Gay men liable to jail for life in Zanzibar

Jeevan Vasagar, east Africa correspondent
Thursday March 25, 2004
The Guardian
A moral panic over homosexuality in Zanzibar has prompted the island's government to draft a law imposing life imprisonment for men convicted of gay sex. Homosexuality is already illegal on the Indian Ocean island and the gay scene is covert, but the draft bill appears to be a backlash against the increasing numbers of Zanzibaris living more openly gay lifestyles.
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Fight Over Gay Marriage Amendment Polarizes Frankfort
Jon Hardison
The fight over a proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage as being between a man and a woman led to a wild scene on the floor of Kentucky's House of Representatives and accusations from Governor Ernie Fletcher. Democratic House leaders led by Speaker of the House Jody Richards (D)-Bowling Green used parliamentary procedures to defeat Republican efforts to bring the proposed amendment to the floor for a full vote.

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NGLTF launches night of marriage equality on May 16
On May 16--the night before same-sex couples in Massachusetts will become eligible to apply for marriage licenses--more than 100 households across the country will host parties in support of the marriage equality work of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. The parties will be linked to each other via a national conference call to listen to a "state of the unions" address from Task Force executive director Matt Foreman as well as calls to action from other special guests.

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Utah Governor Signs Bill Enhancing Gay Marriage Ban
Olene Walker, Governor of Utah, today signed a bill that changes the state's ban on same-sex marriage to include a ban on domestic partnerships and civil unions. At the same time that the revisions to the existing law were approved, an amendment to the state constitution was also approved with similar provisions. The amendment will appear on the November ballot.