Cuba's gay community celebrated unprecedented openness -- and high-ranking political alliances -- with a government-backed campaign against homophobia.

The meeting Saturday at a convention center in Havana's Vedado district may have been the largest gathering of openly gay activists ever on the communist-run island. President Raul Castro's daughter Mariela, who has promoted the rights of sexual minorities, presided.

California's Supreme Court declared gay couples in the nation's most populous state can marry -- a monumental but perhaps short-lived victory for the gay rights movement Thursday that was greeted with tears, hugs, kisses and at least one instant proposal of matrimony.

Same-sex couples could tie the knot in as little as a month. But the window could close soon after -- religious and social conservatives are pressing to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot in November that would undo the Supreme Court ruling and ban same-sex marriage.

Legislation will be introduced next week in New York City council to make it easier for same-sex partners in abusive relationships to seek help.

The measure is sponsored by Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Mayor Michael Bloomberg. It would allow anyone who is living, or has lived, with their attacker the right to seek an order of protection.

LGBT travelers who for years have complained there is a wide spectrum of quality among gay hotels may soon find a sign atop some that attest to high standards.

Attitude Hotels launched this week with the goal of providing travelers with a way a telling if a hotel is up to snuff.

Founder Pedro Castro, a Portuguese-born lawyer and travel marketer based in Zurich says the company would not own the hotels but license its name if the facility met its requirements.

Attitude would inspect the hotels and do annual follow-ups to assure the standards are being met.

Like a lot of baby boomers, gay and lesbian retirees are looking for a safe, fun place to live out their autumn years.

But Arizona's retirement offerings might not cut it for many, because of a lack of like-minded residents or a fear of coming out to the neighbors.

Out Properties LLC, a St. Louis development firm, hopes to change that by marketing a unique lifestyle to this niche group it calls "gayby boomers," or gay baby boomers. It plans to build a resort community, Marigold Creek, in Surprise catering to gay retirees.

Campaigners are calling for tight restrictions on sexually active gay men donating blood to be relaxed.

The National Blood Service says clear evidence shows gay men have a greater chance of passing on HIV and other infections in donated blood.

However, campaigners say there are fewer restrictions on heterosexuals who have high-risk sex.

They want gay men to be judged individually according to their lifestyle, not as a homogenous group.

Currently, blood donated in the UK is screened for a number of bloodborne viruses, including HIV, and hepatitis C.

Mehdi Kazemi was waiting in a Dutch center for asylum seekers Friday as the country's highest court mulled his fate — in what campaigners fear could be a life or death decision for the gay Iranian teen.

Kazemi, 19, says he traveled to London to study English in 2005 and applied for asylum in Britain after learning that his lover in Iran had been executed for sodomy, his lawyer Borg Palm said.

Kazemi's case highlights not only the plight of homosexuals in Iran, but also differences in the way European Union allies deal with asylum seekers.

Columbia, South Carolina on Wednesday became the first municipality in the state to enact laws protecting gays and transgendereds.

City Council voted unanimously to pass the ordinances prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity in housing and public accommodations.

"American Idol" contestant David Hernandez once entertained audiences by removing his clothes instead of singing tunes, a manager at a male strip club in Phoenix told The Associated Press.

The 24-year-old finalist from Glendale, Ariz., once worked as a stripper at Dick's Cabaret, appearing fully nude and performing lap dances for the club's "mostly male" clientele, club manager Gordy Bryan said Monday.

"He had the look and the type that people like, so he made pretty good money here," Bryan said.

Same-sex marriage is at the top of the docket with the California Supreme Court resumes on Tuesday. If the court rules for gay and lesbian couples challenging the state California could be the second area in the US where same-sex marriage is legal.

The court has scheduled three hours for oral arguments. The justices then have 90 days to issue a ruling. That could mean a rush to marry in June, the traditional wedding month.