Palestine host their first international football match on their home ground in the West Bank.

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Palestine
Football

When the acronym LGBTI hit the headlines the first thing a friend’s sister said was, “I don’t give a toss about all that Lesbian, gay, transgender, transsexual stuff if you ask me. We are all human, all that is about identity”. I wasn’t asking her but she said it, anyway. When I told the friend’s aunt that with a traumatised life like hers that it did not befit her to talk about other people’s identities in such adverse terms, she admitted. “I do not know anything about it!” Talking about something you do not understand to those that shared your transphobia is overt participation in a hate crime. But what happens when members of the LGBTI themselves engage in internalised homophobia or transphobia?

Events are often used to propagate some of these subtle criminal acts as I have found of late but when an online magazine known as Topix asked the question, “are gay men and lesbians transphobic?” finding that the answer is a simple, “YES!” was a gut wrenching turn of circumstance. Is this what mainstreaming the LGBTI does to gay men in particular and lesbians in general at the expense of everyone else? When the gay community bind together in homosexist indulgence in the very abuses we are still exposed to?

What does one call it when gay men overtly show aspects of what a friend called, “‘lesbophobia’ or putting it in simple terms ‘a hatred of lesbians’?” It came as no surprise. I saw the malaise in action myself to my own cost. During the Lambeth Conference when two Nigerian Lesbians were basically put on a short leash by their asylum saved, regional director and victim of homophobia who then turned abuser of others in his care painted a damning picture. I thought it was odd that he held their tickets and passports as assurances that they would not abscond without giving them the benefit of doubt. Worse; coming from the said group leader was the decision to criminalise a female ally just because you do not get on with her is abhorrent. Although one of the women seemed alright with their misogyny they faced in that duplicitous manner a person looking to gain favour adopts, the fact remained that one made it known that she felt mistreated!
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Sport is continuously being assigned to a non-political space but no-one lives in a bubble – sports people or LGBTI people . The arrival in London of the Chosen Few (CF), a team of young out Black lesbians from the township of Soweto coming to play in the London 2008 IGLFA World Championships tournament, which is overwhelmingly dominated by white gay men, is very much a political event. An event in which the only other three lesbian teams have a total of three Black players, and where the CF are stomped and fouled upon with some outrageously poor and unprofessional refereeing.

A little background on the tournament: one of the fixtures of the International Gay and Lesbian Football Association which was started in 1980. The description of the games in London’s Pink Paper is somewhat misleading …………”Six continents fight for cup” – one team from the whole of Asia, one from Africa and two from South/Central America with a totally disproportionate number coming from North America and Europe is hardly representative of “six continents”! Nonetheless the championship, like most amateur sporting events and associations it has a laudable mission:

“to foster and augment the self respect of gay women and men throughout the world, and engender respect and understanding from the non-gay world, through the medium of football (soccer).”

But the IGLFA also needs to accept that there a huge amount of work to “engender respect and understanding” between LGBTI people. For example, acknowledging lesbophobia and racism as expressed by white gay men, as well as sexism and other prejudice in the non-gay world. The event claims to be a “World” tournament inclusive of lesbians and gay men. Yet no less than 95% of the participants were men, of whom 90% were white with only three teams from outside Europe and America – Japan, Mexico and Argentina. On the women’s side there were only five teams - the two CF teams from South Africa, one team from Chicago and two local London teams.

The hierarchies that exist everywhere do not just melt away in any context despite fine words. There is an assumption that these do not exist amongst the LGBTI people but they clearly do. This tournament played out those divisions and hierarchies. How can it be a “World Tournament” when many teams cannot afford to come, and if they could, are likely to be refused entry to the UK when they get here, or fear it will put them in danger back home? And where is the “level playing field” for those who do manage to participate when there is such a divergence in the support and welcome available to the teams – medical, diet, cost of food in the games tent and the cost of attending social events.
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May’s International Carnival of Pozitivities is up at dropdeadhappy. Two blog posts stand out - “Myths and misconceptions about HIV and AIDS” by The AIDS Pandemic in which he looks at some of the “old” myths and some more contemporary myths such as HIV is a “black disease” or “two positive people do not need to use condoms” and then all the misconceptions around cure and prevention.

Myths and misconceptions about HIV and AIDS have been around since the very beginning of the pandemic. The first myths stemmed largely from the lack of information on this relatively new disease. ……..These myths have emerged despite the fact that there is now more accurate information on HIV. These new myths also create problems with prevention as people unknowingly put themselves at risk to contract the virus.

The Black Aids Institute post, Adhering to HAART Does Not Remove Risk of Passing on Disease is related to prevention and cure and the kind of news that ends up creating myths and misconceptions.

An article recently published by Switzerland’s Federal Commission for HIV/AIDS states that HIV-positive individuals on effective antiretroviral therapy are not at risk for transmitting HIV to their sexual partners under certain circumstances.

What I fail to understand and find highly irresponsible is why the Swiss AIDS Commission published this since they themselves acknowledge there is no scientific data to support the statement.

The East African reports that lawyers from East Africa and the SADC are to sue China over the arms shipment to Zimbabwe. The lawyers are also planning to “engage the African Union and United Nations into actively addressing the situation”. Whilst African leaders tip toe around Mugabe or worse pander to his madness and violence against his people, African Civil Society has chosen to actively support the people of Zimbabwe in their struggle.

Le Monde diplomatique comments on the inequalities in South Africa highlighted by the preparations for the 2010 World Cup.

South Africa will host the World Cup in 2010 so construction – and corruption – is booming. But almost none of the building or the money can be accessed by the poor who live in shantytowns without proper water, sanitation or electricity.

Speaking of football, the season has ended and once again I havent gotten to see one single live game - next season looks promising though as I have been offered one ticket for a game of my choice (other than the big 4 and the derby game). The best footy blog? The Arseblog for your daily dose of gunner news and which for some strange reason is to become part of Ole Ole from this month. Flamini is off - good riddance, they never learn that the grass for ex-Arsenal players is never ever greener on the other side. Name one ex player that has achieved anything significant after leaving Highbury unless of course it’s the money!

An interview with Phumla Masuku manager of the Chosen Few lesbian soccer team based in Soweto is up at the African Women’s Blog - she discusses sport as a tool for empowerment of women and activism.

Republic of T (Black. Gay. Father. Vegetarian. Buddhist. Liberal) and an excellent blog is one of the nominees for the 2006 Weblog Awards in the LGBT section - he gets my vote

Tags: LGBT; Sport; South Africa; Weblog Awards