Bee Corner

Amber McCormack with a core team of committed volunteers have transformed a neglected concrete space into a haven for humans and honey bees called “Bee Corner”.

It offers urban beekeeping experiences in the heart of Salford. Tucked away behind Islington Mill (on Chapel Street) is the place where you can come and observe the bees at work and explore the mysteries of the hive.

Amber is so enthusiastic and is a brilliant teacher. We learnt all about pollinators, local flora and fauna. We found out that a bee’s favourite flowers are Bee-gonias! If truth bee told, the benefits of having a hive is un-bee-lievable. It was a brilliant trip. I enjoyed it so much and hive never felt this way bee-fore.

Have a look at some bee-autiful photos here.

Yulja Tsvetkova

See the drawing above? The Russian text says “Family is where love is. Support LGBT+ families.” Yulja Tsvetkova made it last year to support a same-sex couple who had to flee Russia with their two adopted children after being targeted by the authorities.

After she shared the picture and other drawings promoting inclusivity on social media, the authorities brought trumped-up charges against her for violating the Russian “gay propaganda” law and distributing pornography, fined her 50,000 rubles (around £650), and put her under house arrest.

Just a few days ago, new charges have been brought up against her, and she could face up to six years in prison.

Please sign the petition to bring attention to her case.

As an activist, Yulja knows she’s not the first person to be targeted under the “gay propaganda” law. But with your help, she might be the last.

If enough people speak up, the charges might be dropped – and the “gay propaganda” law abolished once and for all. Sign Yulja’s petition today.

Three men sentenced to death by stoning for being gay in Nigeria

An Islamic sharia court in Nigeria has sentenced three gay men to death by stoning – including a man who was 70 years old.

An Islamic sharia court in Ningi in the northern state of Bauchi convicted the men of engaging in homosexuality.

The state’s religious police force, the Hisbah Vanguard, operating through the commissioner – Adamu Dan Kafi – said the sharia court charged the trio following their arrest on 14 June in the village of Gwada.

The convicted men are Kamilu Ya’u (aged 20), Abdullahi Beti (aged 30) and Mal Haruna (aged 70). They were sentenced to death on 28 June 2022 by judge Munka’ilu Sabo-Ningi. None of them was represented by lawyers and all “confessed” to their crimes.

They were sentenced under section 134 of the 2001 Bauchi State Penal Law, which states: “Whoever commits the offence of sodomy shall be punished with death by stoning [rajim] or any other means decided by the state.”

They can, however, appeal the sentences within 30 days.

Bauchi is one of twelve Nigerian states, many in the north of the country, that subscribe to the Islamic legal system. Any death penalty handed down by the sharia courts needs to be rubber-stamped by the state governor, Bala Mohammed.

In Nigeria, deeply homophobic laws make the lives of LGBT+ Nigerians a daily struggle. Many feel unable to come out, with nine in ten Nigerians viewing homosexuality as something society should not accept, according to a 2019 Pew Research Center poll.

Homosexuality is illegal in all of Nigeria, regardless of whether the state has adopted sharia law or not. Secular federal laws slap LGBT+ people with a maximum of 14 years in jail.

The Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act, passed by parliament in 2013, criminalises all forms of same-sex unions and marriage equality across the nation.

The legislation makes LGBT+ couples who enter any kind of same-sex union liable for 14 years of incarceration, while even those who witness a same-sex wedding are imprisoned for 10 years.

While historically there haven’t been many legal persecutions, the law has emboldened homophobes who prefer to take the laws into their hands to lynch suspected LGBT+ people and groups. These actions have successfully eroded many LGBT+ safe spaces into non-existence, and have effectively made things like a Pride celebration in Nigeria seem like a far-off dream.

The act didn’t just end at marriages, however. LGBT+ nightclub operators as well as those who run LGBTQ+ societies and organisations are liable for a decade in prison.

Coming Out in the 1950s: Stories of Our Lives

LGBT teens interview their LGBT elders who came out in the 1950s. BRILLIANT!! So glad to see teens interested in these stories & their history. Phyllis Lyon, Hadley Hall and Ron Rebholz are interviewed by Linnaea Weld, Jason Galisatus and Oscar Trinh.