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Caster Semenya Cannot Compete Until June Results of Gender Test

There's an update to the story of19-year-old Caster Semenya, the South African middle distance champion who was at the center of a global controversy when she was ordered to submit to gender verification after winning the 800 meters at the IAAF World Track and Field Championships in Berlin. Athletics South Africa has told Semenya she must wait until June when the testing results are known, reports The Guardian.

The world 800m champion released a statement yesterday indicating her intention to return to the sport immediately, just hours after the ASA said her return would have to wait until the conclusion of testing by the IAAF. In response to Semenya's statement ASA's spokesman, Richard Stander, said: "The IAAF have said the scientific team is due to report back in June, so we are waiting for that."

Semenya has not competed since her victory at the World Championships in Berlin last summer. The 19-year-old had been led to believe she would hear the decision last November but, in frustration at the long delay, released a lengthy statement yesterday apparently in an attempt to speed up a resolution. Semenya's statement read: "I am an athlete first and foremost and it is vital for my competitiveness, my well-being and for my preparations for events during the European summer that I measure my performance against other athletes. "I hereby publicly announce my return to athletics competitions. My coach, agent and I will work closely together to identify and prepare for a limited number of athletics meetings over the course of the coming athletics season."

Testing results were leaked last summer that revealed Semenya is intersexed with internal testes and no uterus or ovaries. Several South African sports officials, who were dismissed, were aware of Semenya's medical condition but did not tell her. Semenya was allowed to keep her gold medal.

R20's Coverage on Caster Semenya ...
SA Athletics Chief Admits Lying About Tests
Semenya In Trauma Counseling After Tests Leaked
Semenya Withdraws from Race After Intersex Reports
SA Sprinter Caster Semenya Gets Makeover
"Elevated Testosterone" Levels in Caster Semenya
Gender Testing Ordered for Gold Medalist Semenya
Report: Semenya Intersex, Internal Testes, No Ovaries

New York School District Settles Anti-Gay Bullying Case

You may recall the January story of the 15-year-old gay Mohawk, NY high school student and his father, who along with the New York Civil Liberties Union, sued the teen's high school after it refused to address repeated harassment and homophobic bullying from classmates. The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division made a surprise in intervention on behalf of the teen. The Central Mohawk School District has settled the lawsuit and agrees  to protect gay and gender-nonconforming students from harassment.

"The settlement includes the school district consenting to numerous policy changes," The Advocate reports. "Including increased training for school officials and oversight by the New York Civil Liberties Union, which represented the student involved in the lawsuit. The ninth-grade student—who has since transferred to another school in another district—complained to school officials about harassment and discrimination related to his perceived sexual orientation. He claims his complaints went unaddressed by the school district."

In what was described as "a novel interpretation of the Title IX statute, which prohibits discrimination against students on the basis of gender", the United States Department of Justice filed  a motion to intervene on behalf of the student. That motion was apparently "the first time in almost a decade" that DoJ intervened in a gay rights lawsuit, NPR reported.

Wednesday Schedule

Running  a few errands this morning. Should be posting after 12.

Erykah Badu Defends Nude Video at JFK Assassination Site

Soul and R&B star Erykah Badu is defending a controversial new music video where she walks down a Dallas  sidewalk  before collapsing naked near the exact spot where John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

In the five-and-a-half-minute "Window Seat" video–which instantly went viral Monday on YouTube–the Dallas-born entertainer strips down before crowds in Dealey Plaza. The video was shot for Badu's new album, "New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh" without a crew in one take on March 17, according to her Twitter. As the music video progresses, a naked Badu reaches Dealey Plaza and an edited-in gunshot is heard. Badu's head snaps back and the naked singer crumples to the ground.

In an interview with the Dallas Morning News, the singer says she chose the famous "grassy knoll" at Dealey Plaza because "it was the most monumental place in Dallas I could think of."

Badu tweeted that she was "too busy lookin for cops" to be shy about her nudity, but was aware that children were around and “prayed they wouldn’t b traumatized."

Edgy and pushing the envelope? Or tasteless? Watch the video WHEN YOU JUMP ...

Gen. Sheehan Apologizes After Blaming Bosnia Massacre on Gays

Retired General  John J. Sheehan, the former Supreme Allied Commander for NATO, has apologized after his outrageous claims that Dutch United Nations troops failed to prevent the 1995 Bosnian Srebrenica genocide because their ranks included openly gay soldiers.

The AFP reports:

"Sheehan, a retired former NATO commander and senior Marine officer, "wrote a letter of apology," ministry spokeswoman Anne van Pinxteren told AFP. In it, Sheehan said he was "sorry" for remarks made at a Senate hearing earlier this month where he argued against plans by President Barack Obama to end a ban on allowing gays to serve openly in the US military. 'The case in point that I'm referring to is when the Dutch were required to defend Srebrenica against the Serbs,' he said at the time, referring to the Dutch UN peacekeeping force deployed to protect Bosnian Muslim civilians.

"Sheehan claimed that Dutch leaders, including the former chief of staff of the Dutch army General Henk van den Breemen, had told him that the presence of gay soldiers had contributed to the fall of the enclave which led to the massacre of nearly 8,000 Muslim men and boys. 'To be clear, the failure on the ground in Srebrenica was in no way the fault of the individual soldiers,' states Sheehan's letter, dated Monday and addressed to the now retired Van den Breemen. 'I am sorry that my recent public recollection of those discussions of 15 years ago inaccurately reflected your thinking on some specific social issues in the military," said the letter, a copy of which was given to AFP by the ministry. 'It is also regrettable that I allowed you to be pulled into a public debate.' "

Sheehan made the bizarre claims while testifying at the Senate Armed Services Committee against repealing "Don't Askl, Don't Tell." Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said the remarks were "disgraceful"  and Gen. van den Breemen described them as "complete nonsense". The gay rights group Pink Army threatened to sue the ex-general unless he retracted. The Dutch Defense and Foreign Ministries have accepted the apology.

'Inaccurate reflection" must be there new "totally made up and manufactured". Sheehan's "inaccurate reflctions" and testimony, if you missed it, WHEN YOU JUMP ...

HOT: Mehcad Brooks and Hidetoshi Nakata are "Cut" and Bulging

If it wasn't already obvious that the muscles of ridiculously hot Calvin Klein underwear models Mehcad Brooks and Hidetoshi Nakata are cut and bulging, the new full page ad campaign spotted in the April GQ is further proof that both men are indeed "cut". Huge scans of Fernando Verdasco and Kellan Lutz AFTER THE JUMP ...

WATCH: Wedding of Seanmichael Rodgers and Damien Ramsey

There is a beautiful postscript to the story of Seanmichael Rodgers and Damien Ramsey (aka singer-songwriter Dy'Ari), first seen on R20 at the National Equality March and later in AOL/BlackVoices. Seanmichael and Damien were joined in a beautiful wedding ceremony in New York City last weekend.

The ceremony was held at The Monkey on West 26th Street and attended by about 80 guests. The ceremony was officiated by the Rev. Kevin E. Taylor, the New Jersey-based pastor, activist and author with Unity Fellowship Church in New Brunswick. Says Rev Kev: "It was so wonderful to be a part of a ceremony where so many people—coworkers, a mother, a pair of sisters, friends in droves—who were so invested in the couples love."

Leslie "ButtaFly Soul" Taylor delivered spoken word and  Ken Alston Jr. (Three Mo' Tenors) serenaded the couple before a standing room only audience. Atlanta-based blogger Darian Aaron writes: "This was a momentous occasion in their lives, but it was also special for me as this was the very first same-sex ceremony I'd ever attended. It also marked the culmination of some of the best coverage I believe I've written on a black same-gender loving couple," he adds, referring to an interview in his popular "Coupled Up" series which lead to a profile of the couple at AOL BlackVoices. This was the first same-sex couple profiled at the black news and lifestyle portal.

More photos and via Darian Aaron watch the ceremony AFTER THE JUMP  ...

Janet Jackson: "I'm Not Working" on a New Album

Despite two new tracks in rotation, "Nothing" and "Heartbeat Love", there is disappointing news for Janet Jackson fans: Jackson tells Rolling Stone she is "not working" on a new album.

"'There was a time where I was actually in the studio and I was recording, but I’m not working on an album,' she says. 'There have been a lot of record labels that have asked me to sit down and talk with them, but I don’t know if I want to do something completely independent, or go with a major.' Discipline was Jackson’s first disc on Def Jam after she left her longtime label Virgin. So what about the new songs? 'Nothing' is a one-off she co-wrote and co-produced with Jermaine Dupri for the new Tyler Perry film Why Did I Get Married Too?, and the lyrics reflect the tensions and turmoil between characters, like Angela’s trust issues with Marcus ('You can even have the password to my phone'), as well as her own character Patricia’s guilt and regret over Gavin ('We should cherish every moment like it’s the last'). As for the second song, Jackson said she did it as a favor for Rodney Jerkins for 'fun.'"

In related news: Earlier this week, Janet and Tyler Perry appeared on ET and Today to promote the April 2nd release of Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too. Janet is already getting rave reviews for her emotional performance as Patricia, who seemingly unravels on the screen. "Nothing" will play over the end credits in WDIGMT.The Jermaine Dupri-produced track was leaked several days ago, listen to it HERE.

VA Gov McDonnell: No Bias Against Gays, Protections Unnecessary

Only weeks after issuing an unenforceable and useless "directive" that Virginia's state agencies should not discriminate based on sexual orientation, far right wing Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell says a law protecting gays and lesbians isn't necessary because anti-gay bias just doesn't happen very often, reports the Washington Post.

"Breaking with the practice of his Democratic predecessors, McDonnell did not include sexual orientation in an executive order he issued barring discrimination in the state workforce shortly after taking office. He argued that he could not include protections for gays without authority from the General Assembly, which has repeatedly declined to adopt a law on the issue. But in past interviews, McDonnell has never been clear about whether he supported the General Assembly taking action. He told Post columnist Bob McCartney that he might, in fact, sign such a law if passed. But asked today on the 'Ask the Governor' program at Richmond's WRVA radio whether he would sign such legislation, he said, 'I don't know that we need it based on the numbers that I've seen.' He added: 'There really isn't any rampant discrimination on any basis in Virginia. If you're going to have a law, it needs to actually address a real problem.' "

One of McDonnell's first actions in office was to strip gay and lesbian state workers of job protections. Shortly afterward, birther and tea bag poster boy Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli advised the Commonwealth's public colleges and universities to abolish policies that ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and/or gender identity

At least 27 times since 1997 and as recently as two weeks ago, the Virginia General Assembly has rejected bills to add the words "sexual orientation" to nondiscrimination statutes.

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STUDY: 14% of Washington DC's Gay Men are HIV Positive

More sobering statistics on the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in our nation's capitol, which is the highest in the country and "on par with Uganda and some parts of Kenya." More than 14 percent of gay men in Washington D.C. are HIV positive and the rate for black gay men is "much" higher, according to a snapshot released by the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration.

Interviews with 500 gay men throughout the District found that more than 40 percent were unaware of their diagnosis before the study, even though most had seen a doctor in the past 12 months, and more than a third did not know the HIV status of their last sex partner. The study also shattered some stereotypes: Younger men generally had safer sex behaviors; men older than 30 were tested less frequently, used condoms less often and had more sex partners... The report found that more than 40 percent of those interviewed said they did not use a condom with their last sex partner. Although men of color used condoms almost twice as frequently as white men, the study found more men of color were HIV positive than white men.

And:

Nearly 60 percent of gay men in the city living with HIV/AIDS are black, according to a 2008 study issued by the HIV/AIDS administration. Fewer than 35 percent are white, an indication that the prevalence rate among gay men in the study might be higher and compare less favorably with other cities if more black men were included in the study.

Last week, the District released figures that show the number of HIV/AIDS cases in the city has topped 16,500. For the first time in years the number of new AIDS cases and deaths have declined but black gay and bisexual men continue to be "exponentially" over-represented.

Some Background:
Report: New AIDS Cases and Deaths Decline in DC
Three Percent of Washington DC is HIV Positive
Young Black Gay Men Hit Hardest by New HIV Infections
HIV Spreading in NYC at Three Times National Rate
CDC: "Troubling" Rise in HIV Among Black Gay Men
HIV Rates Rising Among Black NYC Gay Men
30% of Chicago Black Gay Men HIV Positive