By Dana Rudolph on February 3, 2012
A first-ever study of how teens and young adults with LGB parents feel about marriage equality was published this month in the peer-reviewed Journal of Marriage and Family.
Posted in Marriage/Relationships
By Lisa Keen on February 2, 2012
Most gay legal activists issued a subtle yawn in reaction to the 22-page decision Thursday by a federal appeals panel to keep the Proposition 8 trial videotapes under seal.
Posted in Lawsuits, Marriage/Relationships
By Chuck Colbert on January 20, 2012
A group of nearly 40 conservative religious leaders released an open letter this month (January 12) that seeks to reframe the battle over same-sex civil marriage as a threat to their freedom of religion.
Posted in Marriage/Relationships
By Lisa Keen on January 12, 2012
The Canadian Department of Justice told a court in Ontario this week that a lesbian couple from the U.S. and England who obtained a marriage license there in 2005 should not be granted a divorce now because they were not legally married in Canada.
Posted in Law, Marriage/Relationships
By Dana Rudolph on December 29, 2011
One leading advocate called 2011 an “epic” year for marriage equality. Was it? While only one state — New York — enacted full marriage rights for same-sex couples, it was the most populous state to do so. Five other states also moved closer to marriage equality than ever before.
Posted in Marriage/Relationships
By Dana Rudolph on December 15, 2011
Karen Golinski never meant to become one of the headline names in the fight to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). All she wanted to do was to secure health care coverage for her legal spouse.
Posted in Marriage/Relationships, U.S. District Courts
By Dana Rudolph on November 18, 2011
Gay-straight alliance clubs in middle schools and high schools help youth not only while they are in school, but also later in life, according to a new study.
Posted in Schools/youth
By Lisa Keen on November 17, 2011
In what amounts to a bump in the road for opponents of Proposition 8, a unanimous California Supreme Court told a federal appeals court November 17 that California law “authorizes” the proponents of the initiative to defend it in federal court even though state elected officials decided not to.
Posted in Issues, Marriage/Relationships, News, State Supreme Courts
By Dana Rudolph on November 16, 2011
LGBT activists in the neighboring states of Oregon and Washington have reached two different conclusions in the past week about strategies for marriage equality. Those in Washington State will attempt to gain it in 2012, but those in Oregon will use 2012 to continue to build support.
Posted in Ballot Measures, Issues, Marriage/Relationships, News
By Dana Rudolph on November 10, 2011
A state district court in Iowa heard arguments November 7 in a case to determine whether the child born to a lesbian couple married in that state has the right to have the names of both her parents on her birth certificate.
Posted in Cases, Lawsuits, State Courts
By Dana Rudolph on November 3, 2011
New polls on marriage equality in seven states show mostly positive results for marriage equality advocates–but polls in two of the states indicate that the way the questions are asked can significantly affect the results.
Posted in Marriage/Relationships, State Politics
By Dana Rudolph on October 28, 2011
In a blow to activists seeking to stop anti-gay bullying, two proposals to address bullying in schools were left out of an education reform bill approved by a U.S. Senate committee October 20.
Posted in Congress, National Politics, Schools/youth
By Lisa Keen on October 27, 2011
The Servicemembers Legal Defense Fund filed suit in a federal district court Thursday (October 27) challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act and its use in denying to gay service members spousal benefits equal to that given to their straight counterparts.
Posted in Don't Ask Don't Tell, Federal Courts, Law, Lawsuits, Marriage/Relationships, U.S. District Courts
By Lisa Keen on October 26, 2011
The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee will debate and vote on a bill to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) on Wednesday, November 3. Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) announced the scheduling Tuesday, October 25.
Posted in Congress, Marriage/Relationships, National Politics
By Lisa Keen on October 11, 2011
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday (October 11) refused to hear a case that challenged a sort of “back door discrimination” against a gay couple by a Louisiana state official.
Posted in Adoption, Federal Courts, Issues, Law, U.S. Supreme Court
By Lisa Keen on October 5, 2011
A fourth openly gay nominee–one who has been fairly heavily involved in both gay and non-gay legal and political issues and who spent “hundreds of hours” doing pro bono work that led to the elimination of a gay ban on FBI agents–has gone before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.
Posted in Federal Courts, News, Nominees, U.S. District Courts
By Dana Rudolph on September 29, 2011
Americans are becoming “dramatically” more accepting of gay men and lesbians, according to a new report from a respected, long-running social survey. And, as suggested by other recent surveys, this latest report indicates younger generations are driving that trend.
Posted in Demographics, Issues, Marriage/Relationships, News
By Lisa Keen on September 28, 2011
The Census Bureau on Tuesday released a new estimate for the number of same-sex couple households in the United States in 2010, and it is almost 40 percent fewer than it actually counted. But it’s 80 percent higher than the number counted in the 2000 Census.
Posted in Census, Demographics
By Dana Rudolph on September 21, 2011
When repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” goes into effect September 20, children of gay servicemembers will reap many benefits. But they will still lack many of the protections available to children with opposite-sex parents because of the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
Posted in Don't Ask Don't Tell, National Politics
By Lisa Keen on September 19, 2011
On the same day a Broadway play is to premiere to highlight the transcripts from the landmark Proposition 8 trial, a federal judge has ordered release of videotapes of the trial.
Posted in Federal Courts, Law, Marriage/Relationships, News, U.S. District Courts
GOP gays and Florida back Romney
New HUD rule called ‘truly historic’
Religious bias cases at high court