[UK]
Pete Burns headlining at Aberdeen as organisers think big
Dead or Alive front man Pete Burns has been announced as the headline act to play at this year's Rainbowfest in Aberdeen.
The event is to be held on the beach front at Queen's Links Aberdeen on Saturday 5th July, and organisers said they want it to be Scotland's biggest LGBT event yet.

[UK]
Employment Protection for Trans People
It is unlawful, under the Sex Discrimination Act of 1975, to directly or indirectly discriminate against, harass or victimise a transgender person on grounds of their gender reassignment. Section 2 (A) (i) of the act says that transsexual persons are protected where they intend to undergo, are undergoing or have undergone a gender reassignment.

[Sweden]
About visibility when working among men
Excerpt: I am probably the only open transsexual woman working as a career officer in the Swedish Armed Forces so I know I am visible. Probably more than most people, even most women in male-dominated workplaces. Yesterday I wrote about my desire to blend in as "just another woman" and what do I think about this visibility then?

[USA]
Hate Crimes Ad Launched In Wake Of Gay Teen Murders
Logo television on Monday launched a new Public Service Announcement decrying violence in response to the brutal murders of 15-year old Lawrence King last month and 17-year-old Simmie Williams just days later.

[USA]
Hate Groups in America Surging: New Southern Poverty Law Center Report
The number of hate groups in the United States is surging, up 48 percent since 2000, according to a report released today from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). Now there are 888 such groups throughout the country, which marks an increase of 5 percent in one year.

[USA]
Caution voiced on 'mental health parity' bill
Excerpt: Tom McClusky, FRC's vice president for government affairs, says the legislation would include coverage for every bizarre "condition" found in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV).
"Everything from jet lag to gender identity disorder, transvestic fetishism, [and] a number of other categories I wouldn't even want to go into right here," says McClusky.

[OK, USA]
Oklahoma's Sally Kern is defiant as ever
Excerpt 1: State Rep. Sally Kern (R-Oklahoma City) issued the following statement today in response to the criticisms of homosexual activists who have objected to a recent speech she gave on their efforts to promote their agenda at both the federal and state level.
"To put this simply, as a Christian I believe homosexuality is not moral. Obviously, you have the right as an American to choose that lifestyle, but I also have the right to express my views and my fellow Oklahomans have the right to debate these issues.
Excerpt 2: Studies show, no society that has totally embraced homosexuality has lasted for more than, you know, a few decades. . .

[USA] [Blog/Television/Commentary]
Alexis Meade Is More Important Than You Think
Excerpt 1: Back in 1967 an African-American actress contemplated leaving the network television show she was on and going back to Broadway. She was the only African-American in the integrated cast of this show and was upset that she wasn't getting to do anything besides be in her words 'a glorified telephone operator.'

Excerpt 2: Rebecca Romijn's Alexis Meade character is that important, peeps. While Ms. Romijn isn't transgender, her character, like Uhura 40 years before is a representative of a group marginalized in American society. Alexis is not only intelligent and beautiful, but is shown in a position of power and influence. The reactions of her family members ranging from her mother Claire's total acceptance of her daughter to her father Bradford's outright rrejection and her brother Daniel struggling with the changes in their relationship mirror what goes on in our lives.