United States
In a historic victory, Barack Obama has been elected as the President of the United States of America. As the country’s first black President, Obama’s acceptance speech signalled that America was on the cusp of change and that it could only be achieved by recognising the diversity inherent in the USA – which includes gay Americans. ‘If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dreams of our founders are alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer,’ he said ‘It is the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled, Americans who send a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states – we are and always will be the United States of America.’
Meanwhile in California, 85% of the ballots counted in regards to Proposition 8 show that 51.7% of those have voted ‘yes’ to Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment which effectively will place a ban on gay and lesbian marriage across the state.
Austria
Austria’s far-right Alliance for the Future of Austria Party has sacked its new leader, Stefan Petzner, the day after he indicated that he had been in a long term relationship with the party’s late leader Jorg Haider. The admission came following revelations that Haider had been seen drinking in a gay bar immediately prior to the high speed crash that claimed his life last month. Haider and Petzener’s party has a political platform that includes opposing gay rights, ending immigration, and dropping out of the European Union.
Scotland
A recent review of police records across Scotland has shown a tripling of hate crimes enacted against LGBT people in the three years since 2005. Moreover, these numbers are likely to be underestimate of the severity of the situation, with some stations not keeping records of crimes based on sexuality, whilst in other instances LGBT people do not bother to report the crimes they experience. Scottish civil rights leaders say the “horrific†situation demonstrates why hate crime legislation is urgently required.
China
New figures show that HIV infections have significantly increased in southern China, with infections jumping 8-fold amongst gay and bisexual men, and infections spreading beyond typically high risk population. Encouragingly however, the rate of transmission amongst the region’s large intravenous drug using population has dropped. These changing demographics make responding to the epidemic more challenging for health workers whilst also demonstrating the need for successful prevention strategies to be scaled up.
South Korea
The South Korean public is reeling from a recent spate of celebrity suicide, including 26year old openly transgender entertainer Jang Chae-won, and 23 year old openly gay actor Kim Ji-hoo. Kim’s suicide in particular has been directly linked by police and the actor’s family to his sexuality, who say his death reflects the public’s negative attitudes towards homosexuality. Kim’s website had been inundated with abuse following his recent coming out, and he had several contracts cancelled. Korean society still attaches significant taboos to both homosexuality and transsexualism.
