Blog #10: Ebola can be transmitted sexually for weeks after recovery, education is crucial

In Sierra Leone, members of a women’s secret society are proposing drastic measures to stop Ebola from spreading through sexual contact. They are suggested that all survivors should be quarantined for 3 months because the virus can still be spread for up to 7 weeks after recovery. Since men refuse to use condoms, quarantine seems to be the only solution to the problems. The CDC hasn’t officially confirmed that the virus can still be spread through sexual intercourse, but said multiple studies have showed that it can last in the semen way longer than any other bodily fluids. Women’s secret societies are ancient institutions that are found all over Sierra Leone. They teach girls “how to become women” through a hands-on curriculum that includes sex education. However, secret societies have been known for practicing FGM as apart of their education curriculum.  Promoting 3 months of abstinence can easily be seen as another traditional belief but there is obviously a problem promoting abstinence-based sexual messages. People are going to have sex, whether its voluntary or involuntary, it is going to happen and it’s not going to stop because of Ebola. Sierra Leone has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world and it’s related to the high percentages of teenage pregnancies. With the number in maternal related deaths increasing, the country has put billboards all over to encourage girls to stay in school and not get pregnant. Without proper sex education and access to contraceptives, this is nearly impossible. Besides the lack of education and health care, the knowledge and access to water and proper sanitation is also an issue. Unplanned pregnancy is the number one reason that is keeping girls out of schools, but also the lack of wash facilities for menstruating girls is another issue. The new ruling by the ministry of education has banned pregnant girls in schools because they are seen as bad examples to other students.

I feel like the billboards that are all over Sierra Leone are quite contradictory, telling girls to stay in school but banning girls who are pregnant from attending school? It doesn't make any sense. Abstinence sex education has been a proven factor in not preventing teen pregnancies. Providing these girls with the proper education, sanitation facilities, and health care access is what’s going to help from stop spreading Ebola and the teen pregnancy epidemic in Sierra Leone. 

Ashley Casmirri

4/27/15

2:22 PM

Link: http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/apr/22/sexual-health-ebola-semen-sierra-leone

Blog #10: Russian court rejects complaint from gay teacher fired for ‘immoral’ behaviour

Summary:

In Russia, a teacher’s photo was released all over the Russian social media due to an anti-gay activist from St. Petersburg releasing it on his profile along with the name of the individual and their place of employment. The teacher intended for this photo of her kissing another woman to remain private, as she made the photo inaccessible to the public. Somehow the photo got into the wrong hands, and with this, the release of this photo began to spread awareness to the parents, of the children who attend the school, of the teacher’s personal sexual life. With awareness of the sexual orientation of the teacher came complaint after complaint from the parents as well as eventual dismissal of the teacher. With reason of dismissal from the teaching position being discrimination of sexual orientation, one would assume that the court would be on the professor’s side, but this was not the case. The Russian court rejected the teacher’s complaint and the teacher is facing the consequences of being different from the dominant culture.  

Analysis:

This article is an interesting representation about how socialization can negatively impact an individual and the group they are a part of. It seems that people tend to be more accepting of homosexual relationships and acts based off how the laws are constructed and enforced. In this article particularly, Human rights groups have blamed a Russian law against “gay propaganda” or the increasing rate of homophobia Russia and I would have to agree. If a country is against a certain behavior, in this case homosexual behavior, they construct societies that reflect their beliefs. Laws and the addition of laws show where the country is heading to. Russia started off not approving of homosexuals and their practices and by enforcing more laws that prohibit the development and expansion of homosexuality, there are going to be more homosexuals “in the closet” as well as develop a society that discriminates homosexuality.

Karen Bent

April 24^th 2015

1:52PM

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/23/russian-court-rejects-complaint-gay-teacher-fired-immoral-behaviour

Blog 10:Asia's LGBT people migrate to escape violence at home

Before Joe Wong removed her breasts and uterus, he was Joleen. When Joleen was young at an attempt to bind her breast she wrapped and entire role of brown duct tape to do so. One of her family member saw this and was immediately angered understanding that Joleen was trying to bind her breast. The individual tore off the duct tape and in the process of doing so, tore off bits of Joleen’s skin. Also the family member hit Joleen on the head.

Throughout her childhood Joleen experienced numerous amounts of beatings. Sometimes he was beaten until she felt numb. She now is a transgendered man working for the Asia Pacific Transgender Network in Bangkok. Across Asia, which is largely patriarchal and conservative, the violence lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people face is often from their own families, who beat them to make them conform and maintain the social balance, experts say.

 

Homosexual acts are illegal in 78 countries around the world, punishable by jail time in places including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Malaysia and Singapore, according to the International Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA). Activists now say that laws such as these drive stigma and discrimination, and essentially condone family violence, though the problem remains hidden, glimpsed through many anecdotes but little data. In order to escape the beatings and find a sense of belonging, LGBT people in Asia flock to cities in their own country, and increasingly with the Internet and social media easing migration for jobs and gay marriage many like Wong are leaving their home country altogether. A key reason for family violence against LGBT people in Asia - and the way this region differs from other parts of the world - is the "family shame factor", says Ging Cristobal, the Asia-Pacific project coordinator for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. This goes to show you that even though there may be laws to protect the LBGT community, the culture of how they are treated does not disappear, its transformed and embodies by something different.

Tabitha mclaughlin, April 23, 2015, 10:45
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/09/us-gay-rights-asia-idUSKBN0N000D20150409

Blog #9:Edomex: Mexico's most dangerous place for females.

Edomex, a state in Mexico located near Mexico City, is currently the most dangerous place to be a female in Mexico. Late last month, the remains of 14-year-old Diane Angelica Castañeda Fuentes were finally laid to rest. Fuentes was on her way to a friend’s house on September 7, 2013 when she disappeared in the city of Ecatepec. Her remains were eventually discovered in the Great Canal of Ecatepec. This seems to be a common occurrence in the state of Edomex. In 2011 and 2012, over 1200 girls and women were reported missing, 53% of them were between the ages of 10 and 17.  During this time, over 400 women were murdered and their mutilated bodies were displayed in public places and it’s believed these acts are associated with gender hate crimes. A similar situation happened between 1993-2005, 379 women were murdered in the city Ciudad Juárez. Protests and media coverage brought on a new legislation in the state. However, 10 times as many women have been murdered in Edomex in just a year’s time, most of them go unreported and unnoticed by the outside world.

The authorities received a tip off and searched the Great Canal of Ecatepec and recovered the remains of 40-60 bodies. This is how they came across the remains of Fuentes. Mexico doesn’t have a national DNA databank, so thousands of unidentified bodies are buried. Since 2010, there has been a coalition of 43 groups that have documented and petitioned for awareness of gender-based violence. However, government officials say they need more proof that these cases are related to gender based violence and they have “more important issues to deal with”.

It saddens me that the Mexican government isn’t doing more to bring justice to women in Mexico. Personally, I think these crimes are definitely related to gender-based violence crimes. They have “more important issues to deal with”, but this seems like it has been an ongoing issue and it will continue to happen unless the government steps in.

Ashley Casmirri

4/17/15

6:00 PM

Link: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/15/mexico-missing-girls-canal

Blog #9 Egypt court backs deportation of ‘gay’ Libyan man

Summary:

Recently in Egypt a Libyan man, who was studying in the Arab Academy for Maritime Transport in Cairo, was deported due to solely being accused of participating in homosexual acts. According to the guardian, ever since the military overthrew the Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in July of 2013 the authorities of Egypt have been targeting members of the LGBT community. This has led to an acceleration of arrest rates for members of the LGBT community. This case of the Libyan man is an example of the many cases of homosexuals that have been targeted. According to the Egyptian media, the reason the judge ruled in favor of the deportation of the Libyan man was to “prevent the spreading of social ills.”

Analysis:

Throughout the search of gaining knowledge on the LGBT around the world for my blog entries, I have focused for the majority of my blogs on the progresses the LGBT community has been facing around the world. There are plenty of states and countries that are still causing strain on the LGBT community. Egypt is in interesting example of the hardship LGBT community members have to face. Egypt does not explicitly write out in their laws that homosexuality or participating in homosexual acts is illegal. Rather they passed a law that prevents those that are visiting to do something against public morality. As well, Egypt makes it illegal for anyone to participate in acts that resemble debauchery. With this Egypt has made life in Egypt for members of the LGBT community really difficult, as it seems that these laws only truly apply to homosexuality. This is an example of a country that is far behind on progress for the LGBT community. Due to the hidden meanings behind their laws they are making it really difficult for all members of their society to really understand their views on homosexuality. Because the judge who ruled in favor of the deportation due to the “prevention of social ills,” I would have to say that the lack of knowledge Egypt’s population has on homosexuality based off the judge’s statement and the laws itself, shows how much they truly are not willing to learn.

Karen Bent

April 17th 2015

2:12 PM

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/15/egypt-court-backs-deportation-of-gay-libyan-man

http://www.inquisitr.com/2017475/egypt-bans-homosexual-foreigners-from-entering-country-deports-for-homosexual-practices/

BLOG 9: Masturbation Will Lead to Homosexuality’: China’s LGBT Sex-Ed Problem

Humphrey who is a HIV/AIDS activist attended a panel on sex education, hoping to learn about the textbooks used to teach Chinese students about sex at the International Conference on Sexuality in Kunming, China. One presenter reading aloud from a book that had been widely used in high school classrooms in the city of Hangzhou for years: “Masturbation will lead to mental disorders and homosexuality,” he said. Wou, who had been in the region for months providing rapid HIV testing to gay men, was not surprised. In a country where sex and sexuality remain taboo topics of discussion, such misinformation remains common. In fact, out of ninety Chinese science, psychology, and sex-education textbooks surveyed by the Gay and Lesbian Campus Association, a Guangzhou-based student advocacy group, 80 percent characterized homosexuality as psychologically aberrant. Although homosexuality was removed from the official list of mental disorders in 2001, LGBT people in China have few legal protections against discrimination and still face widespread social disapproval and harassment. One of the reasons for this was stated by Wou saying that the traditional values of the Chinese has come back in big way since about 10 years ago. “The government is very old-fashioned and refuses to adapt to modern times. Students are reading Confucius in the classroom and then having unprotected sex at hourly lodging hotels just outside of the college gates.” Sex education in China is optional so that means if a school chooses not to have it they do not have to. So needless to say that China lacks a unified sex education policy. Even the schools that have the curriculum do not explore the social and emotional dimension of sex and sexuality, essential for entering into mature sexual relationships. This made me think about our schools. I don’t know if anyone remembers but in my school when they gave sex education they talked mainly about period, pregnancy, condoms and what happens to your body when you hit puberty. According Wou, in China there are rarely many places for gay men to ask questions about there sexuality a be comfortable. This particular panel discussion occurring was the closes thing anyone of them has had to being able to have a open conversation about it.

By Tabitha McLaughlin

1:30 pm, April 17th, 2015
http://www.thenation.com/article/202841/masturbation-will-lead-homosexuality-chinas-lgbt-sex-ed-problem

 

Blog #8: Schools should teach positive portrayal of same-sex relationships

At the annual conference for the National Union of Teachers in Harrogate, they approved that students should be taught a positive representation of same sex relationships in school sex education. Creating a more positive environment for LBGT and an understanding about sexuality and gender that is fit for the 21^st century. By discussing the ideas of sexuality and gender, it will make it easier for students and teachers that identify as LGBT to work and attend school without fear. Despite recent strides in the legal status of same-sex marriages, many schools still remain a hostile place for LGBT teachers and students. It will be now be included in teachers training courses on how to deal with homophobic and transphobic incidents, along with LGBT equality and rights. In secondary schools in England, sex and relationship education is mandatory, but it is not required in primary schools, academies, or free schools.  The NUT’s general secretary states that they need to make an education policy that all school’s education policies include a positive representation of same sex relationships. A spokesperson from the Church of England stated that they had not looked over the proposal in full detail, but they introduced anti-homophobic bulling guidelines in all of their schools. The improvement in school funding will help make these policies go through.

This is exciting news for the LGBT community in England. Teaching about all aspects of gender and sexuality will make school environments a friendly place for LGBT people.  It will teach children not discriminate against LGBT people, but also give hope and assurance to children that are fearful of coming out.

Ashley Casmirri

4/10/15

7:12 PM

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/apr/05/schools-should-teach-positive-portrayal-of-same-sex-relationships-says-nut

Blog #8: Russian LGBT Activists Describe Victimization, Repression … and Hope

Summary:

This article revolves around the LGBT activist in both London but mainly in Russia. Ever since there was a banned in Russia on gay “propaganda” in 2013 there has been a rise of homophobia in Russia to the extent that research has found that 68% of the population agrees with the legislation of banning gay “propaganda” and also 74% of Russians believe that homosexuality should not be accepted. This is a 14% increase from before the banned of gay “propaganda.”  With these statistic, brought by the Pew Research team, this is a lingering question of is there hope for the LGBT community in Russia?  To help gain acceptance of the LGBT community, activist in Russia seek knowledge in Russia to be able to get their voices heard in Russia. Hoping for a better life in Russia, London LGBT activist give them tips on what to say, how to look, stand, and sound as they prepare for the interviews that are sure to come as they fight for human equality amongst the LGBT community.

Analysis:

I have never thought about how countries could move backwards. It is this assumption that once the majority of people in a country have accepted a people and we are on our way to bringing equality that the next challenge is the minority of people who do not accept it, not the government. Homosexuality is not illegal in Russia. Though this may be true it seems like they are moving in a direction that is stripping them of all of their rights. To not be able to wear what they want or to be seen as a threat is not the way anyone would want to live. This is what they are facing in Russia right now. Luckily there are activist trying to help but with some many people failing to see hope, it seems like the LGBT community will have to wait quite some time before they will be seen as equals.

Karen Bent

April 10, 2015

12:23 PM

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/06/russian-lgbt-activists-describe-victimisation-repression-and-hope