Cameroon the worst place to be Gay today.

This petition needs signatures ASAP.
Eric Lembembe was an advocate for LGBT rights in Cameroon and was recently murdered. This has to stop!

The top leaders of Cameroon need to see that their policies are not accepted in the world they deal with outside their borders. Protect lesbian, gay, bi and trans people in Cameroon.

Long Beach City Council takes a stand? re: Sochi and Russian Laws

So as a leaders of it's "sister-city" the Long Beach City Council felt the pressure to do something about the situation in Sochi surrounding discrimination against the LGBT community in Russia in light of the upcoming Winter Olympic Games.


Mind you this action is well after regional laws went into effect in Sochi ahead of the controversial national laws, and only after a petition to sever the "sister-city" relationship with Sochi had earned around 800 signatures. Sever Long Beach-Sochi 'Sister City' Petition,


Quoting from the Agenda:
"CITY OF LONG BEACH TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2013 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA 333 W. OCEAN BOULEVARD COUNCIL CHAMBER, 4:30 PM

...

Recommendation to request City Attorney to prepare a resolution condemning the discriminatory laws against the LGBT community in Russia and strongly urge our sister city of Sochi to join our protest; ask the Long Beach/Sochi Sister City Association to work with the Human Relations Commission and the Center Long Beach to begin a dialogue on next steps to address these human rights violations.
[sponsoring] Office or Department: 
COUNCILMEMBER JAMES JOHNSON, SEVENTH DISTRICT; 
VICE MAYOR ROBERT GARCIA, COUNCILMEMBER, FIRST DISTRICT; 
COUNCILWOMAN GERRIE SCHIPSKE, FIFTH DISTRICT "

Quoting from the Minutes:
"CITY OF LONG BEACH CITY COUNCIL MINUTES

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2013 333 W. OCEAN BOULEVARD COUNCIL CHAMBER, 4:30 PM
...

[All council members spoke]

Larry Goodhue spoke. 

Ron Sylvester, Chairman, and Porter Gilberg, Administrative Director, Long Beach Gay and Lesbian Center, spoke.
Herlinda Chico, Executive Board Member of Long Beach Lambda Democratic Club, spoke.
David Zanatta, Chairman of Sister Cities of Long Beach, Inc., spoke.

A motion was made by Councilmember Johnson, seconded by Councilwoman Schipske, to approve recommendation, as amended, to: [1] request that the Human Relations Commission invite the Lambda Democratic Club to participate in the dialog on potential next steps that will address discriminatory laws against the LGBT community in Russia; [2] invite any interested group or organization to contact the Long Beach Sochi Sister City Association concerning delegation trips to Sochi, Russia; and [3] request that the adopted resolution be posted at Recreation Park near the Sochi Tree or other place designated by City staff. The motion carried by the following vote:
Yes: 9 - Garcia, Lowenthal, DeLong, O'Donnell, Schipske, Andrews, Johnson, Austin and Neal" [i.e. unanimous]


The good news is they did something. 
Further bad news is that with the changes made to include provisions for delegations to go to Sochi to discus this very issue, Long Beach citizens are set up for potential violation of these laws leading to their arrest and deportation. Somehow that doesn't seem very smart.

The bad news is it's pretty much not really doing anything that has any meaning. 
Sochi already had similar anti-gay propaganda laws governing it before the national laws, so  protesting the national laws now would seem a bit odd. Even if the idea of protesting the national laws in this way was actually a reasonable and safe thing for officials in Sochi to do, which I have serious doubts about.  

This action is really just a plan to make a general statement of 
 'We don't approve, and we want you to not approve, and we'd like to help you understand why we don't approve. BUT we have no intention of doing anything else about our disproval.' 

Out Gay Speed Skater needs help with financing to make it to Sochi.

Speed Skater Blake Skjellerup needs some help training and qualifying for Olympic team in order to represent in Sochi.
Read his story and consider helping out:

Send out gay speed skater Blake Skjellerup to World Cup and Olympics

Crimes Against Humanity, trial to happen

This is a very important precedent:

An extremist anti-gay US pastor is accused of engineering the Uganda 'Kill the Gays' bill, saying Gays are the 'new Nazis' and recommending Russia's 'gay propaganda' laws.

Gay Star News Article: Historic Ruling Re: Crimes Against Humanity

Start a "sister-city" petition.

There are a staggering number of sister cities to Russian cities, that could be included in the campaign to sever "sister-city" relationships. If you don't see your city at the bottom of this blog page, please consider checking to see if your city has any Russian connections.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sister_cities_in_the_United_States
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_twin_towns_and_sister_cities_in_Russia

Once you find a city you feel compelled to petition you could go here to start the petition.

https://www.change.org/campaigns/stand-up-for-lgbt-in-saint-petersburg-and-russia

or go to Moveon.org and start the petition there.

No matter where you start the petition, be sure to include the name of the Non-Russian city your petitioning in the title of the petition.

Meanwhile in Moscow...

The World Track and Field games are RIGHT NOW in MOSCOW!
AND one of our athletes has already publicly dedicated his Silver Medal to Gays back home. AWESOME!
And dismaying that our athletes are in Russia right now with their laws hanging over their heads...

http://thegaycourier.blogspot.com/2013/08/nick-symmonds-dedicates-silver-medal.html

"Chicago Won't Sever 'Sister City' Ties with Moscow ..."

In light of this article, Chicago's civic government and "sister-city" program needs to be pressured heavily.
Perhaps the Leather community would be willing to relocate our "International Mr. Leather" competitions and celebrations to a city that understands how to apply pressure to the Russian elite in order to affect change. Chicago didn't even ban Russian officials who voted for the laws from participating in a "sister-city" event recently in Chicago. SHAME ON CHICAGO!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/31/chicago-sister-city-moscow_n_3682607.html

Ending "Sister-City" Relationships

    Breaking such ties may seem daunting but another US city allready has broken their ties: Lansing, Michigan has broken their ties with St. Petersburg, Russia, August 11, 2013, citing the fact that St. Petersbug's laws were the model for the national Laws.

As I understand it the city of Sochi, had anti-gay laws on their books before the Russian National legislative body, Duma, unanimously voted in favor of similar Laws. This means that the Sochi (and other regional) Laws would still be in effect if the national laws are repealed (Laws that would apply at these Olympics and oppress Gay Russians and possibly visitors.) Only a National Law that Outlaws the regional Laws would repeal the local laws quickly enough to be prepared for the Olympics this February. So "sister-city" pressure is actually very important in this fight.

Sticking it to Sochi

This article is a clear explanation of what will and won't work in Russia to change their laws.
Demonstrations at the olympics would only be a warm fuzzy that might be scene by people who need to see them. (i.e. LGBT youth and adults in oppressive cultures.) but they will NOT change the laws.

http://prospect.org/article/sticking-it-sochi-leading-russian-lgbt-activists-what-will-make-difference

Total Diack

No Surprise this 'Diack' is from Senegal, where "unnatural" acts between persons of the same sex can lead to 1-5 years in prison. So he likely sees the Russian law about that is about "propagandizing" these behaviors as week compared to his own laws. Or at least as the next law he should work on getting passed in his home country!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-2387182/Athletics-World-Championships-IAAF-president-Lamine-Diack-problem-Russias-anti-gay-laws.html

Lansing Michigan

This week Lansing Michigan broke their ties with St. Petersburg Russia.
Read an article about it here:

http://www.mlive.com/lansing-news/index.ssf/2013/08/lansing_council_votes_to_end_st_petersburg_russia_sister_city_ties_over_gay_rights_violations.html

Malawi

This petition was successful:

http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/ask-rt-hon-theresa-may-immediately-stop-aid-to-malawi-after-new-law-passed-criminalizing-lesbians

Long Beach -//- Sochi

There's an article in a local paper about the Long Beach to Sochi "sister-city" petition:

http://www.lbpost.com/lgbt/2000002714-petition-calls-for-long-beach-to-dump-sochi-russia-as-sister-city#.UgqbfGTXhe4