Fridae

Zoo's attempt to turn gay penguins straight unsuccessful
A zoo has scrapped a plan to break up homosexual penguin couples following protests from gay rights groups.

Bremerhaven Zoo in Northern Germany flew in four female Humboldt penguins from Sweden in a bid to encourage three male couples to reproduce after the males have been observed trying to mate with each other and trying to hatch offspring out of stones. The six homosexual birds, however, showed no interest in their new companions and remained faithful to each other.

Director Heike Kueck, who had initially defended her campaign to mate a group of homosexual male penguins with females, arguing that it is the only way to preserve a dying breed from extinction, changed her mind after being inundated with criticism by gay lobby groups after making public her plan.

Gay groups insisted that penguins had a right to form couples without human interference, she said. "If the penguins really are gay then obviously they can stay gay."

She added: "Nobody here wants to forcibly separate homosexual couples."

Scientists have found numerous examples of same-sex behaviour in emus, dolphins and pigs, while same-sex couples in other penguin species are also well documented including two male King penguins who live together in Edinburgh Zoo and two chinstrap penguins at the Central Park Zoo in Manhattan. Penguins are believed to mate for life.

Keepers at the German zoo only realised that six of the birds were gay after ordering DNA tests to be carried out on the penguins after they had been mating for years without producing any chicks.

Christian protesters at Auckland's Big Gay Out
Christian protesters turned up at New Zealand's biggest gay and lesbian festival in Auckland on Sunday shouting strong views against homosexual relationships.

An unnamed man was led away by organisers as he shouted at the crowd at Coyle Park in Pt Chevalier, "No, I'm not from Destiny Church, I don't agree with everything they do but I do wish to tell you this much; I respect them for standing up for the filth and perversion of sodomy in this nation."

A husband and wife team from the Independent Baptist Church arrived with placards. Justin Pearce and his wife stood in the midst of the crowd and preached. Holding a placard that read "God Hates Homosexuality," he told the crowd, "We have got children and we take offence at what is going on here. This is a family park and we believe the Bible says explicitly that homosexuality is a sin." An accordionist tried to drown Pearce out by striking discordant notes whenever he spoke while others including the Topp Twins and a devil-like clown dressed in red lycra, tried scare tactics such as by hugging Pearce.

New Zealand's Civil Union Act in expected to come into force in a few months. Prime Minister Helen Clark also made an appearance, as did Auckland Mayor Dick Hubbard. Big Gay Out was part of gay and lesbian festival Hero 2005, which runs until February 27.

San Francisco mayor defiant on anniversary of city's gay weddings
San Francisco Mayer Gavin Newsom urged gay couples to hold elected officials accountable for supporting gay marriage a year after he opened the doors of San Francisco City Hall to same-sex marriages.

He was speaking to about three thousand gay and lesbian supporters during a City Hall ceremony to mark the anniversary of last year's "Winter of Love" when his administration granted marriage licenses to same-sex couples, which were later voided when the California Supreme Court ruled that Newsom had overstepped his authority.

Despite being blamed for feeding a conservative rush to the polls in November when 11 states passed anti-gay marriage amendments, the unapologetic mayer criticised fellow Democrats for not taking a bolder stance on gay marriage during a speech at Harvard University earlier this week.

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Health experts divided on implications of N.Y. AIDS case
Some gay activists and HIV/AIDS advocates have criticised the New York Health Department for jumping the gun with its announcement of a rare, highly virulent strain of the AIDS virus found in a New York man. The virus was diagnosed in a man in his late 40s who reported having unprotected sex with multiple male partners, often while using the highly potent narcotic crystal methamphetamine.

Some have argued that a lot more research was required to determine the precise nature of the virus strain in question as others fear the announcement may fuel panic of an HIV "superbug" and further stigmatise their community.

New York officials had announced last Friday that they had identified a newly infected man who had a strain of the virus that was resistant to three of the four classes of anti-AIDS drugs and that appeared to have progressed rapidly to full-blown AIDS in months. In typical cases, the onset of AIDS usually occurs more than 10 years after initial infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). New York officials said Tuesday that they had tracked down a dozen of the man's sexual contacts and were testing them for HIV.

Noting that the existence of resistant HIV strains was not new, several AIDS researchers said it remained unclear whether the swift progression of the disease was attributable to the virulence of the HIV strain or the particular physiology of the patient.

The New York-based Community HIV/AIDS Mobilisation Project (CHAMP) warned of the risk of stigmatising gay men as "crazed drug addicts, carelessly or wantonly spreading a killer bug" and called on the city authorities to clarify the facts.

New York Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden had described the case was "a wake-up call" to the gay community, particularly those who may use crystal methamphetamine.
However, CHAMP executive director Julie Davids took another view.

"What would be dangerous is for this to be a wake-up call to the gay community to feel more shame and self-hatred."

Despite the disagreement, there is consensus, however, on the need to combat a resurgence in HIV transmission, including addressing the impact of crystal meth use on HIV risk behaviour.

Crystal meth, also known as "ice," puts users - both gay and heterosexual - into a highly sexualised state that lowers inhibitions. Studies have shown that people using the drug are more likely to have multiple partners and less likely to use condoms. The illicit drug is also said to severely compromise the immune system, possibly setting the stage for a more rapid progression. The drug destroys key white blood cells in the immune system, "the very cells that are crucial in fighting off HIV," said Dr Jonathan Fielding, Los Angeles County's public health director.

Communications director of the Califonia-based Stop Aids Project, Jason Riggs, said in the last few years crystal meth use had "really exploded". "It is a real cause for concern. In San Francisco, if you're a gay or bisexual man using crystal you're 300 to 400 per cent more likely to get HIV," Riggs said.

Meanwhile, Massachusetts doctors have reported several HIV patients with a resistance to some of the most commonly prescribed treatments, raising further concerns about a possible new, drug-resistant strain of the virus.

The patients' resistance to drug treatment is similar to a New York City case that has sparked widespread concern among public-health experts, the Boston Herald reported. "There is global concern that there may be an increasing amount of patients who have a resistant virus," said Dr Gregory Robbins of Massachusetts General Hospital.

Although public health officials are divided on whether the New York announcement was premature and Dr Steven Tierney of San Francisco's director of HIV prevention warned that New York's dramatic press release on the man's condition amounted to scare tactics - and might backfire, New York officials have stood by their decision.

"We needed to warn people about this virus," said Dr. Isaac Weisfue, deputy commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. "We're here to prevent virologic outbreaks, not just to report on them and study them."

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