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Greensboro, North Carolina Council To Consider Resolution Opposing Gay Marriage Ban
Greensboro, North Carolina's 9-member City Council on Tuesday will consider a resolution opposing a proposed constitutional amendment which would ban gay marriage in the state, local Fox affiliate MyFox8.com reported.
Voters will decide on the measure during North Carolina's presidential primary in May.
If approved, the amendment would bar North Carolina from recognizing the relationships of gay and lesbian couples with marriage, civil unions and possibly domestic partnerships.
Pair of marriage bills looming in Md. House
Dueling bills affecting the prospects for same-sex couples to get married in Maryland were filed this week in the House of Delegates — and both are scheduled for a hearing next week.
One bill, sponsored by Gov. Martin O’Malley (D), would legalize gay nuptials. It has 56 co-sponsors.
The most notable of those: House Speaker Michael E. Busch (D-Anne Arundel). Busch’s name was not on a bill that failed last year in his chamber, but he says he has since “evolved” on the issue. In recent days, the Speaker has been fairly outspoken about his views.
Miley Cyrus Explains Gay Marriage-Supporting Tattoo
E! Online February 3, 2012
Miley Cyrus has had to defend her share of photographs over the years.
But she honestly didn't expect the backlash that occurred last summer when she tweeted a picture of an equals sign newly tattooed on her finger, along with the post, "ALL LOVE is equal."
"A lot of people mocked me—they said, 'What happened to you? You used to be a Christian girl!' And I said, 'Well, if you were a true Christian, you would have your facts straight. Christianity is about love,'" the teen star wrote in an article for Glamour.com.
Virginia House Passes Bill Making Gay Adoption Harder
NBC29 News February 3, 2012
Democrats and Republicans continued their sniping over social issues in the House of Delegates Friday. They passed a bill that critics say, will make it harder for gays and lesbians to adopt children, making it one of many blows to Democrats during this General Assembly session.
House Bill 189, which allows faith-based adoption agencies to pick and choose who they want as clients, passed the House by a 71 to 28 margin Friday - overwhelmingly with Republican support.
Same-sex civil unions to begin March 5 in Queensland
Same-sex couples in Queensland will be able to make a legally recognised commitment to each other from March.
Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser has announced Queensland's Civil Partnership Act will start on February 23, with ceremonies able to be held as early as March 5. He says the legislation shows Queensland is a modern progressive state.
Attorney-General Paul Lucas says the legislation will allow any couple, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation, to lodge civil unions paperwork with Queensland's Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages. The forms are available to be downloaded.
Pioneer Same-Sex Marriage Couple to Divorce: ‘This isn’t Some Sort of Kim Kardashian Thing’
International Business Times February 3, 2012The first same-sex couple to be legally married in Los Angeles County are calling it quits three-and-a-half years after their historic wedding.
Amazon supports same-sex marriage, following other area companies
Amazon is joining other local tech companies in backing a proposed state law to legalize same-sex marriages.
In a statement, Seattle-based Amazon said the “spirit of these bills is consistent with our long-standing employment practices.”
The statement, reported by The Seattle Times, comes a couple of weeks after Microsoft, RealNetworks and Concur said they were endorsing a move to legalize same-sex marriage in Washington.
The state Senate passed legislation Wednesday that would legalize gay marriage in the state.
Episcopal Chaplain at Cornell University Will Hold Same-Sex Weddings
Seven months after same-sex marriage was legalized in New York State, the Cornell campus still has yet to see a same-sex wedding. Even so, religious leaders and gay rights advocates say, the legislation has already affected Cornell students and faculty.
The Rev. Clark West, chaplain at the Episcopal Church at Cornell University, will perform his first legal same-sex wedding for two Cornell alumni in a year.
“I will be ready, willing, and able to do it” when the time comes, he said. “[There are] a number of openly gay and lesbian students in our community, and if they ever decide to get married, I would be overjoyed at doing a wedding service if they would like me to.”
NJ Assembly Committee Passes Same-Sex Marriage Bill
A same-sex marriage cleared a New Jersey Assembly committee on Thursday
The Marriage Equality and Religious Exemption Act would eliminate the civil unions that have been in place since 2007.
According to the bill's nine Democratic sponsors, it would create true marriage equality and protect the civil rights of same-sex couples and their families who have suffered under a “separate but equal” system.
The bill includes a religious exemption stating that clergy members and religious groups would not be required to perform any marriage if they feel it violates their First Amendment rights.
The bill has already passed the Senate Judiciary committee.
Fred Karger Accuses CPAC of Illegal "No Gays Allowed" Policy
The Advocate February 2, 2012
Fred Karger filed a formal complaint Wednesday against the Conservative Political Action Conference, the major gathering of Republicans every year in Washington, which he claims has a "no gays allowed" policy.....
Appeals Court: Custody law covers children of both same-sex and heterosexual marriages conceived by artificial insemination
The Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled today that same-sex married couples who have a baby by artificial insemination are bound by the same custody laws as heterosexual couples.
In an unsigned ruling released today, the court said current state law gives the two same-sex spouses equal legal standing when a child conceived by artificial means is born during their marriage -- even though the law refers to a “husband’’ and a “married woman.”
Citing the Supreme Judicial Court’s historic 2003 ruling that extended constitutional protections to same-sex couples, the court today said a same-sex marriage is now legally indistinguishable from one involving heterosexuals.
WA Senate set to vote on gay marriage bill
The state Senate is set to vote on a measure that would legalize gay marriage in Washington State.
The bill is not expected to come up for a vote until late afternoon or early evening Wednesday. It is expected to pass in the Senate with at least 25 votes, the number needed for approval. If passed by the Senate, the measure moves to the House, where it already has enough support. Gov. Chris Gregoire says she will sign it into law if passed.
“It’s going to be a long night,” Sen. Ed Murray said. “The debate will be contentious. There are a lot of strong feelings among members, and they’re going to express those feelings in the floor debate.”
Court won't release CA gay marriage trial videos
A federal appeals court refused Thursday to unseal video recordings of a landmark trial on the constitutionality of California's same-sex marriage ban but said it needed more time to decide if a lower court judge properly struck down the voter-approved ban.
Siding with the ban's supporters, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled the public doesn't have the right to see the footage that former Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker had produced with the caveat it would be used only by him to help him reach a verdict.
Chief Judge Walker "promised the litigants that the conditions under which the recording was maintained would not change -- that there was no possibility that the recording would be broadcast to the public in the future," a three-judge 9th Circuit panel said in a unanimous opinion.
Gay Marriage: “Yes!” Says New Jersey Assembly Committee
The New Civil Rights Movement February 2, 2012
Today, the New Jersey Assembly’s Judiciary Committee voted yes on a marriage equality bill, which moves the legislation forward into the full Assembly. The vote was 5-2. The “Marriage Equality and Religious Exemption Act” has nine sponsors and an additional four co-sponsors. Legislators patiently and in a rather well organized fashion (one legislator called it “classy,”) listened for almost seven hours to hundreds of citizens both in favor and against the bill, although the majority certainly seemed to favor passage of the same-sex marriage equality bill.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has promised to veto the bill should it reach his desk. Christie previously suggested that African-American civil rights should have been put to a statewide vote, and later was forced to apologize after many across the nation expressed outrage.
Clergy rebel against Church of England on same-sex marriage
The Church of England faced a rebellion from its clergy Thursday over a ban on gay civil partnership ceremonies on its premises.
Nearly 100 clergy from the London diocese, which has 470 stipendiary priests, signed a letter to The Times newspaper urging that priests be allowed to follow their individual conscience on whether to hold civil partnership ceremonies in their churches.
The Church of England said in December it would not permit civil partnership ceremonies on its premises without the express permission of its general assembly.
Daniel O’Donnell, driving force behind NY same-sex marriage, weds John Banta
Columbia Daily Spectator February 2, 2012
After years of fighting for marriage equality, a local gay-rights champion was finally married this week.
New York State Assembly member Daniel O’Donnell, the first openly gay man to be elected to the New York State Assembly, married his partner of 31 years, John Banta, on Sunday.
O’Donnell, who lives in Morningside Heights and represents parts of the Upper West Side, Manhattan Valley, and Morningside Heights, was the legislative sponsor of the Marriage Equality Act, signed into law last June. That law legalized same-sex marriage in New York and granted gay couples the same marriage rights, responsibilities, and protections as heterosexual couples.
Same-sex couple sues military over benefits
San Francisco Chronicle February 2, 2012
Now that one barrier to gays and lesbians in the military has fallen, a decorated and disabled Army veteran and her wife took aim at another obstacle Wednesday: the denial of spousal benefits and equal treatment for same-sex couples in the armed forces.
Their lawsuit, filed in federal court in Los Angeles, could force the military to fully integrate the members whose presence it accepted in September with the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell."
The Washington state Senate on Wednesday passed a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage, setting the stage for the state to become the seventh to allow gay and lesbian couples to wed.
The measure now heads to the House, which is expected to approve it. Gov. Chris Gregoire supports the measure and has said she will sign it into law, though opponents have promised to challenge it at the ballot with a referendum.
Gay rights group challenges funding disclosure reports filed over marriage amendment
Twin Cities February 1, 2012
A national gay rights group on Wednesday called on the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board to investigate the disclosure reports filed by groups promoting an amendment to the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage, saying they're hiding the names of their donors.
The Human Rights Campaign accused the pro-amendment National Organization for Marriage of illegally trying to avoid disclosing the names of individual donors to the November ballot campaign. The disclosure form filed Tuesday by the National Organization for Marriage's Minnesota Marriage Fund said it received contributions of $284,123 last year, but the form named no individual donors.
Starbucks, Google back gay marriage in Washington
King5 News February 1, 2012
Starbucks and Google are the latest corporations to support gay marriage in Washington state.
Washington United for Marriageannounced Wednesday that the two companies are among dozens of businesses that are supporting SB 6239 and HB 2516.
These companies bring the total number of supportive businesses to more than 100. The list of companies includes Microsoft, Nike and Group Health Plan.
Domestic Violence Bill Would Protect Dating Couples, But Not Gays
Free Times February 1, 2012
A House bill sponsored by Rep. Joan Brady (R-Richland) would expand the number of people who can be protected by family court orders against domestic violence perpetrators.
Currently, a family court judge can only issue an order of protection when the abuser is a “household member.” Brady’s bill would add dating couples to the law.
But advocates for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community are getting a sense of déjà vu, as the bill was amended last week to exclude same-sex couples.
Maryland governor urges legalization of same-sex marriage
Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley urged lawmakers in unusual personal testimony before a legislative committee on Tuesday to approve same-sex marriage in the state, calling it a sign of "equal respect for the freedom of all."
Jewish groups host talk about marriage amendment
Judea Reform in Durham and Kehillah Synagogue in Chapel Hill are offering a program about the proposed amendment to the state constitution banning same sex unions in North Carolina.
Dr. Maxine Eichner, UNC law professor, and Barbara Fedders, a lawyer, will lead the presentation on the meaning of the proposed constitutional amendment and its potential effects on gay couples and non-married opposite-sex couples.
The event, free and open to the public, is set for Sunday, Feb. 5, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Kehillah Synagogue, 1200 Mason Farm Road, Chapel Hill.
Open Adoption, in More Ways than One
Someone You MUST Know: Margaret Fleming, Founder of Adoption-Link
From its inception, Adoption-Link allowed gays and lesbians to become adoptive parents. With several family members who are gay, Margaret believed it essential to be open to all otherwise-qualified families. Perhaps surprisingly, Adoption-Link was not confronted with outside resistance to this practice.
If anything, a bit of resistance came from within Margaret herself. She was a little concerned, in the beginning, that as word got out about Adoption-Link’s open policy, they might get so many applications from gay people that they wouldn’t have enough profiles of heterosexuals to show birthmothers. It was 1992, after all, and while open adoptions (a birthmom choosing and perhaps maintaining some contact with her baby’s adoptive family) were becoming more common, openly gay couples adopting were not.
VA gay adoption: Discrimination or religious freedom?
Delegate Joe Morrissey, D-Henrico County, called a Republican adoption policy proposal “highly discriminatory, mean and cruel.”
New Mexico state legislator introduces anti-gay 'Defense of Marriage' bill
A New Mexico lawmaker has reintroduced a state-level Defense of Marriage Act that would amend the constitution to ban same-sex marriage and void recognition of marriages and civil unions from other states.
Cornell Reverend Says Sage Chapel Will Hold Same-Sex Weddings
Seven months after same-sex marriage was legalized in New York State, the Cornell campus still has yet to see a same-sex wedding. Even so, religious leaders and gay rights advocates say, the legislation has already affected Cornell students and faculty.
The Rev. Clark West, chaplain at the Episcopal Church at Cornell University, will perform his first legal same-sex wedding for two Cornell alumni in a year.
“I will be ready, willing, and able to do it” when the time comes, he said. “[There are] a number of openly gay and lesbian students in our community, and if they ever decide to get married, I would be overjoyed at doing a wedding service if they would like me to.”
Opposition leaders in Scotland unite for same-sex marriage
Pink Paper February 1, 2012
Johann Lamont MSP, Ruth Davidson MSP, Willie Rennie MSP and Patrick Harvie MSP jointly signed the Equality Network’s Equal Marriage Pledge this afternoon, committing themselves to supporting the Scottish charity’s high-profile campaign to lift the ban on same-sex marriage in Scotland.
Following the move, over 400 people gathered in support of same-sex marriage at an Equality Network reception in the Scottish Parliament.
Christie apologizes for statements linking civil rights to gay marriage issue
A week after Gov. Chris Christie raised the ire of civil rights leaders and his Democratic foes for saying people would have preferred to have a referendum on segregation in the South, tonight he apologized.
“Anybody who was offended by what I said, if you’re listening out there tonight, I apologize for that,” he said on New Jersey 101.5’s monthly radio call-in show. “I didn’t mean to offend anybody, and if I did I’m sorry.”
Tennessee Lawmaker Threatens Trans Women with Violence
On Jan. 12 Tennessee State Representative Richard Floyd (R-Chattanooga) said he would "stomp a mudhole" into any transgender woman he saw attempting to use a women's restroom. That phrase means to sexually and violently assault someone to the point where they are unable to fight back.
So far, Rep. Floyd's comments have been largely ignored and unchallenged by the mainstream media. How could something so incredibly outrageous and disgusting go unreported?...
Calling opponent 'numbnuts,' Christie refuses to back down from gay marriage comments
Even though a famous civil rights leader came to Trenton to scold him, Gov. Chris Christie Monday unapologetically defended last week’s controversial remarks on civil rights, calling one his Jersey critics "numbnuts."
Agitated and at times caustic, the governor went after Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, who had hammered Christie for saying that in the 1950s and 60s activists "would have been happy to have a referendum on civil rights rather than fighting and dying in the streets of the South." Christie was trying to compare his call for a referendum on gay marriage to the civil rights struggle.
HUD issues rules banning anti-LGBT discrimination
Washington Blade January 30, 2012
A Department of Housing & Urban Development official said Monday religious institutions receiving federal funds for housing programs will have to abide by a new HUD rule prohibiting discrimination against LGBT people.
John Trasviña, assistant secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, confirmed the rule would impact religious institutions during a conference call in response to a question from the Washington Blade, saying, “All HUD housing providers are covered under this rule.”
Asked to clarify whether these providers include religious institutions, Trasviña replied, “Yes.”
Same-sex marriage and its effects, benefits
The state House Judiciary Committee approved a bill today to legally recognize same-sex marriages in Washington,echoing passage of similar legislation in a Senate committee last week. The vote was party line, 7-to-6, with only Democrats in favor.
Washington would become the seventh state to recognize gay marriage under the House and Senate bills. As the legislation is advancing, advocates have begun touting the economic benefits of expanding the definition of marriage, even while religious conservatives warn there could be lawsuits against businesses subjected to discrimination claims under the bills, if either becomes law.
The Seattle Times reported Sunday on what the pending legislation would actually mean for same-sex couples in Washington, including those who have registered domestic partnerships that would have to convert to marriages within two years. It notes there are exemptions for churches but not private businesses that cater to weddings.
Christie Says Gay Supreme Court Nominee Won’t Rule on Same-Sex Marriage
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said his pick to be the first openly gay justice on the state Supreme Court won’t rule on issues involving same-sex marriage.
Christie, a first-term Republican, also said critics, including Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, one of two openly gay New Jersey legislators, are “numbnuts” for comparing him to segregationists for comments he made about civil rights.
The governor last week proposed a referendum on gay marriage. Democratic lawmakers said the issue is a matter of civil rights and shouldn’t be decided by voters. Christie drew criticism from Democrats when he said that “people would have been happy with a referendum on civil rights rather than fighting and dying in the streets of the South.”
Washington's gay marriage bill passes crucial committee vote in the House
Washington moved one step closer to legalizing gay marriage Monday as the House Judicial Committee narrowly passed a crucial vote on HB 2516.
Voting split along party lines as all seven Democrats on the committee voted to pass the bill while the committee's six Republicans – including Rep. Ann Rivers from La Center – voted to reject it.
Next, the measure will continue on to the Rules Committee and could soon reach the House floor for a vote, though its companion bill in the Senate appears likely to go up for a floor vote first.
The representatives turned down four proposed amendments to the bill before passing it out of the committee.
Week Four: Same Sex Marriage Hearing; State Of State
A key piece of Governor Martin O'Malley's legislative agenda will get a hearing this week by a Senate committee.
Tomorrow, the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee holds a hearing on the bill to legalize same sex marriage.
The bill passed the Senate last year 25-22.
Advocates in Asheville mobilize to battle same-sex marriage ban
Woman to run across NC to raise awareness
Sunday was a day of motion for people fighting a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.
Liz MacNeil parked her 40-year-old Sears & Roebuck beach cruiser “Eleanor” outside the new local office for the Coalition to Protect All North Carolina Families on Market Street and welcomed visitors.
“Our motto is victory or death,” said the Asheville native, who drove three days from California to help with the fight.
Who will accept gay marriage and who won't in Washington State
If same-sex marriage is approved, churches and businesses must decide if they will welcome gay couples.
Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen's pastor applauded her decision this week to support legalizing marriage for same-sex couples.
But even if the law changes, Pastor Daniel Sailer won't be performing weddings any time soon at Stanwood United Methodist Church where Haugen worships.
Not because he doesn't want to do them. To the contrary, he does, but church rules bar him from doing so.
As a result, he and several other pastors in the Pacific Northwest must live with their belief in marriage equality and their inability to make it a reality.
"It really puts us in a conflict," Sailer said. "It is a crisis of conscience for many clergy."
Throughout the faith community and the wedding industry, the questions of who will marry same-sex couples and where ceremonies might be held are becoming relevant as Haugen's dramatic announcement pushed lawmakers into position to make gay marriage legal.
The state Senate could vote on a bill requested by Gov. Chris Gregoire as early as this week. It would get sent to the House where a majority of support exists. With Gregoire's signature, the change in law would take effect June 7 unless opponents succeed in getting a referendum on the November ballot.
GOP Introduces Bill to Prevent Gay Marriages on Bases
A congressional lawmaker opposed to homosexuals serving openly in the military is taking another stab at preventing gay couples from marrying on military bases and ensuring chaplains who oppose homosexuality do not suffer for their views.
Kansas Republican Rep. Tim Huelskamp is sponsoring a bill that stipulates the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" cannot be used to force chaplains to do anything against their beliefs, he said in an announcement Friday, including marrying gay partners.
"It will also protect the freedom of those in the military to express vocally the tenets of their faiths. And it will make certain that our military facilities are not used in contravention to the federal Defense of Marriage Act," he said. "Military installations exist to carry out the national defense of our nation, not to facilitate a narrow social agenda."
Gay Divorce: How the Collaborative Family Law Model Can Help Parting LGBT Couples
One of the many unjust results of a state legal system that refuses to recognize and validate a same-sex marriage or civil union is the absence of a binding structure and system for dissolving a fractured same-sex couple. LGBT couples typically have many, if not all, of the same legal issues to confront. How is custody of their children shared? How is their shared property divided? Who must help to support whom when the union ends? As a practicing family lawyer who has been married for 36 years, I have often reflected on how legally imposed rules and structure can support and preserve a marriage. And those of us active in the legal world of family law are constantly reminded that "the law" significantly lags behind the realities of modern human society. When our college-age son came out as a proud gay man to his family, I became keenly interested in exploring ways a same-sex couple can strengthen their union by preparing for the worst: a dissolved union.
Same-sex marriage in US here to stay: gay leader
Same-sex marriages and civil unions in the United States are here to stay despite stubborn opposition from social conservatives, the head of the nation's premier gay rights group said Friday.
"Absolutely. The trajectory is moving forward. It's clear," said Rea Carey of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force at a four-day annual gathering of around 3,000 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) activists in Baltimore.
Setbacks such as Proposition Eight, which saw voters in California in 2008 erase the right of same-sex couples in that state to wed, are only part of the "push and pull of history," Carey told AFP in an interview.
Increasingly, public opinion accepts the notion of gays and lesbians tying the knot in the eyes of the law, while a growing number citizens who remain opposed are conceding it is going to happen anyway, she said.
Back in the Closet for LGBT Seniors
10,000 Couples January 27, 2012
Was President Obama’s Address a call to action for LGBT Seniors?
According to the recent federally funded Aging and Health Report, more than a third of all Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) seniors report depression and one half have a known disability.
Delivering Tuesday night’s State of the Union message and referring to the service of our troops, President Obama said, “It doesn't matter if you're black or white; Asian or Latino; conservative or liberal; rich or poor; gay or straight. When you're marching into battle, you look out for the person next to you, or the mission fails.” It’s a metaphor for the battle against discrimination for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Seniors.
O'Malley's Same-Sex Marriage Bill To Provide More Religious Protections
The new bill, SB 241, includes broader language that, among other guarantees, ensures that each religious entity "has exclusive control over its own theological doctrine, policy teachings, and beliefs regarding who may marry within that faith."
Gov. Martin O'Malley touted increased religious protections as he promoted a new same-sex marriage bill Tuesday that supporters hope can overcome the objections raised last year.
Flanked by lawmakers, religious leaders and union members, the governor repeatedly invoked the values of equal rights and religious freedom, which, he says, the legislation protects.
"Yesterday we submitted a marriage equality bill which balances equal protection of individual rights with the important protection of religious liberty and religious freedom," O'Malley said, at a press conference in front of Government House. O'Malley hosted same-sex couples at a breakfast before the announcement.
Reclaiming the Rhetoric of 'Family': 3 Reasons Why Same-Sex Marriage Recognition in the Military Matters
OutServe, the association of actively serving LGBT military personnel, issued a press release Thursday announcing the Our Families Matter campaign and a Capital Summit in May to address support for military partners and families.
As of Sept. 20, 2011, the military may not be able to discharge gay servicemembers, but they're still allowed to pretend like their families don't exist. The Defense of Marriage Act prohibits federal recognition of same-sex military spouses and subsequently denies the robust partner and family benefits program offered to these servicemembers' straight counterparts.
According to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, same-sex military couples do not have access to over 100 distinct benefits, including medical and dental insurance, increased housing allowance, relocation accommodation, and surviving spouse benefits.
WATCH: Aisha Tyler Shows Her Support for Marriage Equality
Actress Aisha Tyler is the latest celeb to step up in support of gay rights.
Tyler, co-host of “The Talk,” joined a bevy of gay-marriage-supporting celebs, including Miley Cyrus, Steve-O, Lacey Schwimmer and the Kardashiansisters when she recently appeared in photographer Adam Bouska’s NOH8 campaign.
For Tyler, the issue of marriage quality is particularly important.
“I’m married and my husband is white,” she says. “But did you know that 40 or 50 years ago in many American states it was illegal for black people and white people to marry?”
Maine Gay-Rights Groups Submit 105,000 Names to Back Marriage Referendum
Gay-marriage advocates in Maine (STOME1) submitted almost twice the names needed to get a referendum to legalize the practice on November’s ballot, three years after voters rejected a similar measure.
A coalition of supporters led by EqualityMaine delivered more than 105,000 signatures to the secretary of state for verification today, Betsy Smith, the Portland-based group’s executive director, said in a statement.
“The number of signatures we gathered and the thoughtful conversations we’ve been having with voters tell us that Mainers are eager to speak on this question again,” said Smith, who gathered with allies at the state house in Augusta. “Our polling shows a 54 percent majority of support for same-sex marriage in Maine. Many Mainers have changed their minds and want a chance to bring equality and fairness to our state.”
Thai Gay Valentine Photo Contest On Facebook Criticized
The name of the social network Facebook site is ALL FOR MEN. More than 50 gay couples have send their photographs to compete in the contest which ends before the Valentine day.
A large variety of photos have entered the contest from the innocent teenage couples to the hard core. One of them kissing each other passionately and a soldier kissing and hugging his his lover.
The winner will be judged on the level of artistic expressioin of love and will receive a package for two persons to travel to Khao Yai during Valentine.
This Facebook “Valentine Thai Gay Couple Photo Contest” has been widely criticized, whether it is appropriate to with regards to Thai culture to display affection of gay couples on a socialnetwork website.
Northwest College English professor campaigns for same-sex benefits
Northwest College President Paul Prestwich says a campus committee will study the issue of offering benefits for same-sex couples.
Prestwich made the announcement after Rachel Hanan, an assistant English professor, formally asked the president and an advisory council to consider the benefits issue.
Rep. Barney Frank to marry partner
CNN January 26, 2012Democratic Rep. Barney Frank's spokesman Harry Gural said the longtime congressman plans to marry his partner, Jim Ready, in Massachusetts.
Gural declined to provide any more details on the timing of the wedding, adding that Frank has no plans to say anything more about the event.
The 16-term congressman is openly gay and has already announced he will not seek re-election this year. Frank's spokesperson declined to give any more details and said Frank does not plan any further comment noting the congressman is at the Democrats' yearly retreat on the Eastern shore.