Latest news with #LGBTQI
News24
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- News24
Groundbreaking voice of gay literature, Edmund White, dies at 85
Edmund White, pioneering gay writer and influential figure in 1970s gay literature, has died aged 85. Best known for A Boy's Own Story (1982), he transformed narratives of gay life and shaped the coming-out genre. An activist, biographer, and prolific storyteller, White's works spanned decades, celebrating LGBTQI+ identity with authenticity and wit. The pioneering gay writer Edmund White died aged 85. Diagnosed with HIV in the late 1970s, he often said he had not expected to live nearly as long as he did. White was a central figure in the emergence of openly gay writing in the 1970s, a core member of the group of New York-based writers who called themselves The Violet Quill. Before that, White noted, gay stories were written for straight people and almost always ended tragically. White was born in 1940 in Cincinnati, Ohio, and grew up in Evanston, Illinois. He was well-placed to symbolise and write about the then-widespread experience of gay men and lesbian women doing their utmost to get out of small-town USA and find freedom in the big city, usually New York or San Francisco. White described this experience and what followed in his first autobiographical novel, A Boy's Own Story, which made his name when it was published in 1982. South African Booker-winner Damon Galgut, in a 2023 interview with White, said he still recalled 'my double excitement' at reading A Boy's Own Story, 'not only at its subject matter – astonishingly 'new' at the time – but how richly it was rendered'. Galgut also complimented White on his 'deftness with the deadpan throwaway line'. American poet, critic and editor John Freeman said of gay men who read A Boy's Own Story when it came out that 'some of them... feel he saved their life. Some he made feel less alone. Then there are people he simply entertained, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a more companionable storyteller'. He also noted that 'the category of coming-out story did not exist before he wrote A Boy's Own Story'. White had attended the University of Michigan before moving to New York, where he worked as a journalist for Newsweek, Time-Life, The Saturday Review, Horizon and The New Republic. His early pair of novels, Forgetting Elena (1973) and Nocturnes for the King of Naples (1978), were baroque stories with a touch of fantasy, but he also wrote The Joy of Gay Sex with therapist Charles Silverstein; it was a ground-breaking work of open-minded sexual exploration, published in 1977. White joked that had it not been for Silverstein's sex-positive influence, the book might have been called The Tragedy of Gay Sex. White described gay life across the USA in States of Desire (1980) and published his autobiographical A Boy's Own Story in 1982. By then, the HIV/Aids pandemic was hitting gay men hard, and White was a co-founder of the activist group Gay Men's Health Crisis, though he moved to Paris in 1983. A Boy's Own Story would be followed, in due course, by The Beautiful Room Is Empty (1988) and The Farewell Symphony (1997), forming a trilogy of novels that could be said to have summed up gay life for American men over four decades. In France, White wrote a comprehensive biography of Jean Genet, a notoriously tricky figure in French literary history. The resultant tome, Genet: A Biography (1993), won many prizes, including the Pulitzer in the USA. Having published so much fictionalised autobiography, White's non-fiction autobiographical works came at the story of his life from an angle: My Lives (2005) worked through themes such as family, sex, art and therapy non-chronologically; City Boy (2009) focused on his life in New York, a city to which he had returned in 1990; and The Loves of My Life (2025) covered his wildly promiscuous and interesting sex life and long-term friendships. His essays were published in a collection entitled The Burning Library (1994). White's other novels include The Married Man (2000), Fanny: A Fiction (2003), Hotel de Dream (2007), Our Young Man (2016) and The Humble Lover (2023).
The South African
a day ago
- Business
- The South African
Woolworths roll out Pride campaign
Woolworths have launched their 2025 Pride campaign. Images via Instagram: @woolworths_sa Woolworths has rolled out its 2025 Pride campaign in-store and on its social media platforms. But while they have kept the display of their merchandise subdued as compared to previous years, shoppers have continued to criticise the retailer. ADVERTISEMENT On their social media accounts, Woolworths shared a glimpse of their 2025 Pride campaign, which celebrates the month of LGBTQI rights. The range features clothing and merchandise featuring the LGBTQ flag and the words 'South Africa' emblazoned with the rainbow colours. On its official Instagram and Facebook accounts, Woolworths turned off the comments. However, social media users used the X platform to share their views. X user @TheArtist1988 posted: '2025 and Woolworths still celebrating s*d*my. Why should God bless South Africa when His own people (Christians) can't resist supporting Woolworths?' ADVERTISEMENT @AfrikanerHart posted: 'I think Woolworths has learnt their lesson about shoving rainbows down our throats this month. They must have taken a financial hit last year with their woke movement'. @PolyannaBrey added: 'They are not allowing comments on the post. I wonder why?' CORPORATE COMPANIES SCALE BACK CAMPAIGNS Meanwhile, CNN has stated that corporations worldwide, particularly in the US, are scaling back their Pride campaigns. This follows public backlash and their brands being compromised as a result. Ryan Bos of Capital Pride Alliance said: 'They made the decision that to protect their business, they did not want to risk the backlash,' said Although Pride is celebrated in South Africa in February, the NGO Triangle Project hopes the month will raise awareness and create a more 'inclusive world for everyone.' ADVERTISEMENT WHAT DOES WOOLWORTHS SAY? The South African attempted to contact Woolworths for comment. None has been received at the time of publishing. Last year, the retailer stated that the campaign encouraged the public to 'own, express, and celebrate their identity.' It added: 'Our Pride campaign is part of the Woolworths Inclusive Justice Initiative – acting against discrimination and marginalisation.' WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON WOOLWORTHS'S PRIDE CAMPAIGN? Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
Sky News AU
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sky News AU
Angry Karen complains about Target axing its Pride Month merch
Sky News host Rita Panahi reacts to a Karen 'whining' about Target getting rid of its LGBTQI display and replacing it with a pro-American one. The woman posted a video to social media, complaining that Target axed its Pride Month section in favour of pro-USA merchandise – claiming the retailer has gone 'anti-DEI'. 'God forbid anyone should have pride in their country,' Ms Panahi said. 'I'm sure your granddad risked his life so Target could sell breast binders to young girls.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
AFLW star Haneen Zreika announces exciting baby news and shares heartwarming footage of her telling her GWS teammates
AFLW player Haneen Zreika and her husband Ozzy are expecting their first child. The Greater Western Sydney Giants star, 26, recently revealed the exciting news to her teammates and shared a heartwarming clip of the moment on social media. In the footage, Haneen was seen arriving late to a team meeting before telling her fellow players the shock reason for her delay. 'Guys, I'm alive! I haven't been lying, I have been really sick... It's because I am pregnant,' Haneen told her teammates. The GWS squad were then seen jumping up in excitement as the whole team ran up to hug Haneen and congratulate her on the exciting news. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. Haneen then revealed her due date as her squad cheered her on: 'It's a November baby. Thanks guys.' It is the first child for Haneen, who has played for Greater Western Sydney since 2018. Haneen is one of the most outspoken players in the league and made headlines in October 2022 when she pulled out of the AFLW's league's pride round due to religious beliefs - the second time she has done so. The Muslim athlete said she would not be playing in the club's fixture against Hawthorn on October 16 in Sydney, where the side would be wearing specially-designed pride jumpers. The round celebrates and honours the LGBTQI+ community, which is heavily interlaced with the league given the amount of gay players. She also sparked backlash in January that year when she made the same decision to pull out of the Giants fixture - and that outrage appears to have reared its ugly head again. Haneen said she felt she had a 'responsibility to represent her faith' during pride round. For her, this meant not wearing the rainbow jersey GWS designed for the round - and she revealed she felt like an 'outsider' when the AFL rejected her proposal to just wear the normal strip. In the footage, Haneen was seen arriving late to a team meeting before telling her fellow players the shock reason for her delay 'I didn't want to make a big deal of it, until the AFL rejected me from wearing a normal jersey. That was a shock to me,' the speedy midfielder said in the Disney+ AFLW documentary 'Fearless', which was released at the start of the season. 'I love what the AFL do and the way they include everyone, but you can't have a round where you include people but exclude someone that it impacts their faith.' 'I really feel like an outsider, like, "no mate, you're not part of us",' Haneenadded. Haneen has a number of gay teammates, including captain Alicia Eva, Katherine Smith and Pepa Randall; and insists she does not 'judge the girls' despite differing beliefs. 'They can be whatever they want. I still love and respect them and they're still my mates,' she said in the documentary series.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Lifestyle
- Daily Mail
AFLW makes shock move with its LGBTQ pride round as it goes where no Aussie sport has gone before
This year's AFLW season will feature not one but two weeks dedicated to LGBTQI pride in a first for Australian sport. The release of the schedule on Friday revealed that this year's Pride round will stretch from round nine to round 10, beginning with the Bulldogs vs Bombers match on October 10 and running through to the Suns vs Dogs game on October 19. According to the AFLW, the additional Pride matches will ensure every team can wear their Pride strip at a home game. Daisy Pearce's West Coast will host Gold Coast on the opening night of the AFLW season, while North Melbourne launch their premiership defence away to Geelong. The Eagles-Suns clash, confirmed in Friday's fixture release, immediately follows the previously announced season opener between traditional foes Carlton and Collingwood on Thursday, August 14. It is the first time the AFLW season will start during the AFL home-and-away campaign, coinciding with the final two rounds of the men's competition. The AFLW says the extension for Pride will allow every team to wear their special kit on their home ground (pictured, St Kilda's Tyanna Smith marks during the 2024 Pride Round) Also in round one, old rivals Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs will do battle for the Hampson-Hardeman Cup and GWS host Essendon in the first-ever meeting between the sides. Brisbane will take on North Melbourne in round five, in their first encounter since the Kangaroos ' breakthrough grand-final triumph under Darren Crocker last year. AFLW fixtures boss Josh Bowler said the league was looking to celebrate iconic moments, grow rivalries and create traditions with this season's fixture. "It is important to recognise the moments and match-ups in the game that have helped shape the league so far, while also nurturing the emerging rivalries and making it easy and accessible for fans to attend," Bowler said. Geelong's GMHBA Stadium is the only major AFL venue where AFLW matches will be played in 2025. None have been scheduled at premier venues in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth or Adelaide. Unpopular mid-week fixtures have been dropped in 2025, except for Thursday night features in rounds one, seven and eight, with the latter two falling either side of the AFL grand final. The fixture has been partially based on last season's ladder, divided into three groups of six, and is weighted towards ensuring more match-ups within each group. AFLW's two major themed rounds will both be played over two weeks; Indigenous Round in rounds three and four and Pride Round across rounds nine and 10. Intrastate rivalries are littered throughout the fixture, starting in round five when Fremantle host West Coast at the port. Sydney and GWS clash in round six, Gold Coast take on Brisbane in round eight and Adelaide do battle with Port Adelaide in round 11. The schedule for the final round of the home-and-away season has been left floating, to be confirmed closer to the date.
