Sunday, which was the start of our new season, also marked an important milestone. It was the first time an openly gay person was elected to the role of prime minister. The courntry? Iceland. The person? Johanna Sigurdardottir.
This is all the more relevant, considering how I just ranted about the importance of being out after having seen the film Milk. Now we are not just your workmates, your teachers, your friends... we are also your prime ministers.
In context though, Iceland is an extremely progressive society where being gay is like being blue-eyed. Something you are aware of, but which makes hardly any difference in the grand scheme of things. A quote from the Beeb's article on the appointment:
What is really historic about this new cabinet, says Skuli Helgeson, the general secretary of Ms Sigurardottir's Social Democratic Alliance, is not the fact that its leader is a lesbian, but that for the first time in Icelandic history it boasts an equal number of men and women.
"I don't think her sexual orientation matters. Our voters are pretty liberal, they don't care about any of that," he told BBC News.
You go girl!
1 comment:
What fantastic news! If only this will serve to educate people in the rest of the world, who still see us as 'wrong'. Such a difficult time for her to take up the role as well, with the collapse of the economy there. Well, if she's like the lesbians that I know, she'll have it sorted out 'toot sweet'.
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