Gender

Pastor Duke Taber will be the first to let you know that his small congregation in Pine Haven, Wyo., is about as far removed from the gay marriage controversy boiling over in the country as any church could be.

"I know of two gay couples," said the pastor with a humble-sounding demeanor while talking about the town of about 500 people. "It's not like I'm in San Francisco or Portland, or Orlando, Florida."

Yet Taber, who said 30 to 50 people tops attend his service on Sundays, wants his congregation to be an example of how Christians worldwide should love homosexuals no matter what. more >>

Argentina made history Wednesday by becoming the first country in the world to make sex-change operations a legal right of every citizen, mandating that public and private insurance providers cover such surgeries. The new legislation, backed by President Cristina Fernandez, who is expected to sign it, will also make it legal for a person to change his or her gender on paper without a sex change operation.

The Gender Identity Law, which passed the senate by a vote of 55-0, makes sex-change surgery as well as hormone therapy available as part of public or private health care plans. In addition, any adult in Argentina will be able to officially change his or her gender, image or birth name on an identification card without having to get approval from doctors or judges and without having to undergo physical changes beforehand.

Also, youths under 18 who want to change their genders will have the right to do so with the approval of their legal guardians. more >>

Sweden, which in 2010 was recognized by the World Economic Forum as the most gender-equal country in the world, has stepped up its gender neutrality initiative by introducing a new word that refers to both boys and girls with the pronoun "hen."

The idea, according to Slate.com, is that Swedish society at large has decided it will not tolerate any distinction between sexes. "What many gender-neutral activists are after is a society that entirely erases traditional gender roles and stereotypes at even the most mundane levels," the report highlights.

Earlier this month, the gender-neutral pronoun "hen" was proposed by lobbyists to be used in public schools instead of "he" (han in Swedish) and "she" (hon). The decision came shortly after the publication of Sweden's first ever gender-neutral children's book, Kivi och Monsterhund (Kivi and Monsterdog). It tells the story of Kivi, a child who wants a dog for "hen's" birthday. Jesper Lundqvist, the author, also introduces several gender-neutral words in the book. more >>

Around 150 Afghan high school aged girls were poisoned on Tuesday in northern Afghanistan in what many suspect is an attack on females seeking education.

The schoolgirls were poisoned by contaminated water in Afghanistan's northern Takhar province, causing them to suffer from severe headaches and vomiting.

Some of the affected students remain in critical condition over the poisoning. more >>

Jenna Talackova, the 23-year-old transgender Canadian who was booted from the upcoming Miss Universe Canada pageant, could possibly be reinstated to the competition, organizers have said.

Talackova, who was born a male but underwent sexual reassignment surgery four years ago, was originally told she would not be able to participate in the 61st Miss Universe Canada pageant in May because she had lied in her application about being a naturally born female.

The decision, based on the rules created by the larger Miss Universe organization, run by billionaire entrepreneur Donald Trump, sparked a wave of worldwide criticism, including a petition on website Change.com that gathered more than 41,000 signatures demanding Talackova be reinstated to the competition. Still, others have insisted that the rules are there for a reason. more >>

A new report released by Human Rights Watch this week argues that despite the ousting of the Taliban, women and girls in Afghanistan continue to live in precarious conditions with hundreds of females spending years behind bars for committing "moral crimes," which sometimes include being victims of rape.

The report, "I Had to Run Away: Women and Girls Imprisoned for 'Moral Crimes' In Afghanistan," was published by Human Rights Watch on Wednesday and details the circumstances of women and girls in Afghanistan's female detention centers.

The report outlines the "crimes" that send women and girls into detention centers, often for years at a time, which include fleeing a situation of domestic violence or being the victim of rape. more >>