2Bmag online

She had one of the greatest voices ever to grace the pop charts. The clarity and beauty of Donna Summer’s phenomenal talent will be remembered forever, particularly by her legions of gay fans. Summer died today at 63 years of age after a lengthy battle with cancer.

New report of 4 men to be executed in Iran under accusations of sodomy. Iran, which is one of seven countries that continue to impose the death penalty for homosexuality, has been criticized the world over for human rights record, as attested to by a forthcoming report from the Peter Tatchell Foundation

A drug which has long been used to treat HIV/AIDS, Truvada, is on its way to being approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use by HIV-negative people to help prevent them from contracting the virus. This historic decision could pave the way for a first preventative treatment in the fight against AIDS.

The Argentine Senate approved a Gender Identity law on May 9 that will allow transgender people access to sex change surgery, hormone therapy, and chosen gender designation changes on their ID. The law puts the country far ahead of Québec and Canada, where an ID change still hinges on surgery.

A chilling incident of gay bashing by a teenaged Mitt Romney was revealed in a meticulously researched article in yesterday’s Washington Post. The Republican presidential hopeful is renowned for his strict Mormon beliefs and vehement opposition to gay marriage.

In an interview excerpt released by ABC News today, US President Barack Obama made his first unequivocal statement in support of same-sex marriage. The statement is like to have a major electoral and political impact in a country increasingly polarized on geographic and religious lines.

Citizens of the US State of North Carolina voted in favour of a ban on marriage for same-sex couples Tuesday. The heated campaign took on national attention, pitting Democrats against Republicans on both the state and federal level.

When the results of yesterday’s French national election were confirmed, the Socialist Party candidate François Hollande came out on top, reversing a 17-year trend of right-wing (and right-leaning) leaders. Voters in the LGBT community were largely behind the winner, who could legalize same-sex marriage and adoption within a year.

While State of Missouri deals with an anti-gay bill aiming to erase any mention of homosexuality in their school curriculum, a State Senator in California has proposed a bill targeting so-called “therapies” used by religious groups to “cure” homosexuals. The bill aims to regulate “sexual conversion therapy”, a therapy whose goal is to turn homosexuals into heterosexuals.

A month and a half after the murder of trans researcher and activist Agnes Torres in Puebla, Mexico, the LGBT community has rallied to demand increased state acknowledgement of the need for human rights protection and anti-discrimination measures. 2B contacted members of LGBT groups in Puebla to hear how the community is coping… and fighting back.