COME OUT TOMORROW TO SUPPORT PERSECUTED GAY IRANIANS

A reminder: Tomorrow (Wednesday, July 19) is the International Day of Action Against Homophobic Persecution in Iran, called on the first anniversary of the public hanging of two teenagers, Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni, for homosexuality.

There will be vigils and demonstrations on July 19 in 25 cities around the world -- including 10 in the U.S. The five-point liist of demands for these events is:

“1. End all executions in Iran, especially the execution of minors. (Photo below, the teens Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni, Mashad, Iran, July 19, 2005)

“2. Stop the arrest, torture and imprisonment of Iranian lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and repeal the Iranian penal code’s criminalization of same-sex relationships.

“3. Halt the deportation to Iran of LGBT asylum seekers and other victims of Tehran’s persecution.

“4. Support Iranians struggling for democracy, social justice and human rights.

“5. Oppose foreign military intervention in Iran; regime change must come from within – by and for the Iranian people themselves.”

This call to action has been endorsed by -- International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA); International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO); Persian Gay and Lesbian Organization (PGLO); International Lesbian & Gay Cultural Network; Nordic Homo Council (Scandanavian countries); and the following national LGBT organizations: ARCIGAY (Italy), HOSI (Austria), OutRage (U.K.), Moscow Pride and GayRussia.ru (Russia), COC (The Netherlands), Tupilak (Sweden), Solidarité Internationale LGBT (France -- plus a coalition of 15 gay organizations in Marseille), Columbia Diversa (Columbia), and BeLonG To Youth Project (Ireland). The July 19 Day of Action has also been endorsed by the following publications and media: MAHA magazine (Iran); Enkidu magazine (Mexico), Gay City News (New York City), Seattle Gay News, Independent Gay News (Fort Lauderdale-Broward County), Gay Egypt (website); and by many local ad hoc committees.

The New York City July 19 demonstration has been called by a committee including: Andy Humm and Ann Northrop, Gay USA cable TV news; Walter Armstrong, POZ magazine; Sandy Rapp, Lesbian feminist singer-writer; Rosario Dawson, actor-activist; Doric Wilson, Playwright; Martin Duberman, Professor Emeritus, City University of New York; Church Ladies for Choice. Allen Roskoff, president, Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club; the Stonewall Democratic Club; the Metropolitan Community Church of N.Y.; Darren Rosenblum, Associate Professor, Pace Law School; Larry Kramer, writer-activist; John Berendt, author, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" and "City of Falling Angels"; Lawrence D. Mass, M.D., physician, writer, activist, co-founder of Gay Men's Health Crisis; Arnie Kantrowitz, prof. emeritus, College of Staten Island, CUNY, and author, "Under the Rainbow: Growing Up Gay"; Sean Strub, founder, POZ magazine; Kenneth Sherill, Professor, Political Science, Hunter College, CUNY; Wayne Besen, Executive Director, Truth Wins Out; Rev. Pat Bumgartner, pastor, Metropolitan Community Church; Rick Shur; Andrew Berman; Frank Jump, educator, artist, activist; Vincenzo Aiosa, same-sex marriage activist; State Senator Tom Duane; Ethan Geto, Geto & DeMilly Inc.; Joe Kennedy, Gay Activists Alliance veteran; Dirk McCall, President, Stonewall Democratic Club

Here is the global list of cities, locations, and times for these vigils:

New York --  Location: Iranian Mission to the U.N., 622 Third Avenue (at 40th St.) Time: 5:00 P.M.  Contact: Andy Humm, [email protected]

Washington, D.C. -- Location: DuPont Circle Time: 5:00 P.M. Contact: Rob Anderson [email protected], Tel.  work (202) 508-4446 home (202) 550-8812

San Diego -- Location: U.S. Federal Building Time: 4:00 pm Contact: Michael Mussman, [email protected]

San Francisco -- Location: Harvey Milk Plaza, Castro and Market Streets Time: 5:00 pm Contact: Michael Petrelis, [email protected]

Fort Lauderdale-Broward County (South Florida) -- details to be announced soon Contact: Michael James, Editor, Independent Gay News, [email protected]  Telephone 954.563.0470

Sioux Falls, South Dakota -- Location: Calvary Cathedral, 500 S. Main Avenue
Time: 9:00 pm Contact: Kathy Knobloch, [email protected] 

Seattle, Washington -- Location: Seattle Central Community College Plaza, Pine and BroadwayTime: 7:00 pm Contact: George Bakan, editor, Seattle Gay News, [email protected]

Chicago – Location: Vigil at Millennium Park (Pritzker Pavilion entrance).
Time: 5:30. Contact: Gay Liberation Network, [email protected]

Tulsa, Oklahoma -- Location: Tulsa County Courthouse Place, Vigil Time: 8:30 PM Contact: Laura Belmonte, Tulsa Oklahomans for Human Rights (TOHR), mobile 918-906-2134

Salt Lake City -- Location: GLBT Community Center Youth Activity Center, 355 North 300 West Time: 6:30 P.M. Contact: Rachel McNeil, [email protected]

Provincetown -- Location: Town Hall Square Time: 5-6 PM Contact: Andrew Sullivan, [email protected]

Toronto -- Location: University of Torontdo, Hart House, Music Room, 7 Hart House Circle. Toronto, Ontario Time: 5-9 P.M. Speakers will include Arsham Parsi, Human Rights Secretary of the Persian Gay and Lesbian Organization (PGLO) and an Iranian exile, and local gay and political leaders. Contact: [email protected]

Vancouver --  Location: Vancouver Art Gallery - Robson Plaza Time: 6:00 p.m. Contact: Finn Kovaltsenko, [email protected]

Dublin --  Location: Dublin City Centre, The Central Bank, Dame Street Time: 5.30pm, Speakers to include Senator David Norris Contact: BeLonG To Youth Project, [email protected] telephone 01-8734184;

Mexico City -- Location (Lugar): Contempo Cine, Address (Direccion): Londres 161, 1er piso; entre Florencia y Amberes; Time: (Miercoles 19 de julio/)Wednesday Hora: 19:00 Hrs Contact: Enkidu Magazine, [email protected], Telephone 044 55 2517 5098

Bogota, Colombia -- Petitions of protest against anti-gay repression in Iran, for which the LGBT group Colombia Diversa gathered signatures, will be delivered to the Iranian embassy in Bogota. Contact: Andrew Dier, [email protected]

Milan, Italy -- Location: Corso Magenta 39, in front of the palace where the European Union Commission has its offices Time: 18:30 (6:30 PM) Contact: Fabio Sacca, ARCIGAY youth coordinator, [email protected]., Tel. 39-349-1777-021

Warsaw -- Location: Candle-light vigil, 22 Królowej Aldony street Time: 9 P.M. Contact: Lukasz Palucki, [email protected]

Amsterdam -- Location: Homomonument (Keizersgracht canal near Westerkerk)Time: 10 P.M. Contact: René van Soeren of COC, [email protected], and Mike Tidmus, [email protected]

The Hague (Netherlands) -- Location: Iranian Embassy to The Netherlands Time: 1:00-2:00 P.M. Organized by COC, Contact: René van Soeren of COC, [email protected]

London: -- Location: House of Commons, Committee Room 12 Guest Speakers:  openly gay Labour Party Member of Parliament Chris Bryant MP (photo right), Jean Lambert MEP, Iranian gay activists, Simon Forbes and Peter Tatchell Time: 6:30 pm Contacts: Peter Tatchell, [email protected] & Brett Lock, [email protected]

Stockholm -- Location: Iranian Embassy, Elfviksvägen Västra Yttringe gård Lidingö Time: 5:00 P.M. (17:00) Contact: Bill Schiller, [email protected] (Supported by Tupilak, Nordic Homo Council, Nordic Rainbow Humanists, and International Lesbian & Gay Cultural Network Information Secretariat)

Marseille -- Location: Le Vieux Port Time: 7 PM (19h) Sponsored by a collective of 15 gay organizations. Contact: Philippe Colomb ([email protected]) and Hussein Bourgi ([email protected])

Moscow -- Location and Time to be announced in Moscow at the last minute, to prevent disruption by fascists or police. Contact: Nicolas Alexeyev, GayRussia.ru and [email protected]

Brussels -- Location: Brussels Stock Exchange Time:8 PM to 11PM (20h a 23h) Contact: Stephen Barris, ILGA [email protected]

Vienna -- Location: Office of IranAir (official airline of the Islamic Republic of Iran), A-Wien 1010 Opernring; Time: to be announced Contact: HOSI Wien and Bettina Nemeth, Obfrau Tel. 0699-11965265; Christian Högl, Obmann Tel. 0699-11811038; Kurt Krickler, Tel. (01) 5451310 oder 0664-5767466
[email protected].: 5245 34 408 ZVR-Nr

Gloucester, U.K. -- Location: The Coach and Horses pub, Saint Catherine's Street, Gloucester. Time: 8:00 PM

In Iran, at the call of the PGLO, gay people will place lighted candles in their windows on July 19 as a sign of solidarity and commemoration. And the editors of the underground gay magazine MAHA in Iran, in support of the July 19 events, write: "We belive that international pressure on the Iranian government and in solidarity with Iranian GLBT people has a positive effect and everyone welcome it. That some newspapers and websites who are close to the governemt have increased their negative propaganda about homosexuality and international gay groups is an evidence that International pressure does affect them."

Related Reading: Today's Pink News (U.K.) reports today that "The UK Lesbian & Gay Immigration Group has written to Liam Byrne, the Home Office Minister responsible for immigration, requesting the suspension of removals to Iran of lesbian and gay asylum seekers."

"The Group has urged the Minister to ensure that no Iranian lesbian or gay asylum seeker be removed from the UK whilst there are genuine concerns that those suspected of having gay sexual relationships are at risk of persecution.....UKLGIG chairperson, Ian Morton, said 'There is a real fear amongst lesbian and gay asylum seekers from Iran that if they are forced to return to Iran they will risk their lives if they express their sexual orientation.'” To read the entire Pink News report, click here.