A Global Internet Identity for Gay People

categories: LGBT Tech News, Stonewall 20

Published August 24, 2009 @ 06:22AM PT

Global LGBT

When it comes to Web sites and domain names, you've no doubt heard of .gov, .net, .edu, .com, and of course, .org. But what about .gay? Maybe someday, if a coalition of international LGBT groups have their say. Efforts are underway to push the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN, for acronym lovers) to create .gay.

Organizers with dotGay, the campaign to create the domain, are seeking statements from organizations on why such a domain would be wunderbar for the world. A few reasons they cite as to why .gay would be an excellent Web site suffix?

First, it would be a way for businesses and organizations to target what they say is more than 15 million gay people in the U.S., and millions upon millions more around the globe. Second, it would be a way for global queers to know if a Web site is an ally or supportive of LGBT causes. Third, it will help LGBT folks find highly targeted information in an easy to navigate manner.

Sounds like it could have great potential, although .lgbt might resonate a bit more with folks. If efforts to create .gay come through, the domain would be created at the end of 2010.

dotGay is working it in the lead up to that date, urging organizations and businesses to come forward with support. Already they've got buy-in from South Africa's Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce in the U.S., and the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association. And that's in addition to a bunch of Internet registrants and organizations that have signed on to the effort.

Does this mean that next year, you might be looking at gayrights.change.gay? We'll see...

Share this Post

Comments (4)

Hopefully, the ICANN will by 2010 create a domain name of gay.org for the benefits it will have. It's good that South Africa's GLAAD, the U.S. National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association are supporting it. Some of the domain names haven't really caught on such as .musuem, but .gay will become an important domain for uniting the world's LGBT people for LGBT rights and a place for community.

Posted by Edwin Bonilla on 08/24/2009 @ 01:04PM PT
- Report close
  You must be signed in to report content.
- Reply
- 1 person likes this comment. Like
For your comment to be published, you will need to confirm your email address after submitting your comment. In the process we will also create a Change.org account for you so you can track this and future conversations. Don't worry - we won't spam you. We just want to promote constructive dialogue and find that people are more respectful when they are not anonymous.

If you already have an account, click here to log in.

First Name:

Last Name:

Email:

Create Password:

reply to thread started by by Edwin
Check Spelling
- Email me when there are new posts to this thread
- Comment Policy
Cancel Reply
Intriguing...Although I dont see why it cant happen, I would like to point out that those with a sinister agenda in regards to the homosexual agenda probably wouldnt see a problem with hijacking it IF they thought it would profit them in terms of manipulating those of us for equality...

Posted by Thomas McHugh on 08/24/2009 @ 07:21PM PT
- Report close
  You must be signed in to report content.
- Reply
- Like
For your comment to be published, you will need to confirm your email address after submitting your comment. In the process we will also create a Change.org account for you so you can track this and future conversations. Don't worry - we won't spam you. We just want to promote constructive dialogue and find that people are more respectful when they are not anonymous.

If you already have an account, click here to log in.

First Name:

Last Name:

Email:

Create Password:

reply to thread started by by Thomas
Check Spelling
- Email me when there are new posts to this thread
- Comment Policy
Cancel Reply
I agree with Thomas - I'm sure anyone would be allowed to buy the domain names regardless of whether or not they have queers best interest at heart.

Posted by Greg Goldgof on 08/24/2009 @ 10:38PM PT
- Report close
  You must be signed in to report content.
- Reply
- 1 person likes this comment. Like
For your comment to be published, you will need to confirm your email address after submitting your comment. In the process we will also create a Change.org account for you so you can track this and future conversations. Don't worry - we won't spam you. We just want to promote constructive dialogue and find that people are more respectful when they are not anonymous.

If you already have an account, click here to log in.

First Name:

Last Name:

Email:

Create Password:

reply to thread started by by Greg
Check Spelling
- Email me when there are new posts to this thread
- Comment Policy
Cancel Reply
The possible creation of a 'dot gay' TLD could well be attractive for many in the worldwide community. But it should come with a 'health warning', especially for businesses and commercial sites. It is very easy for organisations to block sites with the word "gay" in the URL! I get many complaints that people cannot access my site, ukgaynews.org.uk. Invariably the reason is because of a 'block' is in place, usually from US-made software, on the providers of the Internet connection. Many of these "blocks" come within the USA itself! I will always take-up the matter, inviting the organisation to visit the site and challenging them to find anything on my site that would not be out of place in, say, the New York Times or other such newspaper sites. On one memorable occasion a couple of years ago, I found that I was not able to do a search on the words "Gaylord Ravenal"a character in Edna Furber's novel "Showboat", on a "public" computer in a library! Be warned .... But having said that, I have no problem with a "dot gay" TLD.

Posted by Andy Harley on 08/25/2009 @ 06:25AM PT
- Report close
  You must be signed in to report content.
- Reply
- Like
For your comment to be published, you will need to confirm your email address after submitting your comment. In the process we will also create a Change.org account for you so you can track this and future conversations. Don't worry - we won't spam you. We just want to promote constructive dialogue and find that people are more respectful when they are not anonymous.

If you already have an account, click here to log in.

First Name:

Last Name:

Email:

Create Password:

reply to thread started by by Andy
Check Spelling
- Email me when there are new posts to this thread
- Comment Policy
Cancel Reply

Add a Comment

For your comment to be published, you will need to confirm your email address after submitting your comment.

If you already have an account, click here to log in.

First Name:

Last Name:

Email:

Create Password:

Comment

Check Spelling

Email me when there are new posts to this thread
Comment Policy

Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the ideas covered in the posts. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; that contain ad hominem attacks; or that are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion.

Author

Michael is the Communications Director for the Human Rights Program at Harvard Law School, and previously was Communications Director for Pax Christi USA, a progressive Catholic human rights organization.