A Russian ice cream maker has been accused of promoting homosexuality after using a rainbow on its packaging.

The head of Russia's official Union of Women said the image amounted to "propaganda" for gay and lesbian relations in a video conference with President Vladimir Putin.

Homosexuality was decriminalised in Russia in 1993, but those deemed to be promoting "homosexual behaviour among minors" face fines of up to 500,000 roubles ($7,000).

"They're quietly promoting these nice rainbow colours, using nice words, they're advertising an ice cream called Rainbow," Yekaterina Lakhova, who is also a former MP, told the Russian president.

This, Ms Lakhova added, could potentially make Russian children more accepting of the rainbow flag used by the gay community.

She also urged Mr Putin to defend what are known among conservatives in Russia as "traditional values".

They include the definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman, which is to be enshrined in the Russian Constitution following a recent public vote that also paves the way for Vladimir Putin to seek two more terms of office.

In a later interview, Ms Lakhova said: "I don't like the rainbow, just as I don't like the swastika."

Gay 'propaganda'

In response to Ms Lakhova, President Putin said: "If there are reasons to believe that this is propaganda for values that are not traditional to us, then… it must be managed by society, but not aggressively."



He added that he had no objections to homosexuality, only to its "propaganda".

At the same meeting, President Putin criticised the US embassy in Moscow for displaying the rainbow flag recently, saying that the symbol said "something about those who work there".

Homophobia is rife in Russia and, after the flag was displayed, conservative activists placed a similar one on the pavement outside the US embassy for passers-by to wipe their feet on.

The authorities in Russia have been accused of tolerating anti-gay abuse, and there have been allegations of particularly cruel purges in the North Caucasus region of Chechnya.

Rainbow 'not a flag'

The ice-cream maker embroiled in the row said the rainbow on its packaging had nothing to do with gay rights.

"Our company advocates traditional family relations, and categorically disagrees with Ms Lakhova. We believe that the rainbow is sunlight after the rain, not the gay flag," said Armen Beniaminov, who is vice-president of Chistaya Liniya.

"As the father of a large family, I openly voted for the constitutional amendments specifically because one of them defends the traditional values," he told official news agency RIA Novosti.

Ms Lakhova's claims that ice cream is being used to promote homosexuality has caused an uproar on Russian media.

The popular daily Moskovsky Komsomolets sarcastically suggested that the rainbow must now be banned from appearing after it rains in Russia, and that the Defence Ministry may be drafted in to fight any rogue rainbows. "Otherwise children will see them!" the paper warned.

A popular Twitter user jokingly demanded that light dispersion be banned in Russia because "it puts homosexual innuendo into normal sunlight".

Journalist Andrei Loshak took a much more serious view of the situation, accusing Putin of trying to use homophobia "as an effective populist tool".

"Someone tell him that times have changed" and Russians are more accepting of gay rights, Mr Loshak wrote on Facebook.

Opinion polls have shown improving attitudes to gay rights in Russia. A poll in 2019 suggested that 47% of Russians supported equal rights for gay and lesbian people, with 43% against.

Revellers attending parties on Fire Island, NY, over the July 4 weekend have prompted widespread condemnation online. Videos posted on social media showed little sign of social distancing and very few face coverings. Fire Island Pines is a resort traditionally very popular with gay men, many of whom travel from New York City.

Ewan McGregor and Christopher Plummer in Beginners, the most Googled gay film in US.

An old axiom holds that all politics is local. Apparently the same is true for movies.

Shane Co.–the fabled jeweler who provides the diamonds & gold for hundreds of same-sex weddings–celebrated pride season by delving into their Google Trends to compile some of the most popular LGBTQ movies, broken down by state. The results may surprise.

Who’d have thought that an underground film like The Watermelon Woman would prove the most popular in Tennessee? It delighted us to learn that the awesome comedy Tangerine transfixed the Googlers of Arizona. Or that Larry Kramer‘s The Normal Heart would transfix conservative Alabama?


Courtesy of Shane Co.

1. Beginners

By far, the most searched title on this list belongs to Beginners, the excellent drama which nabbed Christopher Plummer an Academy Award. The 2010 film casts Plummer as a gay man coming out in his final years and focuses on his son’s (played by Ewan McGregor) efforts to make sense of his new life. The film topped the searched list in 12 states, including Virginia, Washington, Hawaii, and Wisconsin.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005QG2DOO

2. The Normal Heart

The screen adaptation of writer Larry Kramer‘s touching play about the AIDS crisis scored the top spot in five states, including Alabama, Kentucky, and Mississippi. Strange that a movie about New York would prove so popular in the South. Then again, why not?
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MLY7RP4

3. The Children’s Hour

This 1961 film starring Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine landed in the top spot in Ohio, Michigan, and North Carolina. The story deals with two women running a children’s school who become the subject of allegations of lesbianism. Said charges especially rattle one of the women, who comes to question her sexuality.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000RLAPLQ

4. Blue is the Warmest Color

This French drama about two young lesbians proved searchable. The film earned criticism for some viewers for being an informed man’s take on lesbianism. Nevertheless, the film scored rave reviews for its acting and intensity.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HTJ6PHM

5. Can You Ever Forgive Me

Props to the District of Columbia and New Mexico for making this awesome comedy their most-searched-for title. Melissa McCarthy and Richard E. Grant both scored Oscar nominations for their work as a lesbian forger and her Oscar Wilde-like accomplice. Both should have taken home the statue too.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KC2JJPJ

6. Head-On

We’re not sure how this obscure 1998 drama found such a following in West Virginia and South Carolina, though if we had to bet, we’d guess it might have something to do with the steamy scenes.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07W6T11DT

7. Weekend

Iowa and Colorado had a sneaker for this British romance from director Andrew Haigh. The movie follows a hookup turned romantic as two young men meet for casual sex, only to find themselves falling in love. Maybe its popularity speaks to the number of viewers in those states that have also had a weekend they’ll never forget.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0090EHLUY

8. 23-Way Tie

From there, the stats land in one gigantic statistical tie, as 23 states most Googled unique titles, ranging from the predictable (Brokeback Mountain, Hedwig & The Angry Inch) to the obscure (High Art, Holding the Man) to the influential (The Watermelon Woman). The biggest shocker: that the leather bar-set thriller Cruising–which is often derided for its homophobia–would land the top spot in Kansas. Seriously?
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I94X87Q

The, at the time “ladies man” thought he was straight – until he had a stroke and ended up in the care of a handsome gay nurse, he revealed on First Dates.

Adam, who appeared on First Dates in 2014, went down a storm with viewers when it aired and now the clip of his date has resurfaced, reminding viewers everywhere of his incredible coming out story.

Up until the age of 21, Adam thought he was straight – but a health scare changed everything.

After he had a blood clot in his brain, Adam had a stroke that left him paralysed down one side when he was just 21-years-old.

First Dates star Adam realised he was gay when under the care of a handsome gay nurse.

He was unable to speak or move freely, so ended up staying in hospital for two months where he was nursed back to health by a gay nurse.

“The night nurse, he cared. And he was gay. 6 foot 2 and he was fit,” Adam told his date Dan.

“My girlfriend used to turn up and I’m like, ‘Why are you wearing such a short skirt and…’ She was trying to pull him. Even then, I’m sitting there, can’t move and there was just one night, we was just talking away and he went, ‘I’ve got to be honest with you.’ And he said, ‘Are you gay?’ and I went, ‘Yeah, I am.’ I obviously am.

The former stripper joked: “I went into hospital straight, I came out gay.”

He said he didn’t come out sooner because he simply wasn’t aware he was gay.

He ‘didn’t really know’ what it meant to be gay growing up.

“I just done what all normal teenagers are supposed to do, all my mates were straight, and I didn’t really know what gay was,” Adam said.

“I knew I felt a little bit different but I never really thought anything of it.”

Adam’s First Dates appearance was a huge success – he and Dan quickly became a fan favourite with viewers.

And the couple hit it off. A year later, they revealed that they were engaged to be married.

Six years later, their First Dates appearance is still warming the hearts of gay viewers.

Jeremy Joseph, the owner of London club G-A-Y, has branded overcrowding in Soho last night (July 4) as a disaster – and lashed out at the government for easing lockdown restrictions too early.

Jospeh was just one of many people who expressed concern last night when videos and photos circulated on social media showing huge crowds gathered in Soho, which is home to a number of queer venues.

In a statement posted to Facebook, Joseph said the easing of lockdown restrictions was “a complete disaster”.

G-A-Y owner Jeremy Joseph slammed the UK government for easing lockdown restrictions on a Saturday.

He spoke of his own discomfort at the photos and videos circulating online, and said Old Compton Street was “uncontrollable”.

“One can hope it was a one off, but inside venues was a different story,” he said. “It was seated, screens in between tables, limited numbers inside and background music.”

He said it was “obvious” that the streets in London would be packed, and slammed the government for significantly easing lockdown restrictions on a Saturday.

“It should have been a soft opening on Monday,” he said.

Joseph said the only way bars can survive is if customers adhere to social distancing guidelines.

Meanwhile, others have suggested that the focus on Soho – an area popular among queer people – is unfair when other areas suffered overcrowding too.

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Ben on the right!

Fleabag and Our Girl star Ben expressed his gratitude at being a part of the community as he celebrates Pride Month

Actor Ben Aldridge has come out as an "incredibly proud" member of the LGBTQ+ community.

Ben, 34, who's starred in a number of hit British TV series, told of his "incredible pride" - despite coronavirus forcing Pride Month revellers to hold off on the outdoor celebrations.

The Fleabag and Our Girl star shared a number of historical snaps in a Pride Month Instagram post.

Gabon is the most recent country to decriminalise homosexuality – passing the law in June last year,

Costa Rica is the most recent country to have legalised same-sex marriage – in May this this year –  and it is the only nation in Central America to have done so.



Gay marriage has been legal in Costa Rica since May 26, 2020 as the result of a ruling by the Supreme Court of Justice.

In Western Europe two countries – Italy and Switzerland – still don’t allow gay marriage, while no countries allow it in Central and Eastern Europe.

In Africa, South Africa remains the only country to have legalised same-sex marriage.

The Tesla and SpaceX CEO has weighed in on the news that a series of American cities, including Los Angeles, may trial a basic income.

Universal basic income trials may be coming to nine cities in the United States, and it's caught the attention of Elon Musk.

On Monday, Forbes reported that mayors in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and other cities have all joined a coalition calling for basic cash payouts to everyone with no conditions attached. The coalition is called Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, and it was founded by Michael Tubbs, the 29-year-old mayor of Stockton, California. Tubbs told the publication that while the coalition will jointly advocate for basic income, each city will also work to host their own basic income trials.

The move comes as the United States grapples with both the coronavirus fallout and new conversations about racism sparked by the killing of George Floyd. Tubbs told Forbes he was motivated to announce the coalition due to these events: "if it’s not Covid-19 this year, it’ll be an earthquake next year, a hurricane the year after or fire. Folks need to build economic resilience in our cities now."

The announcement was praised by Bernice King, the youngest child of Martin Luther King, Jr., via her Twitter page Tuesday:

"Wow. A universal basic income (guaranteed annual income) was what my father recommended as a primary way to eradicate poverty. This is a powerful step forward."

Responding to King's post, Musk wrote:

1. Los Angeles, California.
   
2. Oakland, California.
   
3. Tacoma, Washington.
   
4. Newark, New Jersey.
   
5. Atlanta, Georgia.
   
6. Jackson, Mississippi.
   
7. Compton, California.
   
8. Shreveport, Louisiana.
   
9. Saint Paul, Minnesota.
   
10. Stockton, California – the city of the founder of the coalition, Michael Tubbs.
    

For some the word 'queer' is a defiant and unifying umbrella term to cover non-straight sexualities but for others remembering its use as a derogatory insult - prefer not to apply it to themselves. Perhaps for that reason, it's a term that many big corporates shy away from adopting, instead opting to just co-opt the rainbow flag instead.

Not so for Burger King in Mexico, which this past weekend used 'Queer' to mark Pride season. The fast-food chain changed its logo to 'Burger Queer' and produced some rainbow wrapping and tote bags for its menu items, which customers could order to be delivered via local delivery service, Rappi (a business similar to Uber Eats).