Olivier Ferlatte, University of British Columbia Gay and bisexual men are four times more likely to attempt suicide in their lifetime than heterosexual men. Researchers now estimate that suicide kills more gay and bisexual men than AIDS. Despite this well-documented inequity, there are no targeted suicide prevention programs in Canada. Gay and bisexual men are rarely mentioned in mental health policies. Homophobia — within families, schools, communities and even in doctors and counsellors offices — is a key cause, according to the Still Here project within the Men’s Health Research Program at the University of British Columbia. As a postdoctoral…
Author: Pride Team
Anthony Idowu Ajayi, African Population and Health Research Center and Meggie Mwoka, African Population and Health Research Center Nearly half of pregnancies among adolescent girls in developing countries are unplanned. In Africa, about 46% of these pregnancies end in unsafe abortion. Deaths from abortion account for 10% of maternal deaths in sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria, nearly 28% of women were found to have had an unwanted pregnancy. The rate of unplanned pregnancy is especially high among young people. But women can only get a legal abortion if the pregnancy poses a threat to the life of a woman or in…
Burtram Fielding, University of the Western Cape Viruses are quick studies. They’re prolific at adapting to new environments and infecting new hosts. As a result they are able to jump the species divide from animals to humans – as the new coronavirus in China is showing. It’s estimated that 89% of one particular family of viruses, known as RNA viruses, are zoonotic in origin. This means that they started in animals and have since become established among humans. RNA viruses are notorious for being able to mutate in a range of environments. This family of viruses includes everything from Ebola…
Recently, a tragedy shocked the world; the death of Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter – Gianna and seven others died in a helicopter crash. I was aloof for a day thinking of how horrific it must have been for Kobe in his last moment to know his little girl’s life would end too. I read a comment on social media that aptly said, “He died twice.” Kobe was a father of four beautiful girls – something that may seem like an incomplete picture to some because of the lack of a son. However, not having a son didn’t make much…
My Darling Daughter, Life is full of ironies. If you are looking for wealth, somebody is looking for health. If you are looking for health, somebody just died. If you are looking for power, somebody has been there and is now powerless. Each time you drive a fancy car, somebody somewhere is dying in a car crash. Each time a new mansion springs from the earth, a new grave is dug below the earth. Each time you throw away a morsel, somewhere, somebody is searching for a morsel to survive. Each time you throw food into the dustbin, someone…
The growth of a country’s economy is partly hinged on the growth and success of SME’s, hence, it’s of utmost importance for these enterprises to be adequately funded. That is where our Woman Crush Wednesday, Olanrewaju Oniyitan, comes in. Olanrewaju who is an international development and management consultant is the CEO of W-Holistic Business Solutions, “a professional service firm that delivers real impact, value and results through projects supporting economic growth and development.” Their mission statement is quite simple: To deliver innovative solutions that creates jobs, improves livelihoods, increases incomes and wealth, offers value-added products and services, contributes to sustainable and…
Holy Humour Searching for Jesus. A man is stumbling through the bush totally drunk and then he comes upon a Bishop baptizing people in the river. The drunk walks into the water and subsequently bumps into the Bishop. The Bishop turns around and is almost overcome by the smell of booze. Whereupon he asks the drunk, ‘Are you ready to find Jesus?’ ‘Yes I am’ replies the drunk, so the Bishop grabs him and deeps him in the river. He pulls him up and asks the drunk, Brother have you found Jesus?’ The drunk replies, ‘No, I haven’t.’ The Bishop,…
My home has forgotten its beauty. Do we not have any pride in our land? To raise our heads up high, And remember and uphold the beauty That brought us wealth and riches Before we were dragged down And toppled and shown our weakness, our ugliness? We are now the dogs eating on breadcrumbs on the floor. May the God that created our land forgive us. Forgive us. Forgive us our Creator For forgetting our beauty, Our dignity For stooping to the floor as dogs And beg of others When we have been blessed With the riches of your creation…
ISAIAH 35:1-6, 10; PSALM 146; JAMES 5:7-10; MATTHEW 11:2-11 Reading 1 Is 35:1-6a, 10 The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song. The glory of Lebanon will be given to them, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God. Strengthen the hands that are feeble, make firm the knees that are weak, say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not! Here is your God, he comes with vindication; with divine…
Nicola Carroll, University of Huddersfield Given that one in four children now grow up in one-parent homes and that 42% of marriages end in divorce you might expect prejudice against single parents to be a thing of the past. Yet a 2014 poll found that 75% of single parents had experienced stigma. Indeed, Boris Johnson has recently been confronted about a column he wrote for The Spectator in 1995 which described the children of single mothers as “ill-raised, ignorant, aggressive and illegitimate”. When pressed on the comments by callers on LBC radio, Johnson said this was written before he was…