All eyes are on South Africa, where the so-called rainbow nation's parliment will soon pass a bill legalizing some sort of same-sex marriage. While the Constitutional Court ruled last year that the current marriage law, defined as between one man and one woman, derails their progressive constitution, it seems that the conservative Marriage Alliance of South Africa may be gaining a little momentum in their quest to squash gay marriage.

A coalition of religious leaders and conservatives, the Marriage Alliance plans a mass protest on September 16, to put more pressure on parliament to constrict it's legislation. It seems that they may not need to protest, as the government openly moves closer to civil unions.

While it may be tempting to fret, it's likely the Constitutional Court will use it's power and push for a more "traditional" definition. The bill hasn't been revealed yet, but will be in the next two weeks. If the march takes place, it will be a stain on the nation's long history of mass protest and public interest: steering the international communities' eye back to the grotesque underbelly of a nation once ruled by apartheid.

South African Conservatives To Show Anti-Gay Muscle [365 Gay]

Gay Marriage Nixed? [Mamba Online]

With public sentiment in favor of gay unions, and with the recent vote in the Czech Parliament to overturn a Presidential veto of the new civil partnerships law, we thought that July 1, the day the new law went into effect, would be a big day of celebration that kicks off a "frisky summer" of gays registering their unions. In fact only three couples reigstered on the first day, and none of those couples lived in Prague, the largest city.

We suspect that many gay couples were not eager to put their relationship into the spotlight and will take advantage of civil unions after the media circus has died down a bit. Still, only three couples? It's a rather disappointing turn-out, but we are happy that the Czech Republic now has another gay attraction besides Bel Ami.

First Gay Couples Enter Into Czech Civil Partnerships [365 Gay]

Even though the Czech Republic legalized gay civil unions in March, Czech tennis star Martina Navratilova has still slapped Czech President Vaclav Klaus on the wrist, saying, “I cannot be satisfied by him, because he does not consider homosexuals to be 100 per cent human beings." [insert bad, lesbian joke here]

We grew up watching Martina play tennis on our grandma's cable, and always liked her because she was so bad-ass, or as Grandma used to say, "a little funny." Something that is more than a little funny is Martina's glamour shot, which we have for you after the jump.

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• Lesbians and gays in the Philippines plan to register their own political party in the next federal elections. Among the biggest supporters of the LGBT party are several hairdressing associations, and various artists, entertainers, and others in typical homosexual professions are onboard as well. Maybe if gays in the U.S. formed our own political party, we wouldn't have to rely on the Democrats to pretend they care about us. We bet the Aveda Academy would totally throw in some free conditioner for the party spokespeople. [Asian Journal]

• Former Boyzone member Stephen Gately gay-married his partner in the UK on Sunday. Elton John was supposed to attend the ceremony but then cancelled. Perhaps Stephen's party threatened to be even more fabulous than Sir Elton's, or not fabulous enough. [PinkNews]

• India may not have yet decriminalized homosexual intercourse, but the first gay community organization has been formed in the city of Chennai. The organization, called the Men Community Development Society (not the catchiest of names) aims to build community among homos for the good of society. Says one member, "I came here and was astonished to find a lot of people with whom I can identify myself. Then I came to know about condoms and the truth about HIV/AIDS." We hope the MCDS helps everyone else in India "come to know about condoms" as well. Yikes. [New Kerala]

• Elton John will not be appearing at any civil unions in Australia anytime soon. A doomed-from-the-start bill to legalize gay unions in the Australian state of Victoria was officially killed today by Premier Steve Bracks. Australian Prime Minister John Howard also remains thoroughly opposed to the idea. We think these politicians need to rewatch Priscilla: Queen of the Desert. [GayNZ.com]

• New head of the Human Rights Campaign Joe Solmonese talks and talks in a way-too-long interview with the Washington Blade. If you have always wondered what the HRC actually does, Mr. Solmonese endeavours to explain it in painstaking detail, but don't say we didn't warn you when you blow your whole lunch break trying to make sense of it all. [Washington Blade]

• Oasis’s Liam Gallagher says that the England football squad is pretty “gay.” Well, we have news for you, Liam. So is being an alt-rock diva. [MTV]

• Marc Jacobs will put his label on only the finest merchandise. And that includes the finest rent-boys. [Jossip]

• Those crazy kids with the Soulforce campaign got themselves arrested on purpose, tresspassing at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University to protest the school's anti-gay bias. At least now that they've been to jail, they've got street cred. [AP]

• What do you do when the State forces your charity to provide adoptions to gays as well as straights? If you’re the Catholic Church, you spoil the fun for everyone. [Boston Globe]

• Everyone knows that gays aren’t very violent, in fact we're usually the exact opposite. Who else would stage a protest by tonguing each other? [Made in Brazil]

• Famous queers in the UK continue to get hitched. It just won’t stop. [UK Gay.com]

• Grasping at every media opportunity they can, Project Runway's desingers discuss their favorite…Star Wars moments? We don't get the connection either. But it's a funny read nonetheless. [starwars.com]

• An MTA officer called a transgender "ugly," banned her from using the women's restroom, forcing her to pee in a cup, and then placed her under arrest. Not exactly humane, but then again we've had worse experiences on the MTA. [Breitbart]

• The ship The Warrior, also known as the pride of Queen Victoria, will begin hosting marriages with different types of queens starting this weekend. [Pink News]

• Madge will warm up her small-scale summer tour with a performance at the large-scale Coachella Festival in Southern California. [MTV]

• Sophia Bush cites "fraud" as her reason for seeking an annulment from Chad Michael Murray. Was Kenny Chesney anywhere close by during their marriage? [People]

• The Massachusetts Church that houses the remains of two Presidents will not be allowed to hang a huge banner supporting same-sex marriage. The decision might be reconsidered if an alternately proposed sign is "not as intrusive" (read: prettier). Sounds pretty gay to us. [Good As You]

Britney Spears entered Iowa state politics the other day when Gov. Tom Vilsack used her as an example in the gay marriage debate. Just in case Brits is reading this, Iowa is a state in the center of our country.

Gov. Tom Vilsack, expressing support for civil unions for committed gay couples, drew a pointed contrast Tuesday with the quickie marriage of pop star Britney Spears two years ago.
"I do think that we as a state ought to honor commitments, and we ought to reflect that in policies that we have," Vilsack said. "I personally don't think that it is fair . . . for Britney Spears, who was married for 51 hours to some guy in Las Vegas (for) that guy (to have) more rights than someone who's been committed to another person for 25 years."

While Vilsac doesn’t support full equality yet, we have to take issue with his assertion that Britney doesn’t believe in long-term commitment. Look at her relationship with K-Fed. That’s gonna’ last forever.

Vilsack cites pop star’s haste in backing of gay unions [Des Moines Register]

• Brokeback Mountain wins even more awards. This is getting way too easy. [AP via Yahoo]

• Heath Ledger sees his film being yanked from a Utah theater at the last minute the same way we do: "hilarious and very immature." [Herald Sun]

• New Jersey Governor Richard Codey will likely put his John Hancock on two bills that would finally give same-sex partners equal inheritance and funeral rights. [Newsday]

• Stephen Gately continues the new scorching hot trend for out British celebs: getting married! [The Advoacte]

• First big news from Macworld? Speedy Intel-fitted computers! [Macworld]

Newlyweds Sir Elton John and David Furnish grace the cover of British mag Attitude in a loving and sweet pose. The interview inside was done pre-wedding, but the two still have quite a bit to say about their relationship and the UK’s new civil union laws in general.

Elton even allows David equal talk time:

David: If I think back to growing up in Toronto, I left the place nearly twenty years ago and that was largely because of my sexuality. There was a sense of shame and a sense of not being accepted attached to it for me back then. I had to live a double life. Walking around Toronto now, all these years later [he’s currently shooting a film there], it stirs up so many emotions and anxieties that are just full of self-loathing for me. I remember at the time trying to come out to my family and my mother sitting at the table and bawling her eyes out and saying I’d never have a life or a future. There were no role models. There was no-one I could talk to or even point to and say, but hang on, this person’s doing this and that person’s doing that and they’re happy.

He's right. Compared to the 00's, there weren't all that many gay role models in the mid-eighties. Hell, even the flamboyant gay icon Furnish is now with was married to, you guessed it, a chick.

Elton John & David Furnish [Attitude Magazine]

In a piece that reads more like some magical gay village fairytale, British paper Milton Keynes Today profiles two local gay cops who were married on the first day of legal partnerships in Britian (the same day as Sir Elton, darling.)

Devoid of any controversy at all, the piece simply recounts how the couple met and were married, where they honeymooned (um, Lapland?!?!) and how much the townsfolk are happy for them.

The couple arrived at the register office in a luxury limousine and the ceremony was witnessed by 30 friends and relatives and colleagues. Afterwards 300 people helped them celebrate their union at a party in the police station bar. After a Christmas honeymoon in Lapland, the pair returned last week to a sea of congratulations from colleagues – including a special message from local police area commander, Superintendent Liam Macdougall.

"I am delighted for Darren and Chris personally and pleased to see the enactment of steps taken to provide a level of equality that has previously been absent," he told the Citizen. "Thames Valley police fully supports and encourages diversity and this is another step towards achieving a wholly representative and diverse workforce," he added.

Now if only Jimmy Stewart showed up and invited everyone back to that old savings and loan for a nightcap, things would be perfect. Congrats to the newly wedded blokes!

Gay officers tie the knot [Milton Keynes Today]

Famous queer Brits everywhere seem to lack a fear of commitment. They all appear to be getting married.

We admittedly didn’t know much about out Brit actor John Barrowman when we read he was pulling an Elton and getting hitched. The Dr. Who regular is planning to wed his partner of 10 years in the new year. So we were pleasantly surprised to see that he is so very, very easy on the eyes - a total hunk.

But Barrowman dishes that he’ll be getting more than his own TV show and a hubby in the new year:

The gay star also revealed that they are hoping to have a child through a surrogate mother: “the daughter of a very, very old friend offered to carry a child for us. I've known her since she was five or six. She has children of her own but said if we wanted a child she would happily carry it for us.”

Good for them. But with so many gay celeb couples taking the plunge, we have only one jaded question left to ask: Who will be the first to sign divorce papers?

Doctor Who star to have gay marriage [Pink News]

• Lesbian grocery store owners in Nepal are being harassed by homophobic soldiers. It's foolish for many reasons, but mostly because everyone knows you just don't mess with people that serve your food. [New Kerala]

• Want to know if you're neighbor's a homophobe? Well now you can. [Know Thy Neighbor]

• Texas' same-sex marriage ban might not be the worst thing to hit the state's gay community. A serial killer sounds like a much bigger problem. [Star-Telegram]

• We excitedly mentioned the possibility of gay unions in Australia yesterday. Today not so much. [The Australian]

• We're off until Tuesday, but we wanted to leave you all with a holiday gift: footage of a rumpshaking Jake Gyllenhaal and his Santa Claus hat. Enjoy. [A Socialite's Life]

• Spokane has a new mayor since ousting James West from office. No word yet on the new guy's online chat room habits. [The Olympian]

• Martha Stewart fires one last contestant tonight. You must watch because this is the show's last episode. Ever. [The Apprentice: Martha Stewart Offical Site]

• Speaking of finales, if you missed last night's Nip/Tuck and want to find out the identity of the Carver, just click the link. All we'll say is "ew." [Zap2it]

• Some people just refuse to let the whole Ford thing die. [Good As You]

• Hot on the heels of the gay civil union ceremonies in the UK this week, Aussies are asking for "marriages" of their own. [Sydney Morning Herald]

Same-sex civil unions went into effect in the rest of the UK today. As we mentioned earlier, Elton John and his long-time partner tied the knot. We were a little bummed at the lack of extravagance at his bachelor party, we wondered what his reception would be like. The scoop:

A party for 700 guests is planned at the couple's £12 million home outside Windsor this evening. It is said to be costing around £1million and guests are to be served pink champagne and roast lamb in a vast marquee. Speeches are expected from Elizabeth Hurley and Donatella Versace, while Sir Elton was planning to sing Your Song in tribute to his newly legalized partner.

Where are the "Rocket Man" themed go-go dancers? No crocodiles rocking in their man-made lagoon? No yellow brick floor for the reception? For that amount of money we had hoped for so much more.

We said it before, we'll say it again. There's still hope for an ostentatious wedding bash next year. Start planning now, George Michael.

… And He Kissed The 'Bride' [The Evening Standard]

What were some of the biggest headlines and news stories about the gay community this year? There were many important happenings this year. Here are our top So Gay! picks.

5. Hangings In Iran. It’s tough enough being openly gay in this world. But we can’t even begin to imagine living in a country where people are publicly executed for being gay. Absolutely revolting.

4. Sheryl Swoopes’ Coming Out. The bitch was so cool this year that she made not one but two of our So Gay! lists. No one in pro sports as popular as the WNBA’s Swoops has had the courage to come out of the closet while still an active player. We hope this is the start of a long overdue trend.

3. Schwarzenegger Same-Sex Marriage Bill Veto. Oh that Arnie. As seen as he found out about it, the former homo boy toy announced he would veto the bill that would have legalized gay marriage in California, the country’s most populated state. His follow through instantly disappointed committed queers in GLBT meccas San Francisco, Palm Springs, and LA. Guess who is up for re-election next year?

2. Vatican Ban On Gays. Though employing God only knows how many gays, the Catholic Church this year decided it wanted them banned from the Priesthood. The directive came out under newbie Pope Benedict. Why the need for the document? Because only gays abuse little boys, silly! Get rid of them and bammo! Problem solved. Well, not really.

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