court judge to announce — in The Times in February 2006 — his entry into a civil partnership.

A real, non-self-hating progressive. We can only hope that our horribly unrepresentative criminal justice system will be influenced by an ever more diverse judiciary.

Russell Tovey - 11th Doctor?

In an interesting move, outgoing Doctor Who supremo Russell T Davies has named Russell Tovey - Midshipman Frame (allons-y Alonso!) - as his preferred choice for Eleventh Doctor:

In e-mails serialised in The Times newspaper, Davies said Russell Tovey, who appeared in Alan Bennett's play The History Boys, would fit the role.

The creator, who leaves the show next year as lead writer and executive producer, said he thought Tovey was "going to be huge" and is "amazing".

I'll admit if I had my own way I'd get Hugh Laurie - British, older (but not that much older), has the comedic chops, and House has proven he can draw from a much darker (and odder) seam too. But he's just had a massive payrise, so I don't think that'll happen any time soon. Tovey though is interesting, not least because he's gay.



It's understood (but not confirmed) that David Tennant's not going anywhere yet - he has a Who feature film he appears to be negotiating, in addition to probably starring in Who series 5 - but it does make you wonder whether this has already been decided, and what Steven Moffat could do with him.

Gay Champion Matthew Mitcham

Is unimaginably hot.



Matthew Mitcham, the 20 year old, out gay Australian diver, won a last-minute gold medal with a near-perfect dive. He came back from burnout and depression two years ago to compete in the Beijing Olympics - the only male, out gay competitor. In the 10m platform final, Matthew had been trailing China's Zhou Luxin, but defeated the Chinese hot favourite with his final dive, graduating from gay icon to gay hero in the process.





He's pretty funny, and sweet with his boyfriend Lachlan too. Noone should be allowed to be this cute.

Ellen Marries Portia

I'm so pleased for them. California really had better reject Proposition 8 in November and let marriage equality stand. Only a really cold, soulless monster could look at this and find it threatening in any way. It's a real injustice that Australia still doesn't at least acknowledge foreign-held same-sex unions:

"Every time DeGeneres and de Rossi visit de Rossi's family in Australia, their rights, protections and status as a married couple will cease to exist," Mr Furness said.

"It is shameful that Portia de Rossi's solemn marriage vows are dishonoured in this way by the government of her home country."

Homosexuality and Heinz

Dear old Heinz. First they run a humorous ad featuring a New York deli chef kissing another man, implying pretty strongly in the script that the chef is actually their mother and it's Heinz's Deli Mayo product that makes her appear this way.



Then when about 200 viewers complain because it was 'offensive', 'inappropriate' and 'unsuitable to be seen by children', Heinz pulls it, just like that. Considering that the ad wasn't allowed to be screened during children's scheduling because of the product's extreme unhealthiness, surely that 'unsuitability' argument should have been immediately discounted. And Zoe Williams is right - what makes this so inappropriate when Bounty (the kitchen roll) is still running a series of ads with men dressed as women. So transvestism isn't 'inappropriate' or 'unsuitable to be seen by children'? But the bigger question is why Heinz pulled it at all. Spokesman Nigel Dickie said:

"Heinz is a global company and we respect all universal rights. The advertisement was intended to be humorous, not designed to cause offence to anyone. Clearly it failed in its intent to amuse and that is why we took the decision to withdraw it."

Says who that it failed to amuse? 200 complaints is hardly groundbreaking, and why do you think it makes more sense to offend gay and gay friendly consumers by bending to homophobic pressure? Stonewall Chief Executive Ben Summerskill advocates a consumer boycott of Heinz (and I agree with him), saying:

"We're shocked that an innocuous ad should have been withdrawn in this way. I can't imagine that Heinz would respond to protests about black people featuring in their adverts."

Jesus Christ, It's Iris Robinson!

As many of you already know, Democratic Unionist MP and MLP Iris Robinson, wife of Northern Ireland's new First Minister Peter Robinson, is a died-in-the-wool, fire-and-brimstone 'born again' Christian. Well when on a phone-in radio programme last week, she was asked for her response to the news that a gay man had been viciously beaten up and left for dead. She admittedly condemned the violence, but then qualified it by saying gay people were an 'abomination', who could always seek therapy with her pet psychiatrist, because he's good at turning gay people straight! You thought crap like this left with the Paisleys? Not a bit of it. I have a considered response here, but I wanted a freer word here too.



The woman is mad, bonkers mad. When challenged on TV she followed up her earlier slurs by likening us to murderers, and then complained about a 'witchhunt' against Christians speaking out! Of course she defended that by saying 'it's not me, it's God's word, and you can't disagree with Him'. How convenient - wanton bigotry by someone in a position of power, and an argument that can't be contradicted. Her husband needs to fire her as Chair of Stormont's health committee - that if nothing else is an abomination. This is not what someone in a position of a responsibility, in a devolved government statutorily committed to equality can be allowed to bleat about. Why? Because it's bonkers, does anyone really need that explaining?

Shut up, Iris (or at least laugh at your own madness in likening gay people to murderers in front of a TV camera again - that was priceless)! If only theists knew how hilarious their rants really were.

Gay President Delanoë?

It's a great thought about the mainstreaming of diversity, isn't it? Mayor of Paris Bertrand Delanoë has signalled he's likely to run for the leadership of the French Socialist Party at the end of the year - if he were to win, putting him on a collision course with the hugely unpopular Nicolas Sarkozy at the next presidential election in 2012. This would be routine but for one important factor: Delanoë is gay. It's not unknown for the leaders of major cities to be gay - Klaus Wowereit in Berlin and Mayor-elect Sam Adams in Portland, Oregon are current notable fellows, but none has so far made an attempt to make the transition to the national stage.

So far Delanoë has travelled on the same path which took Boris Johnson to the top in London - that in this day and age, if you offer a certain level of professionalism, straightforwardness and accountability voters are indifferent to your background. There are hints in the UK that that trend will successfully convert to national politics, but despite currently favourable opinion polls, it remains to be seen if the same is true in France. We can but hope - Royal ran a spectacularly unfocused campaign last year against a man widely known to be a monster (who proved to be as well). France needs more competent and likable alternatives.

The World of Work is Secular

In yet another case study of the resurgence of religion, and the way in which the state's pandering to it post-9/11 has caused upswings of bigotry instead of the opposite, read the case of Lilian Ladele. She's a civil registrar in Islington, north London, who is suing for the right to discriminate; yes, she's suing because she believes her religion has been legislated into enough of a position of privilege that she can get away with not marrying gay couples in civil partnerships. As Janine at Stroppyblog quite rightly points out, it's not clear whether or not gay couples in Islington can refuse to get married by her!

Of course the only correct outcome is to say 'do your (secular) job or get fired', and it's shocking to think that we are back in an age where people feel they can get away with opting out of aspects of their job which don't sit well with their religious beliefs. But Ladele's employer is covered by the Civil Partnership Act and the Sexual Orientation Regulations, neither of which ended up with civil opt-outs.

The Sexual Orientation Regulations have been criticised by some religious groups who say people will not be allowed to act according to faith.

Yes, I remember - I was there with my camera when the religious challenge to the secular law crashed and burned, but it wasn't without a tremendous fight, both inside and outside Parliament. But they did fail, and Ladele isn't being discriminated against - she's suing for the right to be a bigot. She says she can't go against what it says in the Bible, but a) it doesn't say she's not allowed to conduct gay weddings and b) it's that inconsistent argument again, isn't it? Bet she wears mixed fibres.

Gay Hip Hop?

Are some famous 'singers' and industry luminaries in the most homophobic area of popular culture about to come out? It seems ludicrous doesn't it, given the level of hatred built into the most commonly promoted form of hip hop, but Terrance Dean, a former executive at MTV is about to publish a book about the thriving, largely underground gay hip hop subculture, now he's come out.

There are signs that things are changing. Several leading rap artists, including top seller Kanye West, have admitted that homophobia is rampant in the industry and they have spoken out against it.

Dean, however, hopes that hip hop will soon put its homophobia behind it. He says the music changed dramatically from hip hop's roots in nightclubs and parties to a celebration of urban violence and gang life as 'gangsta rap' became the norm. Homophobia grew up alongside that musical shift as most successful artists used songs that idolised guns, drugs and crime. 'We need to get hip hop back to those party roots and away from the gangsta rap culture,' he said.

I really wish that were true, except there seems to be such a vested interest in promoting and maintaining this 'gangsta' culture, with all its components (like violent homophobia) that I can't honestly see that changing any time soon. For the life of me I don't understand why that culture isn't changed, but it would have to either change by government pressure - which wouldn't work - or would have to come from the ground up, and it's only gay campaigners who are doing that so far.

Stop the Hate

Homophobia can be a very overt and brutal thing, it can be something insidious and covert which informs your opinions and actions of someone in a consistently negative way. Both things have to stop being transmitted to children and young people as remotely acceptable. It is not ok to hurt or hate someone for who they are. One way or another it destroys lives.

Governator Looks to the Future

In yet another canny move by Governator 2.0 Schwarzenegger, Arnie moves to block an amendment to change the Californian constitution to outlaw gay marriage. A hypocritical move perhaps, considering the Californian legislature passed a gay marriage law, but were frustrated by Schwarzenegger who vetoed it. But it seems that that move might have been more in line with Bill Clinton's allowing the Defence of Marriage Act (DOMA) to pass - making tactical moves in a larger war for gay rights, which in America all depend on timing. Maybe it's just because he sees the writing's on the wall for Bush-style, ultra-religious conservatism - he's already made environmental moves in flagrant opposition to the White House after all.

Iran's Out...Egypt Anyone?

The Mehdi Kazemi case should be reminding people that despite the odd pre-Ahmadinejad baby steps forward, Iran as a nation is still stuck in the dark ages. For witches read homosexuals - 4000 of us at least murdered since 1979. But anyway, we're told by the all-wise W that we're not supposed to like Iran anyway - it's part of the Axis of Evil. So what about our ally, Egypt?

Egypt is forcibly testing, torturing and jailing people living with HIV/AIDS, whilst on a regular witch hunt against gay men. So we like this country who engage in this barbarity, but don't like Iran who do exactly the same thing? Cruise down the Nile anyone?

Paddick for Equality

Liberal Democratic candidate for London Mayor Brian Paddick has championed the Stonewall report on homophobic attitudes in society.

One fifth of respondents think they would be treated worse by police than a straight person if they reported a crime.

One in five think they would be treated worse by a magistrate if they were to appear before one because they are gay.

60% of gay men and 50% of lesbians think they would be treated worse by prison officers if it was known they were gay.

None of this should be a surprise. Whilst little in life is always true, it's very much the case in London that the Metropolitan Police is institutionally homophobic, whatever else Ken Livingstone or Ian Blair would like to believe. The criminal justice system behind it is equally as bad, if not worse. That one is down to unchallenged bigotry and the other might likely be down to poor training and institutional ineptitude doesn't make any difference to the outcomes. And they're outcomes which we don't like to talk about - they make us feel uneasy. It's impressive that Stonewall is at least beginning to put the evidence of expectations together. They should shame our Home Secretary, or rather they would if she only had a soul.

There is a great deal of difference between changing the law and changing people’s experience.

I've spoken to him about my vote already, but if this were to be a bedrock of his intentions as Mayor, it would certainly guarantee it'll go to him.