Date: Thursday 5th May 2011
Venue: Europa Hotel Belfast
Time: Cocktail reception from 7pm; Meal from 8pm

Entertainment is going to consist of Quoir, who will sing some fantastic numbers for us during the reception, with a DJ for the party! Miss Roxy Tumbledryer will be in attendance, offering up a live cabaret performance and making the night fabulous. After the meal, we will all head to the Shoe Factory for the after party (entrance is free – the venue is booked exclusively for QUB LGBT – please bear in mind that the Shoe Factory is an Over-18 venue).

You can buy your tickets (price only £35) in person from Nicholas Young (nicholas_young21@hotmail.co.uk) or this Sunday from union Street during Sunday Bingo Show and afterwards in Kremlin. Alternatively, you can buy your ticket online with a credit or debit card at tinyurl.com/lgbtformal and bring your booking receipt on the night to redeem your ticket! Ticket sales end 2nd May 2011.

Make sure you get your ticket before they’re all gone – the night promises to be a unique and rare opportunity, so not one to be missed!

The event is being held in the Black Box, and begins at 7pm. There are no age restrictions!

The documentary covered the history of Belfast Pride, and I was particularly impressed with some of the old footage from years gone by. With contributions from many members of the Pride committee past and present, as well as high-profile political leadership views from former Mayor and current MP for East Belfast Naomi Long, as well as current Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, the documentary covered all aspects of Pride, from the reasons, to the organisation, to the protestors, to the fun and events… it really is not to be missed!

It is getting a second showing on Tuesday at the Northstar Science Fiction Night Pride Event, which is at The Roost bar on Tuesday 27th, at 8pm, where you will also get to watch a science-fiction triple feature of Doctor Who, Star Trek: Voyager and Family Guy Star Wars!

Pride 2010 has begun!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-10673475

On Thursday, April 22 – 23, 2010, Alan Chambers, President of Exodus International will be the guest speaker in Northern Ireland on Thursday, April 22nd at the Leaving Homosexuality Celebration service hosted by Core-issues.
http://www.core-issues.org/index.php?page=training.
Core is a destribed as a ministry supporting local churches in their efforts to provide appropriate pastoral support for those with unwanted same sex attraction. The service recognizes God’s grace for many individuals making the journey out of homosexuality. Changing Attitude Ireland (www.changingattitudeireland.org ) has decided that the message given by Exodus International needs to be countered.

Wayne Besen

I am the founder of Truth Wins Out, an organization that debunks so-called ex-gay ministries. These are organizations that say one can turn from gay-to-straight. I am also the author of “Anything But Straight: Unmasking the Scandals and Lies Behind the Ex-Gay Myth.”
What I propose is an entertaining and educational, hour-long multi-media presentation about the harm of ex-gay groups. The reason that I believe my presentation is timely, is because the President of the ex-gay group Exodus International, Alan Chambers, is coming to Northern Ireland to distort the lives of LGBT people. Exodus in the group partially responsible for the Anti-Homosexuality bill in Uganda. So, when they visit a city, bad things often happen as a result of their misinformation. www.waynebesen.com

Our Meeting

Wednesday, 21st May 2010 at Central Hall, Rosemary Street Belfast at 7.30pm sharp.
Free Admission, All Welcome
Be There! And tell your friends to support us by attending this meeting with you in solidarity.

Please open our attachment to see the full poster designed by Ruth McCarthy of OUTBURST!

Don't Stand for Homophobic Bullying!!!

Stand Up! is encouraging all young people to show their support for their LGBT Friends!

Visit www.belongto.org for further information, and become a fan on the Stand Up! page on Facebook.

The week runs from 9th-18th April.

Participants from all across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland attended a one day long conference in the historical capital, focussing on Homophobia in Education, hosted by Stonewall England.

The event, opened by Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg MP and chaired by Stonewall’s Chief Executive Ben Summerskill, attracted professionals from across the board in education and youth work.

Representing the voice of LGBT Youth in Northern Ireland were our very own Liam Larmour (Project Coordinator for Cara-Friend GLYNI, and also Mental Health Officer at The Rainbow Project), Steve Williamson (Coordinator, Cara-Friend) and Chris Geddis (recently appointed as LGBT Officer for NUS-USI Northern Ireland branch).

The day’s events included workshops on engaging young people in tackling homophobic bullying, tackling bullying in primary and post-primary schools, and working in partnership with local authorities.

On the event, Liam states: “It was good to see the commitment of staff and volunteers from a vast variety of youth-service providers, sharing their experiences and offering insights into the efforts to tackle the plight of homophobic bullying in the UK.

This is definitely an issue in Northern Ireland, and we welcome Minister for Education Catriona Ruane’s commitment to tackling this prejudice, particularly in the formal education sector, head on.

Education is indeed for everyone, and we all share an equal responsibility in ensuring that it is delivered equally and fairly across the board. The mental, physical, sexual and emotional health and wellbeing of LGBT young people should not be treated any less equally than that of their heterosexual counterparts.”

Speaking on the highlight of the day: “Meeting Sir Ian McKellen, who gave the keynote closing speech as a co-founder of Stonewall, was a dream come true. He is such an inspiration, and has worked effortlessly throughout his career to promote inclusion, equality and acceptance for LGBT people of all ages. He asked questions about the experiences of LGBT youth here, and spoke of his many visits to Belfast to support fundraising efforts in the early days of the AIDS Crisis.

I had a good wee chat with him, and was thinking the whole time ‘I can’t believe I’m talking to Gandalf!’. We presented him with leaflets from the various groups in Belfast, including Family Ties – A Guide for Parents of LGBT Children and Young People, and ‘What’s In Your Closet?’, a coming-out support resource for LGBT youth produced by members of Cara-Friend’s Gay & Lesbian Youth Northern Ireland.”

He gave me his autograph and wished us all the best of luck in our efforts in Northern Ireland to tackle homophobic bullying.

The conference was a one day event, but will certainly have its impact on the three visitors to London. Despite the early wake-up call (4am) and travelling all day, it was considered to be worth every minute of it.