Thursday 10 November 2011

Now Accepting 2012 MGC Applications!

Do you have what it takes to be Canada's next Gay Ambassador, a champion of gay human rights and visibility?  Mr. Gay Canada 2012 is now accepting applicants to participate in the next Mr. Gay Canada competition.


The Mr Gay Canada competition’s purpose is to provide an opportunity by creating a positive image for young gay men to make a ‘difference’ and be accepted within their own communities. Through education and public performances, MGC’s goal is to help create positive, authentic and empowered role models that will be a champion for Gay Human Rights within his own community as well as, on a global stage. Through these public performances, outreach and education, MGC will raise awareness of issues pertinent to young gay men, such as safe sex awareness, bullying and self-acceptance.
The MGC competition will take place over an intense three days and includes various challenges including a photo challenge, sports challenge, fashion show/run way challenge, swim suit challenge, public speaking and a local outreach challenge where MGC is able to work with a local charity to give back to the community in hosting the competition.
A maximum of 12 delegates will be selected for this year’s competition. The aim is to have a delegate representing as many provinces and territories as possible. Delegates can represent their place of birth (must provide birth certificate) or place of residence (must provide valid ID). Delegates will be responsible for their own transportation to and from Whistler for the competition. Delegates must be in Whistler by 3pm on February 9/2011. All housing (shared accommodations) will be provided and there will be some meals included. Delegates will be responsible for other meals and any other personal expenses. The competition will take place from Thursday February 9th to Saturday February 11th, which coincides with the annual WinterPRIDE festival. 

The Winner of the 2012 Mr. Gay Canada competition will then be flown to South Africa to represent Canada in the Mr. Gay World Grand Finale!  Click below to apply:

Tuesday 17 May 2011

Being Gay is NOT a Choice

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Read a interesting article in the Province the other day. Really shows how some people still think being gay is a choice.

What causes homosexuality? There has been much debate about what causes homosexuality. Is there a gay gene? Is homosexuality caused by environmental factors, such as upbringing, child molestation, an absent mother or affectionate father? Or is it something we’re born with, an inherited trait, like skin or hair color?
Although there have been few studies on the cause of homosexuality, the debate seems to be divided, with scientists in one corner and religious fundamentalists in another.

International Day Against Homophobia

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The International Day Against Homophobia, held on May 17 every year, is a rallying event offering an opportunity for people to get together and reach out to one another. Foundation Emergency promotes, mainly on a pan-Canadian level, the International Day Against Homophobia and encourages organizations and individuals to highlight this event in their environment.


An International Day Against Homophobia belongs to no one individual. It’s about all people hoping for a prejudice-free world that can provide a place at the table for everyone regardless of their sexual orientation.

Saturday 14 May 2011

Homophobic Hate Groups on Facebook

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There's been a number of homophobic hate groups started on Facebook. There's new ones starting up everyday and we need to report them and get them closed down.

Hate Groups

Uganda


Uganda's parliament adjourned Friday without acting on a bill that would have made engaging in homosexual acts a capital offense, leaving the future of the widely condemned bill uncertain.
Though parliament's mandate ends May 18, next week has been reserved for the swearing in of new members. Friday's lack of action on the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill means that the issue will not be discussed this session.
The bill has been condemned internationally since October 2009, when it was introduced.
In addition to proposing the death penalty for certain gay acts, it proposed requiring anyone aware of violations of the bill to report them to the authorities within a day or face criminal sanction, said Human Rights Watch.
The bill would have criminalized "promotion of homosexuality," the organization said in a written statement. That would have jeopardized the work of promoters of human rights, it said.

Tuesday 3 May 2011

Vote for our Refresh Idea with Pepsi!

We are so excited to be one of the projects that Pepsi is considering in giving one of two grants of $25,000 to do something good. Our idea is enhance our national competition for Mr. Gay Canada and be able to hold competitions all across Canada. All the monies will go to the cities holding the events and support bringing the delegates in from across the country.

We need your help to vote for our idea everyday. Visit
http://www.refresheverything.ca/mrgaycanada
for more information. We hope you will support us in voting for our idea (we need votes)! Our goal is help raise awareness of homophobia and bullying in schools, to create positive role models for the youth to look up to. Thank you for your time and consideration.

You get one vote per email address per day, so you can have more than one vote. When you first go to the site you need to set up your profile which will take you all of 60 seconds and then about 30 seconds each day to vote. Please help us in accomplishing this goal and remember to vote everyday
http://www.refresheverything.ca/mrgaycanada
Please share with your friends.  Vote today!  Voting is daily until June 30th, 2011.

Thursday 10 March 2011

Key to the City

Outside Mayors Office
After visiting the children we headed over to the Mayors office. On the outside of the building, there was a giant tiger head representing it as the Tiger City.
The Mayor and his staff welcomed us with open arms and talk to us about the importance of equal human rights. He told us how the government is trying to stop the handout of condoms and birth control.
He shared some personal stories with us that really showed us how amazing of a mayor he is. He really cares about the community and the loved ones in his life.
After the tears were gone, we were presented with the key to the city, a necklace made from recycled rubble and a very delicious lunch.

It was a very emotional day for all of us.

OutReach Program

The Outreach program was one of the best days for me. We all brought stuff such as books, school supplies, and stickers. When we first arrived, the class put on a performance for us which got a lot of us tearing up.


There was 4 children sitting on the stairs beside me so I pulled my camera out and took a few shots of them. There was one little girl who would do the cutest pose every time the camera was on her, melted my heart.
We were split up into two groups. My group went up stairs where we were to give two rooms complete make overs. This included flooring, book shelves, window curtains, lightbulbs, fans, and tables.
The other half stayed below and gave their items and a lunch to the children. We joined them after we were finished and continued handing stuff out and hanging out with the children. I brought some canadian stickers with me which really got the kids attention. I had 30 hands reached out in front of me waiting for a sticker. I was hard when it came down to the last sticker :(
That whole experience was such an eye opener. It was emotional when we first got there but after hanging out with the children and volunteers and getting to chat with a few of them it turned everything around. Just seeing how positive they are being in the conditions they live in really made me take a step back and realize that we take so much for granted. They really make light out of every situation.

Wednesday 9 March 2011

Club Bed

Me auctioning off my hockey stick
The following night we all wore out GBGB outfits and each brought an item from our country to auction off. I auctioned off a hockey stick. The club was nice, 2 levels, a fair size dance floor and delicious food. We had our own little private party up in the VIP room which looked out over the dance floor. We modelled the clothing and then the audience voted on who wore it best. Mr. Australia won the vote and was presented a sash and trophy by the president of GBGB.

After that it was time to party

Left: Bulgaria, Australia, Canada, Brazil

Villa Escudero

Plane inside the Villa


The Blue Team 
On the second day we went to Villa Escudero where we were going to do a swimwear shoot. It couldn't have been a better day. When we arrived, we were greeted and giving a very yummy drink. It had a some kind of jelly thing in it, but never the less, very yummy. After getting everything organized we transferred over through the gates and got into a wagon that was chauffeured by a cow named Molly :) Thats what we named her. We were also accompanied by 3 musicians.
Molly

Tuesday 8 March 2011

Day 1 in Manila

Francois and I wake up at 4:30 and do a morning work out, later finding out that we got up and hour too early. After breakfast I met up with Dean and the photographer that I would be working with and we headed out to the studio. We later brought the shoot back to the hotel and went up to the penthouse where Dean was staying.
We all met on the 2nd floor and and were assigned our new rooms and roomies. My room mates were Madis Rasters (Estonia) and Juan Manuel (Mexico).
There was suppose to be 4 but Thailand couldn't make it. When that was all organized and we were settled into our new rooms we went for lunch at Giligans and continued on with the press conference soon after. 
There was a couple of people from Canada just visiting Manila who had happened to stumble upon the whole event. It was nice to see some support from back home.

Arriving in Manila

11:30 pm and I'm landing in Manila. I make my way through customs and to luggage claim with a gentlemen I sat with on the plane. He had been before so he was filling me in on good spots to check out. I end up at pick up where I'm accompanied by Michael Holtz (USA) and Percy Lorenzo (PERU) and our guide CeeJay. It took about 20-30 minutes for us to get back to the hotel where I met Francois Nel (SOUTH AFRICA). We ended up rooming together for the first night. Getting up at 4:30 in the morning was my fault. Due to the time change my phone didn't reset itself completely and I ended up setting the alarm on it way earlier then I had planned. Good times :)

Monday 7 March 2011

Flying with Korean Air

Being involved with Mr. Gay Canada has giving me the opportunity to travel overseas with Korean Air.
This was my first time travelling over seas and Korean Air made it a very comfortable flight. As always, I took the window seat :( little did I realize that I would have to be crawling over people when ever I needed to go to the bathroom. Note to self, always take aisle seat when flying over seas.
One of the perks of flying with Korea Air I found out was I was able to catch up on all my movies.

Tuesday 22 February 2011

Interview with Homorazzi

First interview as Mr. Gay Canada with Tommy D, Partick and Donovan and Tyrell at Homorazzi
I was super nervous not knowing how to do interviews and still being very new to my role. Thanks for the fun interview boys :)

Sunday 20 February 2011

Little Sisters Vancouver Photo Shoot

Special photo shoot at Little Sister's for Dirty Fukker /  Piss & Vinegar underwear.  First time working with Kate McLaren V-Rag Photographer.  Micah, Darren Bruce (Mr. Gay Canada 2010), Fabricio.... so much fun!

Check out the photo spread in the March 2011 issue of V-Rag 

Friday 18 February 2011

Introducing Mr. Gay Canada 2011: Rob Goddard

Vancouver,BC - February 18, 2011 - The producers of the national competition, Mr. Gay Canada [MGC], proudly announce Rob Goddard of Vancouver as the official representative for the third annual Mr. Gay World competition in Manila, Philippines March 9-14, 2011.  Rob grew up in a small BC town of, Smithers, BC and moved to the large urban city of Vancouver where he would be more readily be accepted as a gay man.  Rob has worked in Vancouver’s gay community for the last three years including most recently as a bartender as well as, developing his modeling career.  Rob has volunteered for various organizations including Vancouver’s Next Gay Top Model, GayWhistler’s WinterPRIDE and the Vancouver Pride Society.

Rob Goddard released the following statement, “being ‘Mr. Gay Canada’ and participating in the ‘Mr. Gay World’ competition is an incredible opportunity to meet courageous men from around the world who all have a unique story, and who want to make a difference in improving the human rights conditions that they face in their home country and around the world.  It is a great honour to use the platform of ‘Mr. Gay World’ to share my experiences as a gay man privileged to come from a far less discriminating nation such as Canada - a country that borders a ‘free’ super-power country that is STILL divided over the rights and acceptance of non-straights.”  Goddard continues, “I look forward in educating myself more on the struggles many other countries face, and doing my small part to help by being their voice, and offer the hope of liberation to them.”

Dean Nelson, Executive Producer of Mr. Gay Canada said, “We are so excited to have Rob as our official delegate for this year’s competition in Manila.  Rob has a great story to share and will be a wonderful inspiration for many young men that may be able to relate to his journey of becoming a positive role model in our community.  We are wishing Rob much success on his quest for the title of Mr. Gay World.”

For more information on the World competition refer to MrGayWorld.org