Here we are. Gay marriage became law in England and Wales. Scotland to follow soon with a separate legislation.
Congrats to British citizens and activists who made equal marriage a reality.
British PM David Cameron personally contributed to the cause by proposing the legislation in the first place. I do not support Tories, but here is what PM tweeted today:
@David_Cameron:
After a long parliamentary process gay marriage became law tonight - something I believe we can be proud of as a country.
Respects!!
The other day, a symbol of Paris - Eiffel tower turned rainbow for the occasion of French National Day - Bastille day. Liberté, égalité, fraternité ["Liberty, equality, fraternity (brotherhood)].
Ironically, some local Armenian and Russian homophobes decided to show solidarity with French homophobes (against passing of gay marriage law in France) on... Bastille Day. They have no idea what this day is all about. This is how out of touch with contemporary (and historic) realities these people are. This is how irrelevant they became.
Back to the main topic of this blog post.
Now that gay marriage became a reality in Britain, I should reclaim my traditional Armenian roots and start looking for husband ;))
And talking about traditions.
“Belgium used to belong to the countries in Europe with a very conservative attitude towards gays until the mid-1990s and then became one of the most progressive countries regarding gay rights within only 10 years.” [source]
FYI Armenia.
P.S. I devote this post to very dear friends of mine who got married recently. They know who they are. x
Cograts to Germany. Lena was not among my top favourites, and I still think Germany was overrated, but I can see her appeal. She was incredibly charming and different, you know, Björk-like different. In fact, I quite fancy going to Berlin for Eurovision 2011. No doubt, would be fun. Fingers crossed, nothing will change my plans.
I thought Denmark was OK but overrated too. I liked Romania. Funny, entertaining, very Eurovision-y. Could not stop smiling during their performance.
Overall, I thought entries who participated in semi-s performed worse during the final, except Belgium, Turkey, Moldova and Romania.
During the show, which I was watching with a big crowd in London’s Soho, we did not notice anything unusual during Spain’s performance. And then were surprised to see a repeat of their performance towards the end. Only at home, watching the recording of Eurovision, I noticed that stage intrusion by someone from the audience (Jimmy Jump). It took a short while till he was taken away by the security. (video below) That was the reason why they allowed Spain to repeat their performance. Fair enough.
I am impressed how the Spanish singer and team on stage ignored the intruder, and continued singing and dancing, as if nothing happened. Well done. I liked Spain. It was sweet, and took me back to childhood memories.
Armenia, Azerbajan and Georgia: What I said in my previous post, still stands. Plus... Safura looked tired and lacking energy. Graham Norton, British TV presenter, called Eva “the sexiest babe” and suggested a Miss Caucasus title :)
Actually, Graham Norton mentioned a right word re Georgia entry: “they slightly overproduced it”. And I think this was true for all three South Caucasus countries.
But hey, that’s the glory of Eurovision, isn’t it? :) Otherwise, what will we bitch about. I have to confess, this whole ‘analysing’ thing re Eurovision is very entertaining for me.
As per Twitter reports, at some point “Armenia” (or “Armenian”/”Armenien” - what was with that spelling?) and “Apricot Stone” were trending.
Btw, I won a bet with a friend of mine. I bet that Armenia won’t give 12 points to Russia. Also, on Twitter, when asked who I think Armenia might give its 12 points for, I replied: "very difficult to predict this year. Might be Georgia, Ukraine... not sure" (yes, it was Georgia)
I liked Norwegian male presenter Erik Solbakken. He was a star. Funny and charming. He was particularly impressive and hilarious when after the show - announcing that 15 mins voting time interval - started changing clothes live while doing all sorts of tricks.
I loved very much that Euro flashmob dance part. Was great seeing and feeling Europeans throughout the continent - beyond the EU formal borders - united in fun. See, it is possible. Yes, we can!! :)))
One more thing - do not trust or take too serious bookmakers or Google predictions, or readers’/fan poll results. Treat it as part of the entertainment, and take it easy. They are easily manipulated. If you want to get a general idea on trend and changing preferences, follow Eurovision related websites, blogs and forums (e.g. esctoday, oikotimes, escdaily, escnation forum).
Below is the official Eurovision final Top Ten (surprised Iceland did not make it; would prefer to see here Moldova too, loved their show and that sax player was very funny):
Germany
Turkey
Romania
Denmark
Azerbaijan
Belgium
Armenia
Greece
Georgia
Ukraine
I was live tweeting my immediate impressions along with watching the 1st semifinal of Eurovision 2010. Below I’ll try to sum up some of the main points.
Here we are. Never thought I would make this confession during Eurovision. Yes, yes, yes, I did fall in love with the Belgian singer Tom Dice. While he may not be your typical Eurovision entry, it was a class act all the way: song, performance, singer. He did not need complicated weird shows on stage or supporting dancers or back vocals. It was a one-man performance, and I loved it.
Here are @bbceurovision preferences:"Personally speaking, I really like #Ireland, #Romania, #Iceland, #Finland & #Armenia! :)" #Eurovision
Then there was an immediate commentary by BBC re Russia performance: "3 minutes of misery - Lost and Forgotten" :)
Before Russia, Moldova did quite a bit of cheering up. I remember their performance with a smile on my face. It was light and entertaining.
Albania delivered a typical Eurovision performance, no more, no less, and it was not bad at all.
Then there was a turn for another typical Eurovision + typical Greece all-male performance. All men were hot, except for singer. He did sing OK, though. It was Hoppa, or Oppa :)))
I even managed spotting someone who would we normally call “qyartu” in Armenian. Watch out for that guy in black glasses during Macedonia’s entry.
When Iceland took the stage, all tweets were about associations with volcanic eruption and whether Europe “will forgive Iceland”:
@bbceurovision: And finally tonight, another one of the favourites, Hera Bjork from Iceland. Will Europe forgive the volcano?
Icelandic representative was pretty good, and as they passed through to the final, I may safely assume that Europe did indeed forgive for the volcanic ash chaos, well, at least for the occasion.
Before the results of voting were announces, I indicated my faves from the 1st semi: Belgium, Greece, Albania, Iceland, Moldova. I could not decide re Serbia (too distracted by his haircut).
I was pleased that all my faves are through to the final.
Oh, and did I already mention this?! Belgium singer + Greece dancers = hot Eurovision.
And now, to make sure you’ll keep up the sexy mood till Thursday’s 2nd semi, watch this brief preview of Kylie Minogue’s All The Lovers video. Can’t wait to see the full version. Looks sexy ;)
Eva looks great, good performance, and she feels the stage much better now. Btw, I like her haircut. It suits her.
Go Eva!
Pink Nation Exclusive took place on 30 April in Antwerp, Belgium with the participation of various 2010 Eurovision performers, including Armenia's Eva Rivas.
Symbolically coincided with the International Human Rights Day - which calls to "embrace diversity and end discrimination" - Austrian parliament made an important decision today by providing a legal recognition for same-sex partners. Although not a full marriage rights (no adoption or artificial insemination rights), this is certainly a step in a right direction.
VIENNA (AP) -- Austria's parliament passed legislation Thursday allowing same-sex couples to enter into civil unions, a move hailed by proponents as a historic win for gay rights in the country. The bill, slated to become law Jan. 1, will give same-sex couples many of the rights enjoyed by their heterosexual counterparts, including access to a pension if one partner dies and alimony in the event of a split.
What all EU countries (and others) should and would eventually do is to follow the example of Spain, Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Norway, Sweden, and South Africa in providing full and equal marriage rights.
Europe's main gay rights group ILGA-Europe welcomes this decision by the Austrian parliament.
On 10 December 2009, the International Human Rights day, the Austrian parliament passed a law on registered partnerships for same-sex partners. ILGA-Europe welcomes this development which makes Austria the 18th country in Europe which provides legal recognition for same-sex partners. The law will come into effect on 1 January 2010.
I knew that I could not expect much of the so called ‘symbol’ of Brussels – Manneken Pis. But the reality was even worse, much worse than I expected. Manneken Pis is beyond words unremarkable. So bad, in fact, that I was almost speechless when I first saw it.
The only use of Manneken Pis is for tourist industry and related services. Few examples – below.
Sweden became the 7th country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage. The Netherlands, Norway, Belgium, Spain, Canada, and South Africa also allow same-sex marriage. (Civil unions are allowed in more countries.) The new law will take effect on 1 May 2009.
Radio Sweden International (via ILGA Europe): Following a parliamentary vote Wednesday afternoon, MPs voted by a huge majority to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry in civil ceremonies. If they want to get married in a church, however, then they will have to find a vicar who will agree to marry them.
Same-sex couples have been able to become civil partners in Sweden since 1995, and the law change doesn’t automatically make them husband and husband or wife and wife, if they want to get married they will have to either have a new ceremony, or send in an application to get the partnership converted into a marriage.
The government was split on the issue with coalition partner the Christian Democrats the only party in the Swedish parliament to oppose the extension of the term ”marriage” to include non-heterosexuals. But in a free vote in parliament 261 MPs voted in favour of the reform, 22 voted no, while 16 abstained.
Religious groups in Sweden are split on the issue. Some Lutheran Church of Sweden vicars have said they will marry same-sex couples, and the church will take a common stand on the issue at a Synod in the Autumn. Roman Catholic, Muslim, and other religions have been much more sceptical to the law change in their comments.
Maxim Anmeghichean is Moldovan of Armenian origin. He is a Programmes Director at ILGA-Europe (Europe’s main gay rights group).
After graduating from Moldovan State University with dual-degrees in journalism and communication sciences, Max has devoted all of his professional life to the LGBT movement. He led the team that created the LGBT movement in Moldova; developing it into a respected and powerful national and regional organization.
Nationally, he has served on the NGO Council, the National AIDS Network, and on the board of the National Youth Council. As an ILGA-Europe board member for the past three years, he chaired the committee to develop the organization's Eastern European strategy, lobbied before the Council of Europe and the European Union and was instrumental in fundraising efforts. In his new post, Max's priorities are to lobby for LGBT rights in Eastern Europe before the OSCE, Council of Europe and EU, develop programs for the transgender community, build advocacy capacity and, as if that's not enough to keep him busy, fundraising!
On 6 March 2009, Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, participated in a meeting with young Europeans hosted by the European Parliament. Max was one of the participants.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was pretty excited by the fact that Max was wearing a T-shirt saying “I love Hillary”, so she said she simply had to take a question from him. And Max used this chance perfectly by posing a question on how the US foreign policy in the field of sexual rights and LGBT issues is going to change under a new administration.
Whatever one may think of Hillary Clinton, wearing a T-shirt saying “I love Hillary” was a very smart move by Maxim Anmeghichean, to be noticed and heard. Well done, Max, you are an inspiration for many.
Max stood up and said: "My name is Max. I am from Moldova, and I am a gay rights activist. In seven countries in the world homosexuals are sentenced to death and many more to prison. A lot of gay men around the world die because of the HIV AIDS policies that the Bush administration had that did not allow to spend money on prevention for men who have sex with men. How do you see the foreign policy of the United States changing in the coming years in the field of human rights and in particular sexual rights and gay and lesbian rights?"
Ms Clinton said that it is unfortunate and unfair that discrimination against gay and lesbian people still exists around the word and sometimes is even condoned or protected by the states: "Human rights is and always will be one of the pillars of our foreign policy. And in particular, the persecution and discrimination against gays and lesbians is something that we take very seriously. It is terribly unfortunate, as you just recited, that right now in unfortunately many places in the world violence against gays and lesbians, certainly discrimination and prejudice are not just occurring but condoned and protected.” She went on to say that it will be one of the priorities for the administration to tackle the issue and some changes in the policy on HIV prevention have already started. She also expressed a hope that she will witness the day when any type of discrimination, including on the ground of who one loves, will be abolished: "I can only hope that we all live long enough to see the end to this kind of discriminatory treatment and recognition that human rights are the inalienable rights of every person no matter who that person loves."
Financial Times Brussels Blog called Max’s Q&A with Hillary Clinton “the best moment” of the meeting. "Clinton’s performance was brilliantly executed in that she pitched her message at exactly the level the European audience wanted. They wanted to hear an American talk like a European, and that’s what they got."
Full coverage of this meeting is available on the European Parliament’s website (Max’s question stars around 11:10:43)
“The real violence… the violence that I realised was unforgivable is the violence that we do to ourselves, when we are too afraid to be who we really are.” #Sense8
Մարտիրոս Սարյան: "Իմ կարծիքով, մեզ՝ որպես արևելյան ժողովրդի, չափազանց կպատշաճեր բազմագույն դրոշը, որն ի հայտ է բերում ինքը` չքնաղ և հավերժ գեղեցիկ ծիածանը:"(source)
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