German soccer captain warns against coming out
Philipp Lahm, a German soccer team captain recognized for his efforts to fight homophobia in sports, advises players not to come out because the consequences could be devastating, including suicide.
Reuters reported on the statements from Lahm in his new autobiography, “The Subtle Difference,” released on Aug. 29.
“I would not advise any gay professional footballer to come out,” wrote the fullback and captain of Bayern Munich. “I would fear that he could end up like Justin Fashanu who after he outed himself was driven into such a corner that he ended up committing suicide.”
Fashanu, the only soccer player to come out during his professional career, took his own life in 1998 after his revelations prompted derision from fans.
Despite his advice, Lahm said that the prospect of working alongside an openly gay player would not bother him personally. He received an award in 2008 from the Weimar Gay Triangle, a German LGBT-rights organization, for his outspokenness against intolerance.
The comments echo a controversial opinion Lahm shared earlier this year when he told Bunte, a German celebrity magazine, that an openly gay soccer player would be exposed to “abusive elements.” The German Football Federation has urged gay players to come out in an effort to fight homophobia in the sport.
In the new autobiography, Lahm, who is married to a woman, also denied rumors that he is in a gay relationship with a man in Cologne.
“This speculation doesn’t matter to me,” he said. “I have nothing against homosexuals, and I find that there is nothing wrong with homosexuality.” Justice wanted in
S. African murder case
Gay-rights activists have marched on a police building in South Africa to petition for action over murder and corrective rapes in the east of the country.
Hundreds of gay-rights activists marched to the Kwa-Thema police station to voice their frustration over the police’s “inaction” in Johannesburg’s East Rand townships.
As they marched they sang “Noxolo is not sleeping,” a reference to lesbian activist Noxolo Nogwaza, who was murdered earlier this year.
Lindi Masindwa, a member of the Ekurhuleni Pride Organizing Committee, which organized the protest, said: “It’s been three months since Noxolo was brutally murdered, but we have seen no progress. We want the police to speed up the investigations.”
The group presented a memorandum to Ekurhuleni metro police department chief Hlula Msimang, calling for a greater commitment to investigating hate crimes against gays and lesbians.
Nogwaza’s cousin, Nonyaniso Nogwaza, said that the police would only tell her that the case is still under investigation.
“The only way to bring peace to our hearts is if the police find the people who killed Noxolo and bring them to justice,” she said. In May this year Parliament set up a national task force to deal with hate murders and “corrective” rape, but activists question its effectiveness.
Indonesian lesbian couple forcibly separated
In the Indonesian province of Aceh, authorities have forced a lesbian couple to have their marriage annulled and sign a separation agreement — but their local police chief told them they really deserve beheading.
The women, whose names were not revealed, were married legally by an Islamic cleric a few months ago, with one of them passing as a man. Neighbors suspected they were both women, however, and reported them to police in the province, which enforces some aspects of Muslim Sharia law.
The two are now living with their families and under surveillance. The local police chief told them that Islam called for them to be beheaded and burned, but the province has yet to put such penalties into law.
While Indonesia has the world’s largest Muslim population, Aceh is the only province that is allowed to implement Sharia, the religion’s legal code. It has yet to adopt any provisions dealing with homosexuality, which is legal but frowned upon in the nation. Two years ago, the provincial parliament passed legislation authorizing the death penalty for adultery and caning for homosexuality, but the governor refused to sign it.
Pro-gay reggae album world’s first
Jamaican reggae singer Mista Majah P has released the world’s first pro-gay reggae album.
Entitled “Tolerance,” it includes 11 songs in support of same-sex marriage and adoption by gay couples, as well as attacks on homophobic bullying and the U.S. military policy, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
The record also admonishes antigay prejudices of “murder music” reggae singer Beenie Man and of the Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding.
Peter Tatchell, coordinator of the Stop Murder Music campaign, said, “Since releasing the album, Mista Majah P has received numerous death threats and has been warned to not return to Jamaica,” from his current residence in California. “He’s undeterred and defiant, stating that ‘murder music’ has given reggae a negative image, which is bad for the music industry and for all reggae artists.”
Since 2004, the Stop Murder Music campaign has protested against eight reggae singers who have put out songs encouraging and glorifying the murder of LGBT people.
Although Mista Majah P is not gay, he supports gay equality.
Explaining why he created the album, Mista Majah P said, “I want to counter the myths that all Jamaicans are homophobic and that all reggae music is violent and antigay. I’m seeking to challenge ignorance and reach out to gay people.”
He added, “My hope is that this CD, ‘Tolerance,’ will break down the homophobic stance that certain reggae artists and heads of government have taken toward the LGBTQ community. Because of the hateful songs that some performers have been singing, gay people have been threatened and harmed. Some foolish people act upon what these artists are preaching because they worship these artists like gods. My music is about tolerance. It shows that reggae music can respect gay and lesbian people. Reggae music used to be about love, peace and unity. Now it is too often about bigotry and violence. I want to bring the music back to its progressive roots.”
— complied by Larry Nichols