March 2011
You are browsing the archive for March 2011.
By Lisa Keen on March 31, 2011
The ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday morning asked that the nomination of openly gay attorney Paul Oetken and three other federal district court nominees be held over indefinitely.
Posted in News Briefs
By Lisa Keen on March 31, 2011
Just days after putting the applications for green cards on hold for same-sex married couples, the U.S. Citizens and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced it is back to processing them again–with the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in play.
Posted in Federal Courts, Immigration, Issues, Law, Marriage/Relationships, News
By Lisa Keen on March 30, 2011
U.S. Rep. Barney Frank on Wednesday, March 30, announced he would soon re-introduce the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), characterizing it as “winnable.”
Posted in Congress, ENDA, Issues, News, Politics
By Lisa Keen on March 29, 2011
U.S. immigration officials confirmed that the green card applications of immigrants who are in marriages with same-sex partners who are American citizens will be “held in abeyance” until the Department of Justice provides “final guidance related to distinct legal issues” involved in such cases.
Posted in Federal Courts, Immigration, Issues, Law, Marriage/Relationships, News
By Dana Rudolph on March 23, 2011
The Arkansas Supreme Court heard arguments March 17 in a case to determine whether the state constitution will allow a law banning any person cohabiting with a sexual partner outside of marriage from adopting or foster a child. It is a case some legal observers expect could end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Posted in Adoption, Issues, Law, Lawsuits, News, State Courts, State Supreme Courts
By Lisa Keen on March 23, 2011
The U.S. Court of Appeals panel hearing the Proposition 8 case on Wednesday denied a request by plaintiffs to lift the stay on the lower court’s ruling in their favor.
Had the three-judge panel granted the request, same-sex couples in California would have been able to obtain marriage licenses immediately. In refsing to lift the stay, the panel ensures that same-sex couples will not be able to obtain marriage licenses in California for at least another year or two.
Posted in News Briefs
By Lisa Keen on March 23, 2011
Acting legend Elizabeth Taylor, who put her own reputation on the line in order to help people with AIDS at a time, in the 1980s, when society was deeply afraid of the disease, died of congestive heart failure Wednesday, March 23, at a hospital in Los Angeles. She was 79.
Posted in News Briefs
By Lisa Keen on March 23, 2011
The White House announced Tuesday evening that President Obama and Brazilian President Rousseff have established a “special rapporteur on LGBT issues at the Organization of American States.” It also drew attention to a United Nations declaration, backed by the U.S. and joined by 85 other countries, calling for an end to violence and persecution against LGBT people.
Posted in News Briefs
By Lisa Keen on March 22, 2011
It looked like a cake-walk: President Obama nominated openly gay attorney Paul Oetken to a federal district court bench in Manhattan two months ago, and just last week, he had a confirmation hearing.
Posted in Congress, Issues, National Politics, News, Nominees, Politics
By Lisa Keen on March 17, 2011
Efforts to secure equal benefits for a gay federal court employee in San Francisco suffered a setback Wednesday when a federal judge dismissed the employee’s lawsuit. But Lambda Legal Defense says the dismissal has a silver lining.
Posted in Federal Courts, Law, Lawsuits, U.S. Circuit Courts
By Dana Rudolph on March 17, 2011
The Delaware Supreme Court issued a ruling upholding the right of a woman to be identified as a “de facto” parent of a child she had been raising with her former same-sex partner—a child the partner adopted but that the woman herself did not.
Posted in Adoption, Issues, Law, News, State Courts, State Supreme Courts
By Lisa Keen on March 16, 2011
When U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) introduced the Respect for Marriage Act in 2009, he conceded there was little chance for passage in the 111th Congress. Clearly, something’s changed.
Posted in Congress, Issues, Marriage/Relationships, National Politics, News, Politics
By Dana Rudolph on March 15, 2011
Supporters of allowing same-sex couples to marry in Maryland could see the altar: passing the House and sending the bill to a governor who said he would sign it. But on March 11, the House unanimously voted to send it back to committee.
Posted in Issues, Marriage/Relationships, News, Politics, State Politics
By Lisa Keen on March 14, 2011
The White House allegedly pressured the State Department’s top spokesperson to resign Sunday, over comments he made suggesting that the gay soldier arrested in the WikiLeaks scandal is being mistreated.
Posted in News Briefs
By Dana Rudolph on March 11, 2011
The White House held a high-visibility conference on bullying prevention March 10, with the President and First Lady calling on parents, teachers, students, and communities to address the problem together.
Posted in Congress, Health, Issues, National Politics, News, Politics, White House
By Dana Rudolph on March 9, 2011
Members of Congress are introducing a flurry of bills this week designed to address bullying and harassment of students, including LGBT students, and timed to coincide with a major White House conference on bullying prevention March 10.
Posted in Congress, Health, Issues, National Politics, News, Politics
By Dana Rudolph on March 8, 2011
Proponents of marriage equality are holding their own this week in two battleground states, despite tough skirmishes that threatened ground they had previously gained. But in both states–Maryland and New Hampshire–more critical battles seem almost inevitable, perhaps on the ballot in 2012.
Posted in Issues, Marriage/Relationships, News, Politics, State Politics
By Lisa Keen on March 7, 2011
Republican members of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee have been holding up the nomination of President Obama’s only openly gay nominee to a federal appeals bench.
Posted in Congress, Issues, National Politics, News, Nominees, Politics
By Lisa Keen on March 4, 2011
House Speaker John Boehner announced March 4 that the House would take some action to defend the federal law that prohibits recognition of same-sex marriages. Meanwhile, at least three bills were introduced this week to either defend or expand the reach of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).
Posted in News Briefs
By Lisa Keen on March 4, 2011
Educated people who know someone gay are often the most likely to stand up for gay people and support their right to be treated the same as everyone else.
Not so Newt Gingrich. The former Speaker of the House, who has a Ph.D in history and a half-sister who is gay, has taken a leading role in opposing equal rights for gays.
Posted in News Briefs
Ginsburg on Roe: Is it a signal she’d curb a decision on marriage?
Leahy submits language to help bi-national same-sex couples
Delaware votes for marriage equality; becomes 11th state to make it the law
Rhode Island marriage law signed; Two more states could vote next week
Rhode Island marriage bill clears final hurdle with all Republicans