All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

Eurosurveillance – European Union lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender survey

The results of the survey reveal that 47% of respondents had felt discriminated against or harassed during the preceding year. Of the respondents which had been attacked during that period, a majority (59%) reported that an attack or threat of violence were entirely or partly due to being perceived to be LGBT. However, respondents rarely report violence or discrimination as they do not believe that reporting incidents to authorities would make any difference.

The fear of disclosing sexual orientation can have effects also on the reporting of diseases, such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. In countries where discrimination against gay men, for example, is high, the reporting of HIV may become misrepresented, as gay men with HIV may not dare disclose the nature of their sexuality. In such circumstances an HIV case may be reported as a heterosexually transmitted case rather than as a homosexually transmitted one.

References

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). European Union lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender survey. Results at a glance. Vienna: FRA. May 2013. Available from:  http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/eu-lgbt-survey-results-at-a-glance_en.pdf

via Eurosurveillance – View Article.

The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com

A woman was injured after an accidental shooting in the parking lot of Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, hours before President Barack Obama laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The gun fell under a cemetery visitor’s car, and when the owner, an active duty serviceman, tried to retrieve it, a shot went off and struck the serviceman’s mother in the leg. The woman was treated and released. Guns are not allowed on the cemetery property. Authorities say charges are pending in the incident.

via The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com.

The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com

A man is in stable condition after being wounded in Natchez, Miss., Wednesday night in an ongoing feud between two families. Joshua Beamer, 31, was shot in the buttocks after a verbal argument with the son of a woman Beamer’s mother had argued with earlier in the day. Beamer’s mother then went to the other family’s house and began shooting in retaliation, but no one there was wounded. No arrests have been made, but they are expected.

via The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com.

The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com

A 59-year-old man shot and killed his twin brother Wednesday evening at their west Wichita, Kan., home. Although a motive wasn’t immediately clear, authorities said the shooter called 911 and told a dispatcher he shot his brother because his brother was going to shoot him. Two firearms were recovered from the home. Officers took the living twin into custody.

via The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com.

The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com

A teenager who recently graduated from high school was killed in an accidental shooting in Maryville, Tenn., Tuesday night. Skyler Daniel Boring, 17, and some friends were at a residence on East Lamar Alexander Parkway at around 10 p.m. when one of the firearms they were passing around – a shotgun – went off, striking the teen in the chest. Boring had been wrestling co-captain at Heritage High School.

via The Day in Gun Violence – NYTimes.com.

Egypt’s Cultural Scene Under Threat?

Egyptian Streets

Several weeks ago, President Morsi appointed a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Alaa Abdel-Aziz, as Minister of Culture.

Initially, this sparked concerns that the Muslim Brotherhood intended to ‘purge’ Egypt’s cultural scene by installing Islamists into influential positions in the Ministry. These concerns were quickly dismissed by the government as absurd.

Yet in just few weeks, the new Minister has fired the heads of the Cairo Opera House, the Fine Arts Sector and the Egyptian General Book Authority. The Minister also attempted to fire the head of the Academy of Arts, but the law states that he can only be fired by a Presidential decree.

The sackings were yesterday followed by the resignation of the Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Culture, Said Tawfik, over what he called “a plan to destroy Egyptian culture.” The Supreme Council for Culture is arguably one of the most important parts of the…

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