Uganda’s queer politics garnered some protest this week.

The government demonstrated sheer idiocy this week after it admitted the nation’s gays are hit - and help spread - HIV/AIDS, but then went on to say health officials won’t help treat or educate them. Why? Because the Ugandan government believes gays have no place within their borders.

Well, hoping to raise awareness, three gay activists stormed an AIDS conference in Kampala today - and ended up behind bars for the trouble. Hurray for public displays of democratic repression!

What would Mickey say?! In honor of Gay Days at Disney, health officials are out in full force distributing condoms and administering HIV tests. [WDBO]

The Ugandan government blows our mind. Though they acknowledge that the nation’s gays are a part of the HIV/AIDS problem, officials still refuse to treat them: [The government] said on Monday it would not focus any of its HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programmes on outlawed homosexuals because the east African country is short of funds.

“Gays are one of the drivers of HIV in Uganda, but because of meagre resources we cannot direct our programs at them at this time,” the chairman of the Uganda AIDS Commission, Kihumuro Apuuli, told reporters in the capital Kampala. State-sponsored programs will instead focus on sex workers, army folk and truck drivers. Vroom-vroom.

This year’s AIDS Walk in New York raised more than $7 million. [365 Gay]

South Africa lived up to its progressive chops this weekend when the High Court in Pretoria ruled that the army acted unconstitutionally in barring HIV-positive soldiers. The Defense Forces accepted the ruling and agreed to amend its policies. [Mamba]

We couldn’t say it better ourselves: “A Dallas man has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for spitting at a cop. He was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, because he’s HIV-positive. So his spit is made of death!!! Except, uh… we were taught many years ago that much as you can’t get pregnant from oral sex, you can’t actually get the AIDS from fucking spit… Oh, Texas. You never cease to make us want to give you back to Mexico.” [Gawker]

We know that anti-gay leaders aren’t the most rational, but this borders on sheer lunacy: “Muslim leaders in Kenya’s North Eastern Province have resolved to campaign against the promotion of condoms as a means of preventing HIV… The leaders agreed to actively preach against the use and public promotion of condoms as a strategy to contain the pandemic and prevent pregnancy. They also agreed to oppose the distribution of condoms in villages and educational institutions across the northeast.” [Mamba Online]

Gays are slowly but surely coming into their own over in Vietnam. They may want to hurry up, however, because HIV/AIDS awareness has been ignoring them and it’s costing a heavy price: lots of lives. [Thanhnien News]

Art fans have no doubt heard the name John Connelly.

The 40-year old curator currently commands quite the cadre of artists, including AA Bronson, Scott Treleaven and Nick Lowe. One would assume that Connelly always felt the aesthetic love, but - as we all know - assuming only brings trouble.

In fact, Connelly originally wanted to be an actor, but found himself distracted by art history, a pursuit that plunged him straight into New York creative pool.

Now, a few years on, Connelly’s 27th street gallery, John Connelly Presents, consistently puts on a good show, like Nao Tsuda’s Tunnel Room, on view until May 10th.

Our pal Justin Conner recently sat down with Connelly to talk artistic evolution, how AIDS affects art today and why Bronson’s butt massages are bomb.

Read all about it, after the jump.
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The Peace Corp tries to keep thing copacetic, but some queer policies spurred the ACLU into full-on war mode.

Former volunteer Jeremiah Johnson contacted the group after being booted from the Corp for contracting HIV. Obviously the experience was not positive: I joined the Peace Corps because I wanted to learn more about the world and help people. It was hard enough to learn that I had contracted HIV, but to then be shipped home and told I was unworthy of finishing my service was incredibly humiliating.”
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“the Thai Ministry of Public Health released findings to indicate the leap in infection rates among the MSM group. However, it is indicative of the low priority placed on prevention and cure in the gay community by the authorities that little publicity was given to this dramatic rise in the Thai media.” [Pattaya Daily News]

There’s some bloody good news out of Thailand this morning.

The Red Cross announced that they are expanding their screening process to eschew gay discrimination. While the organization previously leaned on gay men in their vetting process, they will now include a number of questions that targets behavior, rather than people: “We didn’t mean to hurt anyone,” said Soisaang Pikulsod, director of the Thai Red Cross National Blood Centre. “It was just to ensure the highest possible safety of our patients.”

The Red Cross will rework the form to include more questions about all types of sexual behaviour, gay or heterosexual, that could increase the risk of diseases such as AIDS, she said. Now, … Continued…

There may be more reason to protest the Beijing-hosted Olympic games. Former government official and gay activist Dr. Wan Yanhai claims the government has launched a homophobic crackdown ahead of the athletic festivities. And he’s not the only one:
In his email about the new anti-gay crackdown, Wan detailed several of the police raids. They began on March 9 when police invaded Destination, Beijing’s most popular gay nightspot.
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A foreigner residing in Beijing who had spoken to a number of Chinese gays said by telephone, “The authorities have begun this so-called clean-up to signal to Chinese gays that they better be really discreet and invisible during the Beijing Olympics. The government is … Continued…

John Caldera a human interest journalist’s wet dream: he’s gay, has HIV, served our nation’s military and will run with the Olympic torch in San Francisco. So, what’s he think of all the Tibet protest: This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. No one in my family has been a torchbearer. Those who want to protest should be able to protest. I just hope I don’t get hit with tomatoes.” Caldera’s obviously a comedian, as well! [eBar]

There’s a war brewing in the Middle East - and we’re not talking about Iraq.
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