LGBTI – Page 2 – news.lgbti.org

Best LGBTQ+ Films on Netflix

In case of a tie, Tomatometer scores for all films were averaged. Also, Indigenous films and Hispanic films were omitted from the analysis. Tomatometer scores for LGBTQ+ films on Netflix released on or after January 1st, 2017 are listed last. Netflix’s ranking of LGBTQ+ films and rankings for LGBTQ+ films released elsewhere are reported here.

Best LGBTQ+ Films

Kate Plays Christine

Kate Plays Christine is a low-budget horror/romance about a young girl who moves to the small Massachusetts town of Busfield, where the local teenage librarian, Maxine, has a crush on her classmate, Kate. Kate accidentally murders Maxine’s boyfriend, Mike, then pretends her death was the result of an assault by a masked man. Tomatometer score: 66% Tomatometer rating: 4.7 (“Fresh”) 89 % What Happens in Vegas: Season

Director: Keith Calder Hawkins

From the director of Timecop, the award-winning Timecop has two incredible trade franchises. The first film’s premise – a series of haphazard events that loosely connect ones that could get messy – is exceedingly clever. The second film’s premise is even better: a group of 40 or so young characters are caught in a tragic and sexually charged situation: 13-year old high school girl Lindsay finds out she has a kinky turn on and decides to expose her to risk it all by dating a stranger. It’s the ideal sum of all the best parts of those film series, and works magnificently in its own special way, when it needs to. DP-PA Oliver Jean sees his chance to shine, but having previously explored the psychological films Super Troopers and Torn, he’s ready for anything. “Making this film allows me to delve into other avenues and territory,” he says. Tomatometer score: 73% Tomatometer rating: 4.8 (“Midnight”) 91 % Purge

Director: James DeMonaco

Our second film review looks at a crime thriller. Mark, the hero of this tale, is enrolled in a man-made commune where he may or may not be in touch with the spirit world. He immediately gets a taste of what it’s like to be hunted by criminals and starts to experience supernatural occurrences. Tomatometer score: 6% Tomatometer rating: 2.4 (“Fresh”) 40 % Anna Karenina

Director: Leo Tolstoy

Engrossing themes such as the vicissitudes of parent-child relationships and the survival of the family tree can be found in numerous works. All The Young Dudes and Strange Days gained their high scores on this one. Tomatometer score: 40% Tomatometer rating: 2.4 (“Fresh”) 24 % Freaky Friday

Director: John Waters

Who would’ve thought that a film using footage of a soap opera would strike a chord with viewers? A classic that posts beautifully, Freaky Friday is the stuff of dark comedy, and a rare example of a film with both a socially-conscious message and a well-crafted film noir twist that stays balanced and doesn’t veer too far from social commentary. Tomatometer score: 46% Tomatometer rating: 2.3 (“Midnight”) 40 % Adam Blampied

Director: Adrian Thomas-Hunt

Adam’s journey to got to television is a truly wild one, but his unlikely quest toward respectability is plotted just right. Situated squarely in the get-crazed noir genre, this is an inviting but archetypal tale of a sly cop in L.A., trying to do his part in fighting the industry’s rampant misogyny. A steady stream of terrific performances and a well-realized intent cause to root for Adam throughout, but his tragic fate doesn’t offer the same comfort. Tomatometer score: 43% Tomatometer rating: 2.3 (“Fresh”) 57 % Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li and Ryu

Director: Joe Haythe

Our first film review looks at a martial arts film. Deep sense of family ties are the drive behind this film, and its ensemble cast of an international cast must pull together to fight perceived stigma. And that can only be done with a bit of baddies. FX’s stop-motion epic Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li and Ryu features some of the greatest sketches and animation in blockbuster history, and continues to impress, thanks to its hyper-rebellious and reclusive protagonist, Ryu, and a sumptuous and funky score by the late, great, De-Gaetano Waller.

LGBTI Meaning: What is LGBTI?

The expression LGBT, which stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transsexual, has been used since the 1900s.

Expressed as a rights struggle, LGBT was used as GLBT for a period, but it started to be referred to as LGBT again because lesbians were ignored in the society, later added intersexual people.

What does LGBTI stand for?

LGBTI Which Stands For Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans & Intersex

The LGBTI operation dating back to antiquity, 2000-3000 BC, has succeeded in shedding light on this issue by reflecting on the works of that period.

Although Christianity prohibits homosexuality, it is known that homosexual relations, although not very common, continued in Western countries throughout the Middle Ages. The bans, court orders and executions of the popes and cardinals prove that sexual relations and love continue to exist among LGBTIs despite these prohibitions.

With the French Revolution, homosexuality was decriminalized again in Europe, with the abolition of all crimes and punishments based on religion. When the French emperor Napoleon enacted the civil law in 1810, he did not give up this practice. In the 19th century, countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Bavaria and Italy accepted the Napoleonic laws, but homosexuality was no longer a crime in these countries.

What is a LGBTI Honor Mark?

A frequently cited goal of activist or social movement among LGBTIs is social equality for LGBTI people; some people also sought to develop LGBTI communities or liberate the wider society from sexual oppression. LGBT movements organized today are lobbying and street walks; social groups, support groups and community events; magazines, films and literature; academic research and writing; and business activities, as well as a wide range of political activism and cultural activities.

L: Lesbian, Lesbians

G: Gay, Gays

B: Bisexual, Bisexuals, Bisexual Man, Bisexual Woman etc…

T: Transgender, Transgenders, Transsexual, Transsexuals, Trans Man, Trans Woman, Trans Men, Trans Women etc…

I: Intersex, Intersexual, Intersexuals

LGBTI Life in Afghanistan: Gradually Improving?

In 2012, Nemat Sadat, a former professor of political science at American University of Afghanistan mobilized a LGBT movement and on August 22, 2013, he became the first public figure to come out as gay and campaigned for gender freedom and sexual liberation. There does not seem to be much internet information on improvements since then, but I would think that there may be a gradual improvement.

Public Understanding of Homosexuality

When publicly discussed, homosexuality is often linked with prostitution and pedophilia and the level of awareness about sexual orientation or gender identity is limited.

In 2011, Afghan news reporters interviewed men who had LGBT-pride symbols on their vehicles, to find out that the men were unaware of the meaning of the rainbow flags and stickers, thinking that it was just another western fad, and began quickly removing the rainbows to avoid being seen as a LGBT person or as supporter of LGBT rights.

Homosexuality is thus often associated with both sexual abuse and prostitution, a popular misconception that trickles down into the nation’s legal system.

Despite the negative social attitudes and legal prohibitions, there is an institutionalized form of bisexuality within Afghan culture. This occurs when boys are kidnapped to act as sexual slaves for adult men, typically in a militia, or when an adult man buys sexual favors from young boys with money or gifts. These activities are tolerated within Afghan culture because they are not perceived as being an expression of an LGBT-identity, but rather an expression of male power and dominance; as the boy in these situations is forced to assume the “female” role in the relationship.

Militia members generally do not have access to women, and so boys are sometimes kidnapped to be humiliated and raped by adult men. Other boys become prostitutes for adult men, regardless of their sexual orientation.

These men involved are sometimes called bach bad in Persian and seem to flourish in the big cities of Afghanistan, possibly due to poverty and the strict social taboos surrounding interaction between men and women. A law has been enacted prohibiting Afghan soldiers from having their “ashna” live with them. In 2007, reports stated that the practice of “bacha bareesh” (beardless boys) is still prevalent in parts of northern Afghanistan. This practice involves teenage boys being dressed in women’s clothing and made to participate in dance competitions and engage in sexual acts

Paula’s comment:

From the world of LGBTI persons globally, we wish all our gay brothers and sisters in Afghanistan freedom to love those you love.

Paula, 2017, stories4hotbloodedlesbians.com

Twenty-Five Unusual Facts About Homosexuality

1.The labrys, a double-edged hatchet or axe, is a symbol of strength and unity for the lesbian community. Demeter, the Goddess of Earth, is said to have used a labrys as her scepter, especially in religious ceremonies.

2. In 1987, Delta Airlines apologized for arguing in plane crash litigation that it should pay less in compensation for the life of a gay passenger than for a heterosexual one because he may have had AIDS.

3. Gay people tend to be left-handed much more often than heterosexuals.

4. The Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriages in 2001.

5. In Egypt, two male royal manicurists named Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep were found buried together in a shared tomb similar to the way married couples were often buried. Their epigraph reads: ‘Joined in life and joined in death’. Having lived in 2400 BC, they are believed to be history’s oldest recorded gay couple.

6. In 1952, the Unites States Congress enacted a law banning lesbians and gay foreigners from entering the country. The law was on the books until it was repealed in 1990.

7. There is some evidence that increased levels of steroids in the womb increases the chances that a girl will be a lesbian.

8. Some historical gay and bi figures have turned their lovers into gods. Alexander the Great wanted to make his boyhood lover Hephaestion a god when he died, but was only allowed to declare him a Divine Hero. The Roman Emperor Hadrian, of wall-building fame, was successful in making his lover, Antinous, a god after he drowned in the Nile.

9. The three U.S. cities that have the most gay couples are New York City (47,000), Los Angeles (12,000), and Chicago (10,000). The major metropolitan cities with the highest LGBT concentration are San Francisco 15.4%, Seattle 12.9%, and Atlanta 12.8%.f

10. The Roman Catholic Church sanctified gay marriages in the “so called” Dark Ages. A notable marriage was between Byzantine Emperor Basil 1st, (867-886) and his partner called John.

11. Gilbert Baker, also known as the “Gay Betsy Ross,” designed the rainbow flag, or Pride Flag, in San Francisco in 1978. The flag is the most prominent symbol of lesbian and gay pride. The colors, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet represent sexuality, life, healing, the Sun, nature, art, harmony, and the spirit, respectively.

12,. Mercury represents male and female principles in harmony. In mythology, Mercury fathered Hermaphroditus, who had both male and female sex organs.

13. The first U.S. lesbian magazine was titled Vice Versa and was written by the pseudonymous Lisa Ben (an anagram for “lesbian”).f

14. In ancient China, homosexuality was referred to as ‘the cut sleeve’ and ‘pleasures of the bitten peach.’’.

15. Until the late 1400s the word ‘girl’ just meant a child of either sex. If you had to differentiate between them, male children were referred to as ‘knave girls’ and females were ‘gay girls‘.

16. We can thank William Shakespeare and his Globe Theatre players for using the word “drag.” It was an acronymn for Dressed Resembling A Girl.”

17. Queen Elizabeth II of England may or may not be aware that in the early 17th century, there was a gay brothel on the site where she lives – Buckingham Palace. (Surely, there is a modern gay or lesbian in the ranks???)

18. As early as 1806, an early explorer, Nicholas Biddle, found that the Minitarees (Native American tribe) allowed for diversity of gender. He wrote, ‘if a boy shows any symptom of effeminacy or girlish inclinations, he is put among the girls, dressed in their way, brought up with them and sometimes married to men’.

19. The word “gay” used to refer to a woman prostitute – and a gay man, was a man who slept with lots of women.

2o. A novel called “Carmilla” was a story of a lesbian vampire that preyed on young women, was written 25 years before Dracula.

21. In 1973, the American Psychiatric Association decided that homosexuality should no longer be classified as a mental disorder. Also the same year, the American Bar Association passed a resolution recommending the repeal of all state sodomy laws.c

22. There has been a gay U.S.A President. He was James Buchanan and he shacked up for 10 years with a future Vice President, William Rufus King. Later on, President Andrew Jackson named Buchanan as “Miss Nancy” and King as “Aunt Fancy.”

23. A monocle is a one-piece-eye- glass, now not in use. Lesbians particularly in France and Germany used a monocle as a means of identification.

24. The oldest surviving LGBT organization in the world is Netherlands’ Centre for Culture and Leisure (COC) which was founded in 1946. It used this as a cover name to mask its real purpose.

25. Gay male victims of the Holocaust, who wore the downward-facing pink triangle, were still considered to be criminals when they were freed from concentration camps. They were often sent back to prison to serve out their terms.

From Various Sources

Paula, 2015, stories4hotbloodedlesbians.com

LGBT Youth Experience More Cyber Bullying

LGBT youth face significant difficulties with discrimination, harassment and lack of family support.

It also happens that they face more harassment online–a place where many youth go to feel as if they’re more part of a community, receive support, medical information, and other opportunities . One study by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) found that LGBT youth faced cyber bullying three times more than non-LGBT youth. The study points out that those living in more rural areas experience even higher levels of harassment online and shows that 42 percent of LGBT youth face a higher level of online bullying, compared to 15 percent of those who are straight/cisgender. Part of the study resulted in findings that show LGBT youth were twice as likely to report bullying through text messages.

This study, called “Out Online: The Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Youth on the Internet”, included results from a national survey which included 5,680 middle and high school students, grades 6-12. It was found that lower grade point average and self-esteem, and a higher chance of depression were linked to youth affected by bullying.

Dr. Eliza Byard, GLSEN’s Executive Director said, “LGBT youth continue to face extraordinary obstacles in their day-to-day lives whether at school or online, but the Internet can be a valuable source of information and support when they have no one or nowhere else left to turn to. As social media evolve, so must our efforts to serve LGBT youth to ensure their safety, health and well-being.”

It is important for LGBT youth to have access to resources available on the Internet that they either would not be able to find elsewhere, or that they don’t feel comfortable seeking offline. For example, this study shows that LGBT youth (particularly those who are transgender) are twice as likely to look up medical information online than their straight/cisgender peers. It is vital that LGBT youth know they have a safe place to be themselves online, especially if they don’t feel that support elsewhere.

Dr. M. Mirza, lgbt health wellness .com – 2014

LGBT+ Historical Influence on Culture

Lately it seems that whenever the LGBT+ community comes up the next thing that someone says has something to do with homophobia. Negativity abounds everywhere.

Evangelicals that oppose homosexuality. The LGBT+ community has really contributed a lot more to the history of our culture than nasty political battles. Although some people try to turn the tables on the LGBT+ community with exasperating stereotypes, it has given modern culture a lot of art. The world of poetry and literature would truly not be the same without Lord Byron, Tennessee Williams, Oscar Wilde, W.H. Auden, Walt Whitman, Audre Lorde, and reputedly Michelangelo as well. Wikipedia has a voluminous listing of gay, lesbian, and bisexual writers that can be referenced at your discretion if you ever feel the urge to guide a conversation about homosexuality away from debate territory.

Inevitably there are bound to be snags in any coffee table discussion of gay contributions to the arts. The more prudish amongst your friends may have objections to gay media stores because collections often include pornography. You’ll have to remind them that most small towns traditionally include an adult video store, and the demand for gay adult media just isn’t as high.

Then of course there are horror stories that come up now and then, like the purported lover’s spat between Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gauguin that ended with Van Gogh removing his ear. Alternate stories about the ear exist, and the art world has always been known for its eccentrics. When straight artists like Jackson Pollack who killed himself and several other passengers in a drunk driving accident still get counted among the best, using Van Gogh’s unrequited love for Gauguin against him is just callous anyway.

Though this probably receives more attention than it should, let’s not forget that LGBT+ culture has influenced fashion. Hyper-feminine styles adopted by cross-dressers have a history of finding their way into mainstream fashion with new life thanks in large part to the LGBT+ community. Many fashion designers are themselves gay or bisexual; Wikipedia has another list for this that goes from Armani all the way to Jeffrey Williams. It’s not uncommon for designers to be thoughtlessly lumped as anti-woman self-hating homosexuals…evidently many straight men have trouble understanding their taste in female models. Not everyone is pin thin or in the closet.

American Thinker has a couple more wins and milestones that the LGBT+ community has to be glad for but reminds us that Gay Pride (and other LGBT+ cultural movements) is at the foundation of all of the progress. AIDs/HIV awareness is a vital cause to support, but dwelling on the negative aspects of LGBT lifestyles is the last thing the LGBT+ community should want to do now.

Are LGBT Students More Likely to Abuse Substances?

Members of the LGBT community typically report a higher level of psychological discomfort and complications in their lives. America may be accepting of sexual minorities in some areas, but not completely across the board. Many, including heterosexuals, turn to drugs to cope with the difficult situations they are presented. Two studies (Substance use of lesbian, gay, bisexual and heterosexual college students and Neighborhood-level LGBT hate crimes and current illicit drug use among sexual minority youth) have recently been published, confirming that LGBT college and high school students typically report higher levels of drug use.

Substance use of lesbian, gay, bisexual and heterosexual college students compared how self-identifying lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) college students and heterosexual use alcohol, tobacco and other drug and alcohol. What they found was that LGB students were more likely to drink in excess. Bisexual college students on the other hand had greater odds of using other illicit substances, with bisexual women reporting the highest.

Drinking and tobacco use already run rampant in Universities. College is an exciting time with new opportunities for socialization and people want to be part of the fun. However, the pressures of campus life and school work combined with the anxieties of leaving home can be depressing for many; especially LGBT communities who report higher levels of discrimination. In Neighborhood-level LGBT hate crimes and current illicit drug use among sexual minority youth, they found cities with high reports of hate crimes towards sexual minority youth also have higher rates of consumption of illicit substances. This proven connection between physical and substance abuse should be raising alarms.

That is not the only contributing factor. Members of sexual minorities also report feeling a greater sense of loneliness and disconnection than their straight counterparts. It’s one thing to feel discomfort moving away from home, but to have nobody to turn to can magnify these emotions. Being lonely is depressing and people that are depressed are more likely to drink. These issues aren’t limited to college life either. LGBT youths in high school, while not as great, report similarly regarding substance abuse.

The problem, as studies seem to show, look more like a social issue than biological. Sexual preference is not something people can be told to make, so adjustments really need to be made towards the treatment of gay communities if these numbers are to be lowered. LGBT groups in colleges are definitely a beneficiary to their members, providing people to confide in for their members but is that really enough? The ideology that we should be treated differently because we have different preferences in the bedroom needs to be erased from society. Nobody should worry about being physically abused just as nobody should need to feel alone.

Dr. M. Mirza, LGBT Health Wellness – 2014