01/09/2010
News Sent - 1st September 2010
In this week's e-mail newsletter: Equality Network News: Recognising Relationships; National LGBT Forum: Everywhere Equal; Forums News: Survey about Funding Issues and Waiting Times for Gender Reassignment Services; East Dunbartonshire: LGBT Youth Services; Health and relationships survey; Speak up for lesbian and gay asylum seekers; Talk Scotland Events: Bi Glasgow: looking for a new home; Kintyre Embrace; Edinburgh Trans Women Support Group; Aberdeen: Wear RED for THT Scotland; Elgin LGBT Group; Edinburgh: Women out Wild; Edinburgh: Garden Morning; Generations Working Together; Striking The Balance: Fighting All The Way For Equal Pay; Angus LGBT Development Group; Breast Cancer Care: support groups & courses; Gaycon 2010: Gay Men’s Sexual Health and Wellbeing; Edinburgh: Fundraising on a shoestring course; UK News: Hague's adviser resigns, distressed by rumours; Tatchell to speak at London debate on Pope’s VisitDonation not discrimination: LGBTory joins the campaign; International: Movies that Matter Festival 2011; Austria: Schools are home to tolerance;Cuba: Fidel Castro acknowledges responsibility for homophobic persecutions; New Zealand: "ex-gay" organisation denied charitable status; Working for All: PATH (Scotland) Training, Glasgow; Glasgow: WISE Employment Consultant; Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise: Board Members; Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland: Chair; LGBT Families: Netherlands: Kinderen voor Kinderen song: Two Fathers; US: Texas bans gay divorce
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Equality Network
Recognising Relationships
Saturday 23rd October, Glasgow. The Equality Network's annual conferencce this year has the theme: Equal Families, Many Cultures, Better Lives. Organised in association with Glasgay!: Recognising Relationships is a conference for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender equality in Scotland.
This year's conference explores our relationships: with public services, with our families, with many cultures. How do we get LGBT-friendly services? When will we have the right to marry? How can we build a better Scotland for minority-ethnic LGBT people and LGBT asylum seekers?
You can book online at:
www.equality-network.org/conference2010
In association with
Glasgay!, which runs from 14 October – 13 November. (
PinkPaper)
National LGBT Forum: Everywhere Equal
Inverness, 4th September. Join us for the next meeting of the National LGBT Forum. The event will be held in the Ramada Inverness Hotel from 1.00pm until 4.30pm on Saturday 4th September. A buffet lunch will be provided and a travel bursary scheme is in place where travel costs are a barrier to participation.
http://www.scottishlgbt.org/Events/Details.aspx?id=835
Forums News
Take the Engender
Survey about Funding Issues and Waiting Times for Gender Reassignment Services
East Dunbartonshire: LGBT Youth Services
LGBT Youth Scotland are currently developing a pilot project in partnership work with East Dunbartonshire Council (EDC). They have carried out an information session and focus group session at OURSPACE youth service in Kirkintilloch and aim to follow up workshops too, which will then be implemented in other youth services and local secondary schools. They are keen to hear if young people in EDC aged 13 to 25 who identify as LGB or T and live, socialise or go to school in the area would want a youth group or other specific services set up.
www.lgbtyouth.org.uk/dunbartonshire.htm
LGBT Youth Scotland was recently reviewed by HM Inspectorate of Education as part of their programme of visits to national voluntary youth organisations. The review was conducted from the HMI framework
How Good is Our Community Learning and Development?
HMIE's report
can be read here.
"It was pleasing to read in [TES Scotland] that LGBT Youth Scotland, which represents lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people, had received a positive report from HMIE." (
Homophobic bullying must be beaten)
"When teaching children not to bully others because they look different or act different, one of the most important components of the lesson is to be tolerant of those who are different, and that our differences should be accepted." (
Aurora Sentinel)
Health and relationships survey
A postgraduate student from Glamorgan University is currently completing an MSc Psychology project on LGBTQ Health and Relationships, and invites you to participate by responding to a
15-minute survey for LGB people and women / men who sleep with other women /men about health and relationships. "Not a lot is known about the health of LGBTQ people, even less is known about their relationships. The aim of this survey is to better understand same sex relationships and when things go wrong. It explores different levels of domestic violence within same sex relationships in the context of alcohol use, mental and general health, and gender. All answers are confidential and you will not be able to be identified from the information you provide. Survey is for over-18s only.
Refugee Action: Speak up for lesbian and gay asylum seekers
Write to Home Secretary Theresa May, asking her to build on the landmark UK Supreme Court decision that lesbian and gay asylum seekers should be granted equal protection from persecution, and should never be forced to go home and live a lie. Ask the Home Secretary to introduce better training and practise for UK Border agency staff, so that lesbian and gay asylum seekers get a fair hearing on their cases. Refugee Action has over 28 years' experience in the reception, resettlement, development and integration of asylum seekers and refugees.
www.refugee-action.org.uk
Talk Scotland Events
Bi Glasgow: looking for a new home
As Noise/the Castro (the Glasgow LGBT Centre, Bell Street) is being closed down, Bi Glasgow is looking for different places they might relocate to. The 1st September meeting will be in Lauries, King Street: there will be a mid-month social and the group are looking for a new permanent home.
biscotland.org/meetings.htm
Kintyre Embrace
The lovely new Campbeltown LGBT group has a lovely new name! Meets first Wednesdays, 7pm. If you wish to attend, contact Katrina Mitchell at THT Glasgow by text to 07818 287 053, e-mail to katrina.mitchell@tht.org.uk, or call 0141 332 3838.
www.tht.org.uk
Edinburgh Trans Women Support Group
7.30-9.30pm, Saturday 4th Sept, at the Edinburgh LGBT Centre for Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street. The group aims to provide support for transsexual women but may be useful to transgender women who live life as women full-time or part-time. The group provides an opportunity to meet in a casual, relaxed and safe environment. It provides help and support through general discussions relating to transition issues or life living as a woman.
www.edinburghtranswomen.org.uk
Aberdeen: Wear RED for THT Scotland
7-11pm, Sunday 5th Sept, Fundraiser at Cheerz Bar & Club, 11 Hadden Street, for Terrence Higgins Trust Scotland! £1 entry includes raffle.
Elgin LGBT Group
Elgin Library -
1st Tuesday of the month, 7.30-9pm (onto the Cooperage afterwards optional!) Social networking group for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community in Moray.
Edinburgh: Women out Wild
7pm-midnight, Blue Moon Café, Sat 11 Sept. A night out with a wee buffet provided?: music and dancing and a guaranteed good time with lots of friendly new faces. Icebreaker drinks 6.30pm in The Street just around corner from Blue Moon. Tickets £10 from
www.womenoutwild.com
Edinburgh: Garden Morning
Saturday 11th September, 10am-12.30pm. Come along with your green fingers to the LGBT Centre for Health and Wellbeing's garden to help prepare for some autumn planting! This is a fun, healthy way to meet new friends, share your gardening knowledge or pick up a spade for the very first time. No experience needed but you may get your hands dirty! No need to book.
www.lgbthealth.org.uk
Generations Working Together
15th September, Aberdeen, one-day National Networking Event: includes the launch of the Autumn Micro Grant funding round. Scottish Centre for Intergenerational Practice are keen to have as many as possible attend to ensure that you have an opportunity to learn more about the Microgrants programme and apply: they will be able to provide support for travel costs.
www.scotcip.org.uk
Striking The Balance: Fighting All The Way For Equal Pay
Glasgow: 21 Sep, Scottish Youth Theatre; Edinburgh: 22 Sep, Voodoo Rooms. Set against the turbulent backdrop of the 1960s, 70s and 80s, three working women take on the might of a discriminatory establishment. Close the Gap is proud to support Mikron's new show. Inspired by the heroic stories of women across the UK, Striking the Balance chronicles the continuing struggle for equal pay. Fast-paced, inventive and a whole lot of fun, this new show takes you on a moving journey, introducing a host of colourful characters - including appearances from Labour's Red Queen and the Iron Lady. (
Glasgow Women's Network)
www.closethegap.org (warning: Flash-based site)
Angus LGBT Development Group
Wednesday 22 September, 11.45am in Training Room C, Angus House, Forfar. The group are looking at how to improve inclusion for LGBT people across the region, If you would like to come along, please contact LGBT Youth Scotland via info@lgbtyouth.org.uk or call 0131 555 3940.
Breast Cancer Care: support groups & courses
Seca – a fortnightly support group in Glasgow for people with secondary (incurable) breast cancer to meet, share experiences and support each other, facilitated by an experienced counsellor.
Living with secondary breast cancer – a short course, run over two separate days, providing people with a diagnosis of secondary breast cancer with an opportunity to hear from expert speakers on a range of subjects including treatments, fatigue and communicating with others as well as to meet and share experience with other people with a similar diagnosis. Running in Glasgow on 6 October and 24 November.
A two day residential event for women aged 45 and under, diagnosed with primary breast cancer in the last three years, is planned for March 2011.
www.breastcancercare.org.uk
Gaycon 2010: Gay Men’s Sexual Health and Wellbeing
20 - 21 October 2010, Edinburgh. A national conference for anyone working in the area of gay and bisexual men’s sexual health. The conference will include workshops, seminars, presentations and plenary session and is organised by a steering group made up from HIV and health agencies across Scotland.
www.gaycon.org
Edinburgh: Fundraising on a shoestring course
26th October 2010, 1.30-4.30pm. This course is for causes who want to establish fundraising and grow income but who haven’t got the resources to invest. Cost: £59 plus VAT, takes place in Central Edinburgh. (
CompanySolutions)
UK News
Hague's adviser resigns, distressed by rumours
A political blogger known online as
Guido Fawkes (Paul Staines) asserted that William Hague may have appointed a young man as a special advisor to him at the Foreign Office because they had shared an intimate relationship during the electoral campaign: which Hague identifies as their sharing twin-bedded hotel rooms "Neither of us would have done so if we had thought that it in any way meant or implied something else." (
BBC,
Pink News,
Independent)
Iain Dale comments:
A Bleak Day For Political Blogging
Tatchell speaks at London debate on Pope’s Visit
Pope Benedict XVI will visit England and Scotland from 16-19 September, in the first papal visit to Britain since 1982. The visit has attracted protests as some people argue it appears to demonstrate British support for the religious leader’s views. (
Pink Paper,
Scottish Media Monitor)
Tatchell given standing ovation at Christian festival (
Ekklesia)
Edmund Adamus, an adviser to the Archbishop of Westminster, said "permissive laws advancing the 'gay' agenda" were one example of how Britain had become such a "wasteland". (
Telegraph)
Donation not discrimination: LGBTory joins the campaign
LGBTory have added their support to the campaign against the UK's ban on blood donation from men who have had sex with men. LGBTory gathered 100s of signatures on a petition at Manchester Pride. LGBTory Chairman, Matthew Sephton, commented: "There is increasing evidence that this ban is not needed and so we would like to see an urgent review of the law in this area. Our petition is the first step in our campaign to have the blood ban reviewed and we will be campaigning vigorously to see a change in the law in this area." (
Pink Paper)
In Scotland, both
NUS LGBT and the
LGBT Network have been campaigning on this since January 2008, and the issue has been discussed in the
Scottish Parliament:
International
Movies that Matter Festival 2011
24th – 30th March 2011, The Hague, the Netherlands. The Movies that Matter Festival is the annual film festival on human rights and social justice in The Hague, the International City of Peace and Justice. This film and debate festival is the successor of the
Amnesty International Film Festival. It features the best of recent filmmaking related to human rights and human dignity and serves as a platform for debate and discussion. You are invited to submit films for inclusion: the final deadline is 15th of October, 2010. There are no restrictions on genre or length; long or short fiction, documentary, music video, animation are equally welcome provided that the film was made after 2008 and has clear human rights relevance. No resubmissions and no submission fee.
www.moviesthatmatterfestival.nl
Austria: Schools are home to tolerance
Andrea, a recently-transitioned teacher at a polytechnic in Vienna-Margareten, announced to her students that she would be returning to work openly as a woman for the new term. She is Austria's first openly trans teacher. The federal education ministry has confirmed she will not be dismissed or suspended. "Schools are home to tolerance, not discrimination." (
Austrian Independent)
Cuba: Fidel Castro acknowledges responsibility for homophobic persecutions
The former Cuban president, interviewed by Mexican newspaper La Jornada, said that the persecution of LGBT people in the 1960s and 70s as "counterrevolutionaries" and their incarceration in forced-labour camps was a "great injustice" that arose from the island's history of discrimination against homosexuals. He said he was not prejudiced against gays, but "if anyone is responsible, it's me." Castro, 84, said he was busy in those days fending off threats from the United States, including attempts on his life, and trying to maintain the revolution that put him in power in 1959. In 1979 gay sex was decriminalised, and Cuban's health care service now provides trans health services including surgery. (
TheAge,
BBC)
New Zealand: "ex-gay" organisation denied charitable status
A Christian trust that claims to be able to "cure" homosexuality has been declined charitable status in New Zealand. The NZ Charities Commission decided last month that the Exodus Ministries Trust Board was not performing any public benefit because homosexuality was not a mental disorder and did not need curing. Exodus Ministries has had charitable status for more than a decade, but that status has now been removed by the Charities Commission under a regime introduced in 2007. The commission noted that the American Psychological Association said there was little scientific evidence to show that homosexuality could be "cured" and attempts to do so could cause harm. (
Stuff.co.nz,
GayNZ)
UK "ex-gay" organisations include at least two registered charities. (
UK Ex-Gay Resources)
6 Ways Religious Frauds Try to Make Gays and Lesbians Straight (
Alternet.org)
Working for All
PATH (Scotland) Training, Glasgow
PATH Positive Action Training has been specifically designed to redress the under-representation of black and minority ethnic communities in employment in Scottish Housing. PATH are running a short series of free employability training courses aimed at people who are interested in applying for jobs in housing. Interested participants are welcome to attend one or all of the courses. Course dates are between 29th September and 1st December 2010. For more information and a registration form contact PATH via website or e-mail recruitment@pathscotland.org.uk.
www.pathscotland.org.uk
Glasgow: WISE Employment Consultant
Challenging and rewarding role, dealing with a diverse caseload of Clients. Applicants should be able to assess the employability potential of the Client in order to progress them into sustainable employment. To achieve this effectively, you should have the ability to develop and manage relations with local employers, understanding and matching their needs with the expectations of your Clients. Use of a car is essential. Request a job application pack quoting (Ref: SLC/EC/HR) via humanresources@thewisegroup.co.uk, Please mention LGBT News/the Equality Network. Fixed Term to 31 March 2011. Deadline: Wednesday 8th September 2010.
www.thewisegroup.co.uk
Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise: Board Members
Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise are the Scottish Government’s economic development agencies for Scotland. They provide enterprise, investment and innovation support to all of Scotland’s population – within the context of the Government Economic Strategy. They have statutory powers to promote and assist economic development, enterprise and international competitiveness and to advise Scottish Ministers on all related matters. Relevant induction and training provided to appointees. Applications are invited from people with skills and experience which can be applied to stimulating economic development in Scotland. Deadline: midnight Friday 24 September 2010
Highlands and Islands Enterprise
www.hie.co.uk
Scottish Enterprise
www.scottish-enterprise.com/public-appointments
Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland: Chair
With the exception of independent healthcare regulation, all of the Social Work Inspection Agency's and the Care Commission's work will be carried out by the new social work and social care services body, Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS). Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education's current work leading on the inspection of services to protect children and developing a model of inspection for children's services will also transfer to SCSWIS. The Chair of SCSWIS, will be expected to provide the necessary strategic leadership and direction; and will have a key role in developing a new identity and ethos for the new organisation. Deadline: Friday 17 September 2010.
Appointed for Scotland - Chair SCSWIS
LGBT Families
Netherlands: Kinderen voor Kinderen song: Two Fathers
Kinderen voor Kinderen is a Dutch children's choir maintained by public broadcaster VARA. The name translates as "children for children". A song from a 2005 album is trending on
Youtube (in Dutch, with English subtitles) with over 2 million views: a boy, Terrence, sings a song about his two fathers, and his audience of other children sings the chorus with him.
US: Texas bans gay divorce
Because same-sex marriage is not legally recognised in Texas, same-sex married couples cannot get a divorce there. The 5th Texas Court of Appeals ruled that a Dallas district court judge didn't have the authority to hear a divorce case involving two Dallas men who married in Massachusetts in 2006. The State Attorney General had appealed a District Judge's ruling that she did have jurisdiction to divorce a same-sex couple. The Attorney General argued that the couple's marriage should be “voided,” nullifying the marriage as invalid from the beginning, meaning that neither may benefit from any provisions in divorce law, such as division of community property. (
Washington Post,
On Top Mag)
The Equality Network’s website for information on all aspects of LGBT family law – including civil partnership, cohabitation, having children, breaking up – is
www.lgbtfamilies.org
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