Same-Sex Marriage Begins in Vermont!

Back in April, Vermont became the first state to end marriage discrimination and legalize marriage for same-sex couples by a legislative vote, whereas other states with same-sex marriage have accomplished it through court orders.

Supporters of marriage equality in the state’s legislature were able to override a veto by Republican Governor Jim Douglas in April, but only by a narrow margin.

Attempting to hide any bigoted points of view, Douglas stated the reason for his veto was because the legislation failed to end the discrimination faced by LGBT citizens:

“This legislation does not address the inequalities espoused by proponents. Regardless of whether the term marriage is applied, federal benefits will still be denied to same-sex couples in Vermont. And states that do not recognize same-sex marriage or civil unions will also deny state rights and responsibilities.”

Of course what Douglas didn’t, or refused, to see is the impact the legislation could have at a national level, demonstrating the state’s recognition of discrimination.

Vermont’s move comes nine years after the state became the first to offer gay and lesbian couples civil unions at the behest of the Vermont Supreme Court.

In 2000, Vermont became the first state to offer gay and lesbian couples civil unions, and couples fled to Vermont. Approximately 70 % of the 7000 civil unions performed in 2000 were for out-of-state couples.

With Vermont, now five of the six New England states, including Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont and Connecticut have ended marriage discrimination.

“We’ve got about a dozen gay marriages happening at the lodge between Sept. 1 and the end of the year,” Willie Docto, co-owner of the Moose Meadow Lodge in Waterbury, told the Rutland Herald. “I think a lot of people have already gotten married in Massachusetts or Connecticut over the last few years. … It was a special thing when civil unions came along in 2000.

Russia’s Own Cold War on Gay Marriage

Yesterday, as the debate over whether or not a lesbian couple would be allowed to marry in Russia took place in side a Moscow courtroom, things heated up outside as  the two women, Irina Fedotova-Fet and Irina Shipitko, decided to have their own kissing demonstration to protest the case being held up in court.

Although homosexuality was officially decriminalized in Russia in 1993, but remains very little support for LGBT rights in the former Communist state.

The women were upset that the court had postponed the hearing of a case stemming from refusal to let them marry.  But Judge Natalya Zhuravlyova stated the reason for delay was the women’s “disrespectful” failure to appear in court.

The two women did arrived 10 minutes after the hearing ended and kissed for the cameras, stating they had been held up in traffic.

The couple’s lawyer, Nikolai Alexeyev who is a Russian gay rights activist, protested the postponement and told the judge, “the way you conduct a hearing is a disgrace.” Alexiyev also noted that he will not be able to be present on the date set for the new trial, which is September 9th, as he has other obligations.

The couple has decided to marry in Toronto, Canada, where same-sex marriage is legal on Oct. 23.

From what I gather, there appears to be a lack of seriousness from all sides.  If you want to get married, and you have a court date, you should be waiting at the courtroom door as it opens…not be late for being stuck in traffic.  And if you’re a real gay rights activist lawyer, it seems you’d clear your schedule until the case was decided, perhaps anticipating in advance there may be delays.

And I though there was apathy in the U.S. LGBT community!

Maggie Moo ‘Optimistic’ About Maine

NOM’s leader, Maggie “Moo” Gallagher was recently seen on the anti-gay CBN spouting off about how a majority of Americans oppose equality, gay marriage is being “forced” upon U.S. citizens, and the usual b.s. rhetoric spewed by the haters and bigots of the world.

You can see her in the video below…she’s so witty!  According to Moo:

“The American people are not on board with this gay marriage thing”, and marriage equality is “not a civil right, it’s a civil wrong.”

OK, since when is marriage of any type “forced” upon anyone…in this country at least, unless it’s a good old fashioned shot-gun wedding?

And I know, I’m not perfect, nor do I claim to be, but I also know I’m not fighting to keep a group of tax paying Americans categorized as second-class citizens.

This Maggie is NOT a representation of America.

Same-Sex Marriage Bill Would Provide Equal Rights to All

Our gay and lesbian citizens have been Americans since this became a country. They fought in its wars. They built businesses. They’ve been loyal to our nation. Yet, because they are gay, they haven’t had fundamental rights until recently. It wasn’t until 1997 that here in New Hampshire we passed legislation protecting gays and lesbians in areas of employment, services and housing. Even today, only 22 states have such protective laws. In most of this country, one can still be fired just for being gay.

Read the entire post at UnionLeader.com!

Courage Campaign: Please Don’t Divorce My Sons!

For the past year we have heard a lot about Prop 8–as a court case, as an initiative, and now as a court case yet again. It’s time for us to show the community that Prop 8 is far more than a legal proceeding.  No matter whether you are straight or gay, the lives of your spouses, your friends, and your family members are in the balance.

Thank you for helping us send this important message to the lawyers working to divorce 18,000 happy, law-abiding, tax-paying couples.

We will send another email to you and other Courage Campaign members when the project is complete so that you can view your own and many others’ pictures online and see what we send to Ken Starr, the media,
and our partners.

We need your help to make this action possible. Will you contribute whatever you can afford to support “Please don’t divorce…” and the “MILK + LOVE” events? Please contribute here:

http://www.couragecampaign.org/contribute

If you are having difficulty sending your picture, please send a reply to this email with the type of file you are trying to send and we will work with you to make sure we receive your picture.

Thank you for everything you are doing to restore marriage equality in California.

-The Courage Campaign Team

You can also learn more at ConnVanDyke!

Next Page »