Because of some recent photographs of him and his partner, RBD member Christian Chavez announced that he is gay in a statement on the group's website.

Though Mexico is a deeply religious and conservative country, this announcement should be applauded. It opens the door for other prominent public figures to come out in support of gay rights, which parallels other civil rights struggles over the years for minorities. Racism and bigotry have been outed as being wrong, and it's a matter of when, not if, homophobia will follow.

While religious conservatives may decry this as moral relativism, it is more analagous to slavery, which was previously acceptable and is now universally abhorrent. Chavez's announcement will, at the very least, increase the visibility of a cultural problem that must be solved, and may usher in a new generation of tolerance.

Here's some more information about RBD:

RBD (or Rebelde) is a Mexican pop supergroup that has now gained an international following. Their first tour, Tour Generacion, drew huge crowds and their popularity has propelled them to being the #1 musical group in Brazil and Colombia, where they've even outshone historical Latin pop powerhouse, Juanes.

They're on tour again and you can get your RBD tickets at TicketLiquidator, which has the lowest prices on the secondary market. Get yours today!

RBD are confirmed to tour in Texas, California and Nevada in 2007. Rumor has it that they will also tour in New York, Michigan, Ohio, Georgia, Connecticut, Washington, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Florida, New Jersey, Utah, Colorado, Illinois and North Carolina. Though their initial tour ends in February, expect to see them later in March, April, May, June or July, with a tour that should run into August, September, October, November and December 2007. It's possible that they may also continue on the road in January 2008.