Gay and straight Armenians join massive marriage equality rally in Paris

Great to see visible Armenian presence during massive pro- marriage equality rally in Paris today. Both gay and straight Armenians, as well as Armenian families joined the rally with posters and interviews to express their support for marriage equality bill that will soon be discussed in the French parliament.

The largest French public TV channel "20h" information show interviewed the participants of the rally, and there was an Armenian family Catheriene and Serge Bagdadian with 2 lesbians daughters. The dad said that he wants this law to become real and also the right for lesbian women to have the possibility of artificial insemination so that he can become a granddad.

[You may watch the brief interview from around 11:30 on http://www.france2.fr/jt/20h] 

Respects!!

"Ты Тоже Квир" [‘You Are Queer Too’] - LGBT groups at pro-democracy rally in Moscow, Russia

Was watching live video reports from Russian rally in Moscow for “free and fair election” and for democratisation of Russian society, as well as against Putin’s cling to power.

Was pleasantly surprised as I could see big purple LGBT-related poster "Ты Тоже Квир" [‘You Are Queer Too’] and rainbow flags on a prominent display during live reports of rain.tv.

Below are pics via Ridus.ru and Gazeta.ru.

*Колонна ЛГБТ-движения. © Артём Сизов/Ridus.ru

*ФОТО: РИА «НОВОСТИ» / Gazeta.ru

Ironically, there was quite a variety of groups of all sorts of persuasions participating in the same rally, including... nationalists.

13.47. Москва. Большая Якиманка - Болотная площадь. Большая часть шествия подошла к Болотной площади. Примечательно, что самыми первыми, кто выбился вперед в самом начале шествия, были сторонники Михаила Прохорова во главе с самим миллиардером. Их, правда, было совсем не много – около 100 человек. Потом шла гражданская колонна, либеральная колонна («Солидарность» и «Республиканская партия России»), следом шли представители ЛГБТ-движения с радужными флагами и плакатами «Ты – тоже квир». Позади шествовали члены «Яблока», а в последними шли колонны националистов и левых сил.
Евгений Фельдман (Novaya Gazeta)

“I want to blow you all (a kiss)”: Kiss-in picket in front of John Snow pub, Soho, London

You know you are in trouble when your pub made the front page of The Guardian, and became a headlining news in British media for all the wrong reasons.

Yes, they (pub managers) knew it, and they shut down their pub mid-afternoon on Friday (!) Friday night, anyone?

Gay couple on their first date got asked out from the John Snow pub in London’s Soho district for snogging in public. For details of the story - read here.

This incident generated a lively debate on whether it’s OK to display (and to what extent) affections in public. But the key is in this quote from The Guardian: “The case is intriguing legally. The Licensing Act 2003 gives a landlord the right to eject customers. But the Equality Act 2010 says everyone must be treated equally in the provision of goods and services. For a successful defence against any legal action under the act, the landlord would have to prove he had ejected heterosexual couples for similiarly overt displays of intimacy.”

I doubt they would be able to prove it.

Activists mobilised via Facebook and Twitter to stage a kiss-in picket inside and in front of the pub. As soon as the news of protests and media headlines spread, pub managers shut down the pub. Cowards.

Interestingly, kiss-in protest happened on a day when many (including in Armenia) were marking the Day of Silence. Although not directly related, these two events were similar in spirit.

Here is how the events unfolded, via pictures and a video I took.

Kiss-in

Prominent British gay rights activist Peter Tatchell

Raising the Rainbow Flag (video)

Kiss-in

“I want to blow you all (a kiss)”

Snogging of the Day ;)

“Love Music Hate Homophobia”

Homophobia. Diverted.

Forced out. Gay hater Moscow mayor Luzhkov sacked. Finally

At last. Bigot No. 1 in Russia, homophobic Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov got sacked by Russia president Medvedev. Interestingly, president’s decree uses strongest possible words for the occasion and humiliatingly straightforward for Luzhkov (‘due to lost of confidence’):

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has fired Moscow's powerful mayor, Yuri Luzhkov. Mr Luzhkov, 74, was being removed because he had lost "the trust of the president of the Russian Federation", a presidential decree said. [...]
On Monday, after returning from a week's holiday in Austria, Mr Luzhkov said he would not stand down voluntarily.

His decades in the office were marked by blatant homophobia. He infamously referred to gays as “satanists” and "faggots". He constantly denied Moscow gay activists the right to peaceful actions, including crackdown on Gay Pride events.

Of course, the real reasons behind the sacking of Luzhkov are outside the human rights context, and rather an outcome of internal battles on the highest levels of power in Russia. Still, feels good for now. And I can only commend Russia president for such decision.

Prominent Russian gay activist Nikolai Alexeyev expressed hope that next mayor will be a person with “European mentality”.

Я рад, что Медведев совершил такой огромный политический шаг, избавив Москву от этого человека. Я не питаю иллюзий, но надеюсь, что мэром станет человек с европейским мышлением...[...]

And another quote from him: “Bravo, president Medvedev! You liberated Moscow from this parasite!”

“Браво, президент Медведев! Вы освободили Москву от этого паразита!”

Below is a video from the very latest action by gay activists in Moscow 'celebrating' Luzhkov’s birthday: “Luzhkov - faggot” (reflections of the language Luzhkov used to refer to gays)

Side by side: Turkish and Armenian signs at Istanbul Gay Pride

Simply incredible pictures. Among sea of people, rainbow flags and posters, you may see numerous Armenian and Turkish signs at Istanbul Gay Pride (27 June 2010). More pictures...

There were two different types of signs in Armenian. One says something like "We are here. Get used to it" which is great. The other is a bit unclear, and does not sound like proper Armenian. Literal translation could be something like "Love gets organised". They are in Western Armenian dialect, used by Turkish Armenians, so probably they use slightly different phraseology to that used in Armenia.

*pictures - via Radikal (thanks to John for the link).

Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of Russia Today: 'Respect for gay rights could save Russia’s image'

Last September I posted on Unzipped about Russia-born Armenian Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of Russia’s main (state sponsored) English language TV channel Russia Today.

Citing Infox.ru, GayRussia.ru reports of a conference in Moscow aimed at discussing a seriously troubled international image of Russia. It took place on 15 June, with the participation of MPs, experts, public figures and journalists.

Margarita Simonyan raised the issue of recent police break-up of gay rights rally during the Eurovision 2009 in Moscow, prompting Infox.ru to headline its conference report as «Имидж России мог спасти гей-парад».

“This may seem like a minor thing for us, but in reality it has seriously spoiled Russia’s international image. After the break-up of gay parade, BBC dedicated an hour-long program to the event. The last time such thing has happened was during the August war in the Caucasus”, says Margarita Simonyan.

[…] Главный редактор телеканала Russia Today Маргарита Симонян вспомнила про разгон гей-парада в Москве, который долго обсуждался в иностранной прессе. «Это у нас кажется, что это мелочи, но на самом деле они очень сильно портят образ России. После разгона гей-парада этому событию была посвящена часовая программа на «Би-би-си». Последний раз такое было только во время августовской войны на Кавказе», — объяснила Симонян. […]

GayRussia.ru reminds that “Russia Today regularly and objectively covers different events in the life of the LGBT Community in Russia. This year the journalists of the channel not only covered the public action of the Slavic Gay Pride on May 16th but also the attempt to register a same-sex marriage on May 12th”.

These remarks by Margarita Simonyan are relevant not just for Russia. The state of gay rights and equality in any country is usually indicative of the state of human rights in general. This has, therefore, direct and significant impact on country’s international image.

Anyone who cares about Armenia’s international image should take a serious note of Margarita Simonyan’s remarks.

*photo - via Passport magazine

Turkey: Sex Workers Protest for More Rights

Sex workers in Istanbul and Ankara have protested on occasion of International Sex Workers' Rights Day (3 March). They demand acceptance of their work as an occupation and the right to organise.

Bıanet
4 March 2009
Emine ÖZCAN

“Unfortunately, we cannot celebrate International Sex Workers Day, because we are always faced with violence. The police is also practising and reinforcing this violence.”

Representing around 20 sex workers who had gathered in front of Istanbul’s Galatasaray Highschool in Beyoğlu, Eylem Çağdaş read a statement.

Call for constitutional rights

She said, “We want neither discrimination nor privilege. We only want to make use of the constitutional rights we were all given at birth. Respecting sex work is not a favour, it is a constitutional responsibility.”

The protesters carried red umbrellas, an internationally used symbol on the day. The day originated in 2001 when over 25 000 sex workers gathered in India for a sex worker festival. The organisers wanted to celebrate the lives of sex workers as well as highlight sex workers' determination and strength. Sex worker groups across the world have subsequently celebrated 3 March as International Sex Workers' Rights Day.

One protester, Derya, told bianet: “We don’t have anywhere to work, so we are forced to walk the streets. But there we may face death. This week a friend of ours was savagely beaten. If I don’t work, how will I get by?”

The statement was signed by the Women’s Door (Kadın Kapısı), Lambdaistanbul LGBTT Solidarity Association, Amargi Women’s Solidarity Cooperative, the Revolutionary Socialist Workers' Party (DSİP), the Global Action Group (KEG) and the Solidarity Network against Sexism.

Protest in Ankara

In Ankara, the day was marked by a group of around 50 people carrying placards and red umbrellas. The protest was organised by the Ankara Red Umbrella Sex Workers’ Initiative.

Some of the placards read, “Health is also a right for sex workers”, “We want a world without bosses and pimps”, “End police violence”, “End the labour hierarchy” and “Sex work is also labour”.

The protesters made the following demands:

- Sex workers’ rights to life, personal freedom and personal safety have to be guaranteed
- Sex work must also be accepted as a profession and certain standards must be set
- Healthy and safe spaces must be provided
- Sex workers must be able to benefit from social security rights just like other citizens
- The right to organise must be safeguarded
- Discriminating laws must be abolished, discrimination and police violence must end

Around 100,000 sex workers

According to data from the initiative, there are 56 brothels in Turkey with around 3,000 women work as registered sex workers there.

In the whole of Turkey, 15,000 women work as registered sex workers. However, many women and men work in this sector unofficially. Refugee and transsexual sex workers are not included in these numbers either.

The initiative estimates that there are up to 100,000 sex workers in Turkey.

In Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir alone, around 30,000 women are waiting in line to get a license to work in a brothel.

This year is the first year that the day has been marked in Turkey. The Red Umbrella Initiative was founded last year and it was then decided to mark the day in 2009. The iniative is working towards becoming a trade union.

I remember...

1 March 08

Armenia’s “Human Rights Day”

10 December – Human Rights Day, 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

For details - see Unzipped

California: "Power of numbers to discriminate against minority. Courts should step in to protect fundamental rights!"

Excellent editorial by the San Francisco Chronicle in reflection to the voting results in California to approve the so called "Proposition 8" which would constitutionally ban historic same-sex marriage decision by the Supreme Court.

The fight over Prop. 8 goes to the courts

On Tuesday night, the portrait gallery of American presidents was finally widened to include a face of color.

On Wednesday came the sobering reminder that flat-out discrimination against gays and lesbians remains socially acceptable and entrenched in the law.

It was disturbing enough that voters in Florida and Arizona approved measures to prohibit same-sex marriage. But the passage of California's Proposition 8 was all the more unsettling because it did not just exploit voters' discomfort with the notion that sexual orientation should not be a barrier to the rights and responsibilities of marriage. This was an open assault on a right that was affirmed by a state Supreme Court ruling in May. This was an ugly slap that threatens to disrupt the lives of the 18,000 couples who have legally wed since then.

This was a classic case of a majority using its power of numbers to discriminate against a minority group.

[...] As soon as Prop. 8's victory was assured, San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera and his counterparts from Los Angeles and Santa Clara County went to the state Supreme Court to try to invalidate it on the grounds that it conflicts with the equal protection pillars of the state Constitution.

"It goes to the heart of what the judiciary is supposed to do: To ensure that everyone is entitled to equal protection under the law," Herrera said.

The legal swords have been drawn. Opponents of same-sex marriage instantly decried the possibility that "unelected judges" could thwart the will of the majority.

But when the will of the majority is discrimination against a minority group, the courts have a legal and moral obligation to step in to protect fundamental rights.

*/emphasis mine/

Below are some pictures via Towleroad from anti-Proposition 8 rally in West Hollywood yesterday.

Gay Azeri asylum seeker Babi B detained in the UK! Demonstrate!

Here is the message I got from the Keep Babi Safe in Cardiff Facebook group in support to gay Azeri artist Babi B's asylum campaign:

"Unfortunately, Babi was detained this morning during his weekly signing. He is being held at Rhymney Police Station, but could be moved to Campsfield detention centre at any point (http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/06/401100.html).

NoBorders Wales is organising a protest outside the UKBA offices on Newport Road, Wednesday 12-1pm. More info at http://www.new.facebook.com/event.php?eid=25378079270"

Demonstration

Date: Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Time: 12:00pm - 1:00pm

Location: UK Border Agency offices

Street: 31 -31 Newport Road

City/Town: Cardiff, United Kingdom

For background info into this case, read:
Gay Azeri artist seeks asylum in the UK
Gay Azeri artist's asylum campaign update

Armenia: 'Political dissent and alternative culture'

*From One Week in Yerevan: Art, Politics, and Sexuality by Pawel Leszkowicz

Pawel Leszkowicz is a curator and lecturer/writer from Poland ,specialising in contemporary art/visual culture and sexuality/queer studies. He curated the exhibition of contemporary queer art "Love and Democracy" (2005/2006) and wrote with his partner Tomek Kitlinski the book "Love and Democracy. He intends to develop an international perspective and contacts in this field, particularly in Eastern Europe. In Poland he teaches at the Department of Art History at the University and the Department of Intermedia at the Fine Arts Academy.

[...] At the same time the streets of Yerevan are bursting with another kind of dissent – the mainstream political one. In the evening of the 1st of August thousands of people gathered in front of the legendary Matenadaran Depository of Ancient Manuscripts with a collection of thousands of ancient and medieval manuscripts from many cultures. Today the male leaders of the opposition speak in front of Matenadaran addressing the crowds holding Armenian flags. In March 2008 during another similar oppositional rally ten people were shot by the police and many others arrested. There are still memorial posters with photographs of the victims located on main streets and people protest around them. The 1st of August march is the biggest since the tragic Spring events. Thus there is a tension on the streets and a lot of police and military patrolling the city. We hoped that this time the demonstration would be peaceful - and it was!

The leader of the opposition is Levon Ter-Petrossian, the first president of independent Armenia who seems to be a national hero. The strange coalition of parties from far left to the right that he represents is called the Armenian Congress. They revolt against the current president Serge Sargsyan and the Republican Party in power. The local artists’ community supports the opposition and argues that it is a movement towards democracy against the corrupt government with a dictatorial strain. People that I know from the Utopiana and the Meline’s are among the protesters that march through the city in the night. I wonder if this would be a democracy also for them and not only for the class of ruling men?

*photo - by mk.am

Russian gay activists staged protest action in Moscow

Russian gay activists were once again not allowed to stage Gay Pride parade, but they were able to hold a brief protest action in Moscow on 1 June. According to reports, overall the action passed without violence, with few, mainly anti-gay far-right protesters detained. What was remarkable that despite an incident with barricaded gay activists, police behaviour was different this time. Alexey Davidov, Russian gay activist who was briefly detained by the police said that "he was treated well".

When told he could leave, he was advised to be careful when leaving, the militia being concerned for his safety.  An anti-gay protester also in the bus passed comment to the militia that "these gays are not men".  The militia replied with a question: "Did you serve in the military yourself?".  No was the reply from the protester.  "So don't say you are a man," the militia replied.

Photos below via UKGayNews which did a remarkable job of live blogging from Russia's capital throughout the day.

*Gay activists fooled the Moscow authorities by unveiling their banners and flags in front of the statue of Tchaikovsky, arguably the most famous Russian in history who was homosexual.
(photo © 2008 GayRussia.ru)

 

*The banner hanging from an apartment opposite Moscow City Hall. It reads: "Rights for Gays and Lesbians " and "Homophobia of Mayor Luzhkov should be prosecuted"

For next year, Russian gay activists plan to coincide Moscow Gay Pride with Eurovision 2009 which will be held in Russia (either Moscow or St Petersburg). It is a very clever move, as even homophobe mayor Luzhkov (if Eurovision takes place in Moscow) would hardly be able to ban gay related event surrounded by thousands of LGBT people from throughout the Europe. He would otherwise face an inevitable  major European scandal. If only for Russia's 'pride', thanks to Eurovision, Russian gay activists has the most real chance to date to stage a proper Gay Pride event next year.

Armenia: US State Department reports on government's poor human rights record, violence against women and societal harrassment of homosexuals

The US State Department Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor released its Advancing Freedom and Democracy Reports 2008 on 27 May which reflects recent presidential elections in Armenia as well as other democracy and human rights related issues in our country:

"Armenia is a constitutional republic with a popularly elected president and a unicameral legislature (National Assembly). The February 2008 presidential elections were significantly flawed. Problems included favorable treatment of the government's candidate, instances of ballot stuffing, vote-buying, multiple voting, voter intimidation, violence against opposition commission members and proxies, and suspiciously high turnout figures. On March 1, 2008, the government imposed a state of emergency and used force to disperse large crowds of protesters, restricting media freedoms and the right of assembly and arresting scores of protesters. The clashes between protesters and security services resulted in the deaths of at least 10 people. The state of emergency was lifted March 20, 2008, but restrictions on civil liberties remain in force due to a strict new law on public gatherings, pressure on opposition media, and continuing arrests and intimidation of government opponents. The government's human rights record remained poor. Citizens were not able to freely change their government; authorities beat pretrial detainees; the National Security Service and the national police force acted with impunity; authorities engaged in arbitrary arrest and detention; courts remained subject to political pressure from the executive branch; prison conditions were cramped and unhealthy, although slowly improving; and authorities imposed restrictions on citizens' privacy, freedom of press, and freedom of assembly. Journalists continued to practice self‑censorship, and the government and laws restricted religious freedom. Violence against women remained a problem, as well as trafficking in persons, discrimination against persons with disabilities, and societal harassment of homosexuals. There were reports of forced labor."

Full report is available here

This report echoes US State Department annual Human Rights Report for 2007 released in March 2008 which says the Armenian government didn't enforce laws against violence against women, human trafficking and harassment of homosexuals; and more specifically details discrimination against gay Armenians.

*/emphasis mine/

First time in Belarus: rainbow flag at Chernobyl protest

*via Petrelis Files, via gay Belarus advocacy organisation TEMA

More than a thousand people took part in the opposition’s march staged on the occasion of the 22nd Chernobyl accident anniversary in Minsk on April 26. It was a first time in a history, when rainbow flag used on political public event in Belarus.

The crowd started gathering at the square in front of the National Academy of Sciences at 2 p.m. and a short rally followed. Leaders of opposition had did speeches.

Sergey Androsenko, 19y.o. gay - leader of Gay Youth Association, stay with big rainbow flag in the center of crowd. Anarchists promise to protect gays on this event if somebody will try attack them.

The crowd then walked some two miles on sidewalks from the square to a church built to commemorate Chernobyl victims at the intersection between Arlowskaya and Karastayanavay Streets. [...]

After reaching the church, the crowd observed a minute of silence for those who died of illnesses caused by the Chernobyl fallout and laid flowers at a monument commemorating the victims. The demonstrators started dispersing shortly afterward.
Police did not interfere and no arrests were reported.

This case definitely will become a part of Belarusian LGBT history as a date of beginning of cooperation between civil society and LGBT movement, and the date of proud when LGBT activists didn’t afraid to become visible.

Svyatoslav Sementsov
TEMA

AGLA NY Calls on Armenian Government to Account for March Events

New York City
March 13th, 2008

AGLA NY, the New York Armenian Gay and Lesbian Association, calls on the Armenian government to restore complete freedom of the press and expression in Armenia.

The troubling events in Armenia, as well as indications that this month's elections may not reflect the will of the people, are of great concern to us.

The deaths of 8 individuals in clashes related to the post-election demonstrations in Republic Square has worried and shocked Armenians around the world. We ask for an accurate account of the events in post-election Armenia.

We, the grandchildren of those who suffered the torments of the Armenian Genocide, call on the Government of Armenia to rule in a fair and democratic way befitting a modern, secular, democratic state and to build an open and free society that Armenians around the world can be proud of.


NB: AGLA NY's goal is to provide a forum for Armenian LGBT people to meet and express themselves freely, as well as to fight for the human rights of Armenian and non-Armenian LGBT people everywhere. AGLA NY is part of a worldwide network of Armenian LGBT associations that include Boston, Los Angeles, Montreal, Paris, San Francisco, Sydney and Toronto. Please visit our web site at www.aglany.org and our blog at: aglany.wordpress.com

Police Disperse Protesters in Armenia - Breaking News (photos)

Liberty sq, Yerevan, Armenia, 1 March 2008
*photos via Hetq Online









For news - see Unzipped - HERE, HERE and HERE