Queer blog for your entertainment

Sir Elton John and his partner David Furnish have named two close friends, a lesbian couple, to be their two-week-old son’s godparents.

The couple has selected Scottish-educated magazine editor Ingrid Sischy and her lesbian partner Sandy Brant to be Zachary’s moral guardians. “Elton could have picked anyone from the world of showbusiness to be godparents but he chose a couple of dear friends who will take their role seriously,” the Daily Mail quoted a close pal of the superstar as saying.

“Ingrid and Sandy are two of the most genuine people they know. They were among a handful of people Elton entrusted with the details of the surrogate pregnancy,” said the pal.

The four have been friends for years and vacation together regularly.

Elton John met his Canadian-born partner David Furnish, a former advertising executive and now filmmaker, in 1993. A mutual friend of Furnish and Elton John left a message for Furnish inviting him to a dinner party at John’s house. Initially fearing that the dinner would be unpleasant, or that John would be boring, he instead found John to be interesting and engaging. Both were attracted to each other; John asked for his phone number and the two had a private dinner the following night. On 21 December 2005, they entered into a civil partnership.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd told ABC Radio on Wednesday that Australia’s ban on gay marriage would remain, despite moves within his centre-left Labor Party to have it overturned.

He was speaking ahead of the Australian Labor Party’s national conference, which begins in Sydney on Thursday. The gay marriage issue will be discussed at the conference.

Rallies in support of gay marriage are set to be held around the country on Friday.

Rudd, who considers himself a moderate Christian, won the 2007 election on a platform that supported the former conservative government’s legal definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

“We went to the last election being very clear-cut about our position on marriage, under the Marriage Act, being between a man and a woman,” he told public broadcaster ABC.

“We are consistent with the policy we took to the last election,” Rudd said.

“I fully respect the integrity of other same-sex relationships … but in terms of the policy, it’s a matter to which we have been committed for some time,” he added.

“I fully accept it’s a matter of controversy, and there’ll be debate, and there should be. This is an open society where we can debate and discuss these matters.”

A recent poll suggested up to 60 percent of Australians supported gay marriage, and the statistics bureau in May announced it would count same-gender couples who declared themselves married in the national census.

Rudd said his government had moved rapidly to remove the “other discriminations” in national law against same-gender couples in areas such as pensions, tax and employment.

The equal marriage issue is set to heat up further in the coming days, with activists to target the 45th ALP National Conference, which begins Thursday in Sydney.

For the first time in Olympic history, gay and lesbian athletes will have a place to call their own.

Pride House, which promises to be an inclusive hangout and social space for gay and lesbian athletes, will be located in the Pan Pacific Hotel in Whistler Village, site of the skiing and sliding events, about a two-hour drive from Vancouver. It is the idea of Dean Nelson, chief executive of the promotional company GayWhistler, which organizes the annual Winter Pride festival.

“It is really important to have a safe space for out athletes, coaches, fans and allies to come and hang out, share their stories, trade pins and have fun,” Dean Nelson said.

Nelson says Canadians often forget the hardships faced by gay people in other parts of the world where homosexuality remains illegal. “This could be the first time they could go to a space in a secure environment and be themselves,” he said.

He stresses it is not going to be like a gay bar. “It’s a gay-positive space where people can hang out,” Nelson said. “It’s an intimate space.”

Pride House will help break down gender discrimination barriers that have long existed in the Olympics, according to Kevin Wamsley, an Olympic historian. “The IOC has been skirting around the issue of sexuality since it began,” said Wamsley, a professor at the University of Western Ontario.

Wamsley said the Olympics, built around the traditional societal model of strong men and feminine women, has not been a friendly place for homosexuals in the past.

“It has been an uncomfortable issue for the IOC since the 1920s. That’s because sport is one of those forms of culture that has produced a gender binary for western and eastern civilizations. When you start to blur the lines of sexuality, people in the past have gotten the hair on their neck up.”

Nelson said he and several others started working on Pride House about three years ago as an extension of efforts GayWhistler and others made to hold the North American Gay Games.

“There is a huge contingent of athletes out there, some of them are Olympic calibre. The Olympics is generally a pretty homophobic structure where being out is not really encouraged,” he said. “We’re hoping we can be a catalyst and change that perception, that you can be your authentic self.”

Still, the current field of out-of-the-closet homosexual athletes is relatively sparse. It’s easier to name former Olympic athletes such as Mark Tewksbury, the Canadian swimmer who won an Olympic gold medal in 1992 and went on to be named Canada’s Male Athlete of the Year all before announcing in 1998 that he was gay.

Nelson says some Olympic sponsors have expressed an interest in supporting the initiative, which he describes as another way of showcasing the inclusiveness that is being touted as part of the 2010 Games.

“We’re reaching out and bringing the queer element to the Games,” Nelson said. “The final frontier of homophobia is in the sports field. It’s there but nobody talks about it.”

Of the 10,708 athletes who marched into Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Olympic stadium last summer, Outsports website was aware of only 10 who are publicly gay, on par with the 2004 Games. There was also a bisexual American softball player.

Outsports says the reasons athletes stay in the closet are varied, but revolve primarily around fear of the consequences of being out.

Episcopalians on Friday authorized bishops to bless gay unions, such as civil partnerships in states that legally recognize them, setting the stage for further conflict with the wider Anglican world.

The Episcopal General Convention also underscored the church’s desire to remain a full member of the global Anglican Communion. But the actions at the national assembly are likely to damage the already strained relations within the fellowship.

Delegates voted earlier this week to effectively drop a pledge that they would act with “restraint” when considering any more openly gay candidates for bishop.

The Episcopal gay advocacy group Integrity said the church “turned an important corner” with the vote.

Church unity has been strained since 2003, when the Episcopal Church consecrated Gene Robinson of New Hampshire as the first bishop in Anglican history known to be in an openly gay relationship.

Anglican leaders had pressed Episcopalians for a moratorium on electing more gay bishops, and asked the church not to develop an official prayer for same-gender couples.

But the measure adopted Friday noted the growing number of U.S. states that allow gay marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships, and gave bishops in those regions discretion to provide a “generous pastoral response” to couples in local parishes.

The resolution also authorized a church commission to “collect and develop theological resources and liturgies” for blessing same-gender relationships for consideration at the next national convention in 2012. Many dioceses already allow clergy to bless gay couples, but there is no liturgy for the ceremonies in the denomination’s Book of Prayer.

“We’re doing our best to make room for everybody. We have gay and lesbian members, and gay and lesbian clergy, and we are trying to honor the diversity of belief and theology in the church,” Stephen Lane, the bishop of Maine, told Reuters before the resolution’s final passage.

According to the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, the United Church of Christ is alone among major U.S. Christian denominations in officially recognizing gay marriage. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America may decide in August to sanction gay marriage as well.

Polls consistently show gays and lesbians enjoying growing acceptance in American society. But fast-growing faiths in the United States such as many evangelical Protestant churches and the Mormon church regard homosexual relations as sinful and proscribed by scripture.

In support of the LGBT community, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants will offer a special “PRIDE” rate code for guests to receive a complimentary weekend night when they book two nights at the best available rate. Available for travel through Sept. 27, Kimpton is spicing up the offer with the addition of a $50 dining credit for use at participating restaurants, adjacent to Kimpton hotels. All new Kimpton InTouch loyalty members can also receive a complimentary, signature rainbow rubber duck, the theme for the 2009 Summer of Pride campaign.

Kimpton’s special Summer of Pride rate is available in 20 cities including: Alexandria, Arlington, Boston, Cambridge, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Portland, San Diego, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Seattle, Scottsdale, Vancouver, Vero Beach and Washington DC .

“Kimpton is proud to be supportive of the LGBT community,” said Alan Baer, senior vice president of human resources and co-chair of the Kimpton Gay & Lesbian Employee Network. “As a company we are very involved in the communities we live in and contribute to dozens of LGBT organizations.”

Kimpton’s Summer of Pride offer encourages LGBT community members to spend long weekend getaways celebrating LGBT events across North America. In three nights, guests will be able to relax, rejuvenate, have fun and get their pride on while exploring a new city or returning to their favorite Kimpton destination.

Kimpton was the first hospitality company to score a 100 percent on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index in 2004, and has maintained that perfect score every year since. In 2008, Kimpton became the only company in which all hotels were members of the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association. All hotels are TAG approved and Kimpton was recently named as one of the 10 best companies by LGBT employees by The Advocate magazine and named to Fortune’s 2009 “100 Best Companies to Work For” list.

The MTV Movie Awards were a blood bath Sunday night with “Twilight” taking five trophies, including best movie. But it was Sacha Baron Cohen who gave the show its trademark bizarro moment when he landed upside-down on the lap of Eminem, who may or may not have been deeply offended.

Bruno was heard screaming “Aarh! My kugelsack! My kugelsack!” as he slowly dropped headfirst towards the Lose Yourself star.

He further screamed in feigned agony: “Help me! Let me down! One of the wires is trapped around my kugelsack!”

As Bruno straddled the appalled rapper in a position commonly practiced by lovers in the bedroom, he said simply: “Eminem, nice to meet you.”

But the rapper apparently didn’t see the funny side – and neither did his chunky friends.

He screamed for Bruno to get off him – shouting “Are you serious?” – as he pushed his head back to avoid contact with Cohen’s naked bottom.

Even the no-nonsense attempts by Eminem’s minders to free their boss didn’t stop Bruno’s jibes.

He said: “Hey, don’t touch me guys! I already have a boyfriend. Hey guys, let’s continue this in my hotel room.”

Once freed, Eminem and his entourage stood up in fury and stormed out of the arena.

But as the rapper shot to his feet, it was Bruno who had the final word, quipping: “Is the real Slim Shady about to stand up?”

Stars such as Cameron Diaz and Star Trek’s Zachary Quinto laughed in amazement.

Eminem seemed visibly upset by the encounter, and members of his entourage roughly removed Baron Cohen as the rapper struggled to get out. But had the rapper’s self-styled homophobic character been punked by Baron Cohen and MTV, or was he in on the elaborate stunt?

Free of the scene, Eminem stormed out with his entourage in tow and cameras rolling – and hit the exits.

Baron Cohen’s publicist, Matthew Labov, had no comment when reached after the show. A spokeswoman for MTV would not confirm whether Eminem was caught by surprise, and representatives for the rapper did not immediately return requests for comment Sunday night.

It wasn’t the first tantrum for Eminem at an MTV ceremony: Sparks flew when the rapper was interviewed by Triumph the Insult Comic Dog at 2002′s MTV Video Music Awards.

The California Supreme Court has upheld a ban on same-sex marriage that was passed by the state’s voters last November. The court also upheld the validity of 18,000 gay and lesbian marriages performed before the ban, called Proposition 8, was enacted.

Gay marriage backers vowed to continue the fight at the ballot box in 2010, and more than a hundred supporters blocked San Francisco streets in a show of peaceful civil disobedience.

The court said the roughly 18,000 marriages that took place in the state before the November ban remained valid since the ban was not retroactive. That left the state of 37 million people with a tiny group of married same-sex couples that cannot grow.

“Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California,” Chief Justice Ronald George wrote in the court’s opinion, arguing that the decision did not end broad protections for same-sex couples to form families.

Tuesday’s ruling was unlikely to be the last move in what is seen as a pivotal state in U.S. culture wars.

Social conservatives applauded but in Los Angeles gay advocates promised to try to change the state constitution again — to affirm gay marriage — in a battle seen as soon as November 2010.

“There is a smear on our constitution and the only way to get around it is through the ballot box,” Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, told supporters.

The California court on Tuesday did not back away from its sweeping decision last year, which held that same-sex couples had fundamental constitutional rights and deserved special legal protections as a minority class. Proposition 8 was put to voters as a result of that court decision.

The proposition’s single line, reading “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California,” was too narrow to invalidate fundamental rights, the court held.

“Proposition 8 reasonably must be interpreted in a limited fashion as eliminating only the right of same-sex couples to equal access to the designation of marriage, and as not otherwise affecting the constitutional right of those couples to establish an officially recognized family relationship,” Chief Justice George wrote.

Activists planning a ballot initiative in favor of same-sex marriage say they will target minority communities, including Latinos and African Americans. Many minority voters supported Proposition 8.

One black community leader, Reverend Eric Lee of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Los Angeles, hopes to reach out and change their minds.

“African Americans generally vote to uphold or restore the civil rights of people who have been oppressed or discriminated against,” said Lee. “So for that reason, for African Americans to get back to our history of fighting for civil rights for all people, our history of inclusion as opposed to exclusion, it’s necessary for that outreach to take place.”

In Los Angeles, Elissa Barrett, a lawyer and gay Jewish activist who married a woman last year, plans strategy with colleagues. She says it is time for outreach to the religious community.

“My wife has a saying: prayer and shoe leather go together. And I agree with her,” said Barrett. “And I think that there are a lot of people in churches and mosques and synagogues – wherever they were when this election happened last fall, have awoken.”

Before the California court’s move on Tuesday, a flurry of pro-gay marriage rulings and votes in Iowa and New England this year had appeared to reverse a trend toward banning them in the United States.

Legalization of gay marriage — through court action in Iowa and a state house vote in Vermont — will be the “tipping point” for civil unions in Illinois, Chicago’s first openly-gay alderman predicted .

Iowa, as gay marriage backers like to point out, is not a liberal, coastal state like Massachusetts and Connecticut – the two states that already offer legal gay marriage – or California, where the narrow passage of a ballot initiative banning gay marriage last year galvanized the gay rights movement.

It is, instead, a Midwestern state in what is commonly called “the heartland” – an area of America thought to be more reticent to warm to liberal ideas, particularly when it comes to social issues. That’s why Richard Socarides, a former adviser on gay rights to President Clinton, argued that the decision “represents the mainstreaming of gay marriage” – it’s not just for the “tax-hiking, government-expanding, latte-drinking, sushi-eating, Volvo-driving, New York Times-reading, body-piercing, Hollywood-loving left” anymore.

“As Iowa goes, so goes the nation,” he added.

“I’m applauding what’s happening. I would never have believed that it would happen in my lifetime. But the American public is now understanding that gays and lesbians need the same protections as married couples,” said Ald. Tom Tunney (44th).

“We’re seeing a tipping point in terms of societal acceptance of civil marriages. …The whole religious component is separate and private. But the institution of marriage is a civil agreement.”

However, most Americans do not support gay marriage: According to the latest CBS News poll on the topic, just one in three back full marriage rights for same-sex couples. Another 27 percent support civil unions, while 35 percent want no legal recognition at all.

Those numbers, however, have been moving, and not in the direction gay marriage opponents might like. In 2004, just 22 percent supported gay marriage – which means that there has been a nine-point increase in five years. And even the most optimistic gay marriage advocate would have been hard pressed, 15 years ago, to predict that 33 percent of Americans would be backing gay marriage by 2009.

In fact, the demographics suggest that support for gay marriage will only increase: Opposition comes largely from those 65 and older, just 18 percent of whom support gay marriage. Younger people – those 18 to 45 – are far more supportive, with 41 percent backing allowing same sex couples to marry.

Earlier this week, Vermont became the first state in the nation to legalize gay marriage through a vote by the state legislature. The groundbreaking action came just four days after a decision by the Iowa Supreme Court authorized gay marriages there.

A bill authorizing civil unions is now pending in the Illinois House.

“It’s gonna be a great battle, like it was in Vermont and it will be in New York. But, it’s gonna happen sooner than later” in Illinois, Ald. Tom Tunney said.

At the city level, Tunney said he plans to introduce an ordinance at the April 22 City Council meeting extending the three-day bereavement leave available upon the death of a registered domestic partner to the death of a member of the partner’s family.

Sean Penn asked for more gay sex scenes to be written into new movie ‘Milk’.

James Franco – who stars alongside Sean in the film, which tells the story of Harvey Milk, California’s first openly gay elected official – says Sean Penn pushed the gay sex scenes in “Milk” further than he expected. “In the original script I read, there was only one real kissing scene,” Franco tells next month’s Elle. “A month after [director] Gus [Van Sant] asked me to do it, they sent me another script, and on Page 5 there was a full-on love scene. And I was like, ‘Gus, what the heck?’ He says, ‘Well, it was Sean’s idea.’ “

James recently revealed Sean texted his ex-wife Madonna – who famously kissed Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera – to boast about his first on screen gay kiss.

He said: “After our kiss, Sean texted Madonna and said, ‘I just popped my cherry kissing a guy. I thought of you. I don’t know why.’ “