Latvia

Participants in colorful outfits waved rainbow flags and standards from Spain, Britain, Ukraine, Georgia and Armenia, among others, as they marched and danced to loud music in central Riga.

RIGA, Latvia — Latvia’s Foreign Minister has announced on Twitter that he’s gay, becoming the first openly homosexual Cabinet member in the Baltic country. Edgars Rinkevics late Thursday wrote a tweet in Latvian in support of legal recognition of gay partnerships with the hashtag “Proudtobegay.” He followed up with another tweet in English saying…

RIGA, Latvia — Many gay bars in North America have stopped selling the famous Stolichnaya vodka brand to protest Russia’s crackdown on the gay community. But the vodka’s maker has joined forces with Latvia’s leading gay rights group to say that the boycott is misplaced.