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Magazine Issue 07 – December 2013
A Glórious Christmas
This Way Out: 25 Years
‘Imogen’ Don’t Box Me In! Inside:
Origin of HIV | Stone Walls of Silence | California Dispatch
EILE Magazine | Who’s Who
Contributors Lucia Chappelle
Lucia is an Associate Producer with the Los Angeles-based LGBT radio show, This Way Out.
Scott De Buitléir
Scott is the creator of EILE Magazine and is a writer and broadcaster from Dublin. He also hosts The Cosmo, RTÉ’s LGBT radio show every Wednesday at 10pm.
Dr. Shay Keating
Shay has his clinic at the Harold’s Cross Surgery in south Dublin and is a specialist in Genitourinary Medicine at St. James’ Hospital, Dublin.
Dermie O’Sullivan
Dermie is a chef from County Cork who whips up delicious recipes. You can find more on his blog, gasmarkseven.com
Aoife JC Read
Aoife is a journalist and poet from Dublin.
Lisa Reynolds
Originally from County Meath, Lisa is a fashion industry student living in Bray, County Wicklow.
Gareth Russell
Gareth is a native of Belfast and studied History at the University of Oxford. He is currently working on a book on the history of the British monarchy.
Frances Winston
Frances Winston is EILE’s resident film buff, and has contributed to many publications such as The Irish Independent and Irish Tatler. She is also a regular contributor to The Daily Update.
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EILE Magazine | Welcome
Highlights December 2013 Don’t Box Me In – P.12 Five Irish artists come together for an exciting exhibition at the Front Lounge in Dublin
Stone Walls of Silence – P.18 Aoife Read writes on an issue rarely discussed in our community: Domestic Violence
Volume 1, Issue 07 Editor-in-Chief: Scott De Buitléir Features Editor: MKB Writers: Lucia Chappelle, MKB, Shay Keating, Dermie O’Sullivan, Aoife Read, Lisa Reynolds, Gareth Russell, Frances Winston Photographers: Declan Colohan, Mary Baird, Denver Breslin, Joleen Cronin, Jakub Walutek
California Dispatch – P.26
Special Thanks to MKB for all her hard work, dedication and support.
Lucia Chappelle on gun culture within the gay community in America
Web: http://eile.ie
McQueen & I – P.20 He was world-famous, but what was Alexander McQueen really like?
Contact: eilemagazine@outlook.com Twitter: @EileMagazine Facebook: http://fb.com/eilemagazine Note: All opinions expressed in this issue are the writers’ own.
Cooking with Dermie – P.48 EILE’s own Cook from Cork gives a few delicious tips for the holiday season
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EILE Magazine | Editor’s Letter
Contents 7-
Glória Christmas
Concert
8-
LGBT News Round-Up
12 - Don’t Box Me In 15 -
Music: Parralox
16 -
Marriage Referendum
18 - Stone Walls of Silence 20 - McQueen & I 26 -
California Dispatch
28 -
25 Years of
‘This Way Out’
28 -
Twenty Years a’Growing
38 -
Film Reviews
36 -
Imogen Dawson
42 -
Project Z, Dungarvan
38 -
Cooking with Dermie
40 -
Origin of HIV
Seasons Greetings! Scott De Buitléir
| Editor-in-Chief
What a year it has been for the LGBT community! We have witnessed some groundbreaking and unforgettable moments, for example the introduction of marriage equality in England & Wales, the announcement of a referendum on the issue for the Republic by mid-2015 and several American states also introducing equal marriage to their citizens. I doubt I’m the only one who thinks that 2013 has been an amazing year! 2013 has been an incredible year for LGBT rights at home and abroad, but our celebrations should not be made without remembering the hardships that many have faced this year too. Over 280 transgender people lost their lives as a result of transphobia this year alone, a figure that is horribly high. In Ireland, we still await action on gender recognition legislation, and can only hope that the issue will be addressed once equal marriage is voted upon here. The trans community has been waiting far, far too long for equal treatment, but even the smallest glimmer of hope can is welcome. For those new to EILE Magazine, this issue follows our format of great new articles from our contributors, as well as some news items from our daily magazine, eile.ie. To have your say on any of our content, drop us a tweet at @EILEMagazine or via our Facebook page. As 2013 comes to an end, we welcome the next year with open arms and an optimistic look to what it may bring. Nollaig Shona agus Athbhliain faoi Mhaise dár léitheoirí go léir! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all our readers! See you in 2014. Scott x
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A Glórious Christmas
Glória, Dublin’s Lesbian and Gay Choir Friday 13th of December - 8pm
St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Patrick Street, Dublin 8.
Tickets €11 (incl. booking fee)
available at www.entertainment.ie/tickets or
www.gloria.ie
Gloriadlgc
@Gloriadlgc
News | Homophobia
Homophobia from ‘Best Vacations Ever’! Tim Seelig
(eile.ie / 2 November) Tim Seelig, and his partner Dan, were both excited to take up an offer from Best Vacations Ever, a timeshare company, which had offered a special package of three destinations, Las Vegas, Orlando and New Orleans, for the special offer price of $259 plus tax. This offer was dependent on them sitting through a 90-minute presentation by the company of their timeshare properties. This they did, and paid for the package, but when they went to book their trip, the girl on the phone said the offer was not open to same-sex couples. According to Tim Seelig, who works with the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus and Golden Gate Performing Arts: “Dan phoned them to book it. They were most helpful until he said the 2nd person was named Tim. They asked if that was a male? Seriously? She said, “Please hold a moment.” After 5 minutes or so, she came back on line and said, “I’m so sorry, we don’t allow same sex couples to use the Vegas 6 EILE Magazine
vacation offer.” We have spent the entire day in shock. Dan talked to 3 people at the company. I talked to another 3 people there. There is nothing to be done. They do not consider “co-habitating couples” to be within their demographic for potential time share sales, so we are not allowed. We cancelled our “membership” immediately. The company is a huge one, interestingly named The Best Vacation Ever.” So, six people in the company told them the same story, that is, “same sex couples not allowed”. It was only after the story was gathering momentum on the internet that the quality assurance manager wrote to Tim apologising, but unbelievably using the term ‘sexual preference‘ in their letter three times (as reported by Out Travel): In addressing Dan’s request for reservations to our Las Vegas destination our customer care agent made a mistake, and informed Dan that he was unable to travel to Las Vegas due to his sexual preference. That information was entirely inaccurate. We accept all couples regardless of their sexual preference. We do
not at this point, nor have we ever prevented a guest/couple from traveling to one of our properties due to their sexual preference. That is not our policy. Tim, who feels that this shows LGBT people still do not have equal rights, says: “We are still stunned and hurt and I am absolutely furious that this still exists in the U.S., in the travel industry and in Vegas! No, we are obviously not nearly finished in our struggle to just be equal.” One commenter, Michael Ciaccia, summed it up nicely though: “Isn’t it amazing that in this day and age that big businesses would still have this mind set. But it is better to find out now so as not to waste your money on them.. bad business on their part…WE do have more disposable income than a family with kids and all the cash hemorrhaging that goes with it! They have the right to make stupid rules and we have the right to take our money elsewhere!” MKB
Glória Christmas Concert
Glória Prepare for St Patrick’s Cathedral Christmas Concert Glória, Dublin’s Lesbian and Gay Choir, will present their annual Christmas concert in St Patrick’s Cathedral on Friday, 13 December, at 8pm.
now has 65 members across four sections - soprano, alto, tenor and bass. The Christmas Concert in St Patrick’s is the highlight of the season for the members who have been learning Christmas carols since September.
It is now almost 19 years since the choir was founded and this will be their fourth consecutive Christmas performance in St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Each year, the concert attracts a capacity audience of more than 1,200 people.
“It’s wonderful to see how this choir has grown,” said Packham, “and to see the commitment and enthusiasm of these women and men. These are all busy people: some are studying, most have busy careers, and some have kids at home. They all give up their entire social life from September to December to prepare for this.”
“The festive favourites will all still be there,” said Ian Packham, Musical Director of Glória. “We’ll have the ones we know people love – ‘O Holy Night’, ‘In the Bleak Mid Winter’, and ‘Walking in the Air’. “ But this year we’re also going to add some other new festive pieces as well new songs from our non festive repertoire to take advantage of the wonderful acoustic effect found only in such a wonderful venue like St Patrick’s Cathedral”. When the choir started in 1995, it had only 25 members. Glória
The choir’s repertoire is wide ranging; from musicals to madrigals, and from classical to camp. As well as choral pieces, there will also be performances on the night by some of the choir’s talented soloists. “We are particularly looking forward this year to performing Eric Whitacre’s ‘Lux Arumque’, which we know will sound stunning in the natural acoustics of the cathedral,” said Packham. “And during the finale, we’ll be inviting the whole audience
to join us for of some classic Christmas standards, ‘Silent Night’, ‘O Come All Ye Faithful’, and ‘Hark The Herald Angels Sing’. “This has now become a fixture in a lot of family calendars. We hope that people will come along to our concert to get their Christmas season off to a great start. Don’t miss it- it really is going to be a fantastic night! ” Packham concluded. This year, the Choir also has a number of Christmas albums on sale which can be bought on the night, or from Glória’s website. Due to the rising popularity of the concert, the choir has introduced online booking for this year’s concert so that loyal patrons can be assured of access. Tickets can be purchased online from www.entertainment.ie/ tickets and cost €11 including admin fees. For further information on this event and on the choir, visit www. gloria.ie [Photo: Denver Breslin] EILE Magazine 7
News | Round-Up
LGBT Monthly News Roun New Poll Shows Irish Support for Equal Marriage at 76%
Government’s announcement that it will hold a referendum on equal marriage by mid-2015. As well as Taoiseach Enda Kenny confirming his support for same-sex marriage, the Fine Gael / Labour coalition also confirmed that they would campaign for a Yes vote. “It is clear from this poll,” commented Rose, “that public opinion has shifted towards acceptance of marriage for samesex couples right across the country, across all age groups and all political parties.”
(eile.ie / 8 November) A new Red C poll conducted this week for Paddy Power shows a huge majority – over three quarters of the people in the Republic of Ireland – (76%) would support marriage for lesbian and gay couples in a Constitutional referendum. 18% say they are opposed, while the remaining 6.5% are undecided. “This is another welcome demonstration of the transformation in attitudes to lesbian and gay people and of the generosity of Irish voters in their willingness to extend the status and protections of marriage to lesbian and gay couples,” said Kieran Rose, GLEN Chair. Rose also hails this week as “historic” for gay and lesbian people in Ireland. With the
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More than 1,500 civil partnerships have taken place in the Republic of Ireland since its introduction in 2011, with all political parties showing support for civil marriage for same-sex couples.
ITV Criticised for James Arthur XFactor Performance (eile.ie / 29 November) British television channel, ITV, has been met with a barrage of complaints following the announcement that former X Factor winner, James Arthur, is expected to return to the show to perform his latest single this weekend. The complaints lodged against the UK broadcaster are in light of homophobic language used by James Arthur in a rap ‘battle’ against another musician. The rap caused massive controversy amongst British media, with fellow
X Factor 2012 contestant, Lucy Spraggan, tweeting that “[p]eople kill themselves every day because there’s insults like that around”. Arthur was quick to apologise to those offended by his remarks, after his track was removed from SoundCloud. He also tweeted that “[s]ome of the things said in this rap can be mistaken for homophobic slurs and I assure you homophobia is something I do not believe in.” A spat between the X Factor winner and Spraggan occurred soon afterwards, however, leading to further outrage from both of their fanbases. Despite the controversy created in recent weeks, it appears that Arthur will appear on this week’s X Factor regardless. A spokesman for ITV commented: “Both ITV and the producers of The X Factor would like to make it clear in no way do we support, condone or share any form of homophobia or discrimination. […] Following his comments James has apologised, making it clear he did not mean to cause offence and explaining the context behind his remarks.” Meanwhile, reports have indicated that the X Factor winner’s mental health is suffering as a result of the public’s negative reaction to his comments, as well as record label Sony warning him that the outcome of his actions may cost Arthur his career in music. The British singer has cancelled previous appearances due to “acute exhaustion” and it is not yet certain whether or not he will still perform on this week’s popular music show.
News | Round-Up
nd-Up 21 Years of Pink Training Celebrated in Belfast (eile.ie / 25 November) Queen’s University Belfast was the location for this year’s USI Pink Training last weekend, the largest LGBT training event in Europe for third level students, with delegations attending from USI-affiliated colleges across Ireland. Over 350 third-level students attended the weekendlong series of talks, workshops and events, as the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) celebrated 21 years of Pink Training. Jeff Dudgeon MBE, was the keynote speaker. Dudgeon was the person mainly responsible for the decriminalisation of homosexual behaviour in Northern Ireland in 1982. Workshops covered over the weekend included Coming Out workshops, Supporting A Friend Who’s Coming Out, Looking After Your Mental Health, Sexual Health, Trans* Awareness, Running An LGBT Society, Bisexuality Awareness, Being An LGBT Ally, Sexual Empowerment, lobbying and media skills.
celebrate the 21st Anniversary of Pink Training this year.” EILE Magazine‘s Scott De Buitléir was among the speakers at Pink Training this year, and gave a lecture on the presence of LGBT topics in the media in Ireland and abroad. He praised the event, calling it an “essential experience” for third-level LGBT students in Ireland, adding: “It was fantastic to see so many LGBT students, and their allies, enthusiastically taking part in vibrant debates and discussions. As someone who attended Pink Training during my own college years, I know how inspiring and influential the event can be, and I was honoured to have been invited to return as a speaker this year.” The USI has been vocal on the topic of LGBT rights in Ireland for many years, and earlier this month it announced that the island-wide student body would be “campaigning heavily” in support of the upcoming Irish referendum on same-sex
marriage in 2015. Joe O’Connor, President of the USI, said that it was “high time that Ireland stopped talking about an equal society and started delivering on it. Marriage equality would be a fundamental step forward, and we would encourage all citizens to play their part in making this a reality”. The USI also made a submission to the Constitutional Convention earlier this year in support of marriage equality. For more information on Pink Training or the USI, visit usi.ie. MKB
eile.ie
Laura Harmon, USI Vice President for Equality & Citizenship, said: “Pink Training is an immensely positive event, it’s about empowering students and student activists to campaign for their rights and to learn how to look after themselves. This is the largest training event that USI runs in terms of attendees and we are proud to EILE Magazine 9
News | Derry
Shá Gillespie holds a rainbow flag behind Edwin Poots during an event at Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry. [Image: Mary Baird]
Edwin Poots Met With Rainbow Flag in Derry (Updated) The activist who raised a rainbow flag behind Northern Ireland’s Minister for Health, Edwin Poots, at an event in Derry City, has spoken to EILE Magazine.
him when is the law going to change regarding the life ban on gay blood, gay adoption, and who is he to tell me what I can do with my own body! He wouldn’t answer any of the questions...”
Shá Gillespie, the Derry-based LGBT rights campaigner and former chair of Foyle Pride, spoke of her reasons behind the protest:
According to Ms Gillespie, Edwin Poots turned around to the Derry-based activist and said: “Get your stupid flag out of my face”.
“I find it quite incredible that the man is in power, he is a bigot of the highest degree! We found out he was coming [to Derry] and decided to hold a peaceful protest and ask him a few questions. […] I asked
Mr Poots was visiting Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry yesterday evening, when some members of the local LGBT community decided to meet him and to protest the politician’s anti-gay stance on a
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number of issues. Last month, the UK Supreme Court dismissed an appeal made by Mr Poots, in an abortive attempt to preserve Northern Ireland’s ban on gay couples jointly adopting children. Earlier, a Belfast judge at the Court of Appeal called his reasoning behind the maintenance of a lifetime ban on gay and bisexual men donating blood as “irrational”, words echoed by the UUP leader, Mike Nesbitt, during the political party’s annual conference.
News | Croatia
Croatia: Yes Vote To Same-Sex Marriage Ban
(eile.ie / 2 December) Croatia has voted to ban same-sex marriage. The question “Do you believe that marriage is between a man and a woman?” is the question that was asked on the referendum paper in the Croatian vote yesterday. Unfortunately, 65%, of those who voted, answered ‘yes’ to this question, which also meant that it was a ‘yes’ to a ban on same-sex marriage. The turnout was low, with only 38% of the population voting yesterday. In theory, this will now lead to a change in the constitution in Croatia, which will, for the first time, define marriage as being between a man and a woman. In practice, the legislature could veto the ban.
Prime Minister, Zoran Milanovic, and President Ivo Josipovic had come out publicly against the it, saying they were in favour of same-sex marriage, and it seems many in the government would prefer to allow it. However, many in the government, mainly the opposition party, HZD, also voted in favour of the ban. As the population of over 4 million is mostly Catholic, the Catholic church had also urged a yes vote in the referendum, and in fact it was the Catholic church which was behind pushing for a referendum in the first place, as, through an organisation called In The Name Of The Family (U Ime Obitelji) it had gathered over 740,000 signatures to force the government into holding a vote on the matter.
We will now have to wait and see if the Croatian legislature will veto the ban, or if it will become part of the Croatian constitution. MKB
Croatian Prime Minister
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Art | Don’t Box Me In
Don’t Box Me In
Five contemporary Irish artists join forces for a month-long exhibition at the Front Lounge, Dublin
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Art | Don’t Box Me In
The talents of 5 contemporary Irish artists have been brought together for a unique exhibition this month, in a show entitled ‘Don’t Box Me In‘ in The Front Lounge in Dublin.
the artists captures something unique to the exhibition, with such themes as light, death, water and the environment portrayed, as well as more abstract and expressive works.
and self-expression. This is a special event for the artists, as the group have never exhibited together before, and for two of them, this is also a first time large-scale exhibition.
The contemporary work is a collection put together by artists John Kavanagh, Eoin O’Carroll, Mark Salmon, Rachael Kealy and Laura Ní Bhroinn, who met at Studio 9 and work together at the creative hub on Dublin’s North Great George’s Street.
“Individually, though, these pieces are very strong,” explains Kavanagh, originally from Derry but now based in Dublin. “They’re able to stand alone… it’s interesting to see how [the artworks] are able to interact, and we’ve learned from each other, as well.” The event opened on the 1st of December, World Aids Day, as the exhibition celebrates a strength, creativity and passion from these artists, and each of the pieces echoes a call for openness
‘Don’t Box Me In’ is on display at The Front Lounge on Parliament Street from Sunday, December 1 at 5pm, and the launch event is open to the public. The exhibition will run on to the New Year. The work featured will also be on sale, available by contacting each artist directly.
Speaking to EILE, artist John Kavanagh explains that the exhibition deals with a wide range of expression, as varied as the artists themselves. Each of
Left: Piece by Mark Salmon Above: Piece by John Kavanagh
Contd.
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Art | Don’t Box Me In
Artist: Eoin O’Carroll (right)
Artist: Rachael Kealy (below)
Artist: Rachael Kealy (below)
Artist: Laura Ní Bhroinn (below)
‘Don’t Box Me In’ runs in the Front Lounge, Parliament Street, Dublin 2 until January 2014. For more information, contact: jkavanagh@europe.com or Facebook: John Kavanagh Artist 14 EILE Magazine
Music | Parralox
One to Watch: Parralox Parralox is a electropop project produced by John von Ahlen, based in Melbourne, Australia. They came to critical acclaim with their 2008 debut album, Electricity, which took the Internet by storm and received high praise from many critics. These modern day electronic pop veterans have performed all over the world including Germany, Spain, the UK, the US, and their native Australia. Through their upcoming tours and album releases, Parralox continue to bring their unique brand of electronic pop and EDM to the world. Their recently released album “Recovery” and single “Silent Morning” has garnered critical acclaim from the likes of MTV Buzzworthy, Popjustice, Arjan Writes and EQ Music. Their single “Sharper Than A Knife” reached #22 in the Music Week Club Chart in the UK. EDM single “Creep” has been on numerous
international DJ playlists and was included on Pacha Recordings, and well received in the U.S. reaching #10 on the CMJ chart and #2 on the Billboard Breakout Chart. At the helm of Parralox’s worldclass sound sits producer John von Ahlen of Subterrane Records, who started the group in 2008. As a young child, he explored music and took up both the saxophone and clarinet, and by High School John had switched his focus to piano and synthesizers. In 1993, John teamed up with international songwriter, John Collins and Grammy nominated artist Gina G for the “Bass Culture” album and was soon signed to Mushroom Records. The songs made with Gina G were used in a list of TV shows that are still receiving residuals even today.
organism are the synthetic sounds of ‘80s dance-pop and the more modern EDM/electronica styles of Stuart Price, Trevor Horn, and Goldfrapp. Parralox has gone above and beyond these artists’ influences and have used their own original and contemporary sound to carve out a unique place in the electronic-pop and dance music world with songs that deal with love, envy, and the surreal. Recovery by Parralox is on iTunes and Amazon. For more, check out their website: www.parralox.com
Some of the many musical styles that have influenced the Parralox
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Comment | Equal Marriage
Ireland’s Equal Marriage Referendum – Just A Little Further To Go?
Scott De Buitléir assesses the Government decision to hold a referendum on equal marriage in 2015, along with reactions to the good news There was a bitterly cold wind sweeping across Dublin Bay earlier this afternoon, with dreary, grey skies and uninviting waters. Not too far inland, while the exterior of Buswell’s Hotel braved the winter air, the atmosphere indoors was much warmer and more comfortable, as civil rights groups welcomed the Cabinet’s decision to call for a referendum on equal marriage for 2015. In the small function room, where media, politicians and rights campaigners gathered and greeted each other warmly, the announcement was made that GLEN, MarriagEquality and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties jointly welcomed the Government’s decision, made just across the road in Leinster House.
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“The Government’s acceptance of the Constitutional Convention recommendation,” said Kieran Rose of GLEN, “is another historic step in the remarkable 20 year journey from gay law reform to full Constitutional equality for lesbian and gay people in Ireland.” The sentiment expressed by MarriagEquality Chairwoman, Gráinne Healy, was much the same, as “lesbian and gay couples and [their] families will finally be accepted as equal citizens in Irish law.”
…‘if’ was never the important word of the marriage equality campaign, but ‘when’. Indeed, such a positive (and somewhat relieved) reaction is to be expected from rights organisations, who have campaigned for years to see equal marriage legislation introduced in the Republic of Ireland, following other countries in Europe, not
least the recent passing of the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Act 2013 in the United Kingdom. In another positive move, while the civil rights organisations praised the Government’s decision, Taoiseach Enda Kenny finally came out – so to speak – in favour of gay marriage, ending his years of ambiguity on the issue. Kenny’s announcement certainly supported the atmosphere felt in the function room, where ‘if’ was never the important word of the marriage equality campaign, but ‘when’. Only days beforehand, however, Kenny had already strongly hinted that a referendum would not take place for yet another while, going against Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore’s comments last June, predicting that it would take place in autumn 2014. Why, therefore, has the Irish premier called to push back the matter yet again? The answer: Because he diagnosed the nation with a severe case of ‘referendum
Art | Greeting Cards
fatigue’, recommending that we avoid all referenda until 2015. This is slightly pointless, however, as we’ll be visiting our local polling station again either way next year, to vote in the local & European elections. The stress involved in voting – which I’m not sure exists at all, as you walk in, tick a box and walk back out – apparently only applies to referenda. How bizarre. Regardless of the 2014 elections, it’s surprising that our Government has suddenly become concerned with our fatigue levels (although one wonders how concerned those same leaders are of our dole queue or brain-drain fatigue). The Irish have taken to their referenda like they recently took to the Great British Bake Off; few actually take part, yet many pay attention and almost everyone has something to say about it, from the taxi driver to the housewife. Indeed, as Gráinne Healy had mentioned, it seems that it is not the public who have referendum fatigue, but the politicians. The fact that the only ones in the hotel function room not to laugh were the politicians… well, that gave an incredible weight to Healy’s joke.
Dublin Artist Launches Crowdfunding Campaign for LGBT Greeting Cards A Dublin artist has launched a crowdfunding campaign to kickstart her project to design and sell greeting cards, aimed at the LGBT community. Emma O’Connor, the artist behind Scene Designs, is hoping to raise €800 to help her produce greeting cards aimed at LGBT people in Ireland. Describing the lack of greeting cards available for, or targeting LGBT people, Emma says: When we look at the greeting card market, LGBT greeting cards are not exactly filling Irish shelves. Perhaps, like me, you have found yourself having to settle on a plain or
impersonal card for birthdays, anniversaries or other important milestones requiring the perfect card. …when you do find one, it is a dated or traditional LGBT design. Wouldn’t it be great if you could buy a card which reflected the personality of your friend or loved one? Emma’s FundIt crowdfunding campaign page is available here, where people who donate more than €25 will receive special packages of greeting cards as a way of thanks. You can also keep up to date with Scene Designs by following them on Facebook and Twitter.
Nevertheless, the Irish have been presented with yet another announcement from Leinster House that the people will need to vote on marriage equality in the near future. I, for one, hope that this new ‘near’ future is indeed real, and not some sort of political mirage. Published originally on eile.ie November 5.
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Opinion | Domestic Violence
Aoife Read writes on a topic rarely addressed within the LGBT community: Domestic Violence
STONE WALLS OF SILENCE ‘Silence has wrapped itself around my tongue’. I was 18 and in my first lesbian relationship when I wrote that sentence. It is taken from an old diary I used to keep and is part of a description, or rather, a justification to myself as to why I couldn’t tell anyone about what was going on for me at that time. What was going on was, that for the past year, I had been subjected to regular verbal and occasional physical abuse, at the hands of my partner. I don’t know if it is the same for everyone but I was desperately embarrassed by the whole affair. I couldn’t believe that I was allowing it to happen, but something about it just seemed so ludicrous. I told myself that my girlfriend wasn’t abusing me, she was just a little bit too hands on, or overzealous, or quick to temper. Just a little bit hot-headed, she wasn’t abusive. It wasn’t the same as a man behaving in the exact same way towards a woman. 18 EILE Magazine
I was also terrified. For several reasons. The most obvious one was that I was afraid of her,
How could I let myself down by allowing it to happen in the first place? but there were also other less obvious reasons. I didn’t want people to think that this was what being gay was. I felt, at 18, like a representative for all lesbians of my generation. How could I let them down by admitting to something like this? How could I let myself down by allowing it to happen in the first place? I didn’t think anyone would take it seriously. I was stuck in the mindset that domestic abuse is when a man hits a woman, and I was convinced that my girlfriend being violent was not as bad as some poor woman’s husband beating her. I didn’t think that I, normally a possessor of brash confidence, could be falling victim to anyone, let alone my chosen
partner. Isn’t that often the case though? Often people who are outwardly confident and strong are inwardly meek and mild. It’s funny how your mind works when you’re 18. Of course now, at 30, I realise how wrong I was. Now I realise how serious my situation was. It’s something that seems to be hidden behind a wall of shame, built from a lack of knowledge and understanding. While I know this is not just the case for gay couples, it does appear to be something that isn’t taken as seriously, and happens more freely within the gay and lesbian community. It seems that people are of the opinion that it’s ok to maybe push your partner because you’re the same gender. It’s not that bad because technically you’re both as strong as one another. You can’t inflict any more damage on them than they can on you. Like siblings fighting. They’re not doing any real harm, that’s just what siblings do. Isn’t it?
Opinion | Domestic Violence According to a representative from Woman’s Aid, who wished to remain anonymous, it is estimated that 1 in 5 women will suffer some form of domestic abuse in their life time. According to The Outhouse, a resource centre for the LGBT community in Dublin, there are no statistics available about domestic abuse within same sex relationships, but it would be safe to assume that the statistics are the same within gay couples. Despite this assumption, it is something that is just not spoken about as much, nor is it taken as seriously.
…inequality in our legal system has ensured that in Ireland, this is a crime with almost no visibility… The legalities around domestic abuse are different for same-sex couples also. For example, it is not possible for a person in a same-sex relationship to obtain a barring order under the current Domestic Violence Act in Ireland. This is because a barring order can only be granted by a court to a spouse or members of a common law family. Under Irish law, even a couple who are bound together under the legal acronym of a ‘Civil Partnership’ are not legally recognised as a family, therefore neither is recognised as the legal spouse of the other, only the legal partner. It is a piece of red tape that I’m sure has proven detrimental to some victims. It is either not considered equal to domestic abuse within heterosexual relationships or not considered at all under our laws. This inequality in our legal system has ensured that in Ireland, this is a crime with almost no visibility, leaving victims with very few support options, little to no outlets, and virtually no voice.
The reticence that surrounds this issue is down to several things. The LGBT community is already the target of unsavoury and unfavourable public opinion. As members of this minority, people do not want to further taint the public’s perception of gay people by bringing the ugly truth about domestic violence to the fore. This can lead to a feeling that they can’t bring their situation to the attention of any of the predominantly and stereotypically straight authorities. They don’t want to turn the community into bigger pariahs than they already are. It can also be the case that a person may be in a relationship with an abusive partner, yet still could be hiding their sexuality from family and friends. This would undoubtedly make a person feel trapped. How can they tell someone their partner is abusing them when they can’t even admit to having a partner? It can also be due to an unwillingness to let the side down. Society seems to have the opinion that same-sex relationships are unsustainable and unreliable. I know I was reluctant to strengthen this opinion by leaving my partner and telling everyone just how unsustainable my relationship actually was.
Whether it’s due to societal constraints or personal ones, the fact is that the gay community aren’t talking. I was embarrassed, I was desperate for help that never came, and I lost myself to a woman who convinced me that the only option was silence.
Whether it’s due to societal constraints or personal ones, the fact is that the gay community aren’t talking. For a facet of society that is usually so vehement about its fights against injustice and inequality, it’s strange that, when it comes to this issue there seems to be such a disinclination to reach out, or even talk about it. With the hesitancy of most gay people to bring any adverse attention to the community, I think the onus is now squarely on the media. People in the LGBT community need to understand that their voice is valid amongst the voices of the other disenchanted and unfortunate victims of domestic abuse. They need to know that their stories are not ridiculous or ludicrous, that they will be listened to and that they will be taken seriously. Their stories need to be given credence. They should be given the space and help that is so abundantly offered to their heterosexual counterparts. In short, they need to feel legitimized, and only a change in public perception can do that. If the existing support bodies like Women’s Aid and the Rape Crisis Centre were to include LGBT people in their rhetoric, it might make people within the community feel represented. It would also make other people realise that gay people are victims of the same things that straight people are. We are all the same, even in adversity. Aoife Read is a journalist and poet, and can be found via @Aoife_JC_Read on Twitter.
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Fashion | Alexander McQueen
Lisa Reynolds reviews the documentary, McQueen & I Directed by Louise Osmond. Produced by Annabel Hobley. Running time was 1 hr 40 mins. This documentary, about fashion designer Alexander McQueen, gives great insight into his relationship with friend and stylist, Isabella Blow. Isabella was from an aristocratic background. Her father, Major Sir Evelyn Delves Broughton, was a military officer, and her stepmother (the Major’s second wife) was Helen Mary Shore, who was a barrister. Alexander McQueen, by contrast, was from a working-class background, born in Lewisham in London. His Scottish father was Ronald McQueen, a taxi driver, and his mother was Joyce McQueen, who was a social science teacher.
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Blow had an interest in developing new talent, and was impressed by McQueen. She said of him that he was a designer “who makes clothes fly”, and she pushed to get him recognised in the fashion world. Her support began when she bought Alexander’s complete collection from his graduation show for £5,000 in 1994. Isabella paid off the total in weekly instalments of £100, despite the fact that she had only been bequeathed £5,000 from her father’s estate. The estate was worth over one million pounds, but she and her father never got on together. However, once Blow put her faith in someone, she remained loyal to them. When she married second husband Detmar Blow, an art dealer, Irish designer Philip Treacey created her head-dress for the wedding. She met Treacy while she was style editor for
Tatler, and was so impressed by his talent, that she let him work on his collections at her flat in London. However, Isabella was growing more depressed with time, and had already tried to commit suicide three times in three months in 2006. Yet despite her personal difficulties, she remained loyal right to the end to the designers she championed. McQueen, however, was not as loyal to Isabella in return. He did not help her when he got a job at Givenchy, nor when he sold his label to Gucci. It is certainly difficult to understand why he didn’t remember that she had helped him, and that she was a decent person who put value on another person’s talent, and not on their background.
Alexander McQueen
His friend, Nicolas Townsend, spoke about how, when they were ‘skint’, they would go out on a ‘tenner’. His former boyfriend Andrew Groves spoke about how they would take inspiration from designers like John Galliano and Vivienne Westwood to make clothes, using “plastic and crap from the streets” to go to night clubs. It was a clear insight into how being into fashion, and from a working-class background, you make do with what you have at hand, and the whole fashion world just seems so far away. It was just after acid house, and everyone dressed up to go out to night clubs. It must have been difficult for McQueen to adjust to the heights he reached. He was awarded a CBE in 2003, and had the pressure of having to live up to expectations with his collections. From going to Memory’s Bar, and the dive bar called The Venus, working as a tailor, and making his outfits from materials at hand, it would have been a very daunting jump. He was very close to his mother, and she supported him all through this huge transformation in his life. When she died of cancer, he had to face all this pressure without her. In this documentary, McQueen comes across as likeable one minute, but not the next. There is the likeable side, which is down-to-earth. He talks about things in a very ordinary way, and shows a sense of humour, jokingly playing air violins when talking about his less wealthy beginnings. This is a trait he shares with his ex-boyfriend Andrew and his friend Nicolas, who come across as likeable, witty people. Then then there is his disloyalty to his friend Isabella, especially when working for Givenchy . Whether you are a fan of McQueen or not, this is an interesting documentary, and a great watch. It is incredibly sad to see how both his and Isabella’s lives turned out, but the documentary is a lovely tribute to both of them. May they rest in peace.
EILE Magazine 21
Ireland | LGBT Parents
Irish Minister Alan Shatter to Publish Family Relationships Bill (eile.ie / 18 November) The Irish Justice Minister, Alan Shatter TD, is expected to publish the heads of a new Children and Family Relations Bill next month, which will provide parental rights for many same-sex couples in the Republic. The Department of Justice published a briefing note on the Family Relationships and Children Bill 2013 which aims “to create a legal structure to underpin diverse parenting situations and to provide legal clarity on parental rights and duties in diverse family forms”. Currently, Irish law allows heterosexual couples or single persons – irrespective of sexual orientation – to apply to adopt, but same-sex couples cannot jointly adopt. Many other aspects of Irish family law were written during the mid-20th Century, and as such, have left modern methods of establishing a family in a grey area, such as surrogacy, adoption, and assisted human reproduction. The proposed legislation is expected to address these issues, while also providing
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for guardianship and parental rights for gay and lesbian couples with children. The Irish Times reported this morning: The new laws will provide a long-anticipated legal basis for surrogacy and assisted human reproduction in Ireland, allowing intended parents to be legally recognised as parents, even if they have no genetic link to the child. It will also modernise areas like guardianship and access for unmarried parents and civil partners, and will allow
“There are lesbian and gay couples all over Ireland who […] urgently need legal recognition and protection”
children to refuse consent for custody or access. Kieran Rose of GLEN warmly welcomed the announcement by the Department of Justice, seeing the move as recognition by the Government of the diversity of families in Ireland today: “There are lesbian and gay couples all over Ireland who are bringing up children. These families urgently need legal recognition and protection – the protections and certainty that other families take for granted. The lack of State recognition and protection for these families carries significant consequences for their children.” Speaking to the media, Minister Shatter has claimed that the draft legislation has the “full backing” of both Fine Gael and the Labour Party, and has evoked “minimal excitement”, while acknowledging that certain areas of the legislation may be regarded as controversial to some conservative and religious groups.
News | United Kingdom
UK: B&B Owners Lose Supreme Court Appeal After Snubbing Gay Couple (eile.ie / 28 November) The UK’s Supreme Court in London has ruled against the owners of a Cornish B&B, who turned away a gay couple from their business some five years ago. Peter and Hazelmary Bull, a Christian couple, refused to allow Steven Preddy and his partner, Martyn Hall, to stay in a double room at the Bulls’ Chymorvah House B&B in Cornwall in 2008. According to BBC News, the B&B’s online booking form stated at the time that the owners of Chymorvah House were devout Christians, and preferred to let double rooms to “heterosexual married couples only”. Mr Preddy booked the double room via telephone, however, and the B&B’s owners did not realise that the visitors were a gay couple until they arrived at the Cornish accommodation, and the couple were refused. Messrs Preddy and Hall sued the couple, who claimed to refuse them on religious grounds, stating that they believed that
any sex outside marriage was a “sin.” The Bristol County Court ruled in favour of the gay couple, adding that the Bulls had acted unlawfully, and ordered them to pay a total of £3,600 in damages. The Bulls appealed this ruling to the Court of Appeal at a hearing in London, which had been thrown out. The reasoning behind the Bulls’ defence was that they had previously refused to allow unmarried heterosexual couples stay in the double room. The Supreme Court ruled that the defendants’ logic was flawed, however, as the Court’s five justices pointed out that Messrs Preddy and Hall had been in a civil partnership, which gave the couple many of the rights entitled to heterosexual married couples. (Equal marriage was only introduced to England and Wales earlier this year.) Today’s ruling at the Supreme Court, once again in favour of Preddy & Hall, has been hailed as a victory against LGBT discrimination in the UK. Openlygay columnist, Owen Jones wrote about the Supreme Court’s ruling in yesterday’s edition of the
Independent: “The Bulls are more than entitled to run their lives as Leviticus laid down […] But the rest of us have moved on from the Middle Ages, and – sadly for people like the Bulls – the law no longer allows gays to be treated like lepers.” British LGBT organisation, Stonewall, also commented on the news: “We are pleased that the Supreme Court has defended the laws protecting gay customers that Stonewall fought so hard to secure. […] Some might suggest that, rather than pursuing this case, a far more Christian thing to do would be to fight the evils of poverty and disease worldwide.” Meanwhile, the Bulls spoke to British media after their hearing in London, saying that they were “disappointed” in the Supreme Court’s ruling.
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News | Commonwealth
Homosexuality Still Illegal in 41 Commonwealth Countries
(eile.ie / 11 November)
A report has shown that homosexuality is still illegal in 41 of the 53 Commonwealth countries, the political leaders of which are currently meeting this week in Sri Lanka for the annual Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, or CHOGM. Last week, the UK-based Kaleidoscope Trust published Speaking Out, a report on the rights and quality of life for LGBTI people living in the 53 Commonwealth Countries, most of which were colonies or territories of the former British Empire. In the report, personal accounts of LGBT people living in the said countries are published, which paint a shockingly negative picture. The following is part of a statement made by Caleb Orozco, a gay man from Belize: “I have lost two teeth, had my family property invaded and car 24 EILE Magazine
damaged by two masked men . . . I have had stones thrown at me, experienced simulated gun shots, insults and physical harm on public transportation.” In his foreword to the report, Sir Shridath Ramphal, former Commonwealth SecretaryGeneral, wrote: “It is a reminder that for most of the countries of the Commonwealth, the desecration of our fellow citizens began in the law. The unreformed law of England was transported through criminal codes by imperial masters to far flung outposts of empire. Starting with the imposition of Macaulay’s Indian Penal Code – criminalising same-sex relations was to spread throughout the empire to the point where today 41 of 53 Commonwealth countries have virtually the same legislation enacted almost as a matter of course by colonial administrators – not by the societies they governed. By the time reform came to Britain in 1967 under the influence of the Wolfenden Report, these jurisdictions were free of British control, and the
attitudes that had followed the law remained with the law unreformed.” The report demands that all Commonwealth governments: • Repeal any legislation which criminalises same-sex sexual activity • Put in place an immediate moratorium on the enforcement of any existing laws criminalising homosexuality • Commit to engage in meaningful dialogue with their LGBTI communities to facilitate an informed debate about the means to remove all legal and other impediments to the enjoyment of their human rights • Commit to open and free debate across the Commonwealth on the decriminalisation of homosexuality • Support public education initiatives to inform the people of the Commonwealth about the case for LGBTI equality • Support the right of an LGBTI Association to register with the Commonwealth alongside all civil society organisations and be free to express its views and engage in public debate • Fully include LGBTI people in development and other
News | LGBT Travel programmes on an equal basis with the rest of society. • Commit to include a discussion on equal rights for LGBTI citizens as a substantive agenda item at the next CHOGM. Meanwhile, the Melbourne-based Kaleidoscope Human Rights Foundation wrote an open letter to the Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, in which the group calls for LGBTI rights to be made a specific discussion point on the CHOGM’s agenda this year. The letter also calls on Mr. Abbott “to ensure that the plight of persecuted LGBTI people across the Commonwealth of Nations is not ignored.” Although not directly connected with LGBT rights, the prime ministers of both India and Canada have boycotted the Sri Lankan summit in protest over Sri Lanka’s own human rights record. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister, David Cameron, has said that the Sri Lankan president, Mr. Rajapaksa, has “serious questions” to answer regarding allegations of war crimes carried out against Tamil Tiger rebels in 2009. Mr. Cameron, however, will not be attending the CHOGM as it is customary for Queen Elizabeth to represent the United Kingdom. This year, due to the Queen’s age, Prince Charles is expected to attend in her stead. [The Commonwealth Summit took place in Colombo, Sri Lanka last month.]
LGBT Tourism Rakes In $200 Billion, Says Report
(eile.ie / 12 November) The annual expenditure on LGBT tourism will exceed 200 Billion U.S. Dollars by 2014, according to a recently published study. Out Now Business Class (ONBC), a leading LGBT tourism trade association, presented its findings from the research study, LGBT2020, yesterday at the World Travel Market in London, a key annual event for the global tourism industry. The new LGBT2020 data showed that the top twenty markets for LGBT tourism now account for annual travel spending of USD$202 billion. The study also found that the countries with the largest spending markets in LGBT tourism were the USA ($56.5 billion) and Brazil ($25.3 billion). ONBC and their new affiliates, the ETOA (European Tour Operators Association) also jointly released a new LGBT2020 Report on European Tourism, showing that the total value of spending on travel by LGBT Europeans will next year account for USD$66.1 billion (€49.3 billion) of total
tourism spending. Ian Johnson, CEO of Out Now Global, said the results presented in London yesterday had much to keep the industry thinking on about the rapidly-developing LGBT travel market worldwide. “It is great that the value of LGBT tourism spending now exceeds USD$202 billion but there are still many challenges the industry needs to address,” Johnson said. “Staff training is essential to help get staff up to speed with what has become an unstoppable LGBT consumer revolution for the travel industry. We are obviously pleased that all ONBC members now receive unlimited online staff training to help deliver better understanding and customer service to LGBT guests.” As well as the findings of the study, Johnson also announced at the presentation in London that ONBC is now the largest global LGBT tourism trade organisation of its kind.
EILE Magazine 25
California Dispatch
Californi
With a Bang
Lucia Chappelle questions the promotion of gun culture within America’s gay community
Like most months in the U.S.,
the days of November 2013 could be marked by gunshots. It began on the first, when a 23-year-old man, from my home state of New Jersey, went into Los Angeles International Airport to “instill fear” in the Transportation Security Administration, killed a TSA agent and wounded two others. That same day a burglar and a clerk shot each other during an attempted jewelry store robbery, about ten miles south of LAX in Gardena. My California-New Jersey connection was tugged again on the fourth, when an armed 22-year-old, with unknown motives, stalked the Garden State Plaza, where I spent so much time as a teenager, and his family home, not far from where I used to live, looked just like ours. Gunfire rang out up and down California all month long, including the five or six noted “defensive” shootings, dozens of street shootings, and an untold 26 EILE Magazine
number of “domestic incidents.” On November 15, the father of state Assemblymember Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) was found shot to death at his home in my neighborhood. We get so accustomed to hearing “Shots fired!” that the sound of a multicar collision at LAX, three weeks after the TSA assassination, caused hundreds to flee the terminal. On November 22, we observed the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination – an event that many would cite as the traumatic birth of our contemporary era of violent rage. I do remember how my world changed as a result. The black community in our mid-sized city seemed like a small town, the seventh-grade teachers who broke the news to us were family friends who went to the same church,
many of my inner-city (read ethnic minority) public school classmates (mostly migrants from the South, like my parents) had been together since kindergarten. Suddenly, the world was a bigger, more dangerous, chaotic place – even to people who had endured segregation – but a more open one, too. It was Jackie Kennedy’s grace under pressure that inspired my mother to send me to Catholic high school. I was recruited by the diocese to be an integration token, and I was plunged into a previously unknown white world. Then there were Malcolm X, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy. There were southern struggles and northern riots, Chicago ’68, and more. Then there was another November 35 years ago, and the fateful words of then San Francisco Board of Supervisors President, now pro-gun control California Senator Dianne
California Dispatch
ia Dispatch:
g Feinstein: “Both Mayor Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk have been shot and killed. The suspect is Supervisor Dan White.” Lesbian feminist activist Robin Morgan speaks eloquently about the lure of terrorism in her 1989 book, “The Demon Lover.” In a stunning exploration of her own foray with the Weather Underground, and the culture’s romance with bloodshed, she posits that it’s the “eroticization of violence” that is at the root of our drive toward slaughter. It seems to me that we have faith in violence. Whether for good or for ill, when all else fails – and even well before that point – we trust the gun. The website GayswithGuns.net certainly plays up the sex in the Second Amendment. A goodlooking guy with metrosexual stubble, an alluring tattoo and low-slung jeans earnestly takes aim beside a downloadable poster featuring the gay bash-murdered Matthew Shepard. Whereas the foundation created by Shepard’s parents in his name is dedicated to “Replac[ing] hate with understanding, compassion and acceptance,” ‘Gays With Guns’ proclaims, under his picture, that “Gun control” … is “[t]he notion that Matthew Shepard tied to a fence post in the middle of a freezing Wyoming night, tortured and beaten to death, is morally superior to Matthew Shepard explaining to the local sheriff how his attackers got all those bullet holes.”
Similarly, the website for the organization ‘Pink Pistols’ (pinkpistols.org) states its mission this way: “We teach queers to shoot. Then we teach others that we have done so. Armed queers don’t get bashed. We change the public perception of the sexual minorities, such that those who have in the past perceived them as safe targets for violence and hateful acts -- beatings, assaults, rapes, murders -- will realize that that [sic] now, a segment of the sexual minority population is now armed, and effective with those arms. Those arms are also concealed, so they do not know which ones are safe to attack, and which are not...which they can harm as they have in the past, and which may draw a weapon and fight back.” You may have guessed by now that I personally am a confirmed pacifist, but let’s agree to put that aside for a minute. Is this a reasonable proposal? If it were true that “Armed queers don’t get bashed,” would the common knowledge that there was at least one shotgun in every rural Southern home, including the black ones, not have put an end to lynching? What percentage of the sexual minority population would be required to carry weapons (because despite the gun lobbyists’ protestations about liberty, their vision of security involves a measure of compulsion) for the plan to work?
And assuming an appropriate balance of terror can be achieved, is a continual state of siege the best possible environment for the pursuit of happiness? When Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale started arming the Black Panther Party in 1966, they had more than the community’s defense in mind. They believed a showing of arms, and a determination to monitor police interactions, would attract attention – but more to get the community interested in their political program, rather than merely to intimidate their adversaries. A sound strategy? Consider that Richard Aoki, the trusted activist who supplied the Panthers with their first guns, turned out to be an FBI informant. The Black Panthers were born in California, where five of the 24 listed active ‘Pink Pistols’ chapters are located. Their numbers are small … their existence doesn’t necessarily represent a trend. But as gun violence and gun control remain a pivotal component of the U.S. political agenda, LGBT people will have to join the larger community in giving more careful consideration to how we shall be safe. Lucia Chapelle is an Associate Producer of the Los Angeles-based LGBT radio show, This Way Out.
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This Way Out | 25 Years
25 Years of This Way Out The writers of EILE Magazine’s column, California Dispatch, celebrate 25 years of the LGBT radio programme, This Way Out, which is broadcast on over two hundred radio stations worldwide.
Jon Beaupré gives us a rundown on all of the iconic moments covered by the This Way Out team over 2013 so far. It’s been a year of tremendous celebrations, with marriage equality now the law of the land in nearly a third of the United States, and in all or parts of sixteen other countries. It’s also been a time of setbacks and tragedy, with laws either on the books, or under consideration, that would make LGBT people and their relationships illegal in parts of Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Caribbean. To anyone who thinks it is important to get wide-ranging, carefully researched, and fairminded information about LGBT people around the planet, “This Way Out” programs in 2013 included: • Conversations with Russian lesbian journalist Masha Gessen and leading gay activist Nikolai Alekseev; entertainer Leslie Jordan; U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid; gay meat-packing heir/former Ambassador/philanthropist James Hormel; out “Glee” star and filmmaker Chris Colfer; 28 EILE Magazine
now-retired openly gay Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson; out American opera countertenor David Daniels; venerable gay playwright/performer/activist Harvey Fierstein; trailblazing lesbian singer/songwriter Tret Fure; openly gay Bristol, England Lord Mayor Peter Main; and veteran lesbian human rights activist Urvashi Vaid. • Globetrotting “Sapphic Nomads” Katie Cook and Maggie Young sent us “audio postcards” from the road about LGBT life in Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan and Nepal. • “Queer Life & Literature” Commentator Janet Mason turned the pages of Madhavi Menon’s “Shakesqueer: A Queer Companion to the Complete Works of Shakespeare”; Ellis Avery’s “The Last Nude”; James Baldwin’s recently-reissued “Notes of a Native Son”; Julian E. Farris’ “The Sin Warriors”; and President Obama’s openlygay 2013 inaugural poet Richard Blanco’s latest collection, “Looking for the Gulf Motel”.
• “Rainbow Minutes” profiled U.K. rights pioneer Allan Horsfall, Russian mathematician Sofia Kovalevskaya, Canadian artist Steven Walker, and Britain’s King James I.
We charted the development of the cases against California’s Proposition 8, and the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) • We charted the development of the cases against California’s Proposition 8, and the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) at the U.S. Supreme Court, capped off by the high court’s historic pro-gay rulings in late June; we had on-scene reports from the marriage equality debate and its final passage in France, and in the U.S. state of Minnesota; coverage of Congressional hearings on the Employment Non-Discrimination
This Way Out | 25 Years
Act (ENDA), leading up to its historic passage in the U.S. Senate; we played some of rabidly anti-gay televangelist Pat Robertson’s “greatest hits” and professional homophobe Scott Lively’s outrageous assertions; witnessed the first observance of LGBT Pride month in a post“Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” U.S. military deployed environment at Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan; passionate arguments for marriage equality in Britain’s House of Commons by MP David Lammy, in the New Zealand Parliament by MP Maurice Williamson, and in the U.S. state of Rhode Island by Senator Maryellen Goodwin; and we continue to follow the impending clash of Russia’s law banning socalled “gay propaganda” and the February 2014 Winter Olympics in the Russian seacoast city of Sochi. • The filmmakers behind “Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton”, “The Happy Sad”, “Out in the Dark”, “Petunia”, “The New Black”, “Kill Your Darlings”, and “Dallas Buyers Club” discussed their work and brought preview clips… and be sure to tune in the week of December 30th for awardwinning entertainment reporter Steve Pride’s picks for the most compelling LGBT moving images of the year, with comments by their makers and copious audio clips, in the 2013 edition of “Pride On Screen”. So, whether this time of the year you say “Season’s Greetings!” “Eid Mubarak!” “Maazel Tov!” “Happy Kwanza!” “God Jul!” [“Nollaig Shona”] or “Merry Christmas!” – there is no better way to give than to a cause that reaches out around the planet to build a strong and informed community.
The funds we raise for our volunteer-driven nonprofit group (charitable tax deductions
The funds we raise for our volunteerdriven nonprofit group … go to production and distribution of this vital information. in the U.S.) go to production and distribution of this vital information. We are calling on you, we’re hinting, suggesting, begging, and cajoling you to do your part to keep this show going for another quarter century – yup, in April we reached 25 years of sending this program out to the world!
Greg Gordon, Coordinating Producer
Jon Beaupré
All it takes is a visit to our website, www.thiswayout.org. Scroll down the “A Quarter Century of Service” text to one of the Paypal links, and in just a few keystrokes, you can be a part of history in the making. You can also transmit a check or money order to our new mailing address: P.O. Box 1065, Los Angeles, CA 90078 USA. Thanks in advance, and wishing you and yours a healthy, pleasurable, and productive 2014.
Right: Jon Beaupré, Lucia Chappelle and Rick Watts – writers of California Dispatch for EILE
Lucia Chappelle
Rick Watts EILE Magazine 29
Quality LGBT News and Features – Produced from Los Angeles Available via podcast on our website (thiswayout.org) or on iTunes, and on 200+ Radio Stations Worldwide!
thiswayout.org | Twitter: @TWORadio Overnight Productions (Inc.)/”This Way Out” Post Office Box 1065 Los Angeles, CA 90078 U.S.A.
Opinion | Galway
Twenty Years a’Growing: A Letter from Galway
Winter has truly set in over Eyre Square, as the Christmas Market is slowly assembled ahead of its grand opening this Friday. Marquees will soon be home to warm and welcoming stalls, selling mulled wine and homemade gifts. It’s an event that many Galwegians look forward to attending, and as the lights flickered around An Fhaiche Mhór, it reminded me of something else… Yesterday afternoon, not too far west from the City of Tribes, I had just finished up a relaxed and easy-going conversation at the TG4 studios for Róisín Ní Eadhra’s chat show, the aptly named Róisín. The topic for this 32 EILE Magazine
week’s show was Éire Aerach – ‘Gay Ireland’ – and the fact that those involved were so positive about what life was like for gay people stood as testament for the progress this country has seen in the last twenty years. We spoke about what coming out meant to us, and how we did it. We spoke about what marriage equality would mean, when it will be introduced to Irish law. We also spoke about the work that organisations like BeLonG To and ShoutOut are doing to help LGBT young people around the country, work that should never be underestimated. Indeed, there was so, so much more that we could have chatted about, but
sadly, time eventually ran out for our segment, despite us not really wanting to leave Róisín’s studio. The fact that three young Irishspeakers were able to discuss the fruits of the gay rights movement in Ireland, twenty years since decriminalisation, reminded me of the title of that iconic novel by Muiris Ó Súilleabháin, Fiche Bliain ag Fás, or Twenty Years a’Growing. Not too long ago, just like when Gay Byrne’s revealing of a condom on The Late Late Show prompted a slew of complaints to RTÉ, Ireland was just as unable – and unwilling – to discuss homosexuality or gay rights in a mature or dignified fashion. Yesterday, a presenter at
News | GLAAD
the Connemara-based television station was eager to talk about that same topic, not only with curiosity, but with a genuine warmth and appreciation. Of course, it should be made clear that the topic was Éire Aerach, and not Éire LADT (the Irish for LGBT). We all know that the state of trans* issues and rights are still left in what writer Máirtín Ó Cadhain would have called “áit na leathphingine”, or ha’penny place. Still, the progress made on gay rights over the last twenty years should be praised, while still being able to acknowledge that not everyone in this country will be as relaxed and at ease as the guests and I were on television yesterday. Work still needs to be done, minorities (within minorities) should not be forgotten, and equality needs to be achieved for all. Ireland’s progress, however, should be a sign that such progress is achievable. As my train back home to Dublin left Galway’s Ceannt Station last night, I knew what the lights and marquees at the Christmas Market reminded me of, and wondered – no, hoped – that one day my little daydream could become a reality for someone: Maybe, one day, Eyre Square might just see its own same-sex marriage. After all, it reminded me of the perfect setting for a Galway winter wedding. Scott De Buitléir joined Róisín Ní Eadhra, Maria Ní Fhlatharta and Breandán Ó hÉamhaigh on ‘Róisín’ on TG4. Catch it on the TG4 Player.
Sarah Kate Ellis Elected New GLAAD CEO & President GLAAD’s National Board of Directors announced yesterday that Sarah Kate Ellis has been elected as GLAAD’s new CEO and president. Sarah Kate Ellis is an awardwinning media executive, who has led American media brands to their biggest successes, including Vogue, InStyle, New York, and House & Garden. As co-chair of OUT at Time Inc., Ellis led programming to spotlight the diversity of the LGBT community and educated the organization’s straight allies on a wide range of LGBT issues. In 2011, Ellis co-authored a memoir with her wife, Kristen Ellis-Henderson, titled “Times Two, Two Women in Love and the Happy Family They Made,” released by Simon & Schuster. The autobiography chronicled their simultaneous pregnancies and road to motherhood. The two are outspoken advocates for LGBT equality, and were featured on the groundbreaking “Gay Marriage Already Won” cover of Time Magazine. They were also profiled in a special New York Times Style section devoted to marriage equality on the day it became legal in New York State and were the subjects of The Huffington Post’s three part documentary web series titled “Here Come The Brides.”
Commenting on her election to the position, Ellis said that she looked forward to her new role, leading GLAAD in “creating a world where LGBT people and our families have the freedom to joyously – and openly – live a life they love.” Jenny Boylan, National Co-Chair of the Board of Directors and Chair of the Search Committee said: “Sarah Kate is a new kind of leader, one that will take the LGBT movement into the next decade and beyond. Her history as a brilliant, articulate, and proudly out media executive makes her an ideal fit to lead GLAAD. When she and her wife appeared on the cover of Time, she became a living symbol […] of where the LGBT movement is going next: toward equality for all LGBT Americans in the workplace, in the family, and in local communities.” Boylan and Warren were announced as Co-Chairs of GLAAD’s national Board of Directors earlier this month. Professor Boylan is the first transgender woman to serve as Co-Chair of GLAAD’s Board of Directors. Ellis will take on her new role in January 2014 and will be based in GLAAD’s New York City office.
(eile.ie / 19 November)
EILE Magazine 33
News | Commonwealth
Commonwealth: People’s Forum Calls for LGBT Rights
(eile.ie / 18 November) Last week, EILE reported that 41 of the 53 Commonwealth countries are in severe breach of LGBT rights, including that homosexuality is illegal in many of the former British colonies and territories. Earlier today, however, the Commonwealth People’s Forum – an event which took place simultaneously to the meeting of Commonwealth leaders in Sri Lanka – included a clause to support LGBTI in their recommendations to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, or CHOGM.
predominantly the Pacific and Caribbean island nations.
nations had also indicated it was applicable to their region.
Due to the ongoing human rights abuses in Sri Lanka, however, many LGBT rights organisations stayed away from the Commonwealth People’s Forum this year. Meanwhile, Sri Lankan officials in charge of the Commonwealth summit meetings made it clear that they didn’t want human rights to be discussed, including the denial of visas to human rights lawyers.
Speaking about the landmark outcome, Dr Germber told media:
The Kaleidoscope Human Rights Foundation, an Australian NGO working towards the global repeal of anti-gay laws, today hailed the inclusion of the recommendation to support LGBTI rights from the simultaneous Commonwealth People’s Forum.
1. Recommendations common to all members of the Commonwealth; 2. Recommendations relating to African nations; 3. Recommendations relating to Asian nations; and 4. Recommendations relating to small states.
The call for the inclusion of a clause was lobbied for by board member Dr Paula Gerber and Joey Jolene Mataele, President of the Tongan Leitis Association, co-founder of the Pacific Sexual Diversity Network and delegate for Oceania at the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA). These two campaigners were making their representations with respect to smaller states within the Commonwealth, 34 EILE Magazine
The outcome report, which includes the LGBTI rights clause, is divided into 4 sections:
Dr Gerber and Joey Mataele were keen to see the call to respect and promote the rights of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities included within the common section of the recommendations. However, because delegates from Africa did not see this as an issue relevant to their region, the recommendation was limited to small states, notwithstanding that Asian
“While this is a small victory in the grand scheme of things, it vindicates the decisions of the Kaleidoscope Human Rights Foundation and the Tongan Leitis Association to send representatives to the People’s Forum. Lets hope that the heads of state of the 19 Commonwealth countries in the Pacific and Caribbean that currently criminalise sodomy and persecute people because of their sexual orientation or gender identity will listen to the voice of their peoples as captured in our recommendation.” “The ending of both homophobic laws […] in the Commonwealth of Nations is greatly helped through collaborative international action,” added Mataele. I am delighted that the Tongan delegation found in Paula someone with the same outlook.” For more information on the Kaleidoscope Human Rights Foundation, visit their Facebook or Twitter profiles. Information on the Commonwealth People’s Forum can be found here. h/t Douglas Pretsell
E.U. | Religion
Europe Talks on LGBT People and Religion (eile.ie / 18 November) On Wednesday, November 13, the LGBT Intergroup of the European Parliament hosted a seminar on “Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Religion: A New Dialogue.” Dutch MEP Dennis de Jong introduced the topic, saying that the dominant discourse in the media has sometimes misrepresented the crossover that exists between those who advocate for LGBT rights, and those who adhere to religious faith. The event’s aim was to explore ways to reconcile these two fundamental aspects of human identities and to discuss these in the framework of European policy-making and human rights. One of the event’s speakers, Imam Muhsin Hendricks, spoke about his founding the South African organisation called The Inner Circle, which addresses questions of sexual diversity, gender and inclusivity from an Islamic theological perspective. Hendricks stated that we cannot isolate issues of faith and sexuality if we are to build a more peaceful world. “We cannot ignore our fears and lack of knowledge of the other,” he said. “Are we ready as a community to experience the other through dialogue?” He added that “too often, society expects people to only show one facet of their identity. Many conceive religion and sexuality as two different but equally rich
aspects of human identities that don’t have to be opposed.” Human Rights Without Frontiers (HRWF) also participated in the panel. HRWF Policy Advisor Mark Barwick introduced a paper that the organisation has just released on “LGBT People, the Religions & Human Rights,” a human rights-based approach to the recent debate on the relation between sexual minorities and religious faith. It is available from amazon.com. The publication seeks to articulate common values that can provide a foundation on which to build a more constructive dialogue over LGBT people in religion and society. It also lists recommendations for policy makers, religious leaders, the media and others who are entrusted with promoting peaceful and harmonious relations in society. A further contribution came from Jean-Bernard Bolvin of the European External Action Service:
“The EU is committed to the principle of the universality of human rights, and reaffirms that cultural, traditional and religious values cannot be invoked to justify any form of discrimination,” including discrimination against persons of sexual minorities. The interchange between LGBT people and the religions has been varied, ranging from genuine acceptance and inclusion on the one hand to outright hostility on the other. Nonetheless, there is hope for reconciliation. In his concluding remarks, Barwick said that “religious, social and political institutions in Europe can together help point the way to a healthier and more inclusive vision for our future. In the end, LGBT people do not ask for special treatment, just to be part of that vision.” – h/t HRWF & Christoforos Pavlakis EILE Magazine 35
Legal | Regnerus Study
Regnerus Study: Judge Calls For Documents (eile.ie / 13 November) The most often-quoted study by anti-gay activists, like those in Russia and France, when trying to denigrate gay and lesbian parenting, has now been called to account by a Florida state-court judge. According to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC): In an opinion released today, a Florida state court judge ruled that the University of Central Florida must turn over records related to the publication of a debunked 2012 study conducted by Mark Regnerus that demonizes gay and lesbian parents. Ellen Kahn, of the Human Rights Campaign stated:
36 EILE Magazine
“There has always been a dark cloud over the Regnerus study, yet this debunked study is now being touted by anti-LGBT organizations around the country and around the globe. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and the public has a right to know how junk science gets published in a scholarly journal.” The American Sociological Association has documented biases, and misleading statements in the study, and called on its publishers early on to retract
the document. There have been conflicts of interest with some of those who peer-reviewed the study, and the Witherspoon Institute, an anti-gay backed organisation, is also involved in its funding. HRC has hailed the ruling by the court: “This ruling is an important step toward exposing the potential anti-LGBT animus behind Regnerus’ research. Since its publication, the study has shown up time and time again in marriage equality and LGBT adoption debates both in the United States and internationally.” MKB
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Reviews | Frances Winston
Saving Mr. Banks Directed by: John Lee Hancock Starring: Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Paul Giamatti, Jason Schwartzman, B. J. Novak, Bradley Whitford, Colin Farrell, Ruth Wilson The camptastic wonder that is Mary Poppins has been a perennial favourite since it’s premiere back in 1964. It continues to be discovered by new generations, who delight in the whimsical tale of the magical nanny who sweeps into the family home of the Banks, and changes their lives forever. It is such a wonderfully cheery and whimsical tale, that it is hard to believe that due to nitpicking, cultural differences and rights issues, it almost didn’t make it on to the screen! Here we discover the real story behind the journey to make the film, and it is far more outrageous than any fiction you could write. Thompson plays P.L. Travers, author of the book that inspired the film, and a deeply troubled woman. Haunted by events from her childhood and her father’s death from alcoholism, she is fiercely protective of the characters she has created, as they are modelled on real people. Undeterred, Walt Disney (Hanks) 37 EILE Magazine
wages a 20-year campaign to buy the rights to the book, eventually flying her out to California to show her what they propose to do with the work. However, Travers, unlike most of the world, is unimpressed with Disney’s work, despises animation, and is utterly aghast at the thoughts of turning her treasured tome into a musical. However, after 30 years on the market, sales have started to dry up, and Travers needs the money that selling the rights would generate. What ensues is a battle of wits between her and Walt, as they both try to protect their vision. As Travers becomes more and more absorbed in the world of moviemaking, she begins to mellow slightly about some of Disney’s ideas, but animated penguins prove a bridge too far, and she packs her bags and heads back to England leaving Disney to ponder the conundrum that is P.L. Travers. Both Thompson and Hanks do marvellous jobs – Thompson completely conveys Travers inner turmoil, while Hanks creates a well rounded Disney (with the patience of a saint) that has far more going on under his jovial façade. Farrell does well as Travers’ father in the flashback scenes (although his accent slips from time to time) and Ruth Wilson is compelling as her overstretched mother, who can’t
cope with her husband’s drinking. The script is witty and well paced, with some truly hilarious scenes, as Travers gradually learns what Disney intends to do with her characters. All of the real life conversations in the rehearsal room were recorded, so these are all completely true with no dramatic licence taken. This actually adds to the amusement (they actually play one of the tapes of the real life Travers criticising the script over the credits, and if anything Thompson downplays her!). There are other elements of Travers life that are completely brushed under the carpet (such as her adopted son) but the movie doesn’t suffer for this as it is not its primary focus. The era is recreated meticulously, and veers just the right side of high camp, while the final scenes where Mary Poppins finally premieres to great acclaim are uplifting, and run the gamut of emotions leaving you both weepy but laughing. Beautifully shot, this film serves as a fascinating insight into the movie-making of the era, as well as a record of the events depicted. This really is the kind of story that you couldn’t make up, and it is all the better for it. A must see.
Reviews | Frances Winston
Frances Winston on Movies Directed by: Kimberly Peirce - Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Judy Greer, Portia Doubleday, Alex Russell, Gabriella Wilde, Julianne Moore Although this movie was released in America in time for Halloween, for some reason they have decided that the end of November is a more appropriate release date for it here. I suppose if blood soaked teenagers killing their classmates in a telekinetic rampage is your idea of cheery Christmas season fare, then you won’t be disappointed. If you’re anything like me though, you will be scratching your head at the release date. There are few who aren’t familiar with this story, from the mind of uber horror scribe Stephen King, about a teenage girl who is tormented by her God fearingmother, and who suffers abuse at the hands of classmates when she has her first period while showering after gym class. When one of them is excluded from prom because of the way they have treated her, they determine to get revenge, and cruelly pour pigs blood over the naïve young woman as she
is named prom queen. However, unbeknownst to them, the arrival of Carrie’s menstrual cycle also awakened telekinetic abilities in her, and distraught and upset, she uses those abilities to cause carnage at the prom, killing many of those who mocked her. This claims to be a more faithful adaptation of King’s novel, but indeed he himself queried the wisdom of a remake saying: “The real question is why, when the original was so good?” Moretz takes on the role made famous by Sissy Spacek in the 1976 Brian de Palma adaptation of the novel, which garnered her an Oscar nomination. Moore meanwhile takes on the role of Carrie’s obsessively Christian mother, which saw Piper Laurie also acknowledged by the Academy back in the day. Both do a good job, but the problem is that these roles were made so iconic in the original movie you can’t help but compare them. Unfortunately, the only other cast member who matches up to their performances is the always wonderful Judy Greer as PE Teacher Miss Desjardin. The younger cast, who play Carrie’s high school contempories, go
Carrie
through the motions, but no one really shines. Thanks to the two leads though, this remains engaging, although it is more cerebral and less creepy than the original. The opening scene, which shows Carrie’s birth and her mother attempting to kill her, sets it up as more of a psychological drama than a fright fest. Also, anyone who knows the story knows what’s coming. If you are one of those people who hate horror films, you shouldn’t really have an issue with this. Yes, there is a bit of gore, but on the whole it deals more with Carrie’s dysfunctional relationship with her mother, and its knock-on effect on her life. Also, with so many reports of the effects of cyber-bullying on victims, it is good that they address this – albeit briefly. This probably won’t be creeping people out over 35 years after it was made like the original does, but if you are looking for an entertaining and slightly gory night out, this should float your boat.
EILE Magazine 38
Column | Imogen Dawson
Imogen Hates Rose Gareth Russell’s character from his ‘Popular’ series, Imogen Dawson, rants about how much she hates Rose from ‘Titanic’. “Titanic” and “The Great Gatsby” bookend Leonardo DiCaprio’s career quite nicely. In both cases, he plays a social climber, who winds up face down in a big bit of water, without getting the girl of his dreams. However, that’s where the similarities end my friends. Because while Daisy “awky momo with the hit and run” Buchanan had her priorities just right, Rose “get your ta-tas out for any old hipster with a drawing pad” DeWitt-Bukateer definitely does not. On the surface, I should love the 1997 camp melodrama-fest that is “Titanic.” It’s totes over the top, it’s chock full of yummy costumes and dashing chaps in tuxes, and it comes from a golden age of needless sentimentality that we all, of course, associate with the late 1990s. I may have been slightly too young to remember it clearly, but in my heart, I know I’m a 90s’ gal at heart. Because if you don’t fawn over the glorious collective memory of Baby, Ginger, Posh, Scary and Sporty, there is something seriously wrong with you. And you just know that me loves me some sarongs worn over my jeans, but I digress. In fact, for all its lush hysteria, I hate “Titanic”, and let me tell you why. (You’re welc.) From the moment Rose DeTitBukateer (LOL at my wit, guys, seriously) flounces out of that 40 EILE Magazine
limo, and starts making “I’m too cool for this shiz” remarks about the “Titanic” versus the “Mauretania”, you just know that beneath that immaculate costume and fabulous Joan Collins-worthy hat, there lurks a ‘ye olde’ hipster. Long before being swept under by waves crashing through the “Titanic’s” corridor, Rose is apparently already drowning under the burden of her own angsty feelings. (You just know that today she’d be the kind of person who never went anywhere without a copy of “The Bell Jar” displayed prominently under her arm). Everything’s wrong in her life, and she reacts disproportionately to all of it – the millionaire fiancé she hates (find another one! You’re on the “Titanic,” there’s not exactly a dearth of them, babes), the priceless piece of jewellery he buys her, which produces nothing more than a shrug and a face like a slapped bulldog, and then, when she finds a dinner party a bit boring, she tries to throw herself off the back of a giant ship. Dra-matic. And after Rose, the eternal ungrateful freeloader, has decided to score a free-trip to the ship searching for the Heart of the Ocean, she throws the damn thing into the sea. She was a thieving beast in 1912, and not much has changed by 1995. Don’t let the sight of Old Mamma Rose gasping with longsuppressed love fool you (it’s like, seriously, you knew him for three days – are you joking?). What that biatch does at the end of the movie is to toss away a priceless historical artefact. Why
not donate it to the Smithsonian? Give it to a socialite who’d really appreciate it? (Let’s face it, Kris Jenner would be all over that sparkling banter, and I for one would cheer her wearing it.) Or sell it at Sotheby’s, and give the tens, or hundreds, of millions of pounds it would fetch to the poor, or single mothers, or dolphins, or the society to help smug bitches with big hats learn when to be grateful? But, no! God forbid Rose should ever do anything even remotely useful with her life. As a mad self-indulgent witch myself, I should be cheering Rose along, but instead, all I want to do is to tell her that dropping trou for someone you’ve known for forty-eight hours, so he can sketch you, bonking him in somebody else’s car (can you say tacky?) and then adopting an alias, so you can leave your mother struggling with heart-crushing grief for the rest of her life, rather than you having the backbone to tell Caledon Billy Zane Hawkley to sling his impeccably well-bred hook, is not the behaviour of an heroine. It’s the behaviour of a mentallyunstable drama queen, who ruins the life of anyone she ever comes into contact with. Rose Dawson, check yourself before you wreck yo’self. (I feel like I should be signing off with, “And that’s how Immy C’s it.” Sue Sylvester, you tracky-wearing goddess!). Next month? “Posh Pride: the new frontier of civil rights and banter”. Imogen Dawson can be read in the Popular series by Gareth Russell, available from Amazon and in all good book stores.
Review | Frozen
Frozen
Scott De Buitléir checks out the latest Disney film that is set to put any of the winter film rivals on ice
Elsa is terrified of the power she possesses, locking herself away in her room, so she can’t hurt her best friend and sister again.
Directors: Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee Cast: Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad, Idina Menzel Music: Christophe Beck
Some years later, their parents, the King and Queen of Arendelle, drown at sea, leaving the throne to Elsa. As she grows, however, her powers grow stronger, making her even more worried that she won’t be able to control them. When the people of Arendelle find out what their new queen is capable of doing, Elsa runs away in fear, but that only makes things worse. Her panic makes her magic go into overdrive, leaving the kingdom in eternal winter. It’s up to her estranged sister to save the day, and bring summer back to Arendelle.
It’s no wonder that Disney can put a smile on any child’s face, and any adult’s face while they’re at it! Based on The Snow Queen by H.C. Andersen, Frozen is no different, the latest release from Disney for the holiday season. From the very beginning, one can expect great music, lots of humour, a few tears and even more music. The story focuses on Princess Elsa (Menzel) who has magic powers to control the cold; making snow and ice out of thin air. She becomes traumatised, however, when she accidentally hurts her sister Anna (Bell) while playing as children. From that point on,
If there is one thing that Disney has perfected over the years, it’s delivering two kinds of humour; one for the kids, and another for the grown-ups, and the latter will inevitably go over the kids’ heads! Frozen is an absolutely perfect film from Disney in this regard, and you will quickly forget that
this is meant to be a children’s film. The cast behind the characters’ voices might not necessarily be household names – Kristen Bell was known for her role as Veronica Mars in the cult series, while Idina Menzel is best known for her stint in the hit musical, Wicked – but the vocal talent is wonderful. It may be a strong statement to make, but there’s a good chance that Frozen is the best film to come out of Disney since The Lion King. You’ll come out of this film singing the songs of this winter wonder, the best film out there this Christmas. Don’t miss it. In Cinemas December 6.
EILE Magazine 41
Youth | Waterford
Project Z to Perform BRB in Dungarvan “Our participants are of different sexual orientations, come from different walks of life, different family backgrounds, and face unique issues in their own lives. What they have in common is a passion for storytelling, an attitude of acceptance and community, and a desire to share their stories to pave the way for other young people to feel safe and to speak up.” The Project Z event will take place on Friday 20th December, 2013, at 8pm, at the Dungarvan Town Hall. Tickets are €10 each, or €7 each with a booking of 10 or more people. Available at Nude Food, Dungarvan. Proudly supported by the Waterford Leader Partnership (WLP) and Waterford County Council, Project Z is an innovative programme developed by jkirbyproductions with a focus on offering a safe space for LGBTQ youth and their straight allies/ supporters to openly discuss specific issues they may face, and to create an original theatre piece based upon their stories. Participants range from 16 to 25 years old, and are local to Dungarvan. As well as the Project Z theatre pieces, the evening will feature the final encore performance of BRB, the hit International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival play written by Kirsten Stoddart and 42 EILE Magazine
Jessie Kirby, and starring local Dungarvan actors: It’s the morning after a teenager’s party, and someone is dead in the bathroom. BRB takes us through the months and weeks leading up to this event, during which relationships are torn apart by a secret love affair between two girls. BRB toured over the summer, and has played in Dublin, Dungarvan, Cork, Kilkenny and Limerick. “Project Z is the kind of programme we need to see more of, where young people who may not feel comfortable discussing their sexuality have a safe space to share their stories.”
News | Trans* Ireland
President Higgins Meets TENI, Discusses Trans Rights (eile.ie / 15 November) The President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, met with a group of transgender rights activists from TENI at Áras an Uachtaráin earlier this week. Hailed as “a landmark occasion”, the meeting marks the first time that a group has been invited by an Irish President to discuss transgender rights and equality. The delegation consisted of members of TENI staff and board, and included TENI Chair Sarah Phillips, who spoke highly of the event: “This was a milestone for the trans community. President Higgins was well-versed on our work, and we had a fruitful conversation about our efforts to gain progressive Gender Recognition legislation for Ireland. As a community that has been marginalised and is still denied basic human rights, being welcomed so warmly to Áras an Uachtaráin gave us encouragement “This and support in our ongoing work.”
The meeting began with President Higgins and his wife, Sabina Higgins, meeting TENI Director Broden Giambrone, who then introduced the rest of the delegation. Formal photos were taken, and then the group enjoyed refreshments, and talked informally about the current work being done for transgender rights and future steps. The delegation was then offered a tour of the formal rooms, and discussed various aspects of the State’s history. Noeline Blackwell, Director General of FLAC (Free Legal Advice Centres), commented:
“It was a great honour for FLAC to be invited to meet the President with our client Lydia Foy and other transgender rights activists. President Higgins was very much aware of Lydia’s 20-year struggle for recognition and of FLAC’s 16-year role as her legal representatives. This visit was an opportunity to remind the President that Ireland is the last country in the EU to legislate was for transgender recognition. We are six a milestone years on from the High Court ruling for the trans Also in attendance at Áras an that a law was needed in Ireland to Uachtaráin was Dr Lydia Foy, who allow trans people to have access to community.” has been seeking a birth certificate a basic, legally recognised birth cert noting her true gender since 1993. Dr Foy won her that reflects their gender identity – but we are still case six years ago, when the High Court declared awaiting a law. We only hope that when that law Ireland to be in breach of the European Convention comes, it is the most inclusive and up-to-date law on Human Rights in not providing Dr Foy with a possible.” pathway to be legally recognised in her true gender. “The President gave us a warm reception and was For more information on TENI or the Free Legal very generous with his time,” said Foy. “He was Advice Centres, visit teni.ie or flac.ie. supportive of our work, and he spoke knowledgeably about the issues we face.” 44 EILE Magazine
News | Germany
Germany: First With Law Allowing For Gender Blank Certs for Intersex Infants
(eile.ie / 3 November) A law that was passed in Germany in August has only come into effect on Friday. This law will allow parents not to make a snap decision on surgery for their newborn if the child displays characteristics of both sexes, or is of indeterminate sex. It allows the entry for gender to be left blank on the birth certificate, and this move would make way for a new category of indeterminate sex. Advocacy and activist groups, however, feel the new law does not go far enough. ILGA Europe feel that surgeries are likely to continue in Germany, and policy director, Silvan Agius stated:
“Parents can already refuse these surgeries. You can already say “No,thank you very much, I don’t want any surgery until my child can choose his or her gender” A report from the European Commission in 2012 found that surgeries on intersex infants in Europe went ahead without proper informed consent, and that later, as adults, these individuals are angry that such surgeries were performed on them, when they were unable to consent to such a life-changing operation. The Association of Intersexed People in Germany were also unhappy with the extent of the new law, saying that their first
demand is to forbid genital surgeries for newborns. The Council of Europe recently called on member states to study the prevalence of cosmetic surgery of this kind on infants,and to take steps to ensure that no unnecessary surgery is carried out, only that which is “vital for health during infancy or childhood”. It is estimated that one in 1,500 to 2,000 births results in an infant of indeterminate sex or with characteristics of both sexes. MKB
Don’t forget to visit eile.ie for daily LGBT news and updates! EILE Magazine 45
News | Illinois
Illinois: Equal Marriage Bill, and an exorcism on the side
(eile.ie / 22 November) Just before he signed the Equal Marriage Bill into law, Governor Pat Quinn of Illinois stated:
University of Illinois at Chicago’s UIC Forum, using a desk said to have been used by Abraham Lincoln.
“In the very beginning of the Gettysburg Address, President Abraham Lincoln of Illinois said that our nation was conceived in liberty. And he said it’s dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal, and that’s really what we’re celebrating today. It’s a triumph of democracy.”
The bill was sponsored by Senator Heather Steans (D-Chicago) and Representative Greg Harris (D-Chicago) and ensures equal access to all benefits, rights and responsibilities for all married couples, regardless of orientation. It also allows couples to convert from a civil union to a marriage, while protecting the freedom of religious organizations. Representative Harris stated:
Signing the bill into law makes Illinois the 16th state to allow equal marriage, and Governor Quinn sees it as a victory for equal rights: “This new law is an epic victory for equal rights in America. Illinois is moving forward. We are a model for our country. If the Land of Lincoln can achieve marriage equality, so can every other state in the nation.” The Governor signed the bill in front of a cheering crowd at the
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“This is a very proud day for the state of Illinois and a happy day for thousands of Illinois families who will now be treated equally in the eyes of the law. I want to thank Governor Quinn, Speaker Madigan and my colleagues for making this day possible.” LGBT couples and their supporters were delighted that the bill was finally signed into law, and are making wedding plans for when it takes effect on June 1,
2014. However, not all in Illinois were celebrating the moment, as Illinois Bishop, Thomas Paprocki, used the opportunity to perform an exorcism in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, 200 miles away, aimed at the new law and all those associated with bringing it into existence. Paprocki said he believes that “politicians responsible for enacting civil same-sex marriage legislation are morally complicit as co-operators in facilitating this grave sin,” according to the Chicago Tribune. The Tribune also reported that the bishop said he did not expect people to see instant results, and that Hollywood had sensationalized exorcisms. MKB
News | Australia
Australia: Governor General Publicly Supports LGBT, Gender Identity Rights The Governor General of Australia, Quentin Bryce, has become vocal in recent days about several LGBT rights and issues, using a prominent lecture series to express hope that the country would introduce marriage equality. Bryce, who serves as Queen Elizabeth’s representative in Australia, spoke out in favour of marriage equality, at the launch of a publication for families of LGBT people in Melbourne yesterday. During the event, Bryce said that Australian society needed to be more supportive of LGBT people, as the fear of rejection raises the likelihood of anxiety and suicide in the community. The Governor General also commented on gender identity and mental health. ”Coming
to grips with gender identity,” Bryce said, “and revealing it to those close to you can be a challenging time and very painful and distressing.” The Governor General went on to say that a supportive family can help young people feel supported, thereby reducing anxiety and worry for LGBT young people. In a landmark speech as part of the prominent Boyer Lectures last week, however, the Governor General also stated her support for marriage equality in Australia, saying that she hoped that Australia would become a country where “people are free to love and marry as they choose”. While the statement was brief, it is the first time a Governor General has been so vocal on LGBT issues in Australia.
Bryce’s comments come at an interesting time, as recentlyelected Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, is known for not being entirely supportive of marriage equality. The High Court will hear a challenge to the Australian Capital Territory’s recent samesex marriage legislation, on 3rd and 4th December. The challenge is being brought by the federal government, while the first samesex marriages are due to take place on 8th December. [EILE has written about the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) legislation previously here.] (eile.ie / 27 November)
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Cooking with Dermie
Dermie’s Dishes Easy Crumbled Mince Pies with Brandy Butter Dermie O’Sullivan of Gas Mark Seven gives us this wonderful easy recipe for lovely Christmassy mince pies, made with shopbought mince meat, and the traditional brandy butter topping of course!
Filling: - 350g Artisan Mincemeat [or home-made]
Dermie says: Homemade mince pies are so simple to bake with the resulting mince pie leaving a taste which is streets ahead of their supermarket cousins. The pastry is simple to assemble; the rolling is simple, the crumble topping is absolutely fool proof, and you can pick up an incredible range of artisan mincemeat in many Farmers’ Markets or artisan foodstores.
Brandy Butter: - 150g Unsalted Country Butter (at room temperature). - 100g Icing Sugar (Sieved). - 2 to 3 Tbsp Brandy. - 1 Tbsp Boiling Water.
[Note: Vegans could try to substitute nut or vegetable butter, egg substitute powder, and check that jars contain only vegan ingredients for this seasonal treat! - MKB] Ingredients: Pastry: - 200g Plain Flour (sieved). - 150g Unsalted Butter (chilled & cubed). - 50g Caster Sugar. - 1 Organic Egg (beaten). 48 EILE Magazine
Crumble Topping: - 150g Plain Flour. - 125g Unsalted Butter. - 75g Caster Sugar.
Method: • First make the pastry by rubbing the flour, butter and sugar to form a fine breadcrumb mixture in a large wide mixing bowl. Pour in the beaten egg slowly to bring the mixture together (you will only need ½ of the whole egg to bring it together). • Tip the mixture out onto a chilled floured marble surface, bring the mixture together gently with your hands and form into a rectangular shape. Cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for 30mins. • Lightly butter and flour a 12hole muffin tray, roll out your pastry dough to the width of a one euro coin and cut out 12 circles with your pastry cutter (the top of a wine glass works well too but
be very careful). Press the pastry circles into each hole and place a tablespoon of mincemeat in each pastry circle. Chill for a further 15 minutes. • Preheat your oven to 200C/Gas 6. Make your crumble by rubbing the flour, butter and caster sugar together to form a bread crumb mixture. Cover the top of each pie with just enough crumble to cover the mincemeat. • Bake for 20 minutes until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let the mince pies completely cool before removing from the tin. Place on a cake stand and cover with a dusting of icing sugar. For The Brandy Butter: • Beat the icing sugar and butter together until smooth. Mix in the water then add in the Armagnac. • Store in the fridge over night. Recipe & Styling: Dermot O’Sullivan (Dermie) of Gas Mark Seven Photography: Jakub Walutek
Cooking with Dermie
Dermie’s Chocolate Ganache Tart Dermie’s wonderful, mouth-watering, Dark Chocolate Ganache Tart Dermie says: When it comes to baking a really memorable chocolate tart, you need to choose good quality dark chocolate. There are so many chocolatiers to choose from including; Valrhona, Lindt, or Callebaut alongside many more artisan chocolate shops stocking luxury dark chocolate at a really great price. I’ve a few chocolate tart recipes, this one I call cheat’s chocolate tart because instead of baking the chocolate tart in the oven you just leave it sit to set. For the chocolate to set, I use equal quantities of cream and chocolate known as a ganache which gives the tart an incredibly rich taste. [Vegans: You know the drill by now. Anywhere cream, eggs or butter are mentioned, substitute any vegan cream, egg substitute, and vegetable or nut butter to try out this recipe. Can’t wait to try it out myself! -MBK] Ingredients: Shortcrust Pastry: - 175g Plain Flour - 75g Chilled Butter (cubed, plus extra for greasing) - 2 Tbsp Icing Sugar (or Caster Sugar) - 2 Egg Yolks (Beaten to bind) - Egg Wash Chocolate Ganache Filling: - 350g Chocolate (70% coca) 50 EILE Magazine
- 50g Unsalted Butter - 350g Organic Cream - 1 Vanilla Pod (Split) - 75g Caster Sugar - Pinch Sea Salt Decorate: - Green & Black’s Cocoa Powder [or any good cocoa powder] - Fresh Raspberries (or toasted hazelnuts / pistachio nuts) - Crème Fraîche Method: • To make the pastry; sieve the flour and the icing sugar into a large wide bowl. Cut the butter into cubes, add in the flour, rub in until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Whisk the egg yolks with a teaspoon of cold water to bind the mixture (ensure the pastry is not too wet as it should come away cleanly from the bowl without sticking). Flatten into a round and wrap in cling film. Allow the pastry to rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. • Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured chilled marble work surface and line a 9 inch / (23cm) pastry tin. Place a greaseproof paper over the pastry and fill to the top with dried beans. Allow to rest in the fridge for at least 15 minutes. • Preheat the oven to 180ºC / gas mark 4. Bake the pastry tart base blind for 15 minutes, or more if needed, until pale and golden. Remove the beans before brushing the tart shell evenly with a little beaten egg and bake for another 5 minutes. Allow the tart shell to cool while you are making the chocolate ganache. • Break the chocolate into equal
sized pieces, place into a Pyrex bowl along with the butter and bring a saucepan of water to a fast boil (creating what is known as a bain marie which will ensure the chocolate will not split while melting). Turn the heat down to simmering point and sit the Pyrex bowl over the boiling water ensuring it is not touching the water allowing it to melt gently while stirring occasionally. In a separate pan gently heat the cream, caster sugar and vanilla pods to the shivery stage. Pour the warm cream over the melted chocolate mixture and fold through adding a pinch of sea salt to the mix. • Pour the ganache into the cooled pastry case and allow it to set overnight at room temperature in the pastry case. The following day remove the tart from the case and dust with coca-power, decorate with berries and serve with a dollop of crème fraîche. Dermie’s blog is called Gas Mark Seven, where you can find his book on Cork eateries called Cork Bites along with his recommendations of good cook books for Christmas. Food Styling: Dermot O’ Sullivan Photography: Joleen Cronin
News | Youth
Special Rapporteur on Child Protection Calls for Support for Homeless LGBT Youth (eile.ie / 20 November) BeLonG To, Ireland’s national service for LGBT young people, has welcomed a strong statement from Dr. Geoffrey Shannon, Special Rapporteur on Child Protection, who has called for greater supports to be made available to LGBT young people in Ireland. In a statement to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health & Children, Dr Shannon outlined the vulnerability of LGBT young people when it comes to homelessness and bullying, and called for the Child and Family Agency to work with BeLonG To to support LGBT youth and their families. In the statement, Dr Shannon called for a ‘targeted response’ to address the needs of homeless LGBT young people, whom he suggested are ‘highly represented among the homeless’. Responding to Dr Shannon’s comments, David Carroll, Executive Director with BeLonG To, said the organisation has worked for many years with homeless LGBT young people, and is of the opinion that homophobia has been a contributing factor to them becoming homeless. 52 EILE Magazine
Dr Shannon also called on the Child and Family Agency to work with BeLonG To for the first time to support LGBT young people and their families, stating: “Homophobic attitudes begin amongst children while they are at primary school going age. If we are to fundamentally change these attitudes – which in turn can lead to homophobic bullying, which is a profound child protection issue and which can have devastating effects on LGBT young people, we need to start working with primary school children. LGBT young people are realising their identities and ‘coming out’ at an ever earlier age – on average at 12 years old, but often younger. This means that supports should be put in place to support these young people and their families. There is a very important role here for the Child and Family Agency to work in partnership with BeLonG To to provide vital supports to LGBT young people and their families”. Carroll said to media that BeLonG To would “greatly welcome” working with the Child and Family Agency to develop support for LGBT youth and their families, adding:
“When it comes to tackling homophobic bullying, we also agree with Dr Shannon that this work needs to begin where the problem starts – amongst children at primary school going age. For that reason we are delighted to be working with the Department of Education and Science to pilot our Stand Up (Don’t Stand for Homophobic Bullying) campaign in primary schools next March. We aim to build on this and work with our partners to ensure that homophobic bullying is challenged and ultimately eradicated from our primary and post primary school system” With further reference to LGBT issues in schools, Dr Shannon called for the removal of section 37(1) of the Employment Equality Act. This section allows for certain discriminations in schools that have a religious ethos, which BeLonG To and others believe is used to discriminate against LGBT teachers. “The removal of Section 37,” Shannon added, “would allow LGBT teachers to be […] role models for LGBT students, in the same way other teachers can be role models”. For more information on BeLonG To, visit belongto.org.
News | Jamaica
Jamaica: Gay Ad Refused, Backed By Court (eile.ie / 21 November) Jamaica’s Constitutional Court has ruled that three TV companies are within their rights to refuse to air an ad which is hoping to change people’s attitudes to LGBT people. The action was taken against the TV companies by AIDS-Free World under Jamaica’s new Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms. AIDS-Free World is the organisation behind the ad, which is trying to foster tolerance toward the LGBT community, as part of its Caribbean HIV campaign, challenging “discriminatory anti-gay laws and attitudes that fuel the spread of HIV by driving LGBT underground, away from effective HIV prevention, care and treatment services”. The organisation is also hoping to challenge Jamaica’s anti-gay laws, and stated that it was “shocked and disappointed” at the court’s decision.
It intends to appeal the ruling stating: “We feel the decision is wrong in law and wrong in principle”. According to AIDS-Free World: “the banned ad starred two Jamaicans, including claimant Maurice Tomlinson, AIDS-Free World’s Legal Advisor, Marginalized Groups. The television stations had argued, illogically, that by allowing an ad that promotes respect for all Jamaicans, regardless of sexual orientation, they would be supporting an illegal activity”. The 30-second ad can be seen here.
EILE Magazine 53
Health | HIV
The Origin of HIV Dr Shay Keating gives us an insight into the origin and history of the virus we now know as HIV In 1981, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, in their ‘Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report’ (MMWR) cited 5 cases of pneumocystis pneumonia in gay men in Los Angeles, and 26 cases of Kaposi’s sarcoma in gay men in New York and California. These opportunistic infections are caused by pathological agents such as bacteria, viruses or funguses that take advantage of certain clinical situations, such as immune deficiency, and do not cause disease in the healthy. In 1983, the cause of this Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) which resulted in these opportunistic infections, was discovered and called the Human Immunodeficiency Virus or HIV. In the next thirty years, research into the diagnosis and treatment would be successfully carried out. We can now confidently diagnose HIV infection weeks after exposure. There is currently no cure for HIV, but we do have effective treatment at our disposal in the developed world. The origin of HIV and AIDS has been the subject of much debate and controversy since the beginning of the epidemic. Some discredited theories on the origin of HIV include its engineering by the US military, for ‘bio warfare’ and ‘population control ‘and 54 EILE Magazine
its testing on prison inmates, through whom it was spread to the population at large. Some conspiratory theorists believe that the smallpox virus was deliberately ‘laced’ with HIV for spread during mass vaccination campaigns. The ‘Duesberg Hypothesis’, promoted by biologist Peter Duesberg in U.C. Berkeley, argued that HIV was an accidental finding in those with AIDS, and that AIDS was caused by non-infectious agents such as illicit drug use. Thabo Mbeke, former President of South Africa attributed AIDS to poverty, chronic disease, malnutrition and other environmental factors, and was reported to have claimed that Western drug companies were promoting the view that HIV caused AIDS to increase sales of anti-HIV drugs. These theories have been rejected by scientific consensus. Zoonoses are diseases and infections which are naturally transmitted between animals and humans. The most striking and devastating example of an emerging disease resulting from cross-species transmission from non-human primates (NHPs) to humans, is that of HIV/AIDS. It has been postulated for years that HIV evolved from a closely related virus, one that affected NHPs. HIV belongs to a group of viruses
termed ‘lentiviruses’. This means that they have a long incubation period. Another such lentivirus is the Simian Immunodeficiency Virus or SIV. This virus affects many African NHPs such as gorillas and chimpanzees. It has been estimated that lentiviruses have existed for 14 million years, and that SIV has infected monkeys for at least 32,000 years. In 1999, an SIV which very closely resembled HIV genetically was identified. By 2006, it was confirmed that HIV-1 had evolved by zoonotic infection of SIV from chimpanzees or gorillas from West Central African lowlands (SIVcpz) or (SIVgor). HIV-2 most closely resembled SIV found in sooty mangabey monkeys in western Ivory Coast, (SIVsmm). SIV infection of humans had occurred in the past, but with insignificant clinical consequences. The infection with SIVgor, SIVcpz and SIVsmm however, did have a major global health impact. By phylogenetic analysis (analysing genetic blueprints) it has been estimated that all of these three strains of SIV infected humans in the late nineteenth century or early twentieth century. Continued on Page 56
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Health | HIV
So how did SIV, a virus with a hitherto benign clinical course in the humans infected, transform to such a deadly virus so quickly, and how did it spread across the world so efficiently? Serial passage in virology is similar to selective breeding or survival of the fittest. Each time someone is infected with a virus, this virus can potentially mutate or change to become more virulent. The more aggressive or ‘fittest’ forms of the virus survive. SIV mutated into HIV which as we now know, affects the T-helper cell population, and untreated, results in immunodeficiency. The theory most accepted by the scientific community, on factors that facilitated the mutation of SIV to HIV-1 and HIV-2, is the ‘Hunter Theory’ or ‘Bushmeat Theory’. Bushmeat refers to the consumption of NHPs such as monkeys as food. In the late nineteenth century, in the era of industrial revolution, European colonial powers carved up Africa, creating cities and towns
56 EILE Magazine
from what was essentially rural environment. The whole social order was disrupted, with many men immigrating to these new cities to work in the mines, ports and plantations. Bushmeat was fed to workers, and SIV infection may have happened from bites from NHPs, or cuts from knives in the meat preparation. Working conditions were very severe, with forced labour causing malnutrition and illness, which depressed immune function. Serial passage of SIV, which eventually mutated to HIV, was also facilitated by sexual promiscuity and prostitution, fueled by the male-biased sex ratio. It has been suggested that HIV became endemic through serial sexual transmission in this new society, helped by a huge rise in genital ulcer diseases, such as syphilis, which we know can facilitate HIV transmission. At this time too, the spread of HIV was fuelled at an alarming rate by the a rise in travel
overseas, sex tourism, blood transfusions, the high frequency of unsterile injection in the early antibiotic era, and laterally following the rise of intravenous heroin use in the 1970s, with unsafe injection practices. The earliest recorded death from AIDS was in 1959. HIV was retrospectively isolated from a preserved blood sample. In summary, current scientific evidence suggests that HIV evolved from SIV in the middle of the 20th century. The virus rapidly spread across the world, and nearly 30 million people with AIDS have died worldwide since the epidemic began. Dr. James (Shay) N. Keating, BA Mod, MB, PhD. MRCP, Dip GUM, Dip Occ Med., has his clinic at the Harold’s Cross Surgery, Harolds Cross, Dublin 6W, and is a Specialist in Genitourinary Medicine, at St. James’s Hospital, Dublin. Contact stdclinic.ie Phone: 01-497 0022 or +353 87 234 5551
EILE Magazine 57
Nollaig Shona
agus Athbhliain faoi Mhaise
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all the team at
EILE Magazine