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Ellis, Lee et al. “Eye Color, Hair Color, Blood Type, and the Rhesus Factor: Exploring Possible Genetic Links to Sexual Orientation”. Archives of Sexual Behavior. 37.1 (Feb2008): 145-149.


The present study sought to expand the limited evidence that sexual orientation is influenced by genetic factors. This was accomplished by seeking statistical differences between heterosexuals and homosexuals for four traits that are known to be genetically determined: eye color, natural hair color, blood type, and the Rhesus factor. Using a sample of over 7,000 U.S. and Canadian college students supplemented with additional homosexual subjects obtained through internet contacts, we found no significant differences between heterosexuals and homosexuals regarding eye color or hair color. In the case of blood type and the Rh factor, however, interesting patterns emerged. Heterosexual males and females exhibited statistically identical frequencies of the A blood type, while gay men exhibited a relatively low incidence and lesbians had a relatively high incidence ( p < .05). In the case of the Rh factor, unusually high proportions of homosexuals of both sexes were Rh− when compared to heterosexuals ( p < .06). The findings suggest that a connection may exist between sexual orientation and genes both on chromosome 9 (where blood type is determined) and on chromosome 1 (where the Rh factor is regulated).

Σχόλια ταινίας απο Hong Kong

Khoo, Olivia. “The Ground Beneath Her Feet”. GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian & Gay Studies, 14.1(2008): 99-119.

The author presents an analysis of the motion picture "Ho Yuk: Let's Love Hong Kong," directed by Yau Ching. The film is the first of its kind in Hong Kong, as it uses an almost entirely female cast and crew to present the passions and desires of lesbian women. Previous films about lesbianism from Hong Kong have all been directed by men and the author explains that they used the subject matter as a form of exploitation. The author discusses the importance of this film, how it effects the people of Hong Kong and what is being said about the women of this region


και νέα απο το Lesbian News

Wockner, Rex. “News International”. Lesbian News; 33.6 (Jan 2008): 14.


URUGUAY PASSES CIVIL-UNION LAW
Uruguay's House of Representatives passed a civil-union law for gay and straight couples November 29.
The measure had passed the Senate in September. It is expected to become law before year's end. Uruguay will be the first Latin American country to grant same-sex couples access to civil unions on the national level.
Couples must live together for five years before they can take advantage of the law. Spousal rights will be granted in areas such as health care, pensions, parenting and inheritance.
Other Latin American localities with civil-union laws include the city of Buenos Aires, the Argentine province of Rio Negro, the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, Mexico City, and the Mexican state of Coahuila, which borders Texas

AUSSIE ACTIVISTS ARE PLEASED HOWARD LOST
Australian gay activists expressed satisfaction with the November 24 election defeat of anti-gay longtime Liberal Prime Minister John Howard.
In 2004, Howard successfully pushed for a national ban on same-sex marriage and, in 2006, he squashed a civil-union law passed by the Australian Capital Territory, a jurisdiction similar to Washington, D.C. Losing both his PM job and his longtime seat in Parliament, Howard was replaced by Kevin Rudd of the Labor Party, which has pledged to end financial and legal discrimination against same-sex couples by modifying 58 federal statutes.
Activists said they will hold Rudd's feet to the fire on that promise and other gay-friendly Labor pledges, including the party's stated support for the ACT civil-union law.

U.S. GAY SINGERS ALLOWED TO PERFORM IN SINGAPORE
U.S. Christian singers Jason and deMarco, a gay couple, have received permission to perform in Singapore on December 13.
The decision was a surprise given that the government has been on a gay-ban spree this year, prohibiting a gay photo exhibition, a gay story-reading event, a forum on gay legal issues and a speech by Metropolitan Community Churches founder Troy Perry.
Gay sex is illegal in Singapore and punishable with two years in prison.
But Jason and deMarco, who were banned as recently as 2005, got a green light this time after organizers convinced the Media Development Authority that "the aim of the concert is AIDS education and HIV prevention … targeted at the high-risk groups," an MDA spokesperson said.

BRAZILIAN TV NETWORK MUST PAY $42 MILLION FOR OUTING MODEL
A São Paulo court has ordered the Brazilian TV network Rede TV to pay $42.7 million to model Carlos Alberto Cunha Gonçalves after he was outed by a guest on the talk show Superpop, GayNewsWatch.com reported November 23.
Judge Carlos Dias Motta ruled that the remark invaded Gonçalves' privacy.
"Programs that are notoriously sensationalist should at a minimum make sure to respect the dignity of individuals because freedom of expression, achieved at a high price, cannot justify violating privacy, which is also a principle of the Federal Constitution," Motta said.

MAN HANGED IN IRAN FOR 'ANAL RAPE'
A 21-year-old man was hanged in Iran's Kermanshah Central Prison on "anal rape" (ighab) charges December 5 despite a November order from the nation's chief justice, Ayatollah Syed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, that stayed the execution and sent the case for a retrial.
Shahroudi had determined that Makvan Mouloodzadeh's sentence violated Islamic teaching, decrees of senior Shiite clerics and Iranian law, after Mouloodzadeh's lawyer argued that there was no evidence of the alleged crimes and that several elements of the case violated proper procedure.
Shahroudi's retrial order, however, required review and assent from the Special Supervision Bureau of the Iranian Justice Department. According to the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, the bureau declined to assent, upheld the sentence and ordered the execution to be carried out.
Mouloodzadeh was convicted in June of committing rape when he was 13 years old despite the fact that, at his trial, his three accusers recanted their accusations, saying they had lied under duress. Mouloodzadeh likewise said his confession to the crimes had been coerced.
"This is a shameful and outrageous travesty of justice," IGLHRC Executive Director Paula Ettelbrick said after the hanging. "How many more young Iranians have to die before the international community takes action?"

RUSSIAN GAYS ARRESTED AT POLLING PLACE
Thirteen gays and lesbians were arrested in Moscow December 1 as they were voting at a polling place.
The activists, including lead Pride organizers Nikolai Alekseev and Nikolai Baev, were later charged with staging an illegal demonstration. The detentions were an apparent response to a call by activists for gays to write "No to homophobes!" on their ballots.
Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, who banned gay pride events this year and last year, was scheduled to vote at the same location about an hour after the arrests occurred.
The activists were taken to a police station and released several hours later after a representative of the city prosecutor's office pointed out that it is illegal to detain someone for more than three hours without giving a reason.

BRAZILIAN GOVERNMENT ORGANIZES LARGE LGBT CONFERENCE
Brazil's federal government is organizing a groundbreaking 1st National Conference of Lesbians, Gay Men, Bisexuals and Transpersons.
Subtitled "Human Rights and Public Policies: The Way Forward to Ensuring the Citizenship of Lesbians, Gay Men, Bisexuals and Transpersons," the event will be held May 9-11, 2008.

CROATIA SEES FIRST OPENLY GAY CANDIDATE
Croatia's small Croatian Bell party has put forward the nation's first openly gay political candidate.
Vinko Kalinic wants to represent the northern region of Zagorje in Parliament. According to Javno.com, Kalinic is a reporter, songwriter, fisherman and former intelligence officer and seminarian.
"I came out of the closet exclusively as rebellion and in solidarity with those who were discriminated against and humiliated, and I state that with pride everywhere I go," he told Javno. "My goal in politics is to, by coming out of the closet, have the sexual orientation of people become a completely irrelevant issue."

BRIGHTON TO BAN ANTI-GAY MUSIC
Local authorities in the gay-resort city of Brighton, England, are set to ban music that bashes gays. The ban would apply to live music and to recordings played in bars, clubs and other venues. Reports named rappers Eminem and 50 Cent and Jamaican dancehall singer Buju Banton as likely targets of the law.
An establishment that violates the ban would face losing its business license and being shut down. The ban also would extend to music that incites hatred based on religion or race.Councilor Dee Simson, chairwoman of the local council's licensing committee, told the BBC the ban "will be used in really extreme eases to stop the playing of what's loosely termed 'murder music.