11/03/2009
News Sent - 11th March 2009
In this week's e-mail newsletter: Equality Network News: LGBT History Month: 10 Downing Street; Edinburgh: Have your say about LGB mental health issues; The Big LGBT Conversation: Everywhere Equal; STA Forum and National LGBT Forum; Forums News: International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination; MSPs back new hate crime law; Derek Ogg heads new team for prosecuting serious sexual crimes; Sexual Health and Relationship Questionnaire for LGBQ people in Glasgow; Gude Cause: new website; Talk Scotland Events: Edinburgh: T-Time; Glasgow: 2014 Commonwealth Games legacy consulation; Edinburgh: Abortion and Choice - Past, Present, Future; Glasgow: LGBT Lives - the biographies and life course of sexual/gender dissidents; Dundee: European Conference on what the EU is doing for disabled people; Engender: new e-newsletter; UK News: London: Unauthorised absences during LGBT History Month; York: LGBT Muslims face ‘two-pronged prejudice’; London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival; Filling in the Blanks - Conference on LGBT Hate Crime in London; International: Denmark: Conference on LGBT Human Rights; Australia: Gay Mardi Gras in Sydney; New Zealand Blue Ducks: The best laid eggs gang aft a gay; Working for All: Dalkeith: Newbattle Abbey College equalities committee; Scottish Qualifications Authority: appointment of board members; Glasgow: two artist residencies at GOMA; LGBT Families, Civil Partnership and Cohabitation: Fostering regulations to be changed; Islington: former registrar's appeal against civil partnership refused; US: California's Proposition 8 challenged;
If you're interested in using the Equality Network's bulletin boards to share information about local and international news and events in your area, e-mail ENnews@equality-network.org by close of day Friday each week for inclusion in next week's mailing.
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The boards at
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Equality Network News
LGBT History Month: 10 Downing Street
The director of the Equality Network, Patrick Stoakes, was invited to a gathering hosted by Gordon Brown at 10 Downing Street to celebrate LGBT History Month. The reception itself will go down in history as the first ever reception at Number 10 for LGBT campaigners. (
LGBT History Month blog)
Edinburgh: Have your say about LGB mental health issues
Thursday 12th March, 6-7:30pm at the LGBT Health and Wellbeing Centre, Howe Street. SAMH, in partnership with the Equality Network, is running a research project to find out about attitudes towards mental health and mental health problems among lesbian, gay, and bisexual people. We want to hear from you if you identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual and are over 16. You do not need to know anything about mental health or mental health problems. Participants will receive £10 after attending the focus group. We will also pay reasonable travel expenses if you provide us with receipts.
The Big LGBT Conversation: Everywhere Equal
Thursday 19th March 2009, 6pm. Fairways Business Park, Castle Heather, Inverness. Supported by
Highlands and Islands Equality Forum.
For both events above, contact Scott Cuthbertson (scott@equality-network.org) for further information.
STA Forum and National LGBT Forum
Saturday 21st March 2009, Macdonald Holyrood Hotel, Edinburgh.
STA Forum: 10:45am to 1:30pm
National LGBT Forum: 12.45pm-4pm
(Shared lunch for both forums provided at 1pm)
Contact James Morton (james@equality-network.org) or Scott Cuthbertson (scott@equality-network.org) for further information.
Forums News
International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination: 21st March
MSPs back new hate crime law
Holyrood's justice committee has backed the bill put forward by Green MSP Patrick Harvie. The Scottish Government has already said it will support the bill. Crimes motivated by hatred of LGBT or disabled people would be considered aggravated offences, meriting tougher sentences. The bill is expected to be debated in the Scottish Parliament on 18th March. (
BBC,
The Scotsman)
Derek Ogg heads new team for prosecuting serious sexual crimes
The Lord Advocate (Elish Angiolini QC), announced in early March that a new team of Scotland's most senior prosecutors is to specialise in the investigation and prosecution of serious sexual crimes across Scotland. Mrs Angiolini confirmed that the team of specialist Crown Counsel will be headed by Derek Ogg, QC, who has led the prosecution of some of Scotland's most serious offences. Derek Ogg is one of Scotland's original LGBT rights campaigners, who worked with the Scottish Homosexual Rights Group in the 1970s and helped found Scottish AIDS Monitor (SAM) in the early 1980s. Sandy Brindley said: "Rape Crisis Scotland is supportive of the creation of a National Sexual Crimes Unit. Rape is a crime which can have a harrowing and long term effect on its victims, and it is one which people can often be reluctant to report to the police." (
The Herald,
Rape Crisis Scotland)
Sexual Health and Relationship Questionnaire for LGBQ people in Glasgow
If you are aged between 13 and 21, live in Glasgow City, Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, West Dunbartonshire, East Dunbartonshire or Inverclyde, and identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual or questioning, LGBT Youth Scotland invites you to fill in this
confidential survey about how parental attitudes have affected your behaviour with regard to sexual health.
Gude Cause: new website
The new website for Gude Cause, the organisation formed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Women’s Suffrage Movement Procession along Princes Street in 1909, has been launched. They're looking for web-savvy volunteers to improve (or advise them on improving) the website.
www.gudecause.org.uk
Talk Scotland Events
Edinburgh: T-Time
Saturday 21st March 2009, an informal social gathering from 1pm to 5pm at the LGBT Centre for Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street, Edinburgh, EH3 6TE. Open to all transgender people, partners, family and friends on the third Saturday of every month. Drop in and have a chat in a friendly relaxed environment – there’s also space to change.
www.lgbthealth.org.uk
Glasgow: 2014 Commonwealth Games legacy consulation
The initial findings of a city-wide consultation into the likely impact of the 2014 Commonwealth Games will be made public at a series of events across Glasgow from 23rd to 27th March. The programme will include information on the consultation process and an opportunity to discuss the findings and recommendations. There will also be a presentation on Glasgow’s plans for creating a lasting legacy from the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Events are free, but registration is required. For further information or a booking form, please contact Jo-Ann Welsh by phone (0141 287 4460), fax (0141 287 5997) or email (joann.welsh@glasgow.gov.uk).
ENF.org.uk/blogs
Equality Network > Talk Scotland > Glasgow
Edinburgh: Abortion and Choice - Past, Present, Future
Sat 25th April 2009, 10.30am - 4.00pm, at the Workers Educational Association, Riddles Court, 322 Lawnmarket, Edinburgh.
"As we saw last year with the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, the struggle for a right to choose is not won but ongoing." A day of discussion bringing together those who have campaigned in the past with those who may be the campaigners of the future, women and men, older and younger, those who are pro choice and those who are unsure." Invited speakers include Judy Bury from Doctors for a Woman’s Right to Choose, Kainde Manji NUS Scotland, a representative from the STUC and a member of the Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group on Sexual Health.
www.abortionrights.org.uk
Glasgow: LGBT Lives - the biographies and life course of sexual/gender dissidents
At Glasgow University, 12th May 2009. This seminar, the second in the series organised by
Queen Margaret University, is concerned with questions of space, including the way that space mediates relations and identities. "We also wish to consider the significance of local cultures to LGBT identities alongside issues of a more global nature that transcend national boundaries." The organisers are calling for papers. Delegates are invited to register: the aim is to attract a cross-sector and multidisciplinary audience who will participate in a debate that develops over the course of the series. The seminar series will have relevance for Academics/researchers, postgraduates, practitioners, service providers and planners, policy-makers, community-based and campaigning groups, and LGBT individuals.
Equality Network > Talk Scotland > Glasgow
Dundee: European Conference on what the EU is doing for disabled people
Tuesday 31 March 2009. The Citizenship Academy (part of Leonard Cheshire Disability) are inviting all disabled people to take part in a free conference on the European Union and upcoming events. The conference will be held at the West Park Centre in Dundee, and accessible buses will be available from Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow. The conference will be an opportunity to find out about the European Union and what it is doing for disabled people. To book a place, contact William Neil at william.neil@lcdisability.org or by phone on 0131 346 9040.
www.lcdisability.org
Engender: new e-newsletter
Engender "works to make Scotland a fairer, safer place where women can flourish and contribute to both the social and market economies with dignity, freedom and justice." If you would like to receive their new e-newsletter and keep informed about the work they do, e-mail karen@engender.org.uk.
www.engender,org.uk
UK News
London: Unauthorised absences during LGBT History Month
About 30 children were taken out of
George Tomlinson Primary School in East London during a week in February during which lessons were geared towards teaching about same-gender relationships. One lesson included an adaptation of a Shakespeare play entitled Romeo and Julian. Gay themed fairytales and books were also read and discussed. The local council say parents who removed their children from school will face a penalty for "unauthorised absences". Just over 400 children are enrolled in the school: a school council for students meets fortnightly, and the board of governors (staff and parents) meets quarterly. (
Fyne Times,
Pink News)
York: LGBT Muslims face ‘two-pronged prejudice’
As part of the ‘Love Without Borders’ campaign organised by York LGBT, Pav Akhtar explained the urgency of addressing this rift. Akhtar is the first non-white president of the Cambridge University Students Union and is challenging the conservative conceptions of what it means to be a Muslim. In 2006 he also became the first gay Muslim to run for NUS president, though he lost by 28 votes. “The condemnation of the LGBT community by many Islamic practitioners is based on a very narrow interpretation of Islamic teaching. Now is the time to engage in critical constructive thinking, not to reform Islam, but to reform the narrow, conservative dogma which has set the political frame to which all Muslims must conform.” (
nouse.co.uk)
York LGBT Facebook group
London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival
At The National Film Theatre, South Bank, London, SE1 8XT (T: 07090 422 912 / F: 020 7633 0786). The largest LGBT Film Festival in Europe. 120 film premieres, as well as shorts, masterclasses and interviews. Opening Times: 25 March - 8 April 2009
www.bfi.org.uk
Filling in the Blanks - Conference on LGBT Hate Crime in London
Organised by Galop. Tuesday 31 March 2009. 9.45am - 4.30pm. At Emirates Stadium, Arsenal. London, N5 1BU (T: 020 7704 6767). Four workshops, "Towards a more strategic response in London", "Third party reporting: making it work", "Victims: LGBT people with mental health difficulties, BME and trans people", "Incidents in or near the home: domestic abuse, sexual abuse and neighbourhood harassment" Fee £50-£100.
www.galop.org.uk
International
Denmark: Conference on LGBT Human Rights
Outgames are pleased to announce that the 93 year old Axel Axgil will speak in the opening ceremony at the World Outgames International Conference on LGBT Human Rights in Copenhagen. 20 years ago, on October 1, 1989, Denmark was the first country in the world to recognize the registered partnership for same-sex couples. As the founder of the first Danish association for Gays and Lesbians in 1948 and a long time strong defender of LGBT human rights, Axel Axgil became the first man in the world to enjoy the privilege of having his love for his male partner Eigil Axgil declared as legal in the Copenhagen city hall. Axel Axgil was also a founding member of the first ever publication for members of an association for homosexuals in the whole world and a co-founder of the International Homosexual World Organization in 1954.
www.copenhagen2009.org
Australia: Gay Mardi Gras in Sydney
"This year Mardi Gras attracted tourists from more than twenty countries, despite the global economic downturn. Three weeks of arts, social and sporting events which comprise the most substantial gay festival in the world launched at Fair Day and culminated with Parade and Party on Saturday night." (
S-XNews)
New Zealand Blue Ducks: The best laid eggs gang aft a gay
Keepers at a bird sanctuary in West Sussex hoped that the last remaining female New Zealand Blue Duck in the UK - called Cherry - might mate with either of the only drakes, Ben or Jerry. But Ben and Jerry bonded with each other, and are now inseparable at the Arundel Wetland Centre. Centre warden Paul Stevens said he was disappointed that efforts to produce new Blue Duck offspring had failed but said the two male birds made "a lovely couple". There are only around 600 New Zealand Blue Ducks left worldwide, so breeding programmes like the one at the Wetlands Trust in West Sussex are crucial for the species' survival. (
The Telegraph,
GayNZ)
Working for All
Dalkeith: Newbattle Abbey College equalities committee
Newbattle Abbey College is Scotland’s only residential adult education college. Their equalities committee (meets quarterly) is trying to recruit representatives from across the diversity strands onto their equalities committee: looking for people either who can attend the committee on an ad hoc basis or as regular members. If you are interested, contact the Depute Principal at NorahFitzcharles@newbattleabbeycollege.ac.uk.
www.newbattleabbeycollege.ac.uk
Scottish Qualifications Authority: appointment of board members
The SQA is the national body in Scotland responsible for the development, accreditation, assessment, and certification of qualifications other than degrees. It operates as a business at the centre of Scotland’s education and training system, is largely funded from its own income and carries out a significant amount of international work. If you are highly motivated and have the relevant skills, knowledge and personal qualities required, Scottish Ministers want you to apply to become a Board member of the SQA. Apply by 27th March.
Equality Network > General > Working for all
Glasgow: two artist residencies at GOMA
GoMA and CSG Arts Development Team are seeking two artists to take part in residencies as part of their 2009 Social Justice programme sh[OUT]: Contemporary art and human rights. We are looking for artists whose work will engage with the themes in sh[OUT] which explore LGBT human rights and history. One residency will be professional opportunity for a disabled or deaf artist in an early stage of their career. One residency will be open to all artists. Residencies are part-time (17.5 hours a week) and run from June to November 2009. Apply by 31st March.
Equality Network > General > Working for all
LGBT Families, Civil Partnership and Cohabitation
Fostering regulations to be changed
The current regulations on fostering in Scotland ban placing children for foster care except in single-parent households or with married couples. Unmarried mixed-sex couples and same-sex couples may not foster children. Scotland has a shortfall in foster parents to care for children in need of temporary homes. The Scottish Government has announced they intend to change the regulations (probably at the end of June this year) to open up foster care to unmarried and civil-partnered couples. Cardinal O’Brien, the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, claims this is "misguided and inappropriate". (Pink News)
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-11519.html
Islington: former registrar's appeal against civil partnership refused
The Islington Council registrar who refused to carry out civil partnership ceremonies for same sex couples has failed in her attempt to overturn a ruling in the council's favour. An Employment Tribunal in 2008 had ruled in favour of Ms Lillian Ladele but the council successfully appealed the decision at an Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT). The EAT has now refused leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal. In addition, Lillian Ladele's application for costs has also been refused. The Christian Institute has offered to pay her legal costs. A spokesperson for Islington Council said: "For us, though, it's only ever been about recognising the need for all our staff to deliver their public duties to all residents without discrimination." (
EGovMonitor,
ThisIsLondon,
PinkNews)
Equality Network > Civil Partnership > Ceremonies
US: California's Proposition 8 challenged
California's Supreme Court is assessing the validity of Proposition 8, which invalidates all same-sex marriages performed in California before November last year, and bans all future same-sex marriages. (
Examiner,
Findlaw.com)
Backers of an initiative that would repeal Proposition 8 has been given the go ahead by the state to start collecting signatures to appear on the ballot in 2010. They must collect 694,354 signatures by 6th August 2009. A recent poll suggests that 48% of voters would support repeal, 47% favour keeping the ban on same-sex marriage, and 5% are undecided. (
CBS,
ABClocal)
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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