# Section 28 bites the dust **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 12, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888 "2003-07-12T02:58:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/1 "2003-07-12T02:58:11Z")
[Section 28](http://365gay.com/NewsContent/071103sectionScrapped.htm), a Thatcher-era law which prohibited the “promotion” of homosexuality and was often used as a weapon against sex ed in British schools, has finally been repealed. Congratulations, British Dopers, on being rid of this ugly bit of legislation. It’s been a good couple of months for the Empire, what with Canada legalizing marriage and now this. ---
**Author:** ![TVGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/82dd89/32.png) [@TVGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/2 "2003-07-12T03:02:40Z")
Cool!! “Promotion” of homosexuality, huh? Hmmmm. Putting on my TVGuy Promo hat … “TONIGHT on Fast Copy! Gay life! Gay Times! Great music and fun, FUN, **FUN!!** How do you get to join in? We’ll tell you about how to choose to be gay, from what kind of shoes to buy all the way to how to say ‘yes’ to that special someone! That’s all coming up next on _FAST COPY!_” ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/3 "2003-07-12T04:36:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TVGuy \* > **"TONIGHT on Fast Copy! Gay life! Gay Times! Great music and fun, FUN, _FUN!!_** Lesbians get a toaster. What do gays get? DD ---
**Author:** ![modro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@modro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/modro)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/4 "2003-07-12T05:02:04Z")
After being assaulted by one of the roving homosexual conversion mobs (They are like Jehovah’s Witnesses, only dressed better\*) and being converted, I got a lousy can opener. I feel so ripped off. ---
**Author:** ![modro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@modro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/modro)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/5 "2003-07-12T05:03:24Z")
Oh, I forgot the: \*[sup]no offense to any Jehovah’s Witnesses here, real or imagined[/sup] That I had intended on appending to the end of my post. ---
**Author:** ![Zorro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ad7895/32.png) [@Zorro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zorro)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/6 "2003-07-12T14:07:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Otto \* > \*\*[Section 28](http://365gay.com/NewsContent/071103sectionScrapped.htm), a Thatcher-era law which prohibited the “promotion” of homosexuality and was often used as a weapon against sex ed in British schools, has finally been repealed. Congratulations, British Dopers, on being rid of this ugly bit of legislation. It’s been a good couple of months for the Empire, what with Canada legalizing marriage and now this. \*\* Yes, it’s a lovely gesture on the part of Tony. Now if we could just persuade him and Home Secretary Adolf Blunkett to extend this liberal attitude to a few more areas, maybe this country wouldn’t feel quite so much like a one-party police state. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/7 "2003-07-12T14:10:46Z")
In further good news: > [@](#): > > Tokyo - Japan’s transgendered will be allowed to put their corrected sex and use their new names on official documents under a new law passed with unanimous consent Thursday by the House of Representatives. > > … > Applicants must be at least 20 years old, unmarried, have no > children, and no longer have functioning reproductive organs as a result ofundergoing gender reassignment surgery. I’m impressed. They just elected their first transgendered public official a few months ago, a city counsellor in a Tokyo suburb. ---
**Author:** ![Iteki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eada6e/32.png) [@Iteki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iteki)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/8 "2003-07-12T15:04:42Z")
At bloody last, good stuff! ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/9 "2003-07-12T15:41:09Z")
To our US posters, this law was enacted and worded in such a vague manner, that it was impossible to work out what ‘promoting homosexuality’ comprised. The result was that if a person confided in a teacher that they felt they might be gay, that teacher had the problem of trying to work out if any advice, apart from “Ignore it and go straight” could be interpreted as promoting homosexuality. The law had very poor undefined boundaries, it lacked any compassion, and it led to young people with questions about their own sexuality with no answers and no-one to turn to for constructive advice. The result was a number of attempted suicides and the propagation of a homophobic attitude among straight students. ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/10 "2003-07-12T18:13:25Z")
Now if they could just do something about the Church of England… ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/11 "2003-07-12T19:51:52Z")
Well they’re working at splitting it up as fast as possible. A few more gay bishops ought to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Plankspanker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Plankspanker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plankspanker)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/12 "2003-07-12T23:35:34Z")
[bbq hijack] fuck the CofE irishgirl, and fuck the catholic church too… i swear if i get one more priest/vicar treat me like a small child for not holding their beliefs… [/bbq hijack] 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/13 "2003-07-12T23:42:55Z")
I don’t know how the Catholic priests treat small children in the UK, but you’d best hope they don’t treat you like the priests here treat them. ---
**Author:** ![Plankspanker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Plankspanker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plankspanker)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2003, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/14 "2003-07-12T23:55:55Z")
[son of hijack] i just dont like the big religions at all… several of my ‘muslim’ (the " as they were not as devout as their parents would have liked) friends have been persecuted or even had attempts made on their lives because they arent so devout. used to know a catholic priest who would clip you round the ear for pretty much no reason (like breathing too loud), and the current vicaress (word?) at our local CofE is a total bitch. put it this way: if god exists, does he _really_ want people like this preaching his faith?? [/son of hijack] ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2003, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/section-28-bites-the-dust/187888/15 "2003-07-13T04:06:30Z")
Here’s a charming story from the Hindustan Times: > [@](#): > > Organisers of the Gay Olympics to be held in Montreal, > Canada, in 2006, have offered free air passage and other bursaries to competitors, entertainers and even journalists from countries in which gays and lesbians are badly stigmatised and criminalised. … > The Indian sub-continent seems to be particularly targeted because gays and lesbians are persecuted here. … Last year, at the Sydney Gay Games, a Sri Lankan lesbian won a gold medal in one of the track and field events. [http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181\_306321,00050002.htm](http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_306321,00050002.htm)