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Comment by Jon McBride on October 28, 2011 at 20:04

Hate Crimes devastate the whole world gay community.  May Stuart & Matthew toss a few together in Heaven 'cause God don't make trash !

Comment by Brian on October 27, 2011 at 22:31

Family of 'gay slaying' lamppost murder victim Stuart Walker tell of shock at his brutal death
Oct 24 2011 David Taylor

A Gran had her 80th birthday party - unaware her grandson had been murdered and set alight while tied to a lamppost.
Stuart Walker's family only heard of his horrific death after Margaret McMeekin's party.

The barman's beaten and scorched body had been found at an industrial estate on the outskirts of his home town, Cumnock in Ayrshire.

Last night, the 28-year-old's cousin John Mullen spoke of the family's heartbreak.
John said: "We knew something was wrong because he was really close to his gran and wouldn't have missed her party for anything.
"He was close to everyone who knew him. He was everyone's best pal.
"Stuart was the best guy ever. Everyone knew Stuart - he was one of the best known boys in Cumnock and the surrounding area.
"If you were to walk down the street, no one would have a bad word to say about him." Police last night said Stuart, who was gay, may have been targeted after a house party in the town where he spent most of his life.

They were trying to piece together his final hours.
He is believed to have gone to a party in the town's Netherthird housing estate in the early hours of Saturday after a night out with pals.

Stuart's friends last saw him alive near the fire station in Glaisnock Street at about 2.30am. His scorched and beaten body was found tied to a lamppost just before 5am on the Caponacre industrial estate on the outskirts of town.
Detective Inspector John Hogg, of Ayr CID, said yesterday: "It is imperative that we find out where he was between 2.30am and 4.50am, who he was with and why this happened to him.
"We understand that there may have been a number of house parties in the nearby Netherthird housing estate in the early hours of the morning - between 2am and 3am.
"At this time we do not know if these parties are linked to our investigation or not, so again, any information on that is important. Officers are checking CCTV and carrying out door-todoor inquiries in the area and we would encourage anyone with information to approach them or to call."
Yesterday, flowers were laid near the murder scene. One left by his gran read: "Miss + Love you always our dear grandson. Sleep tight, Gran and Papa."

Another said: "There are so many words going through my mind at the moment. One is Why. Why our Stuart? The whole family has been ripped apart.

"Life will never be the same again - or any party! We are all so devastated and heartbroken.
Lov n miss you so much, from Keri, Ryan and kids. XXXX."
Stuart's cousin John said he had been "the kind of guy that everyone who met him loved".
John added: "He was the life and soul of the party. He loved music and clubbing.

"Whoever has done this has ripped our family apart and broke everyone's heart.
"If anyone knows what happened, we would plead with them to come forward."

Stuart started work in the First Edition bar, in Kilmarnock, days before his murder. Manager Gareth Alberts, 25, said: "He gave the whole place a real buzz."

Dailyrecord.co.uk

Comment by Jon McBride on September 7, 2011 at 17:04

Scottish Games ---  Ocala, Florida   Oct 9,2011

Florida has more Highland games in a season than all the rest of the USA !  Season usually starts in the southern end of the state in January.  Check us out  ;-)   Come & thaw out, compete, & just play !!

Comment by Brian on July 24, 2011 at 21:30

 

You can't deport me..i'm gay, says Ugandan Facebook rapist

 

A rapist who was snared after confessing on Facebook is seeking asylum in the UK - by claiming he is gay.

John Ssewagudde, 21, is serving four years for raping a 28-year-old woman in her flat in Glasgow last June.

 

He was convicted after a jury was told that he had posted a message on the social networking site, saying: "I admit it. I raped you."

Ssewagudde later claimed that he had consensual sex with the woman but he was convicted of rape following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow in January this year.

The Record has now learned that former charity worker Ssewagudde, originally from Uganda, lodged an asylum request while he was being held on remand for his crime.

He is claiming that he is homosexual and that if he is sent back to his homeland he could be killed.

full story: http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2011/07/22/you-can-...

Comment by Brian on February 28, 2011 at 12:02

Gay community and police relations 'better' in Scotland

Community relations between the police and gay and lesbian people in Scotland are better than those in California, a Northern Constabulary advisor has said.

Lisa Buchanan spent four-and-a-half months with the San Francisco Police Department and the University of California last year.

She will start giving presentations on her research later this month.

Ms Buchanan studied San Francisco's Bay area because of its culture of lesbian, gay and bisexual communities.

The strategic diversity advisor told Northern Constabulary's e-magazine that she was drawn to the story of US gay rights leader Harvey Milk, who was assassinated in 1978.

He was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977 and is credited with being the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in a major US city.

Ms Buchanan, who secured an award for her study, said she wanted to research how police relations with gay and lesbian communities had developed since the 1970s.

She said: "In terms of investigating homophobic hate incidents, their approach is comparable to ours, yet there are much fewer victims coming forward and I think this is a reflection of the strategic approach to community engagement.

"In Scotland, and in the north, I think we enjoy much better community relations than they do in San Francisco."

'Political correctness'

Northern Constabulary's chief constable Ian Latimer said in 2009 that combating hate crimes and the abuse of people because of prejudices against them would be at the heart of Scottish policing.

His comments were made as the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (Acpos) launched a strategy promoting equality and diversity in police forces.

Mr Latimer said the move had nothing to with what "some still regard as political correctness".

He said at the time: "The police cannot work in isolation. Reducing crime and building safe and confident communities requires the assistance, trust and co-operation of everyone."

Northern Constabulary also launched Acpos's Diversity Handbook in 2009.

It provides officers with advice on dealing with honour crimes, forced marriages, disability, gender, faith and religion, race and sexual orientation.

 

www.bbc.co.uk

 

 

Comment by Brian on December 8, 2010 at 12:28

You can download a copy of November issue of scotsgay magazine here:
http://www.scotsgay.co.uk/pdf/sg108.pdf

Includes a list of venues within scotland :)

Comment by Jamie and Balance on December 7, 2010 at 22:33

Already members of Gay China - but I am originally from Scotland and very proud of it ~ my partner is from China - and we live in New Zealand ~ our dream is to tour Scotland again in the future ~ and will be interested to meet other gay couples ~ or single guys for social friendship

Comment by Jon McBride on December 7, 2010 at 19:27

Great to see a groupd for Gay Scots. I was pleased to see the post about Mr Bain being awarded the compensation for harrassment. I was also pleased to see that labri is a student nurse, as I am a retired Psychiatric Clinical Nurse here in the US. I am also an active member of Clan Donald USA wanting very much to visit 'home' at Armadale Castle on the Isle of Skye. It will be very interesting to see how this group grows.

Comment by Brian on November 29, 2010 at 10:16

Gay worker awarded £13,000 for bullying at visitor centre

Steven Bain suffered ridicule and abuse from colleagues at The Lighthouse in Glasgow city centre.A worker at an acclaimed visitor centre who was bullied and ridiculed because he was gay has been awarded more than £13,000 at an employment tribunal.

Steven Bain was asked had he ever dressed as a woman and whether he found the words "poof" and "queer" offensive.

Colleagues at The Lighthouse in Glasgow walked out of a room if he entered and were "disgusted" that he had gone to a gay bar.

Mr Bain took his former employers to a tribunal citing harassment on the grounds of sexual orientation and unfair dismissal as a result of being made redundant.

A panel has now awarded him £13,528 claiming he was subjected to a "hostile and degrading" working environment.

A hearing was told how Mr Bain worked as a visitor service assistant at The Lighthouse, which was dubbed Scotland's centre for architecture and design.

He initially had no problems with workmates, but in 2007, he felt there was a "change of culture" and that people were "uncomfortable" with him being gay.

Mr Bain, of Lawrie Street, Partick, was subjected to taunts and colleagues would often leave a room if he entered.

He was asked if he found terms such as "poof" and "queer" offensive. Workmates were said to be disgusted he went to a gay bar and also quizzed him on whether he had dressed as a woman.

The tribunal was told one colleague spoke to him in a "sarcastic gay voice".

There was another issue about which cup Mr Bain should use and that he should have his own and not share with anyone.

Mr Bain also saw a Christmas tree decorated with red AIDS support ribbons.

Mr Bain later lodged grievances against members of staff, but, in April 2009, he was told his complaints were not being upheld.

He lost his job in August of last year after The Lighthouse Trust Limited went into administration.

Mr Bain believed he had been picked out for redundancy after raising grievances.

The hearing was told Mr Bain now suffers from depression and panic attacks.

In a written judgement, employment judge Lucy Wiseman said the conduct "amounted to harassment on the ground of sexual orientation."

She added the comments created an "intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive" environment.http://news.stv.tv/scotland/west-central

Comment by Brian on November 29, 2010 at 10:12

What does being a gay icon mean to you?

(Laughs) It means lots of gay men and women like me! It's a funny thing: I don't wake up in the morning and think, "Oh my goodness, I'm a gay icon!" Not at all. But you see, I'm not part of the gay community myself, so it's not part of my direct experience. But I'm certainly a liberal-minded person, and I actually really almost resent all these labels.

I was watching on YouTube the other day a man - or a woman, I should say, now - who was saying, "Please don't label me as transgender. I don't want to be labeled. I'm sick of all these labels." And I'm thinking, "I'm with you." I mean, OK, you're sexually oriented one way, this way or that way or another way, but I want to get rid of labels. I think we want to get to the point of evolution, where it makes no difference if you're straight, gay, transgender, whatever - just be inclusive. We need to see ourselves as absolutely human beings, first and foremost.

In the '70s, when I was a teenager, it was the first time I discovered that anybody was gay. I had never met a gay person before I came down from Scotland, and the changes that have happened so far are huge. I think there have just been huge steps. Gay people have come out, and they're powerful and working in banks, in clinics, as doctors, teachers, everywhere. It's just a natural evolution, in a way.

It does worry me very much when I hear about very extreme homophobia arising in places. I think of my friends who, if they went to certain countries, would be ostracized or - it's unbelievable to think that these extremes do exist, but this is the world we live in. We're living in a time where you have fundamentalists who are so extreme - either the Catholic Church or in the Muslim areas - and I just think, "Where's the tolerance?"

/www.pridesource.com