Box Turtle Bulletin
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobby“Now you must raise your children up in a world where that union of man and box turtle is on the same legal footing as man and wife…”
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobbyAugust 5th, 2010
According to Reuters:
A Sudanese court on Wednesday sentenced 19 young Muslim men to 30 lashes and a fine for breaking moral codes by wearing women’s clothes and makeup, a case exposing Sudanese sensitivity towards homosexuality. Many of the defendants tried to hide their faces from the around 200 people who watched as they were lashed straight after their sentencing. The men had no lawyers present and said nothing in their own defence. The trial judge said police had raided a party thrown by the 19 men and found them dancing “in a womanly fashion”, wearing women’s clothes and makeup.
One lawyer who was present reportedly said that legal advocates would have been afraid to serve as lawyers for the defendants.
Latest Posts
Featured Reports
In this original BTB Investigation, we unveil the tragic story of Kirk Murphy, a four-year-old boy who was treated for “cross-gender disturbance” in 1970 by a young grad student by the name of George Rekers. This story is a stark reminder that there are severe and damaging consequences when therapists try to ensure that boys will be boys.
When we first reported on three American anti-gay activists traveling to Kampala for a three-day conference, we had no idea that it would be the first report of a long string of events leading to a proposal to institute the death penalty for LGBT people. But that is exactly what happened. In this report, we review our collection of more than 500 posts to tell the story of one nation’s embrace of hatred toward gay people. This report will be updated continuously as events continue to unfold. Check here for the latest updates.
In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center wrote that “[Paul] Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany.” What the SPLC didn”t know was Cameron doesn’t just “echo” Nazi Germany. He quoted extensively from one of the Final Solution’s architects. This puts his fascination with quarantines, mandatory tattoos, and extermination being a “plausible idea” in a whole new and deeply disturbing light.
On February 10, I attended an all-day “Love Won Out” ex-gay conference in Phoenix, put on by Focus on the Family and Exodus International. In this series of reports, I talk about what I learned there: the people who go to these conferences, the things that they hear, and what this all means for them, their families and for the rest of us.
Prologue: Why I Went To “Love Won Out”
Part 1: What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Part 2: Parents Struggle With “No Exceptions”
Part 3: A Whole New Dialect
Part 4: It Depends On How The Meaning of the Word "Change" Changes
Part 5: A Candid Explanation For "Change"
At last, the truth can now be told.
Using the same research methods employed by most anti-gay political pressure groups, we examine the statistics and the case studies that dispel many of the myths about heterosexuality. Download your copy today!
And don‘t miss our companion report, How To Write An Anti-Gay Tract In Fifteen Easy Steps.
Anti-gay activists often charge that gay men and women pose a threat to children. In this report, we explore the supposed connection between homosexuality and child sexual abuse, the conclusions reached by the most knowledgeable professionals in the field, and how anti-gay activists continue to ignore their findings. This has tremendous consequences, not just for gay men and women, but more importantly for the safety of all our children.
Anti-gay activists often cite the “Dutch Study” to claim that gay unions last only about 1½ years and that the these men have an average of eight additional partners per year outside of their steady relationship. In this report, we will take you step by step into the study to see whether the claims are true.
Tony Perkins’ Family Research Council submitted an Amicus Brief to the Maryland Court of Appeals as that court prepared to consider the issue of gay marriage. We examine just one small section of that brief to reveal the junk science and fraudulent claims of the Family “Research” Council.
The FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics aren’t as complete as they ought to be, and their report for 2004 was no exception. In fact, their most recent report has quite a few glaring holes. Holes big enough for Daniel Fetty to fall through.
“Google” is a trademark of Google Inc.
© Box Turtle Bulletin. All Rights Reserved.
Posts 
Posts via daily email:
Désirée
August 5th, 2010
when will people stop conflating transgender behavior with homosexuality? Nothing in this article indicates the men were homosexual or engaged in homosexual activity. Transvestitism, sure (or perhaps they were all transsexual) but being T* does not mean one is also gay.
L. Junius Brutus
August 5th, 2010
The religion of peace strikes again.
Emily K
August 5th, 2010
I concur with Desiree. The men may have been transgender, or transvestites, but they weren’t homosexual according to anything reported.
F Young
August 5th, 2010
FYI The Reuters source article says:
“Local newspapers reported that the party was held to celebrate a same-sex wedding, propelling it into a talking point all over Khartoum’s conservative Muslim society. The court on Wednesday made no mention of a marriage ceremony.”
So, perhaps Reuters assumed that there was indeed a gay wedding and that attendees at such a wedding who were anatomically male, but wore women’s clothes, must be gay. Drag queens possibly.
Désirée
August 5th, 2010
which may excuse Reuters their ignorance, but doesn’t excuse the (possibly) incorrect title of this blogpost. I expect the mainstream media to screw up but I expect better of BTB.
Aaron
August 5th, 2010
It is true, I know a good many heterosexual transvestites.
werdna
August 5th, 2010
Perhaps if the headline read “Nineteen Sudanese Men ‘Flogged for Being Gay'” it would be clearer that the potentially inaccurate “being gay” part is from the story that’s the source for the post.
Jim Burroway
August 5th, 2010
I’ve changed the headline to “LGBT.” The original headline was definitely sloppy. My apologies.
Emily K
August 5th, 2010
I think that transvestitism is MOSTLY heterosexual. These men could have been in drag, which is indeed part of gay culture. But unless they were making out with one another, I can’t suspect this was anything “gay.”
Emily K
August 5th, 2010
Thanks Jim, it’s a great help.
Désirée
August 5th, 2010
In thinking about this overnight, I realized how sad it was that my first reaction was to be irked at the headline, which to me, seemed to discount trans people because saying someone was beaten for homosexuality is more sympathy inducing than saying they were beaten for cross dressing; rather than simply being mad that 17 people were beaten for no good reason at all, mostly because it happened in some African country where I expect barbarism. Have I really become that jaded?
Jim Burroway
August 5th, 2010
Désirée, sometimes I think we all have. We see this sort of thing so much it almost doesn’t seem real.
anteros
August 6th, 2010
sudan, public flogging… that must be sharia law, based on the koran.
i dunno much about the koran, but i know of one african translation of the bible that uses the phrase “men who pretend to be women” or “men who turn themselves into women” as a translation for the english word “homosexuals” (for example, in the verse that says something like “…homosexuals… shall not inherit the kingdom of god”). so, in the eyes of some bigots, there may be little distinction between the two. gay, bi, T*… all face a similar fate in many parts of africa. lesbians suffer too… i read about “corrective rape” in south africa (google it). there is little tolerance for those whose gender identity or sexual orientation is considered “atypical”… and i think (just my opinion) that much of that intolerance can be traced back to religiosity and or patriarchy.
kinda reminds me of the BTB post on the malawian couple… gay or transgendered. i think sexual orientation and gender identity are either very complicated or just oversimplified in many parts of africa… both by LGBT africans and their persecutors… speaking in general terms… (add additional disclaimers here).
anteros
August 6th, 2010
in the same vein… ssempa (pastor eat da poo poo) had a recent rant, claiming something like “homosexuals suffer from gender disorders”… i’d provide a link if i could, but i think it can be found here: http://www.wthrockmorton.com
Leave A Comment