LGBT
African clergy to protest Obama’s gay-rights ‘agenda’ on trip
By Fredrick Nzwili — July 21, 2015
NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) Protesters have called for tactics ranging from throwing rotten eggs at the president to encouraging prostitutes to march naked in the streets during his visit.
Why I hate to go to church (COMMENTARY)
By Eliel Cruz — July 17, 2015
(RNS) Sermons are preached as if LGBT people don’t exist, as if we’re just theoretical ideas, as if we weren’t sitting in the pews.
By the numbers: India’s LGBT community in legal limbo
By Syed Nazakat — July 14, 2015
NEW DELHI (RNS) Despite growing momentum for equal rights across India, openly LGBT people face fear of prosecution.
Letter on same-sex marriage has Mormons talking, listening
By Peggy Fletcher Stack — July 13, 2015
An unprecedented letter from top Mormon leaders on how the LDS church should respond to the Supreme Court's gay marriage ruling has started a dialog in many local churches.
India’s debate: Can Hinduism and homosexuality coexist?
By Nathan McDermott — July 8, 2015
(RNS) As India grapples with gay rights, theologians and historians often disagree on whether homosexuality is compatible with Hinduism.
The ‘Splainer: Episcopalians approve same-sex marriage liturgy
By Kimberly Winston — July 2, 2015
(RNS) The Episcopal Church voted to approve same-sex marriages Wednesday (July 1). Say what? Don't we all know at least one married, same-sex Episcopal couple? Let us 'Splain . . . .
Texas county will now issue same-sex marriage licenses, reversing earlier stance
By Reuters — July 1, 2015
DALLAS (Reuters) A Texas county clerk said on Tuesday her office will issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, reversing a previous decision that was based on religious objections.
Gay civil rights activist, MLK mentor Bayard Rustin to be honored
By Renée K. Gadoua — June 30, 2015
(RNS) Years before the gay rights movement gained momentum, the openly gay black activist, a Quaker, advised Martin Luther King Jr. on nonviolent protest tactics and organized the 1963 March on Washington.
Texas attorney general says county clerks can refuse gay couples despite SCOTUS ruling
By Reuters — June 29, 2015
County clerks in Texas who object to gay marriage can refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples despite last week's landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said on Sunday.
‘African Pride’ film shows violence against lesbians in townships
By Brian Pellot — June 15, 2015
CAPE TOWN (RNS) A new documentary looks at the effects of continuing homophobic violence against lesbians in South Africa's impoverished townships, and the activists who continue the struggle.
South African lesbians counter violence with visibility in ‘African Pride’
By Brian Pellot — June 11, 2015
In South Africa’s townships, where homosexuality is widely considered “un-African” and “un-Christian,” the rape and murder of lesbians is often met with indifference and impunity. Filmmaker Laura Fletcher shows how local activists are fighting for dignity, and their lives.
Like it or not, most expect gay marriage will sweep the US
By Cathy Lynn Grossman — June 11, 2015
(RNS) Although the Supreme Court decision on gay marriage looms, public attention already is shifting toward new, contentious issues over LGBT rights, a new survey finds.
Arkansas judge tells state to recognize hundreds of same-sex marriages
By Reuters — June 10, 2015
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Reuters) Arkansas must recognize as lawful some 500 same-sex marriages that were performed during a six-day window in May 2014, a state judge ruled on Tuesday.
Franklin Graham’s effort to blacklist LGBT-friendly companies is a quixotic idea (COMMENTARY)
By Eliel Cruz — June 9, 2015
(RNS) The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse are looking for neutral banks. I wouldn’t suggest Chase, Citigroup or Bank of America -- all of which scored 100 percent in the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index.
Gay Muslim filmmaker risks death in pilgrimage to reconcile faith and sexuality
By Reuters — June 9, 2015
LONDON (Reuters) Millions of Muslims each year make the arduous and exhausting hajj pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, but for one filmmaker, it was a journey that could have cost him his life.
