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I'm sure you have noticed that more of your friends are left handed than you would expect...well, it's true.
A Canadian study found that if you are queer, you are much more likely than heterosexuals to be left-handed.  And the association is stronger for lesbians.  In fact, if you are gay, you are 34% more likely to be left handed; if you are lesbians, 91% more likely!  Ray Blanchard, one of the authors of the study published in the Psychology Bulletin, says that this is evidence that at least some part of your sexual orientation is genetically or biologically determined, perhaps in the womb.
  Thanks to Gay Today and Jesse's blog for this tidbit.


 
 
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In a progressive judgement, the Federal Court of Canada has decided that there is an  an obligation upon the Refugee Protection Division  to specifically discuss why the Applicant, as a homosexual living in a place where it has been demonstrated that homosexuals are harassed, would not be subjected to persecution as she cannot live her sexual orientation openly. Some GLB refugee claims are thrown out because a person cannot prove that they are queer.  Here the applicant proved that, and also proved that in her home country queers faced persecution.  This is an important case because it says that it is up to the government to show she would be safe returning home, rather than up to her to demonstrate that she would be in danger.  C.C.F. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2012] F.C.J. No. 1346


 
 
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Sheila Gilhooly has published a fabulous new book, "Mistaken Identity" , stories about her life being (mis)taken for a man.  Though cisgendered Sheila is read as male about 70% of the time.
The stories are chilling, hilarious, triumphant. 
There will be a launch at Little Sisters - we'll keep you posted.  And the book is available for preview - go to Sheila's website
http://sheilagilhooly.wordpress.com, and click at the bottom of the page.
Full disclosure: I am Sheila's partner and wrote the afterword. 

 
 
A refugee claimant from Malaysia disclosed first his HIV status, and only later acknowledged he was gay.  The Senior Immigration Officer (SIO) concluded that Ng was not protected as a refugee because he could get HIV medicine for free without charge; and though there was stigma against gay and HIV+ people in Malaysia, that same was true in Canada.
On judicial review (a kind of appeal) of that decision, the court said that the SIO was wrong because the particular kind of medicine that Mr. Ng required was not available for free; and because it was improper to compare the homophobia in Malaysia to that in Canada as the SIO had done.  The case was sent back to be heard by a different SIO.    Ng v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2012] F.C.J. No. 598, the Federal Court of Appeal