I’m A Ho-Mo, Care to Join Me?

 

 

The older I get the more attracted I am to the hirsute male.

How I’m 'maturing' in this area I don’t  quite know but now there’s a great reason to go public and come out in support of boys that bristle.That is to join everyone who raises awareness of Prostate Cancer (and other male cancers).

We also need to raise funds to help inform guys about how a man's life can be devastated by such health matters and to provide information resources that are inclusive of the needs of gay and bisexual men.

To make sure that those who work in this area get the support they need to keep helping  men affected by cancer (who need every bit of support and encouragement we can give to them) there are some fantastic initiatives out there. 

Movember  is perhaps the most famous men's cancer fundraiser and they have some wonderful ideas  on how to get people motivated and have fun raising awareness and much needed cash to support related good causes during November.

Prostate Cancer UK is a charity that is there for men all year round and they currently want to know how prostate cancer affects men and their partners too. Also they want to make sure that gay and bisexual men know that their services exist for them too.

 

Many organisations  are starting to realise that  they need to be more aware of the needs of different groups of men but at the moment there simply is not enough information for gay and bisexual men on how issues such as Prostate Cancer affect them personally.

 

Out With Prostate Cancer is the UK’s first support and social group for gay and bi men affected by Prostate and other related cancers and I urge you to check them out. They really are  are a great bunch of guys.

 

Now you might think that there’s no need for separate info for us gays and although I don't want  to take away anything from the fantastic work done by Cancer charities up and down the country, us Homo’s have to prioritise our own needs.

If you’re a guy who likes guys then you are more likely than a heterosexual guy to find out that one day, you or your partner will develop issues with your Prostate, even if this doesn’t go on to become Prostate Cancer .

The problem is that so many Male Cancers from Prostate to Bowel, to Anal, to Testicular  can affect your personal life,relationships and of course your sexual health and sex life so guys need to be able to know who to talk to, how to get the right information that meets their needs, where to get checked up, who provides the best and most appropriate support and  how to find the best treatments when we need them.

Much of the information available at the moment is aimed at heterosexual men, as are  the support groups and gay and bisexual guys really do need someone to talk to who understands what they are going through as men who are having their own difficulties coming to terms with life before during and after cancer.

It's tough for anyone having to go through this but when your consultant, GP, nurse, cancer specialist whoever, just doesn't know how to talk to you as a non-heterosexual man then where do you go to to find the information you need? Where is the information to find out how surviving cancer will affect you as a gay/bi guy?

You want to talk with other gay and bisexual men and you need to find out how other gay and bisexual men have coped/are coping, and  living with these health issues when their relationships and sex lives have had to change because of how cancer, treatment, medications and surgery have affected their lives.

Currently there just isn't enough of this specific information around but we know that a lot of guys really need it and they need it today.

That’s why I’m braving face and preparing to Grow a ‘Ho-Mo’ for November to help raise funds so that The Lesbian & Gay Foundation can provide information and support to gay and bisexual men who  just need to talk to other gay and bi guys about this issue.

We need to share knowledge on how some cancers affect gay and bisexual men differently and to prioritise the support networks available to gay and bisexual guys.

Now I’m prepared to look like  a reject from Village People auditions but that's nothing compared to what men dealing with Prostate Cancer have to go through.

Please support the following cause if you can or why not join in and we can get all Fuzzy together? It could open up a new Ho-Mo world for  all of us!

 http://www.justgiving.com/Andrew-Gilliver

 

 

The Bear that Tore the Rainbow.

Terrible things are happening in Russia

To our LGBT friends, and to gay people who visit the country.But how can we make our voices heard and hope to influence change for people in a place that is so different from Western Europe, where citizens face oppression everywhere they turn?

Truth is I don’t know but I do want to find out.

 

I visited St. Petersburg ten years ago which itself is a fascinating city but one that I didn’t feel entirely comfortable in if I’m honest, even as the most European of Russian cities (as the tourist brochures would tell you).

 

After seeing the amazing sights of the vast Palace Square, the famous Church of our Saviour of the Spilled Blood (sadly ironic given the current state of affairs), the statue of Peter the Great, the Winter Palace and much gilded history, you walk around the city and see life as it really is.The broken down trams were left to rust in the street, the suspicion on people’s faces unnerves you and you know you are no longer in Europe.

We were advised to carry our passports at all times and the soldiers posted throughout the city may be handsome but I wouldn’t want to stare at them for too long.

 

At the time I remember citizens in Russia wanting to form closer links to develop support for local LGBT people and it was hoped that this would develop as the situation for gay people improved over the coming decade. Although male homosexual acts were decriminalized in 1993,today there are still no laws protecting against discrimination or harassment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Now we actually have anti-gay laws that in effect ban references to homosexuality in any way.

In 2009 that festival of the gays, Eurovision was held in Moscow on the same day as Moscow Pride which you would think would be a marketing dream for any city wanting to capitalise on its ‘European’ aspirations but alas this was not to be. Moscow police violently dispersed a gay pride rally that was banned by city authorities, leading to further bans for the next century. No cute bread baking singing grannies will ever undo this fact from my mind.

2012 marked the 50th anniversary of the Manchester/ St Petersburg sister city arrangement. Now some people may think we should cut our ties with the city but I don’t agree.

 Manchester Pride-goers were urged to send a message of solidarity to gay people in our sister city of St Petersburg. Leaflets and flags were given to the spectators at Saturday's Manchester Pride parade and a special banner, carrying a message of solidarity for LGBT people in St Petersburg, was carried through the city streets.

Meanwhile, one of Russia's leading LGBT activists attended Manchester Pride to share her experiences of living in St Petersburg. Polina Savchenko is one of the directors of Coming Out, a St Petersburg-based LGBT group  which provides vital support to gay people in the city and lobbies for LGBT rights. I was fortunate to meet her and ask how gay people here can help gay people there.

Now the situation in Russia is getting worse. An anti-gay 'propaganda' bill has just been signed into law. More murder and violent attacks of LGBT people are being reported.

With the Winter Olympics in Sochi fast approaching, Putin doesn’t seem to care about Russia's international reputation, merely stating that any gay athletes or tourists will be safe if they visit (during the Olympics).

Today Russian people struggling against the anti-gay crackdown are calling for help. They need a massive global outcry and media attention. I'm not seeing this on the mainstream news,are you?

I understand the reaction of people wanting to ban everything Russian and  not take part in any events that Russia hosts but could this really change anything?

Should we Boycott the 2014 Winter Olympics, or use the event as an opportunity to publicly shame Russia on a global scale?  Surely if there are less countries to take part in the Winter Olympics that’s less voices to be heard and more medals up for grabs by Russians!

And what about the rest of us that don’t want to visit Russia?

Ok so we avoid Russian exports such as Vodka but although that may make us feel like we are doing something, it doesn’t really hit the Russian lawmakers or Vladimir Putin  as much of the stuff isn’t even produced or manufactured in Russia although I admit it does get some publicity. 

I for one think it’s important to listen what LGBT Russians themselves want us to do and the message has come through loud and clear that we must use every opportunity to raise awareness of this issue.

 

I think we must all do our bit in whatever way we think will work, but we should think about what can have the greatest effect on the law makers and misguided politicians who feel that cracking down hard on the gay community will win them popular support (A 2013 survey found that 74% of Russians said homosexuality should not be accepted by society).Of course this was an effective policy in Nazi Germany but it didn’t mean that it was right.

We must challenge our elected officials to do everything they can to raise this matter and not let it go until the outcome is brighter for our Russian brothers and sisters.

The UK Government pledged 2 years ago to use political dialogue with other countries to push for the recognition of LGB&T rights and advocate for changes to discriminatory practices and laws which criminalise homosexuality and same sex behaviour. What is it doing about this situation in Russia?

The United Nations human rights office has launched its first global outreach campaign to promote tolerance and greater equality for lesbians, gays, transgender people and bisexuals.Called Free & Equal, it's an unprecedented effort by the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights to change public attitudes around the world on issues that have bitterly divided the U.N.'s own member states. Can this mean anything to Putin?

I have met and talked to several LGBT Russians in the last year and anyone calling Coming Out  St Petersburg would get exactly the same kind of warm friendly response you would receive at The Lesbian & Gay Foundation.

The difference is that they are trying to support their communities in incredibly difficult times. Surely if we are fortunate to live in a country that finally has awarded us many of the equal rights that we have so long fought for, now is the time to support those people who are just like us, but just so happen to live thousands of miles away in a vast country where an angry bear is flexing his ageing muscles once again. No-one should be impressed by him.But the fear still exists.

Checkout All Out’s petition: https://www.allout.org/en/actions/russia-attacks 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Being Gay,Being Bi,Being Published

….Whatever!

Due out hopefully in the next few weeks is the third book of writings by Liverpool author Ian Bradley Marshall .Over the last 8 years Ian Bradley Marshall has written a two volume anthology, Part I being published in 2009 and Part II in 2011.

Now Ian has taken all of the pieces that relate to the subject matter of being gay, or bisexual or as the title suggest…whatever.

The book is an anthology of prose and poetry on gay issues, with particular emphasis on young people who are still discovering their sexuality, along with all the difficulties that come with that.

For the older generation the book may just reaffirm that sense of self that sometimes is lost when we question who we are and lose confidence in ourselves.

I was honoured when Ian asked me to write a Foreword for the book. Then after checking what I was actually supposed to write I went off on one about my schoolboy crushes and being the gayest thing in my high school. (c.1977-82).

I remember going to my careers officer and telling her I wanted to be a journalist, not really knowing why or what the job entailed .Not that my spelling or grammar would have helped me in this direction but I was always a pretty creative writer and I always wanted to communicate with people in some way but without sensationalising any body or anything - clearly a career in journalism was not for me!

The truth is there’s no point writing about anything that you don’t know about so for a long time I didn’t bother as I knew ‘nowt!

However given the opportunity to write on subjects close to home it is a lot easier and it’s funny really that it has taken many years for me to be actually published in book form,thanks to Ian. I’ve written lots of magazine articles, web stories and contributed to other people’s works over the years but 2013 will see the first time I have ever had my name on the jacket of an actual book. Get me!

I have friends that write marvellous bloggy type things and help craft pieces for gay publications,websites,research journals and the like. They really do inspire me so when asked to write a foreword for Ian’s book on the subject of sexual orientation it wasn’t that difficult to take a trip down memory lane and come up with something that shared my growing up story and lent itself to a book of writings on accepting personal sexuality.

Being Gay, Being Bi,Whatever is expected to be published in February, available in Waterstones and downloadable via Amazon Kindle ahead of worldwide release.


The book is dedicated to the memory of Michael Causer from Whiston, Merseyside, who died on 2nd August 2008 aged just 18 after being brutally assaulted and left for dead. The parents of the murdered gay teenager set up The Michael Causer Foundation to provide safe accommodation and support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people who are homeless or at risk in the north-west of England. The book is also supported by The Lesbian & Gay Foundation.

I hope you will  get a chance to check it out.