Gay church 'marriages' set to get the go-ahead

Here we go! The quotation marks around 'marriages' in the BBC news headline speaks volumes.  See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12442375 for more details. Comments please.

America, the influential US Jesuit periodical, calls for change in status of the laity

For the full piece read

http://www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?o=38121&article_id=12707

then get back here with your comments please

I hope to be at this lecture.....

Mental health of the non-heterosexual population of England

To add to the growing body of methodologically sound empirically grounded evidence from Michael King et al. is the following report from the BJP.

Mental health of the non-heterosexual population of England

Apu Chakraborty, BA, MA, MB BS, MRCPsych, MSc, DLSHTM, PhD

Department of Mental Health Sciences, University College London, London

Sally McManus, MSc

National Centre for Social Research, London

Terry S. Brugha, FRCPsych

Department of Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester

Paul Bebbington, MA, MPhil, PhD, FRCP, FRCPsych and Michael King, MD, PhD

Department of Mental Health Sciences, Royal Free and University College Medical School, London, UK

Correspondence: Correspondence: Apu Chakraborty, Department of Mental Health Sciences, University College London, Royal Free Campus, Rowland Hill Street, London NW3 2PF, UK. Email: rejuatc@ucl.ac.uk

Declaration of interest

None.

Background

There has been little research into the prevalence of mental health problems in lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) people in the UK with most work conducted in the USA.

Aims

To relate the prevalence of mental disorder, self-harm and suicide attempts to sexual orientation in England, and to test whether psychiatric problems were associated with discrimination on grounds of sexuality.

Method

The Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2007 (n = 7403) was representative of the population living in private UK households. Standardisedquestions provided demographic information. Neurotic symptoms, common mental disorders, probable psychosis, suicidality, alcohol and drug dependence and service utilisation were assessed. In addition, detailed information was obtained about aspects of sexual identity and perceived discrimination on these grounds.

Results

Self-reported identification as non-heterosexual (determined by both orientation and sexual partnership, separately) was associated with unhappiness, neurotic disorders overall, depressive episodes, generalised anxiety disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder, phobic disorder, probable psychosis, suicidal thoughts and acts, self-harm and alcohol and drug dependence. Mental health-related general practitioner consultations and community care service use over the previous year were also elevated. In the non-heterosexual group, discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation predicted certain neurotic disorder outcomes, even after adjustment for potentially confounding demographicvariables.

Conclusions

This study corroborates international findings that people of non-heterosexual orientation report elevated levels of mental health problems and service usage, and it lends further support to the suggestion that perceived discrimination may act as a social stressor in the genesis of mental health problems in this population.

Related articles in BJP:

Highlights of this issue

Kimberlie Dean BJP 2011 198: A5. [Full Text]  

eLetters:

Read all eLetters

Eating Disorders and Sexuality

William R Jones, et al.

BJP Online, 9 Feb 2011 [Full text]

Leicester: the most conservative Islamic community in Europe?

It is interesting to read today that Leicester is being tapped as the most conservative Islamic community in Europe.
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/edwest/100074751/wikileaks-americans-call-leicester-the-most-conservative-islamic-community-in-europe/

I am rather wary about such generalisations and wonder what is the evidence. I have heard it said that the Asian population in Leicester, again a generalisation, is conservative when compared with say contemporary India. But is needs to be seen in the historical context that numbers of the Asian population of Leicester came from east Africa where their parents were taken or encouraged to go by the Imperial government from India in the first place. It is quite complicated.

Blog readers might want to read Fr Leon Pereira OP Prior of Holy Cross Priory in Wellington Street where he takes up the subject in his weekly column in the Leicester Mercury.  See
http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/news/State-sponsored-multiculturalism-breeds-division/article-3197687-detail/article.html
as well as the comments posted by one of our blog readers.

Local news: A mayor for Leicester?

The voters of Leicester are to be given the opportunity to vote for a mayor in May 2011. At the moment, as  a member of the Labour Party, I am being sent (bombarded is too strong) material from the candidates offering themselves for the Labour ticket. I do not know if the other parties are putting up candidates.

I am uncertain about the wisdom of having an elected mayor. There are some biggish hitters standing. Sir Peter Soulsbury currently MP for Leicester South and Ross Willmott , the would-be MP for North West Leicestershire, and both with histories of leading Leicester City Council. I thought that Keith Vaz, MP for Leicester East, might consider standing. There are other candidates definitely standing including the magnificently named High Sheriff, who is a senior  asian Labour councillor.

As the debates heats up Notes from LE2 will be reporting developments.....

Questions that need raising with would-be mayors include the following and are my concerns. What are yours?

the threatened cuts to voluntary sector organisations in the city. Which way did those candidates who are already city councillors vote and why?
when did the prospective candidate last visit the LGBT centre and what support have they given to the the LGBT communities in Leicester?

educational standards in the city:  how can they be improved?
the proliferation of faith schools: do you support them?
does the mayoral candidate agree that the impression that some minority groups are ignored to placate certain faith groups makes a mockery of the slogan 'One Leicester' http://www.oneleicester.com/one-leicester-vision/

the lack of a modern, information-age, central public library: what is you view?
the cultural quarter: where is it going?
the future of the De Montfort Hall: what is it?