CLEAR lesson here: NEVER let your sexual preferences hold you back! Further, don't worry about God. If it was a problem for Him, He wouldn't have made you gay in the first place! Remember this: If God exists, we are ALL God's children, whether we are gay or straight! – © Mark
Monday, July 12, 2021
8 Openly Gay Billionaires In the World in 2016
CLEAR lesson here: NEVER let your sexual preferences hold you back! Further, don't worry about God. If it was a problem for Him, He wouldn't have made you gay in the first place! Remember this: If God exists, we are ALL God's children, whether we are gay or straight! – © Mark
Thousands March in Cuba in Rare Mass Protests amid Economic Crisis
THE GUARDIAN: US sanctions and coronavirus crisis lead to food shortages and high prices, sparking one of the biggest such demonstrations in memory
The biggest mass demonstrations for three decades have rippled through Cuba, as thousands took to the streets in cities throughout the island, demonstrating against food shortages, high prices and communist rule.
The protests began in the morning, in the town of San Antonio de los Baños in the west of the island, and in the city of Palma Soriano in the east. In both cases protesters numbered in the hundreds.
With millions of Cubans now with mobile internet on their phones, news of the protests quickly swept to Havana. By early afternoon, thousands marched through central Havana, chanting “homeland and life” and “freedom”.
“I’m here because of hunger, because there’s no medicine, because of power cuts – because there’s a lack of everything,” said a man in his 40s who didn’t want to give his name for fear of reprisals.
“I want a total change: a change of government, multiparty elections, and the end of communism.” » | Ed Augustin and Daniel Montero in Havana | Monday, July 12, 2021
The biggest mass demonstrations for three decades have rippled through Cuba, as thousands took to the streets in cities throughout the island, demonstrating against food shortages, high prices and communist rule.
The protests began in the morning, in the town of San Antonio de los Baños in the west of the island, and in the city of Palma Soriano in the east. In both cases protesters numbered in the hundreds.
With millions of Cubans now with mobile internet on their phones, news of the protests quickly swept to Havana. By early afternoon, thousands marched through central Havana, chanting “homeland and life” and “freedom”.
“I’m here because of hunger, because there’s no medicine, because of power cuts – because there’s a lack of everything,” said a man in his 40s who didn’t want to give his name for fear of reprisals.
“I want a total change: a change of government, multiparty elections, and the end of communism.” » | Ed Augustin and Daniel Montero in Havana | Monday, July 12, 2021
Labels:
Cuba
Pope Francis Leads Prayer from Rome Hospital
Labels:
Pope Francis
Georgian Cameraman Dies after Attack by Far-right, Anti-LGBTQ Mob
THE GUARDIAN: Government accused of ‘culpable passivity’ after dozens of journalists were attacked covering Pride protest
A Georgian TV cameraman has died after being badly beaten by far-right assailants during a protest against an LGBTQ Pride march, his station said on Sunday, as pressure mounts on authorities over attacks on journalists.
Alexander Lashkarava, a 37-year-old cameraman working for the independent station TV Pirveli, was found dead in his bed in the early hours on Sunday, the channel reported.
Last Monday he was assaulted by a violent mob of anti-LGBTQ protesters and sustained fractures to his facial bones.
More than 50 journalists were attacked that day by anti-LGBTQ groups protesting against the planned Pride march in Tbilisi, which was cancelled due to safety fears. » | Agence France-Presse in Tbilisi | Sunday, July 11, 2021
Labels:
Georgia
Sunday, July 11, 2021
Protests Erupt in Spain after Killing of Samuel Luiz
More on this tragic and heartbreaking story here
Labels:
Galicia,
homophobia,
LGBTQI+,
Spain
Jewish in Europe (2/2) | DW Documentary
Jul 11, 2021 • What is life like for Jews in Europe today? What are their stories? How do they combine traditional and modern life? And how do they deal with marginalization and threats?
"There is an everyday Jewish life in Europe that rarely gets shown. Debates about politics, the Middle East and anti-Semitism overshadow the diversity of Jewish life. That's why it was important for us to be able to capture it, just by spontaneously going there and seeing what was happening." This was the mission statement that led Swiss writer Yves Kugelmann and German film producer Alice Brauner, both Jewish, on a journey across Europe.
The first part of this two-part documentary takes Brauner and Kugelmann to Marseille, Strasbourg, Frankfurt and Berlin. They talk about life in the Jewish quarter with Harold Weill, Chief Rabbi of Strasbourg, and ask whether he and his community feel threatened. Alon Meyer, chairman of intercultural soccer club Makkabi Frankfurt and president of the Jewish sports organization Makkabi Germany, describes the hostility his team faces away from the field. In Berlin, Brauner and Kugelmann meet the writer and dramatist Sasha Marianna Salzmann.
"There is an everyday Jewish life in Europe that rarely gets shown. Debates about politics, the Middle East and anti-Semitism overshadow the diversity of Jewish life. That's why it was important for us to be able to capture it, just by spontaneously going there and seeing what was happening." This was the mission statement that led Swiss writer Yves Kugelmann and German film producer Alice Brauner, both Jewish, on a journey across Europe.
The first part of this two-part documentary takes Brauner and Kugelmann to Marseille, Strasbourg, Frankfurt and Berlin. They talk about life in the Jewish quarter with Harold Weill, Chief Rabbi of Strasbourg, and ask whether he and his community feel threatened. Alon Meyer, chairman of intercultural soccer club Makkabi Frankfurt and president of the Jewish sports organization Makkabi Germany, describes the hostility his team faces away from the field. In Berlin, Brauner and Kugelmann meet the writer and dramatist Sasha Marianna Salzmann.
Labels:
documentary,
Europe,
Judaism
Hongkong: Das Ende der freien Presse | DW Reporter
Labels:
Hong Kong,
Pressefreiheit
Les dessins de Christian Dior | ARTE
Jun 11, 2021 • Dans les années 1950, Christian Dior réinvente la silhouette de la femme. Les lignes folles de ses merveilleux dessins, dévoilés par Loïc Prigent, témoignent de dix années de création foisonnantes.
Des tailles de guêpe corsetées, des hanches exagérées, des jupes amples et bouffantes : le style Dior révolutionne la mode d'après-guerre. Finie l'époque du rationnement, l'inventeur du fameux new-look déroule des mètres de tissu – suscitant au passage la polémique – pour habiller la femme. De 1947 à 1957, "une explosion de féminité" défile sur les podiums. De la mythique "Junon", une robe du soir perlée encore réalisée dans ses ateliers pour des clientes fortunées, à l'emblématique tailleur "Bar", le couturier renouvelle tout en élégance ses silhouettes de saison en saison. Mais à force d'enchaîner à un rythme effréné les collections, celui qui aime se décrire comme "un paysan normand bedonnant" s'épuise. Parti en Italie en août 1957 pour une cure de remise en forme – alors que sa voyante lui a déconseillé ce voyage –, Christian Dior ne reviendra jamais. Deux ans avant sa mort, il avait pris soin d'embaucher le jeune Yves Saint Laurent pour lui succéder.
Révolutionnaire
Après Les dessins d'Yves Saint Laurent, Loïc Prigent dévoile les croquis de Christian Dior, conservés précieusement à Paris dans un lieu tenu secret. De ses esquisses dans les pages mode du Figaro, quand il était fauché, aux ébauches de ses innombrables créations en passant par ses carnets d'idées, ce documentaire éblouissant nous plonge dans l'effervescence des années 1950. Avec les sons de l'époque, les dessins, déjà pleins de mouvement, prennent littéralement vie. Riche d'anecdotes émouvantes d'anciennes couturières, d'intimes de "Monsieur Dior", mais aussi de spécialistes de la mode, le film célèbre le talent d'un révolutionnaire qui a construit un empire en seulement dix ans.
Documentaire de Loïc Prigent (France, 2018, 52mn)
Disponible jusqu'au 17/08/2021
Des tailles de guêpe corsetées, des hanches exagérées, des jupes amples et bouffantes : le style Dior révolutionne la mode d'après-guerre. Finie l'époque du rationnement, l'inventeur du fameux new-look déroule des mètres de tissu – suscitant au passage la polémique – pour habiller la femme. De 1947 à 1957, "une explosion de féminité" défile sur les podiums. De la mythique "Junon", une robe du soir perlée encore réalisée dans ses ateliers pour des clientes fortunées, à l'emblématique tailleur "Bar", le couturier renouvelle tout en élégance ses silhouettes de saison en saison. Mais à force d'enchaîner à un rythme effréné les collections, celui qui aime se décrire comme "un paysan normand bedonnant" s'épuise. Parti en Italie en août 1957 pour une cure de remise en forme – alors que sa voyante lui a déconseillé ce voyage –, Christian Dior ne reviendra jamais. Deux ans avant sa mort, il avait pris soin d'embaucher le jeune Yves Saint Laurent pour lui succéder.
Révolutionnaire
Après Les dessins d'Yves Saint Laurent, Loïc Prigent dévoile les croquis de Christian Dior, conservés précieusement à Paris dans un lieu tenu secret. De ses esquisses dans les pages mode du Figaro, quand il était fauché, aux ébauches de ses innombrables créations en passant par ses carnets d'idées, ce documentaire éblouissant nous plonge dans l'effervescence des années 1950. Avec les sons de l'époque, les dessins, déjà pleins de mouvement, prennent littéralement vie. Riche d'anecdotes émouvantes d'anciennes couturières, d'intimes de "Monsieur Dior", mais aussi de spécialistes de la mode, le film célèbre le talent d'un révolutionnaire qui a construit un empire en seulement dix ans.
Documentaire de Loïc Prigent (France, 2018, 52mn)
Disponible jusqu'au 17/08/2021
Julio Iglesias, Diana Ross – All of You
Labels:
great songs
Global Philanthropists Pledge £94m to Cover UK Foreign Aid Cuts
THE GUARDIAN: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among organisations picking up some of bill for health projects
A group of global philanthropists, including Bill Gates, have pledged £93.5m to help cover the shortfall left by the UK government’s cuts to foreign aid.
After the government cut funding by about a third in the autumn spending review, many “critical” projects have stalled or been put at risk.
The consortium, according to the Sunday Times, said they did not want to see drugs wasted because health projects had been forced to close down.
The philanthropists, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, the ELMA Foundation and the Open Society Foundations, are picking up some, but not all, of the bill for these projects. » | Robyn Vinter | Sunday, July 11, 2021
A group of global philanthropists, including Bill Gates, have pledged £93.5m to help cover the shortfall left by the UK government’s cuts to foreign aid.
After the government cut funding by about a third in the autumn spending review, many “critical” projects have stalled or been put at risk.
The consortium, according to the Sunday Times, said they did not want to see drugs wasted because health projects had been forced to close down.
The philanthropists, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, the ELMA Foundation and the Open Society Foundations, are picking up some, but not all, of the bill for these projects. » | Robyn Vinter | Sunday, July 11, 2021
Labels:
foreign aid,
philanthropy,
UK news
Labour to Vote against Tory ‘Hate Speech’ Bill
THE OBSERVER: Plans to protect free speech leave universities in England and Wales ‘at risk of being sued’ by anti-vaxxers and Holocaust deniers
Government plans to “safeguard” free speech in universities would allow Holocaust deniers, anti-vaccination groups and conspiracy theorists to take legal action against higher education organisations that denied them a platform to air their views, Labour said last night.
Announcing that its MPs would vote against the higher education (freedom of speech) bill, which has its second reading in the Commons this week, Labour claimed that it was a hugely divisive and harmful “hate speech bill”.
Universities UK and the National Union of Students have also expressed grave concerns about the bill, suggesting it is wildly disproportionate, and could leave institutions and student unions wide open to costly legal actions from people making vexatious or frivolous claims that they have been denied public platforms. » | Toby Helm, Political editor | Sunday, July 11, 2021
Government plans to “safeguard” free speech in universities would allow Holocaust deniers, anti-vaccination groups and conspiracy theorists to take legal action against higher education organisations that denied them a platform to air their views, Labour said last night.
Announcing that its MPs would vote against the higher education (freedom of speech) bill, which has its second reading in the Commons this week, Labour claimed that it was a hugely divisive and harmful “hate speech bill”.
Universities UK and the National Union of Students have also expressed grave concerns about the bill, suggesting it is wildly disproportionate, and could leave institutions and student unions wide open to costly legal actions from people making vexatious or frivolous claims that they have been denied public platforms. » | Toby Helm, Political editor | Sunday, July 11, 2021
Xavier Bettel est sorti de l’hôpital
LE QUOTIDEN : Le Premier ministre Xavier Bettel a pu quitter jeudi le Centre hospitalier de Luxembourg (CHL), où il était soigné depuis dimanche dernier pour son infection au Covid, a annoncé le ministère d’État.
L’état de santé du Premier ministre, testé positif le 27 juin, s’est amélioré au terme de quatre jours de traitement. Pour rappel, au moment de son admission, il lui avait été diagnostiqué une saturation d’oxygène insuffisante. Son état était alors jugé “sérieux, mais stable”. » | LQ | jeudi 6 juillet 2021
L’état de santé du Premier ministre, testé positif le 27 juin, s’est amélioré au terme de quatre jours de traitement. Pour rappel, au moment de son admission, il lui avait été diagnostiqué une saturation d’oxygène insuffisante. Son état était alors jugé “sérieux, mais stable”. » | LQ | jeudi 6 juillet 2021
Labels:
Luxembourg
Zürcher Geschnetzeltes, Schweiz | 50 Küchen, eine Heimat
Labels:
Berlin,
Deutschland,
Kochen,
Rezepte,
Sxhweiz
My Life under Putin - Homosexuals in Russia | Full Documentary
Sep 2, 2015 • Neo-Nazis that chase homosexuals. And Russia´s president Vladimir Putin adds fuel to the flames. He signs the bill that treats homosexuality the same as pedophilia. How is life under fear of death? The video diary "My life under Putin - Homosexuals in Russia" shows how enemy stereotypes are being created in Putins Russia, how rights of minorities like LGBTs (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) are cut back by law and their life is put in danger.
June 2013: Russian president Wladimir Putin signs the, so-called, “Anti-Gay” law, which equates homosexuality with pedophilia. Lesbians or gays who confess to their homosexuality or exchange caresses in public take the risk of facing fines or even imprisonment. Meanwhile, an increasing number of Neo-Nazis are hunting down gays. In many Russian cities, the “Occupy Pedophilia”-group forms under the leadership of Neo-Nazi Maxim Martsinkevich, who is now imprisoned. Under the guise of child protection they abuse gays and make a public spectacle of it by uploading the videos on the internet. However, hostilities towards homosexuals take place almost anywhere and at any time in Russia. Thus, during medical examination Ilmira Shyakhraznova, a lesbian, was asked if she knows that homosexuality was incompatible with religion.
Where does the broad rejection of homosexuality come from? Yury Gavrikov, organizer of Gay-Prides in St. Petersburg and Moscow, which have been banned by now, explains why Russian politicians keep on presenting gays as an enemy: “You need an opponent to distract people from domestic political problems.” Viacheslav Revin, who first left his hometown and finally Russia after receiving death threats and Artem Gorbunov fled to the USA to seek political asylum there. They tell us how they had to hide for several years and how they feel like being treated equally first the first time in their lives. The video diary “My Life under Putin” demonstrates impressively how Putin’s Russia establishes images of the enemy, weakens rights of minorities by law and even threatens their lives.
June 2013: Russian president Wladimir Putin signs the, so-called, “Anti-Gay” law, which equates homosexuality with pedophilia. Lesbians or gays who confess to their homosexuality or exchange caresses in public take the risk of facing fines or even imprisonment. Meanwhile, an increasing number of Neo-Nazis are hunting down gays. In many Russian cities, the “Occupy Pedophilia”-group forms under the leadership of Neo-Nazi Maxim Martsinkevich, who is now imprisoned. Under the guise of child protection they abuse gays and make a public spectacle of it by uploading the videos on the internet. However, hostilities towards homosexuals take place almost anywhere and at any time in Russia. Thus, during medical examination Ilmira Shyakhraznova, a lesbian, was asked if she knows that homosexuality was incompatible with religion.
Where does the broad rejection of homosexuality come from? Yury Gavrikov, organizer of Gay-Prides in St. Petersburg and Moscow, which have been banned by now, explains why Russian politicians keep on presenting gays as an enemy: “You need an opponent to distract people from domestic political problems.” Viacheslav Revin, who first left his hometown and finally Russia after receiving death threats and Artem Gorbunov fled to the USA to seek political asylum there. They tell us how they had to hide for several years and how they feel like being treated equally first the first time in their lives. The video diary “My Life under Putin” demonstrates impressively how Putin’s Russia establishes images of the enemy, weakens rights of minorities by law and even threatens their lives.
Global Gay: Fight For Human Rights | Social Documentary | Real Stories
Oct 21, 2020 • A global revolution is underway to obtain what UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon and Barack Obama call ‘the final frontier in human rights’: the universal decriminalization of homosexuality.
Homosexuality is forbidden in almost half of the world. Out of 196 UN member states, there are 7 where it is punishable by death. In 84 others, it can merit prison and physical punishment. But today, momentum is building and the debate on gay rights is omnipresent – whether it be regarding legalization in the Middle-East and Africa or the focus of gay marriage laws in the West.
After years of long diplomatic struggle, several world leaders have declared themselves in favor of the universal decriminalization of homosexuality. But victory won’t come easily. The countries that still punish homosexuality refuse to give in to international pressure. Global acceptance and equality will take time to achieve.
‘Global Gay’ follows this battle for decriminalization through the lives and work of some of its fearless pioneers, providing a vibrant chronicle of the growing global social movement. In the words of Ban Ki Moon, “The time has come”.
Homosexuality is forbidden in almost half of the world. Out of 196 UN member states, there are 7 where it is punishable by death. In 84 others, it can merit prison and physical punishment. But today, momentum is building and the debate on gay rights is omnipresent – whether it be regarding legalization in the Middle-East and Africa or the focus of gay marriage laws in the West.
After years of long diplomatic struggle, several world leaders have declared themselves in favor of the universal decriminalization of homosexuality. But victory won’t come easily. The countries that still punish homosexuality refuse to give in to international pressure. Global acceptance and equality will take time to achieve.
‘Global Gay’ follows this battle for decriminalization through the lives and work of some of its fearless pioneers, providing a vibrant chronicle of the growing global social movement. In the words of Ban Ki Moon, “The time has come”.
Geschichte einer Verfolgung - Der "Schwulenparagraph" | Dokus und Reportagen
La Corée du Nord et la Chine veulent renforcer leurs liens
LE POINT : Pyongyang et Pékin s’engagent à faire entrer leurs relations dans une « nouvelle phase ». Au total, les deux chefs d’État se sont rencontrés cinq fois.
À l’occasion du 60e anniversaire de leur traité d’amitié, le président chinois Xi Jinping et le leader nord-coréen Kim Jong-un se sont engagés à faire entrer les relations bilatérales dans une « nouvelle phase », rapportent, dimanche 11 juillet, leurs médias officiels. Pékin est, en effet, le principal soutien économique et diplomatique de la Corée du Nord. Une relation héritée de la guerre de Corée (1950-1953), quand Mao Tsé-toung avait envoyé des millions de « volontaires » combattre la force de l’ONU emmenée par Washington.
Le 11 juillet 1961, les deux pays signent un traité d’amitié, de coopération et d’assistance mutuelle, Mao affirmant que les deux alliés ont alors la même proximité que « les lèvres et les dents ». Les relations ont évolué au gré des décennies, marquées notamment par les ambitions de plus en plus fortes de la Corée du Nord dans le domaine de l’armement nucléaire – qu’elle estime nécessaire pour se protéger des États-Unis. » | Source AFP | dimanche 11 juillet 2021
À l’occasion du 60e anniversaire de leur traité d’amitié, le président chinois Xi Jinping et le leader nord-coréen Kim Jong-un se sont engagés à faire entrer les relations bilatérales dans une « nouvelle phase », rapportent, dimanche 11 juillet, leurs médias officiels. Pékin est, en effet, le principal soutien économique et diplomatique de la Corée du Nord. Une relation héritée de la guerre de Corée (1950-1953), quand Mao Tsé-toung avait envoyé des millions de « volontaires » combattre la force de l’ONU emmenée par Washington.
Le 11 juillet 1961, les deux pays signent un traité d’amitié, de coopération et d’assistance mutuelle, Mao affirmant que les deux alliés ont alors la même proximité que « les lèvres et les dents ». Les relations ont évolué au gré des décennies, marquées notamment par les ambitions de plus en plus fortes de la Corée du Nord dans le domaine de l’armement nucléaire – qu’elle estime nécessaire pour se protéger des États-Unis. » | Source AFP | dimanche 11 juillet 2021
Labels:
Chine,
Corée du Nord
The Top Journalist, the Mafia Boss and the Gunman: Dutch Fear the Rise of ‘Narco Crime’
THE OBSERVER: While Peter R de Vries fights for life in an Amsterdam hospital the nation reflects on how to end the grip of drug gangs
Five gunshots blasted like fireworks on a sunny evening, just behind Amsterdam’s busy Leidseplein. To the horror of the Netherlands, a cold-blooded shooting has left prominent Dutch crime journalist Peter R de Vries fighting for his life in hospital.
Everyone from European leaders to the Dutch king Willem-Alexander and Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema have expressed their shock at the ambush of “national hero” De Vries as he walked back to his car on Tuesday after recording a chatshow, on a busy street in broad daylight.
Within hours, the Dutch police arrested two men on the A4 motorway and are holding a 21-year-old from Rotterdam and a 35-year-old Polish national. The younger man has been named in Dutch media as rapper Delano G, the Polish man as Kamil Pawel E.
But many are speculating whether it is coincidence that De Vries, who made his name reporting on the kidnap of brewing magnate Freddy Heineken in the 1980s, has recently been involved in a high-profile gangland drug and murder court case, known as the Marengo trial. » | Senay Boztas | Saturday, July 10, 2021
You will find more about this brutal attack here and here.
Five gunshots blasted like fireworks on a sunny evening, just behind Amsterdam’s busy Leidseplein. To the horror of the Netherlands, a cold-blooded shooting has left prominent Dutch crime journalist Peter R de Vries fighting for his life in hospital.
Everyone from European leaders to the Dutch king Willem-Alexander and Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema have expressed their shock at the ambush of “national hero” De Vries as he walked back to his car on Tuesday after recording a chatshow, on a busy street in broad daylight.
Within hours, the Dutch police arrested two men on the A4 motorway and are holding a 21-year-old from Rotterdam and a 35-year-old Polish national. The younger man has been named in Dutch media as rapper Delano G, the Polish man as Kamil Pawel E.
But many are speculating whether it is coincidence that De Vries, who made his name reporting on the kidnap of brewing magnate Freddy Heineken in the 1980s, has recently been involved in a high-profile gangland drug and murder court case, known as the Marengo trial. » | Senay Boztas | Saturday, July 10, 2021
You will find more about this brutal attack here and here.
Labels:
Netherlands
Brutal Assault in Barcelona Raises Concerns about Growing Homophobia
EL PAÍS: LGBTQ+ groups are reporting a rise in attacks as the far right makes new inroads in a polarized society
It’s just a few minutes past 10pm on May 29, a Saturday. The scene is Somorrostro beach in the Barceloneta neighborhood of Barcelona, where nightlife venues remain closed due to Covid-19 but the cosmopolitan vibe lives on. Two homosexual couples and a heterosexual couple meet and strike up a conversation as they sit in a circle on the sand. They laugh, drink and chat. Four individuals suddenly approach. “You fucking faggots!” shouts one of them. Another spits at one of the young men. “I’ll cut the throat of anyone who raises an eyebrow!” yells a third.
The threats are followed by a relentless series of punches and kicks. One of the attackers pushes the heterosexual couple aside so they can focus on the four gay men. Israel (not his real name) is knocked to the ground. He tries to get up, but receives a brutal kick in the mouth that leaves him semi-conscious on the sand. His jaw is broken and he has lost several teeth. The other three victims were luckier; despite their injuries, they did not require medical treatment.
The aggression in Somorrostro is one of the most serious attacks against members of the LGBTQ+ community in Barcelona in recent memory. There were two other incidents on the same day, though there is no connection between them. On the morning of June 5, a protest was held in the center of the Catalan capital against any act of hatred against the LGBTQ+ community. “We aren’t familiar with violence such as that of last Saturday in Somorrostro. It is a very serious crime that produced very serious injuries,” said Eugeni Rodríguez, president of Barcelona’s Observatory Against Homophobia (OCH). » | Alfonso L. Congostrina | Barcelona | Wednesday, June 9, 2021
It’s just a few minutes past 10pm on May 29, a Saturday. The scene is Somorrostro beach in the Barceloneta neighborhood of Barcelona, where nightlife venues remain closed due to Covid-19 but the cosmopolitan vibe lives on. Two homosexual couples and a heterosexual couple meet and strike up a conversation as they sit in a circle on the sand. They laugh, drink and chat. Four individuals suddenly approach. “You fucking faggots!” shouts one of them. Another spits at one of the young men. “I’ll cut the throat of anyone who raises an eyebrow!” yells a third.
The threats are followed by a relentless series of punches and kicks. One of the attackers pushes the heterosexual couple aside so they can focus on the four gay men. Israel (not his real name) is knocked to the ground. He tries to get up, but receives a brutal kick in the mouth that leaves him semi-conscious on the sand. His jaw is broken and he has lost several teeth. The other three victims were luckier; despite their injuries, they did not require medical treatment.
The aggression in Somorrostro is one of the most serious attacks against members of the LGBTQ+ community in Barcelona in recent memory. There were two other incidents on the same day, though there is no connection between them. On the morning of June 5, a protest was held in the center of the Catalan capital against any act of hatred against the LGBTQ+ community. “We aren’t familiar with violence such as that of last Saturday in Somorrostro. It is a very serious crime that produced very serious injuries,” said Eugeni Rodríguez, president of Barcelona’s Observatory Against Homophobia (OCH). » | Alfonso L. Congostrina | Barcelona | Wednesday, June 9, 2021
Labels:
homophobia,
Spain
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