News of the Day
April 3rd is 1 Year Anniversary of Gay Marriage in Iowa
Gayopolis.com, March 18, 2010
April 3, 2010 marks the one-year anniversary of the historic Varnum v.
Brien ruling that cleared the way for gay and lesbian couples to marry
in Iowa. To celebrate the one-year anniversary, One Iowa is planning a
week of events, beginning with press conferences in Des Moines and Iowa
City and culminating with an Anniversary Gala on April 3, 2010 in Des
Moines.
DES MOINES - ONE YEAR OF MARRIAGE EQUALITY PRESS CONFERENCE Monday,
March 29, 2010 11 AM Far West side of Iowa Capitol, Des Moines Supporters from across state to gather at c.
Click here to read the complete article.
Catholic Charities changes benefits after gay marriage legalization
georgetownvoice.com, by Cole Strangler, March 18, 2010
Catholic Charities in the District of Columbia has enacted two
significant employment policy changes in response to the District's
recent legalization of same-sex marriage. New employees will no longer
be able to receive health benefits for their spouses and will be
required to pledge that they will not violate the tenets of the
Catholic Church.
Although new employees will not be able to provide health benefits
to their spouses, they will still be covered under the new policy and
be able to provide benefits to their children. According to Catholic
Charities spokesperson Eric Salmi, the less than 10 percent of Catholic
Charities' 850 employees in the District who currently take advantage
of spousal health benefits will continue receiving those benefits.
Click here to read the complete article.
NY gay groups renew push for same-sex marriage vote
Rueters.com, March 17, 2010
A group called Fight Back New York, created
with money from software entrepreneur and openly gay philanthropist Tim
Gill, is pledging to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to get
pro-gay marriage candidates elected to the state Senate in November's
elections. Advocates aim to bring
the issue of same-sex marriage to the Senate floor as early as next
year. The legislature voted three months ago to reject a similar bill. "There
is definitely a theme of punishment in our work," said spokesman Alex
Navarro-McKay. The group would target some of the eight Democrats who
helped defeat the bill, he said. All 30 Republicans and eight Democrats
voted no, defeating the bill 38 to 24.
Click here to read the complete article.
New York Fights Back, Unseats Monserrate
Advocate.com, March 17, 2010
by Kelly Eleveld
One down, seven to go! - that's the mantra today for Fight Back New
York, a political action committee focused solely on unseating state
senators who voted against a same-sex marriage bill last year,
including the eight Democrats who failed to back marriage equality.
One
of those Democratic senators, Hiram Monserrate, suffered a stinging
defeat Tuesday in a special election, losing to pro-marriage Democratic
assemblymember José Peralta 66% to 27%.
Click here to read the complete article.
N.J. gay rights advocates prepare legal action to get state to legalize same-sex marriage
March 17, 2010, 1:02PM - NJ.com
TRENTON - Gay rights advocates are preparing legal action to attempt to get New Jersey to legalize gay marriage.
Lambda Legal is expected to announce details along with other groups on Thursday.
Lambda represented seven gay couples in a 2006 case in which the
state Supreme Court came one vote shy of requiring the state to
recognize gay marriage.
Ultimately, the state created civil unions. Gay rights advocates
said the arrangement doesn't create equality that marriage would.
Click here to read the complete article.
Withers: Monserrate loses in special election
By James Withers, contributing editor, 365Gay Blog
03.16.2010 11:39pm EDT
At least for now Hiram Monserrate is on permanent leave from Albany.
The disgraced politician was easily beaten in tonight's 13th State
Senate District special election. With 35 percent of the vote counted,
he pulled in 34 percent while Senator elect Jose R. Peralta garnered
60. Republican challenger Robert Beltrani was third with six percent.
We've covered the whole Monserrate mess, from the misdemeanor
assault conviction of his former girlfriend to his tacit support of
anti-gay fliers, so I'll repeat nothing tonight. It's good to know this
guy is gone from doing the people's business.
Click here to read the complete article.
Florida tax rebate plan could backfire
Los Angeles Times - March 16, 2010A
proposed change in incentives offered to 'family friendly' film shoots
may by discriminatory and prompt gay rights supporters to take their
business elsewhere, critics warn.Seeking to be family friendly, Florida may have learned a hard lesson in how not to be Hollywood friendly.
The
Sunshine state startled the film industry recently when a bill was
introduced in the state Legislature that would disqualify movies and TV
shows that contained "nontraditional family values" from receiving a
supplemental "family friendly" tax credit that's been in effect for a
couple of years.
Click here to read the complete article.
UPDATE: Anti-gay-marriage bill defeated in Pennsylvania
March 16th, 2010 - DallasVoice.com
This
just in: The Senate Judiciary Committee in the Pennsylvania Legislature
has defeated Senate Bill 707, which would have banned same-sex marriage
in that state.
According to an announcement sent out by Sen. Daylin Leach, an LGBT
ally in the Pennsylvania Legislature, this vote comes just two years
after the same committee voted 10-4 in favor of a similar bill.
Click here to read the complete article.
Pennsylvania Senate Committee Takes Up Gay Marriage Ban Bill
By Carlos Santoscoy - On Top Magazine
Published: March 16, 2010
A key Pennsylvania Senate committee will take up the issue of gay marriage on Tuesday, the AP reported.
Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee will consider Senator John H. Eichelberger, Jr's joint resolution that aims to define marriage as a heterosexual union in the state constitution, effectively outlawing gay marriage and blocking the state Supreme Court from legalizing the institution.
Eichelberger announced the effort last May during a press conference held on the steps of the Blair County Courthouse in Hollidaysburg. The freshman senator represents Pennsylvania's 30th district, which includes Blair County. Introduction of the bill was postponed until January due to the economy, Eichelberger said. Click here to read the complete article.
Gay marriage foes attack Calif. GOP Senate hopeful
By DON THOMPSON Associated Press Writer
03/16/2010
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - U.S. Senate candidate Tom Campbell's support of same-sex marriages came under attack Monday in a statewide television ad funded by a national group that promotes traditional marriage.
Like Democratic incumbent Barbara Boxer, Campbell opposed Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot initiative that banned gay marriage in California.
The 30-second commercials are funded by the National Organization for Marriage, which has been a leading opponent of legalizing same-sex marriages in California and other states. The organization most recently filed friend-of-the-court briefs opposing a federal challenge to California's same-sex marriage ban. Click here to read the complete article.
Gay Marriage Returns To Court In New Jersey
By On Top Magazine Staff
Published: March 15, 2010 Prominent gay rights group Lambda Legal is ready to file its promised lawsuit to win gay marriage in New Jersey. NJ.com's blog The Auditor reported on Sunday that the group will petition the state Supreme Court on Thursday. "We've lived the agony of defeat," Steve Goldstein, CEO of Garden State Equality, New Jersey's largest gay advocate, told the website. "Now it's time for the thrill of victory."
Click here to read the complete article.
SF mayor Newsom to run for CA lieutenant governor
By The Associated Press
03.15.2010 1:00pm EDT
(San Francisco) After dropping out of the gubernatorial race last year, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom announced Friday that he is running for lieutenant governor.
Newsom's announcement wasn't a surprise - he filed papers Feb. 17 with the secretary of state, a necessary step to run again for a statewide office. But he had refused to confirm his candidacy until Friday's deadline.
"Like many, I've openly questioned whether the office of LG is the right place to lead a reform movement that has the power to shake up Sacramento," he said in a statement Friday.
Click here to read the complete article.
McCain Rival: Gay Marriage Ruling Might Lead To Bestiality
By On Top Magazine Staff
Published: March 15, 2010
Former Arizona Congressman J.D. Hayworth, who is challenging Senator John McCain in the Republican primary, called Massachusetts' gay marriage law "dangerous" and would likely allow a man to marry a horse, the Huffington Post first reported.
Hayworth made his comments during an interview on Orlando-based radio station WORL Sunday.
The fifth-one-year-old politician called the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling that legalized gay marriage in the state "dangerous" because it defines marriage as simply "the establishment of intimacy." Click here to read the complete article.
Cynthia Nixon Receives Award From GLAAD
ABCnews.com - March 14, 2010
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Gay media group GLAAD honored the TV series "Brothers & Sisters" and singled-out actress Cynthia Nixon for her work at a Saturday night gala highlighting gay marriage rights.
"We are bringing marriage back to its fundamentals and revitalizing it
from its roots up," "Sex and the City" actress Nixon said in accepting
an honorary award at the 21st annual Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against
Defamation Media Awards.
ABC drama series "Brothers & Sisters" won the outstanding drama
series award for their storyline of a gay married couple looking to
start a family.
Actress Sigourney Weaver accepted
the award for outstanding TV miniseries for Lifetime's "Prayers for
Bobby." In the program, based on a true story, Weaver played a 1970s
religious housewife who struggles to accept her son is gay.
Click here to read the complete article.
Diocese bars anti-war activist Sheehan
By borys krawczeniuk
(Staff Writer)
Published: March 13, 2010 - StandardSpeaker.com
he Diocese of Scranton has forbidden internationally known anti-war
activist Cindy Sheehan from speaking at a local church hall or any
other local Catholic venue, citing her support for abortion and gay
marriage. "Although Mrs. Sheehan is well-known for her anti-war
stance against the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, she also supports
positions that are contrary to Church teaching regarding life and
marriage issues," a statement posted Friday on the diocesan Web site
said. Sheehan was scheduled to appear April 9 at St. John the Evangelist Church hall on Fig Street in Scranton.
Click here to read the complete article.
The San Francisco Marriage Case, Part One: Possible Outcomes
By Matt Coles
Huffington Post
3.11.10
1. Four Possible Outcomes.
There are essentially four possible outcomes in the San Francisco marriage case (Perry v. Schwarzenegger, the case brought by Ted Olson and David Boies): the Big Win, the Smaller Win, the Smaller Loss and the Big Loss.
The Big Win would be the ruling the lawyers were shooting for when
they filed the case: a decision saying that it is unconstitutional for
a state to refuse to marry same-sex couples. A decision like that from
the U.S. Supreme Court would mean that same-sex couples could marry in all 50 states. The Smaller Win would turn on the fact that through its Domestic Partnership system,
California gives the same legal rights to same-sex couples that it
gives to married couples. A court could focus on that, and say that
since the state gives all couples the same legal treatment, the only
reason it could possibly have for giving some relationships a different
name would be to make a statement that some relationships are not as
good, not as important.
Click here to read the complete article.
Iowa gay marriage foe equates gay sex with smoking risks
By Ruth Schneider, 365gay.com
03.13.2010 8:00am EST
The president of the Iowa Family Policy Center, a group that opposes marriage equality, released a statement that made gay sex appear to be a health menace.
"The Iowa Legislature outlawed smoking in an effort to improve health and reduce the medical costs that are often passed on to the state," Chuck Hurley said, according to the Des Moines Register. "The secondhand impacts of certain homosexual acts are arguably more destructive, and potentially more costly to society than smoking... Homosexual activity is certainly more dangerous for the individuals who engage in it than is smoking."
Click here to read the complete article.
Tea Party Avoids Divisive Social Issues
For decades, faith and family have been at the center of the
conservative movement. But as the Tea Party infuses conservatism with
new energy, its leaders deliberately avoid discussion of issues like
gay marriage or abortion.
God, life and family get little if any mention in statements or manifestos. The motto of the Tea Party Patriots, a large coalition of groups, is "fiscal responsibility, limited government, and free markets." The Independence Caucus
questionnaire, which many Tea Party groups use to evaluate candidates,
poses 80 questions, most on the proper role of government, tax policy
and the federal budgeting process, and virtually none on social issues.
Click here to read the complete article.
Mexico City hosts nation's first gay marriages
Several couples wed at the Municipal Palace in Mexico City, which
legalized same-sex marriage in December. The law has been challenged by
the federal government.
By Tracy Wilkinson
March 12, 2010
Reporting from Mexico City The mayor was there. So were the protesters. Judith Vazquez wore an ivory wedding dress. So did her bride.
Vazquez and Lol Kin Castaneda on Thursday became the first gay couple
to marry in Mexico under a new law that allows same-sex couples to wed
and to adopt children.
The law was passed by the Mexico City legislature in December and
applies only to the capital. It is the most far-reaching gay-rights law
in Latin America and one of several measures that have put the city and
its leaders at odds with the more conservative country.
"This is a historic day," presiding judge Hegel Cortes said shortly
after pronouncing Vazquez and Castaneda "legitimately united in
matrimony." Three other same-sex couples also tied the knot.
Click here to read the complete article.
SF marriages in '04 a boon to researchers
by Matthew S. Bajko- 3.11.10Bay Area Reporter
Six years ago today (Thursday, March 11) the California
Supreme Court halted the marrying of same-sex couples at San Francisco City
Hall. The weddings during what became known as the city's "Winter of
Love" stunned the nation and built momentum for the fight for marriage
equality.
It also turns out that Mayor Gavin Newsom's decision to buck
state law and order city officials to wed gays and lesbians was also a boon to
academics. Researchers have interviewed and surveyed the couples that raced to
marry before the court's decision came down and are just now publishing their
findings.
Click here to read the complete article.
How Churches May Actually Help Gays Win the Marriage Fight
 By Byard Duncan, AlterNet
Posted on August 8, 2009, Printed on August 8, 2009
At the top of a hill in Berkeley, California -- above the city's stucco angles, crinkled palm fronds and coffee shops -- Rev. Mark Wilson is seated at a piano. Horizontal bands of evening sun pour through the stained glass to his right, dotting his forehead with pearls of sweat. He closes his eyes.
Today is July 5, 2009 -- the day after Independence Day. Wilson, a broad, boisterous man with a neatly etched triangle of beard, is feeling political.
Click here to read the complete article.
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The Faces of Family are everywhere. They are the common thread that runs through us all. Regardless of color, race, spiritual belief, love orientation or political persuasion, we all share a family heritage.
The Wedding Party is proud to announce The Faces of Family project! The Faces of Family project will continue The Wedding Party's promise to provide the media and the world with the honest and provocative truth about same-sex relationships and families.
How can you be a part? Send us your story! Tell us about your family and why it is important. Tell us what family means to you and how your understanding of marriage was affected by your experience of family. Send us your picture and we will tell your story.
The Faces of Family Project is raising funds
to send the message to Albany to leave no family
behind and that all families deserve protection
through marriage. Click
here to contribute to our Faces of Family
Project.
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Values Are For Everyone
Rebecca A. Kanis Captain, U.S. Army (1991-2000)
I was investigated for being a lesbian while I was at West Point in 1989, before the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. I lied to the investigators and was allowed to continue at the academy. I didn't believe I had other options and the possibility of returning to my family in Kansas as a "disgraced" lesbian was unthinkable. In a crisis at 19 years old, I chose to lie to keep an opportunity open to me, instead of losing it all for the truth. I would choose differently today, but no one should be put in that situation.
Click here to read her complete story!
Elizabeth Grosse - Mother and Friend
My son Charlie was an ordinary man who lived an ordinary life. But to his family and friends, he was extraordinary. The fact that he was gay was only a part of who he was, what was really extraordinary about him was that he was funny, and had a big heart. He was a man that could make you laugh until tears rolled down your face, and when he befriended you, he loved you wholly and completely and his loyalty had no boundaries. Just when Charlie had found someone whom he really loved and wanted to spend his life with, he died rather tragically.
Click here to read her complete story!
Community Bulletin Board
Marriage Equality Event Schedule
Check here for MENY events!
Click here for event information!
Lambda Legal's Upcoming Events
Every year Lambda Legal hosts award galas, garden parties, intimate dinners and other events. We also hold educational forums, seminars and rallies, sometimes with partner organizations - and our attorneys and public education staff participate in a wide range of conferences and workshops open to the public. Click through below to find out what's happening in a town near you!
Click here for more information!
ACLU LGBT Project UpdateThe LGBT Project brings impact lawsuits in state and federal courts throughout the country -
cases designed to have a significant effect on the lives of LGBT people. Visit our LGBT web page for information on everything that the ACLU LGBT Project is doing!
Click here to visit the website now!
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| Prop 8 Trial Gets Online Reenactment |
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 | In its January 13, 2010 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked the public broadcast of Perry v. Schwarzenegger, a U.S. District Court case challenging the constitutional validity of California Proposition 8
Working from court transcripts and first-hand accounts from bloggers who are present at the trial, marriagetrial.com is re-enacting the trial and posting it here for public viewing.
Click here to watch the trial reenactment! |
| Wedding Party Forums |
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BE OUTSPOKEN -
JOIN OUR FORUM
The right to marry is a fight for civil rights. What can you do? Stay in action by transforming the conversation. You possess the power of words, help enlighten others - share your thoughts - voice your opinions. Be out spoken, go to the new forums area of the website.
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| From the Heart - A CD tribute to marriage equality |
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Looking for a compilation of todays best new artists? How about a collection of songs devoted to equality? Check out FROM THE HEART, a CD celebration of love benefitting The Wedding Party!
Click here to buy the CD! |
| OMG |
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 | March 12, 2010
Texas Board Backs Curriculum Stressing
Role of Conservatives
New York Times
By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
AUSTIN, Tex. - After three days of turbulent meetings, the Texas School
Board on Friday voted to approve a social studies curriculum that will
put a conservative stamp on history and economics textbooks,
stressing the role of Christianity in American history and presenting
Republican political philosophies in a more positive light.
The vote was 11 to 4, with 10 Republicans and one Democrat voting for the curriculum, and four Democrats voting against.
The board, whose members are elected, has influence far beyond Texas
because the state is one of the largest buyers of textbooks.
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| Faces of Family Postcard Project |
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 | Send us a self-addressed stamped envelope, and we will send you 2 photo postcards at no cost!
These simple but effective tools allow you to affix your picture to the postcard and tell your story to whomever you wish. Just mail your request to:
"TWP Postcard Project"
332 Bleecker St., #d24
New York NY 10014
A picture of your family will tell a thousand words, if you let it. So let us help you tell your story. Send us a SASE today! |
| The Difference Between Marriage and Civil Unions |
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 | Portability of Rights, Medical Decisions in Emergencies, Gift and Property Transfer Tax, Inheritance and many more to name a few! GLAAD has recently published and comprehensive explanation of these very real differences. Check it out!
Click here for more information. |
| A New Symbol For Marriage Equality |
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WhiteKnot.org is the website for White Knot for Equality, a non-profit organization founded by Frank Voci in November 2008 in response to the passing of Proposition 8 in California and bans on same-sex marriage and denial of other civil rights for gays and lesbians across the nation.
Click here to visit whiteknot.org! |
| How To Contact Your Elected Officials |
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 | Now more than ever, contacting your elected officials to tell them what is important to you is CRITICAL! Writing letters, sending emails and making phone calls are powerful tools in the fight for equality. Take action today!
Click this link to find your elected official. |
| 15 Questions Couples Should Ask Before They Marry |
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 | (December 17, 2006 New York Times)
Relationship experts report that too many couples fail to ask each other critical questions before marrying. Here are a few key ones that couples should consider asking:
1) Have we discussed whether or not to have children, and if the answer is yes, who is going to be the primary care giver?
2) Do we have a clear idea of each other's financial obligations and goals, and do our ideas about spending and saving mesh?
3) Have we discussed our expectations for how the household will be maintained, and are we in agreement on who will manage the chores?
Click here for more information. |
| Box of Intolerance |
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German Archbishop Expresses Shame Over ScandalMarch 18, 2010
New York Times
By JACK EWING
BAD STAFFELSTEIN, Germany - The leader of the Catholic Church in
Bavaria expressed "deep shame" on Thursday for cases of sexual
molestation that have shaken the home region of Pope Benedict XVI,
and said he was in favor of changing German law so that church
officials would have a greater duty to report suspected child abuse to
prosecutors.
But in an often combative exchange with reporters at a hilltop
pilgrimage site north of Nuremberg, the church official, Archbishop
Reinhard Marx, defended the overall integrity of the church and said it
would never be possible to ensure there is no abuse. He also refused to
discuss individual cases or shift any responsibility to Benedict.
Click here to read more. |
| Human Rights Alert |
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Sunday, March 14, 2010
The state's new attorney general made a big splash by picking a fight
with public universities over gay rights and challenging the EPA's
efforts to limit greenhouse gases. He ensured that his agenda of social
conservatism and state's rights will be a prominent feature of
government and politics in Richmond for the foreseeable future.
Click here to read the complete article. |
| German Priest Close to Pope Is Suspended in Abuse |
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MUNICH - The priest at the center of a German sex-abuse scandal that has embroiled Pope Benedict XVI was suspended Monday, more than 30 years after the church first heard allegations that he had molested children.
The priest, Peter Hullermann, was suspended after church officials
acknowledged in a statement on Friday that he had continued working
with children even after being forbidden in 2008. His supervisor,
Prelate Josef Obermaier, resigned, according to the Archdiocese of
Munich and Freising.
In 1980, Benedict, then archbishop there, approved Father Hullermann's
move to Munich after he was accused of sexually abusing boys in the
Diocese of Essen, though on Friday a deputy took full responsibility
for allowing the priest to return to full pastoral duties shortly
thereafter. Father Hullermann was convicted of sexually abusing
children in the Bavarian town of Grafing in June 1986 by a district
court in nearby Ebersberg, church officials said Friday.
Hundreds of victims have come forward in recent months in Germany with
accounts of sexual and other physical abuse from decades past. But no
case has captured the attention of the nation like that of Father
Hullermann, because of the involvement of the future pope, then
Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger, but also because of the impunity that
allowed a child molester to continue to work with altar boys and girls
for decades after his conviction.
Click here to read the entire article |
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