As Lesbilicious rings in the New Year, we give you the 25 hottest women of 2012.

1. Sofia Vergara

Cheeky yet sofisticated, Sofia Vergara is one hot mamma. With her flowy tresses, ample bosoms and columbian accent, who could say no? Playing Gloria Delgado-Pritchett on hit show Modern Family, we just love it when she talks about her “baby cheeses”.

2. Noomi Rapace

A woman of many looks, the face behind the Dragon Tattoo is best loved as Lisbeth Salander of the Swedish adaptions of the Millenium Trilogy. We love her best when she’s speeding through the streets of Stockholm on her motorbike and glaring at the computer screen for Blomkvist.

3. Natalie Portman

The Black Swan actress has glided into the top 25′s many a time. Known also for her performances in V for Vendetta and Star Wars, she’s quite the hot cookie. But alas, who could forget the sex scene with Mila Kunis?

4. Mila Kunis

Oops! You guessed it, Mila Kunis is at number 4. This year she was known for her role in Ted, the girlfriend of a guy who struggled to part with his cursing, drug taking, sex crazed teddy bear. She’s also the voice of Meg Griffin in Family Guy and a couple years ago had that kiss with Natalie.

5. Keira Knightley

Ok. Writer’s block with this one. What do I really need to say? She’s Kiera Knightley. Deliciously mischievous and delicately fierce.

6. Anne Hathaway

What a lady! Anne Hathaway has delighted us as the Catwoman, The White Queen and Mia Thermopolis (Princess Diaries) #guilty pleasure. What will be in store for us as we watch her as Fantine of Les Misérables? Can’t wait to find out. Squee!

7. Nicole Scherzinger

This lady got some moves! While docile in her lofty mansion, this X Factor judge and former Pussy Cat Doll can pack a punch on the dance floor.

8. Lea Michele

Rachel Berry steps it up a gear in this season of Glee. From high school diva to NYADA star, she’s done some sexy pieces.

9. Alyson Hannigan

She’s puurty! How many times have you heard the quote “This one time, at band camp…”. Yep, that was Michelle. What did she do with that flute?

10. Cheryl Cole

Phwoar. Another guilty pleasure. Seriously, who doesn’t secretly fancy her derriere?

 

Got any other faves? Tell us in the comments below…

 

Like about 90% of the population, I am right-handed.

I don’t necessarily have a problem with left-handed people, in fact a friend of one of my very best friends is left-handed, I just don’t like the thought of what left-handed people do in private in their own homes.

Left-handed people claim their personal lives are none of my business, and admittedly they have not passed judgment on my right-handed private life, yet I feel the need to state the left-handed activity they participate in makes me a little queasy.

I am a church-goer and believe only right-handed people should be allowed the privilege of love and marriage. I accept left-handed people are going to pair up with each other but their unions must not be referred to as ‘marriage’ or take place in a place of worship. Marriage is sacred and only for the right-handed.

It is therefore sensible for people who feel they are left-handed – and who wish to marry – to try their very best to become right-handed. If this is too difficult for them, they should give up using both of their hands altogether.

I am uncomfortable with the notion of left-handed people having children.

Left-handed parents may have a happy and loving home with the ability to offer a wonderful upbringing to a child but they cannot possibly provide a child with the same benefits as right-handed parents. Parental skill, personality and even love are irrelevant when it comes to left-handed parenting versus right-handed parenting.

If a left-handed parent or parents try to raise a child it will expose that child to all sorts of left-handed activity and the child may even turn out left-handed themselves.

Although a parent may still love their left-handed child, I am sure no sane person would ever wish for their child to be left-handed.

Children should not be taught in school that being left-handed is normal. I had a friend once who thought he was left-handed for a while, he even tried being left-handed with another left-handed person, but then realised he was right-handed all along and it was all just a phase. If he had been taught in school that being left-handed was a normal and acceptable choice he may have stayed left-handed forever.

Speaking of choice, I know many left-handed people claim they are born left-handed and they do not have a choice about it, and this may well be true, but they do not have to act upon it.

Paedophiles also claim they are born with a desire to have sex with children. Therefore one could argue left-handed people are basically paedophiles. I would not say this is always the case, but left-handed marriage is definitely the beginning of society’s decline into all sorts of wrongness and deviancy.

For example, if we allow left-handed people to marry it will pave the way for other irregular relationships, such as incestuous ones, to become legal too.

The idea that left-handed people should be able to marry is quite simply ‘barking mad’.

Around 130 Tory MPs, including David Davies, oppose the rights of gay couples to marry and argue children should not be taught about homosexuality in school. David Davies referred to gay marriage as ‘barking mad’.

Read Davies’s latest interview here.

Like and share if you believe gay people deserve the same rights as left-handed people.

This coalition government in the UK is a funny one. Having gone to such effort to make it clear that their same sex marriage consultation was regarding civil marriage only, having faced down a major revolt by the more traditionally minded churches and a hundred of backbench Tory MPs, the government last week announced that they would be adding religious marriage to the upcoming bill anyway.

This was seriously good news to those of us who have been angry that the rights of religious LGBT people have taken the back seat to the concerns of people who were pretty unhappy about civil partnerships when they came in in 2005, but now regard them as the only option to prevent ‘the gays’ from getting true equality.

The government has announced a variety of laws that will protect the rights of religious ministers to refuse to perform same sex marriages, including amending the Equality Act and ensuring the European Court of Human Rights can’t get involved.

This all seems quite reasonable – LGBT people should be able to get married, priests who don’t agree don’t have to marry them. All well and good.

The “quadruple lock”

Except for this other random law thrown in. As part of the “triple lock” announcement, additional regulations were announced for the Church of England, which will be explicitly banned from performing same sex marriages.

Apparently this was to deal with the problem of having an established church whose canon law, which must be approved by Parliament, would directly conflict with Parliament passing a religious same sex marriage law.

I say “apparently”, because it turns out no-one asked the Churches of England or Wales how they felt about it. Regardless, it seems to be setting us up for even more grief in the future. What if the Church of England decides to allow same sex marriage in its churches but vociferous Tory MPs manage to block the removal of the “quadruple lock”, as its known?

Additionally, this proposed legislation again restricts rights, in this case those of Anglican priests who actively want to perform same sex marriages and are pressuring the Church to allow them to do so.

Chris Howson, an Anglican priest in the diocese of Sunderland wrote an article on his thoughts of same sex marriage in the Anglican church, stating:

“To exempt the Churches of England and Wales from the possibility of opting to perform same sex marriages will just lead to many of us eventually leaving for more progressive Anglican shores, or joining other denominations. This is crazy. I am an Anglican priest. I am proud of the fact that the Holy Spirit has moved in our Church and helped us to move from positions of racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination.”

“I hope that those in the leadership of the C of E will recognise that their position must change. Otherwise we will lose another generation, as our institution looks more and more irrelevant and unkind. It does not bode well for us that the ‘nasty party’ can easily pass us off as the ‘nasty church’.”

A wolf in gay sheep’s clothing

It can only be a good thing that in terms of planned legislation we are now down to a few thousand people whose wishes to marry couples and each other in Anglican Churches are now being thwarted, down from the hundreds of thousands of people right now.

It frankly makes me optimistic that if the government can, for reasons known only to itself, repeatedly stab its own supporters in the back for the benefit of people like me, then it can do so for the sake of the devout gay Anglicans who just want to be married in the eyes of their God. Though I continue to find it baffling that Scotland’s SNP government at Holyrood had none of this prevaricating and the Tories chose to go down this path which seems to be satisfying nobody.

Same sex marriage is the final legal hurdle to full equality on an track that started with the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 1967 and sped up dramatically during the last Labour government which oversaw the repeal of Section 28, the introduction of hate crime and sexual orientation discrimination legislation, the reduction in the age of consent for gay sex, and the legalisation of gay adoption, LGBT people serving in the military, and civil partnerships.

David Cameron evidently scented an opportunity to dress his party in a gay sheep‘s clothing and deny Labour a straight flush of LGBT rights laws. Given that the actual vote, after much wrangling, dissent, and grumbling from within his own party, and the fury of many natural Tory supporters now heading to UKIP and elsewhere, will see a lengthy queue of obedient and grinning Labour MPs marching through the Aye lobby as 130 or more Tories defy the Prime Minister to put themselves on the wrong side of history, I wonder if the new ‘compassionate Conservatives’ will think it was all worth it.

I started today in a good mood, which was surprising for a Monday morning. Nonetheless I did.  I was in a great old mood and all set to write a fluffy piece on a great stocking filler for the whole family but alas I read the news at lunch and I have been on a downward curve ever since.

What aggravated me so much? No it was not the garlic smuggler dodging tax, nor the news of yet another energy price increase. In fact it was ramblings of one of our elected politicians in the UK – one MP David Davies.

“I think most people are very tolerant and have no problem at all if people are gay” (BBC website)

…you know what’s coming…

“ I think most parents would prefer their children not to be gay, knowing most parents want grandchildren if nothing else.”

The ignorance of that statement is nothing short of baffling.  I mean, did he really say that!?!

“It changes the way that sex education is going to be taught in schools.”

Thank goodness!

“It’s going to have an impact on teachers and I think it goes against what a lot of people feel very strongly about, particularly within the Conservative Party.”

The assertion being made here is that this is going to impact teachers adversely.  Not to go all ‘activist’ here but ‘The School Report’ published by Stonewall (2012) illustrates that 55% of LGB young people experience homophobic bullying.

Homophobic bullying is certainly not limited to LGB students as Stonewall’s publication ‘The Teachers’ Report’ showed in 2009 that any person deemed as different can be subject to homophobic bullying, anyone considered to be outside of traditional gender stereotypes (e.g. sporty girls) or with gay friends or family could be subject to homophobic bullying, which is in fact the second most common type of bullying in schools.

Thankfully, the world is not full of idiots like Mr Davies.

Diversity Role Models

Back in May (2012) I wrote about role models because it is something I believe very passionately in. Those among us who stand up, change perceptions and inspire others simply by being open and authentic individuals.  An organisation which shares this view is Diversity Role Models (DRM).

DRM is a charity that seeks to prevent homophobic bullying in schools within the United Kingdom by using role models (both LGBT and their straight allies) to educate young people about differences in sexual orientation and gender identity to enable acceptance and respect for diversity.

“Diversity role models can be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or straight. They need not be successful, attractive or brilliant. They certainly don’t need to be perfect. All they need to demonstrate is that it’s ok to be different.”

In schools where preventative methods are implemented, it has been shown that LGBT students are 60% less likely to be bullied, leading to a better, safer learning environment for students.

2013 DRM Calendar

In conjunction with DRM, Claire’s Events has put together a calendar to promote some of the role models involved with the charity…and yes, this is the gift that keeps on giving as all the profits generated go directly to the charity.

Why did Claire do this? “I have known Susan (Dickson, CEO of Diversity Role Models) for a while now, and the work she does is so important in the fight to eliminate bullying and homophobia. I wanted to do anything I could to help the charity.”  (Claire Henson, Claire’s Events)

Spoken like a true role model.

The calendar is not the first time Claire has been involved in charity.  In April of this year she ran a charity benefit at the Komedia Brighton which included performers such as Amity, Christina Novelli and the Short and Girlie Show.

So who can we expect to see in the calendar?  Amongst others… TV Presenter Clare Balding, singer AMiTY, Paralympian Claire Harvey and the cast of the L Project.  If you want to find who else makes an appearance you know what to do.

So…

This year instead of buying my usual fluffy kittens calendar (because yes they are cute and yes I do want one) I will be getting myself one of these great calendars and each day in 2013 use it to ask myself one simple question – how can I be better today?

Buy your calendar today from the Diversity Role Models website.

The Supreme Court finally addressed the California Prop 8 appeal and the Defense of Marriage Act on Friday, December 7, behind closed doors. 

As you may recall, Prop 8 was a ban on same sex marriage that California voters implemented in 2008.  The official ruling that was handed down on Friday is that the court agreed to hear both cases, which will most likely happen in Spring of 2013, and a verdict handed down by Summer of 2013.  Americans, especially those of the rainbow variety, have been anxiously awaiting the ruling for quite some time.  If the Court had elected to not review Prop 8 next year, it would have meant that gay couples in California would be ringing wedding bells around the corner.  At this time, however, gay couples are still not allowed to legally be married in California.  While this may seem like a step back, it is important to realize that by finally addressing these appeals at the Supreme Court we are that much closer to attaining equal rights without having them revoked months later.

Now, I’m a smart girl, and I am going to assume that you are a smart girl since you are reading this piece, but let’s get serious, this Prop 8 nonsense that has been bouncing around for over 4 years is confusing!  For example (and forgive my personal revelations) my little sister and her wife were married on August 14, 2010.  They had planned their wedding for months, even though gay marriage was not technically legal in California at the time, because they wanted to celebrate their union with family and friends.  At a surprising turn of events, United States district court Judge Vaughn Walker overturned Prop 8 just ten days before their wedding.  You can imagine how overjoyed this made us, even though the legal technicalities were beside the point.  It was just plain exciting to be celebrating a marriage that their own state fully recognized.  But!  Despite the fact that same sex marriage was now technically legal in California thanks to Judge Walker’s ruling, there was a stay that went into effect almost immediately following the decision.  So, when my sister and her wife were married, same sex marriage was technically legal but not actually applicable as a tangible right.  That stay remains, and same sex partners residing in California have not been granted the right to a physical marriage license.

That was two years ago, and it’s still hard for me to wrap my brain around the semantics.  Then, on February 7, 2012, a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel affirmed Walker’s decision declaring the Proposition 8 ban on same-sex marriage to be unconstitutional.  This was a win for gay, but still no legal ceremonies could be performed.  On July 30, 2012, supporters of the marriage ban filed a petition with the Supreme Court, requesting a review.  That was almost five months ago, and now the Supreme Court has finally agreed to hear the case.

Are you still with me?  And so while it appears that we are back where we started, as in sitting on our lovely behinds and waiting for those strangers in the court house to decide our fates, we are actually a little bit ahead than we were five months ago, and we are so far ahead from where we were in the 2008 election.  As many of you know, last month’s election ended with four more states ahead in the marriage equality column.  Same sex marriages are now legal in 11 of the 50 states, though there are a few more states such as California that are in an in between state of limbo.  You can find a ridiculously colorful map here that (sort of) explains the policies state by state.

The Defense Of Marriage Act will also be in review alongside Prop 8 next spring.  The justices will be reviewing the constitutionality of the DOMA and its provision denying federal benefits to same-sex couples who are legally married.  Heartbreaking stories of widows getting screwed by the federal government because their marriage is not recognized on a national level abound, and many states’ judicial systems have ruled that DOMA denies gays and lesbians the equal protection of the laws.  Again, we must wait until spring to learn anything new.

There is still hope.  Everywhere you read, look, turn, it is becoming apparent that the time are a’changing and it won’t be long before 11 states becomes 12 states becomes 25 becomes 50.  Marriage equality advocates knew that this issue would not get resolved until it hit the Supreme Court, and so we are just going through the channels to achieve the freedom that comes with equality.  Until then, we wait.

Last week Carrie Lyell wrote a piece about the release of a gender-neutral toy catalogue in Sweden, just one of a number of gender cleansing actions inviting us to consider emigration there. But while it seems that the Swedish government and society are taking steps to obliterate distinctions between the sexes, if your transgender, it’s a complete no go.

Looks pretty radical, doesn't it?

To have your gender legally recognized in Sweden you must undergo sterilization, which involves all reproductive materials being destroyed. No biological children, losing the ability to carry a child and forced to coincide with a gender binary – all to allow you to have correct documentation. What’ so important about correct documents, you might ask?  Well, without them it’s a struggle to go through airport security, to apply or graduate from university, to get health insurance, and a whole host of other mundane activities without having to come out or be refused every time you do so.

Sweden’s not alone

One of 17 other European countries to abide by this draconian law, France, Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands join those that force surgery for document changes. Further afield in Canada the Identity Screening Regulations state that airlines should not transport a passenger if he or she ”does not appear to be of the gender indicated on the identification he or she presents.” Therefore, if you want to travel in or out of Canada as a trans person, you could face big difficulty. What’s more, in Brazil, an image must be provided to the Government with full body photographic proof of  the transition for documents to be changed.

Where can I be me? (Image via Mother Jones)

Common Protocol

If that weren’t bad enough, common protocol in many other nations involves providing proof of major medical procedures like sex reassignment surgery; hormone replacement therapy; a diagnosis of gender dysphoria; or permission by the courts. Gender dysphoria, for anyone that doesn’t know, is “a marked incongruence between one’s experienced/ expressed gender and assigned gender, of at least 6 months duration”, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual. It’s considered a mental illness and usually has to be diagnosed before essential hormone treatment can be accessed.

Josie, an 8 year old transgender girl on the Tyra show.

The laws are no different for children and for many trangender kids, including Irish, they must travel across borders for treatment. Most transgender people I know identified as trans from the age of five or six and had to wait until their late thirties and forties to acquire treatment. Indeed, in Ireland a bill is in formation which would require transgender couples to divorce to have their gender legally recognized.

Argentina lights the way

However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Argentina is lighting the way in gender recognition legislation. Passed in May, their bill allows for self-determination i.e. no diagnosis of a mental illness and requires no proof of surgery or hormone therapy. For transgender people who have no desire for surgery or hormones, or who because of health problems can’t safely undergo surgery or hormone therapy, this is a big deal. Plus, many transgender people don’t associate with having a dysphoria and so are forced into appearing ‘trans enough’ to access treatment and documentation.

For a country that appears so advanced it’s in the future on gender recognition, Sweden has a long way to go. Nobody should be forced into surgery to be recognized as who they are.

Today, Sports Wales and Stonewall Cymru have teamed up to combat homophobia in sports.  After the Olympics and the government stressing the importance of the Games Legacy, it’s never been a more exciting time for sports in the UK.  Sports Wales and Stonewall Cymru have revealed the details of their #sportyandgay campaign, to outline the importance of eradicating homophobia from on and off the field. And quite rightly so.

However, what niggles me is that over the 10 years I’ve been playing hockey, not once have I ever come across homophobia, whether it was at my local hockey club or at university.  I found being part of a club has evolved to become a second family, a close knit group who not only works together on the astro, but also looks out for and cares for each other.  It saddens me to think that other people haven’t been so lucky when coming to sport.

According to the report published on the Sport Wales website here, gay men generally have felt more excluded than gay women/lesbians.  However, with massive sporting stars such as Gareth Thomas and Nigel Owens from rugby, who are openly gay, have become beacons of hope for aspiring gay rugby players.  Football, on the other hand, is struggling with having gay representatives, and appears to be a completely heterosexual sphere, with no place for gay men.  A gay male that was surveyed stated:

“Make it clear that sport isn’t a preserve for straight men. More openly gay premiership football players would turn a corner” – gay male, survey

This is clearly an attitude Sports Wales and Stonewall are hitting hard, with a ‘No Tolerance’ policy coursing through the campaign.

Another message that was clearly outlined in the report was that sports club should be more responsible for showcasing that they are ‘gay friendly’.  Personally, why does a club need to state this? Surely, being friendly full stop is important, not zoning in on one group?  As part of our club, we’re hugely proud of being one of the friendliest hockey clubs in North Wales.  We’re welcoming, happy, have great attitudes on and off the pitch and care a great deal about each other and any new members who would like to join!  But if clubs were specifically advertising that they were ‘LGBT friendly’, my first thought would be “well, why wouldn’t you be anyway?”, and if I ever joined a team that wasn’t, I wouldn’t stick around.

Many of my gay friends who live in Wales and beyond play sports, whether it’s rugby, football, hockey, darts, pool, or even water polo, and the sporting world has always been a safe haven for us to be who we are.  A segment of the report focuses on gay ‘banter’, and how 75% of LGBT respondents have experienced this either whilst playing or watching.  Sometimes banter can be vicious and cruel, and there’s never any room for such vulgar comments, no matter what the situation, but I’ve had quite a bit of ‘gay banter’, but we all took the mickey out of each other for different things.  At university we had quite a few members of the club who were LGBT, so drinking fines were split to “gays drink” and “straights drink” – equality! Being gay was just a sub group of the big family that we had, and the straights had just as much banter as the gays.

Once again, maybe I was lucky to be a part of such a magnificent hockey club at university, and my local hockey club in North Wales.  It saddens me to even think about other members of the LGBT society not being accepted and appreciated as I have been, but I’m extremely impressed and excited about the Stonewall Cymru and Sport Wales movement to not only raise awareness about homophobia in sports, but one day eliminating it forever.

Hockey tour top – love it, thought it was hilarious, not offensive! The theme was music, and this is the Katy Perry song

It is already December and I know a lot of you are counting down the days till Christmas but are also slightly freaking out cause they are missing THE fabulous and original gift idea to surprise and overwhelm their honey under the tree. No panic! The Lesbilicious team synchronized their suggestions to help you get out of trouble. Enjoy and take credit on Christmas day!

1 – Classic and always successful: Books!

Our writer Maria Burnham recommends Jeanette Winterson’s memoir “Why Be Happy When You Could be Normal”, a story about the search for happiness. “The Lesbian Parenting Book: A Guide to Creating Families and Raising Children” will please the couples who are already in the process of setting up a family, or will encourage partners who are thinking about it but need tips to get started! It can also be a subtle message for your loved one…

2 – A cult DVD to fill your long winter evenings

Winter is the season for DVDs. Among the numerous cult movies and series to have, we picked the Lip Service box set with the seasons 1 & 2 as a guilty treat for those who have a secret fantasy on Sergeant Sam Murray… If you aim to be more original and fancy, my suggestion will be two French movies that I am pretty sure no one has heard of: “Looking for Cheyenne” (Oublier Cheyenne), an unusual love story between two women who have different political and social views, and “Gigola”, the story of a scandalous woman dressed as a man set in Paris in the 20′s starring the ambiguous Lou Doillon.

3 – Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friends

Our writer Sophie Cairns would go for something traditional like a sparkly necklace. A piece of jewellery is indeed a unique gift which lasts (just avoid if your girlfriend tends to lose stuff). Check the Diesel women jewels range for wicked ideas if you can’t afford the actual diamond thing yet.

4 – Shoes

Our writer Georgia T Rooney is thinking of getting her loved one some great Converse trainers. Double check the size before you order and be cheeky on the color! I personally love the metallic purple pair which my lover got me last year!

5 – Music

A romantic suggestion from our writer Renata Costa: an iPod with all the music she has listened with her love. If you are out of ideas, why not including the last Jesse J or the Canadian twin sisters Tegan & Sara!

6 – A witty magazine subscription

Although you read nothing but Lesbilicious, why not get your lover a magazine subscription? It is a gift that you will benefit too and that will last all year long! You can go for lesbian magazines such as Diva, Curve, or La Dixieme Muse (get her to practice her French at the same time), but Time Out is also a great idea if you live in London, to get all the info about the hottest nights in town.

7 – Tickets for funky nights out

Georgia is also thinking of gig or theatre tickets (it seems like her lover will be spoiled this Christmas). Our lesbian icon Pink is on a UK tour in 2013! For more intellectual stuff, Sadler’s Wells in London has a wonderful dance program for 2013 with some tickets under £15.

8 – Pampering

Treat yourself too for Christmas! A massage for two is a wonderful gift that you will enjoy together. Many spas now propose treatments for couples. Self-indulgence is a good thing! It is a perfect gift if you have something difficult to say or a favor to ask because your girlfriend will probably say yes to anything after thai massage and cucumber mask.

9 – Geeky stuff

A geeky gift will be highly appreciated by many ladies. The Kindle Fire or customized accessories for laptops and phones will surely be a hit. For more extravagant and sophisticated ideas that will surprise (or scare) her, have a look at the technology page of Pinterest!

10 – Involvement

Your partner already has all the items listed above? Help her take action to support LGBT people and donate! There are plenty of organizations out there who need money and support to continue doing a fantastic job: Stonewall, The Lesbian and Gay Foundation, Galop or London Friend among others. Put the receipt of the donation in a beautiful envelop under the tree and give your partner a giant kiss to show her how generous and wonderful she is!