GayNewsWatch: Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia

As I've said in the past, if you come to this blog looking for some of the latest info on LGBT rights in Latin America and find that I haven't posted in a while or don't have specific information about something you are looking for, you can always head over to GayNewsWatch and check out the Latin America section.

Here's s sampling of stuff that has happened recently that I haven't had the time to blog about and that GayNewsWatch has featured:

Chile:

• Catholic parish in Chile expels a young gay couple (Jan. 2, 2008)
• Neo-Nazis in Chile blamed for brutal murder of transsexual (Dec. 29, 2007)
• Chile rules against lesbian teacher Catholics won't certify (Dec. 12, 2007)

Argentina:

• Gay Argentines hopeful with Cristina's inauguration (Dec. 11, 2007)

Brazil:

• Brazilian gay activist found stabbed to death in northeast town (Jan. 3, 2008)
• Soccer star Kaká tops nude wish list for Brazil gay mag (Dec. 31, 2007)
• Two transvestite prostitutes shot to death in Rio De Janeiro (Dec. 30, 2007)
• Brazil's president announces first gay rights confab (Dec. 7, 2007)

Bolivia:

• New Bolivia constitution would ban gay bias, marriage (Dec. 29, 2007)

And that's just a few of the stories you'll find there. Of note is the fact that GayNewsWatch offers much more coverage of Brazil than I do, in part because most stories from Brazil are in Portuguese and I am not fluent in the language and in part because Chris Crain (pictured) - the editor of GayNewsWatch - knows Portuguese and lived in the country for a couple of years.

Check out that Bolivia story: Crain even beat me at spotting that article which not only mentions that the draft of a new Bolivian constitution bans discrimination based on sexual orientation (if passed, Bolivia would join Ecuador as the 2nd nation in Latin America to do so) but also reveals that it would block marriage rights for same-sex couples, which would make it the first country in the world to do so (Rex takes notice of the first part in this week's edition of his world news column).

It's not a done deal. As President Chavez of Venezuela found out (or Presdent Bush on his constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage for that matter) constitutional changes are not always easily approved. Lets hope that the anti-gay language is eliminated down the line.