Been There Done That

5 Oct 2018

Wins … and losses

Anniversary, Community, Gay, History, HIV, Pop Culture, Sport

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This week, we’re still buzzing after the footy finals. It is such a Melbourne vibe, and even if you don’t follow the game through the year, the finals are stand-alone excitement – much better than the Melbourne Cup horse-racing. But now we realise that summer is just around the corner with the usual harbingers of Daylight Saving changes and hay fever sneezes.

We bid a sad farewell to Yvonne Gardner – a stalwart of the Melbourne gay community, for her support of the abandoned members of our community during the earliest days of the AIDS /HIV crisis.
We remember the passing of film-star Rock Hudson (died 2/10/1985) who faded from our movie screens then suddenly reappeared on TV, struck down with HIV. While some of us knew or guessed about his ‘other’ life, many members of the general community were shocked that he was gay.

Also remembered at this time are US bi folk singer of the ’70s Janis Joplin (died 4/10/1970), and gay English comedian Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame (died 4/10/1989).

From around the world, we refer to press reports of the changing civil rights of our GLBTIQ communities, with positive changes in India, listing of intersex as a gender option in Colorado, and the foiling of US Congress anti-GLBTQ adoption amendments which would have struck out government financial benefits. Laws re-criminalising advances in legislations are lurking in Trinidad & Tobago, Texas and Singapore.

On 5/10/1989, the Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, but we question the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Aung San Suu Kyi in 1991, with the disturbing situation in Burma/Myanmar.

Listen to these stories, opinions and more – presented with some merriment (where appropriate) by Chris, Gordon & Phil.

Show #824 – First broadcast on 2 October 2018