While there is cause for much celebration today  for the LGBT community in India, today’s landmark ruling only applies to the New Delhi… the nation’s capital. But it is progress…

Update: Contrary to initial reports, it appears the ruling DOES apply nation-wide.

The Delhi High Court ruled that treating consensual gay sex between adults as a crime is a violation of fundamental rights protected by India’s constitution. The ruling, the first of its kind in India, is not binding outside New Delhi.

Hours after the ruling was issued dozens of members of New Delhi’s gay community — some with rainbows painted on their faces and others holding signs that read “Queer and loving it” — gathered in the heart of the capital to celebrate.

…

But some religious leaders quickly criticized the ruling. “This Western culture cannot be permitted in our country,” said Maulana Khalid Rashid Farangi Mahali, a leading Muslim cleric in the northern city of Lucknow.

Sex between people of the same gender has been illegal in India since a British colonial era law was issued in the 1860s classifying it as “against the order of nature.” According to the law, gay sex is punishable by 10 years in prison.

New Delhi is home to over 300 million people, nearly one quarter the entire population of India, so yeah, it’s definitely progress.

Gay sailor August Provost was found dead Tuesday early morning on the Camp Pendleton base in San Diego, after complaining to his family that he was being harassed. A person of interest is already in custody but no charges have been filed. Gay activists and a local congressman, are viewing the killing as a potential hate crime. Local news coverage below…

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has released the following statement:

“Our thoughts are with the Provost family at this time as authorities work to learn what happened in the early morning hours this past Tuesday,” said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese.  “The Human Rights Campaign has confirmed Congresswoman Susan Davis has been in touch with officials at the base and is tracking the investigation.  We know that every day members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community are targeted for simply being who they are.  Furthermore, our gay or lesbian soldiers struggle with the extra burden of not serving openly and honestly based on the discriminatory policy of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’ As we monitor the investigation, our community must continue to raise awareness on a law that we know hurts military readiness and national security while putting American soldiers at risk.”

Provost’s partner, Kaether Cordero of Houston, learned of the news of his partner’s death from a newspaper reporter. He said that while Provost was openly gay, he kept his life quiet for the most part. “People who he was friends with, I knew that they knew… He didn’t care that they knew. He trusted them.”

Seaman August Provost was only 29.

Best known for playing the role of Mrs Slocombe on the 70’s and 80’s British sitcom “Are You Being Served?”, Mollie Sugden passed away today from a long illness at 86.

One of a select bunch of British performers to achieve national treasure status, Sugden was renowned for her portrayal of fearsome battleaxes. The first of such roles to achieve acclaim was as Mrs Hutchinson in The Liver Birds, a series so popular it was revived in the late 90s using the original cast.

She was the star of many other comedies, including Come Back Mrs Noah, That’s My Boy and My Husband And I, which she made with her husband.

But it was as the bossy sales lady Betty Slocombe in Are You Being Served? that she was best known. The long-running, innuendo-laden television comedy was such a hit that a feature film was made based on the series, and it was successfully exported to America. Every episode Sugden sported a different hair colour and continually harped on about her “pussy”.

And without further ado, Mrs. Slocombe and her famous “pussy.”

And my personal favorite… “Dear Sexy Knickers…”

More recently Sugden appeared as herself in another very popular BBC sitcom, Little Britain.

Chad Gibson remains in intensive care after head injuries received during the raid of the Rainbow Lounge, a gay night club in Fort Worth Texas. Local officials have called for an investigation into the raid which occurred on the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots.

Fort Worth Police Chief Jeff Halstead defended his officers and their conduct during the raid. “You’re touched and advanced in certain ways by people inside the bar, that’s offensive,” he said. “I’m happy with the restraint used when they were contacted like that.”

Dan Savage in his column at thestrange.com equates the police cheif’s statement with the “Gay Panic Defense.”

Allow me to translate the chief’s comments: “Them faggots in that thar bar touched mah officers and now they’re complainin’ about some rough stuff and one little ol’ faggot with a brain injury? Those perverts should be grateful they’realive.”

This is a classic example of the Gay Panic Defense. In the very recent past all a straight man who brutally murdered a gay man had to say was, “He made a pass at me!”, and the jury would ignore the evidence and let the murderer off. The Gay Panic Defense doesn’t fly in many courts of law these days but it still has currency in the court of public opinion. And the chief of police in Forth Worth, a major U.S. city, is attempting to use the Gay Panic Defense to convince the citizens of Fort Worth to ignore the evidence—to ignore photographic evidence and credible eyewitness accounts—and let his officers off.

And you’ll never guess who the police are accusing of being the groper: Chad Gibson, the one man arrested at the Rainbow Lounge who can’t defend himself and may never be able to give his side of the story.

A candle light vigil is planned tonight in honor of Chad Gibson at the Rainbow lounge at 8:30pm.  To show your support join the Rainbow Lounge Riot Facebook group.