Nicole Bonamino

BY CATHERINE MORPETH
dot429

22-year-old in-line roller hockey goalkeeper Nicole Bonamino, the first Italian sports star to come out as gay, is swiftly becoming a home country hero among the nation’s LGBT population.

Speaking to Gay Star News, the northern Italy native said, “I’ve always known I was lesbian. I came out to my family when I was 18, while I was in a relationship with another girl.”

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The post Italian sports star comes out as lesbian first appeared on Lesbian.com.

This Friday, March 17, 2006 file photo, shows members of the Irish-American LGBT community protesting in NYC. (Photo: AP/Dima Gavrysh)

In an echo of the parade controversy in New York, Mayor Martin Walsh of Boston, Massachusetts has announced he plans to boycott the city’s St. Patrick’s Day parade unless LGBT groups are allowed to participate openly.  The previous mayor of Boston, Thomas Menino, had also refused to participate.

The Seattle Pi reported that Walsh, the child of Irish immigrants himself, said on February 26 that allowing openly LGBT people and organizations to take part is “long overdue.”  The lead organizer of the parade, Philip Wuschke Jr., said that members of the LGBT community are welcome to participate in the parade—as part of other groups.

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The post Boston Mayor to boycott St. Patty’s parade over LGBT exclusion first appeared on Lesbian.com.

BY MORGAN WELCH

Want to raise money for pro-LGBT causes every time you shop? There’s a credit card for that.

Philanthropy Ventures LLC has launched the new EqualityCard, a credit card start-up designed to raise funds for LGBT non-profit organizations all over the nation. Individuals and businesses will generate tax-deductible donations that equal 1 percent of their purchases with the card that are donated to select LGBT charities of their own choosing, at no cost to them.

New cardholders can look over affiliates  and choose up to three to which their donations will be directed, Affiliates include Immigration Equality, Athlete Ally, The New York City Anti-Violence Project, Campus Pride, PFLAG, the Matthew Shepard Foundation, the NYC LGBT Center, The Transgender Law Center, Family Equality Council and The Pride Network. It is expected that dozens of additional nonprofits will sign on during EqualityCard’s first year.

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The post New ‘EqualityCard’ supports LGBTQ causes as you shop first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Members of the New York City Council have joined Mayor Bill de Blasio in boycotting the city’s 2014 Saint Patrick’s Day Parade for its refusal to allow LGBT people to participate openly.

One of them, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, said “The St. Patrick’s Parade should be a time when all New Yorkers can come together and march openly as who they are — but right now that is not the case for the LGBT community.

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Kenyan supporters of LGBT rights protest Uganda’s anti-gay laws in Nairobi, Kenya (Photo: Dai Kurokawa / EPA)

BY CATHERINE MORPETH
dot429

On Monday, February 24, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni signed the country’s Anti-Homosexual Bill, also known as the “Jail All the Gays” bill, into law on live television.

The bill, which previously included the death penalty for those convicted of “aggravated” homosexuality, was passed in an attempt to toughen up on current anti-LGBT legislation. The new law includes jail time for first time offenders, those who “promote” homosexuality and those who fail to report homosexuals to the police; repeat offenders can be sentenced to life imprisonment.

According to South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Museveni had previously promised him he would not sign the bill into effect. “I was […] very disheartened to hear.”

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The post Ugandan President signs ‘Jail All the Gays’ bill into law first appeared on Lesbian.com.

When bestselling author Anne Rice congratulated actress Ellen Page via Facebook on February 15 for having the courage to publicly come out as a lesbian, not everyone on Rice’s page shared her sentiment; not even a day later, Rice posted that she had had enough of the homophobia.

She wrote:

“Our post commending actress Ellen Page for her courage in coming out as gay attracted a lot of hostility and hate and hate speech — as well as positive and substantive comments. I have banned many from the page today. I will no longer tolerate hate speech in the guise of Christian belief with the usual irresponsible pick and choose bible quotes and talk of “sin” and hellfire. I have had enough of it, and I think the world has had enough of it too. Again, I commend Ellen Page for her bravery in coming out. I hope more celebrities and public figures will be inspired to do so. Anyone who thinks this does not matter is deceiving himself or herself. It matters very much. Gay people in all walks of life suffer from bigotry, bias, superstition, and ignorance. Hats off to Ellen Page! (And please do NOT come here to tell us publicly that you “don’t care.” If you don’t care, don’t expect us to care that you don’t care!).”

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The post Author Anne Rice: ‘I will no longer tolerate hate speech’ first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Following transgender activist and novelist Janet Mock’s two appearances on Piers Morgan’s show, she had a chance to speak her mind on the “Colbert Report.”

On the show, which aired on the evening of February 18, Colbert took on a sarcastic tone as he appeared to defend Morgan for being “confused” about why Mock felt the need to dispute his actions after the show was released.

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The post Colbert, trans activist ‘Mock’ Morgan gender identity confusion first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Video by Googoosh features a lesbian couple

BY CATHERINE MORPETH
dot429

On Valentine’s Day, Iranian pop star Googoosh released a special video for her new song “Behesht”—translated as “Eden” or “Heaven”—which depicts the relationship of a fictional lesbian couple. Being such an influential figure and the first to speak out publicly in Iran in support of LGBT citizens, her video has sparked considerable outcry and backlash.

The video begins with Googoosh performing to a crowd of couples before we see a girl through the eyes of her partner. The video then takes us through the various important moments in their lives from their engagement, to meeting the parents, to being physically accosted by a group of men on a subway. Throughout the video, the fact that the couple consists of two women is not revealed until the final minute of the song, when we return to Googoosh’s performance to couples. One of the couples in the room is the woman and her fiancée.

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The post Iranian pop star releases groundbreaking pro-LGBT music video first appeared on Lesbian.com.

The first GaymerX, a convention by LGBTQ gamers for LGBTQ gamers, was a smashing success; now, the team behind it is gearing up for GX2, scheduled for July 11-13, 2014—and for those who want tickets, it’s advised they act fast.

According to the new Kickstarter, “Last year, over 2,300 awesome gamers attended the first GaymerX—and now it’s back with even more surprises for LGBTQ geeks!”

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The post GaymerX2 launches Kickstarter campaign first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Vice chair of the Clinton Foundation and former first daughter of the United States Chelsea Clinton was the keynote speaker at the Time to THRIVE conference on Sunday, February 16, in support of the LGBT community.

Clinton spoke at the end of the event, which took place in Las Vegas, Nevada over President’s Day weekend; she gave an inspirational speech explaining that despite the advancement of rights such as marriage equality, there is still a lot left to do.

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The post Chelsea Clinton: LGBT issues ‘the unfinished business of the 21st century’ first appeared on Lesbian.com.