Chechen government persecutes gay men’s families
Police have detained 20 relatives of two gay brothers currently jailed in the Russian region of Chechnya in an attempt to locate the men’s parents. The brothers, Salekh Magamadov and Ismail Isayev, were jailed and tortured last year for being gay. They were released from prison and left Chechnya after being forced to record an apology to authorities which included them saying they were not really men. They were re-arrested in February this year in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod and are now being held again in a detention centre in Chechnya.
German Catholics rebel over Vatican rules on same-sex unions
Catholic theologians and clergy in Germany have criticised the Vatican’s recent ruling that same-sex unions would not be blessed in the Catholic Church. A statement signed by 266 theologians said the ruling “is characterised by a paternalistic gesture of superiority and discriminates against homosexual people and their lifestyles.” The Bishop of Limburg, Georg Bätzing (pictured above), also issued a statement saying the ruling “so blatantly excludes any progress in theological and human scientific knowledge (it) will lead to pastoral practice ignoring it.”
DC and Marvel comics celebrate Pride Month
The two largest comic book publishes in the US will publish two anthologies celebrating queer characters and talent in June 2021. On sale during the northern hemisphere’s Pride Month, the books will include queer crimefighters Batwoman, Aqualad, Midnighter and Apollo, Harley Quinn and John Constantine in stories written by LGBTQ creators.
North Korean ‘openly gay’ defector finds love
Almost 25 years after fleeing North Korea, Jang Yeong-jin has found love with another man. Jang’s life story including an unhappy marriage while living in North Korea makes fascinating reading. Upon leaving the country, he faced a lot of hardships which included being defrauded by a former boyfriend. Now at the age of 62, Jang has found happiness with a a Korean-American restaurant owner called Min-su. You can read more about Jang’s story here.
