Gay Marriage Watch: May 17th-23rd

Here's our Sunday weekly recap of the latest news on gay marriage from around the world. Our favorite thing this week? The pending Prop 8 decision coming from the California Supreme Court Tuesday - the common wisdom is that the court won't overturn the Proposition, but will also uphold the 18,000 marriages (including ours) that took place before the election. But you never know. Take Action: Attend Meet in the Middle - next Saturday, May 30th, in Fresno - over 30 gay rights groups are sponsoring the event, and Charlize Theron, Michelle Clunie (Queer as Folk), and other celebrities are expected to attend in support of marriage equality. Plus, we'll be there! MITM will include a five hour march from Selma, CA to Fresno, and a rally at 1 PM at Fresno City Hall. More info here. Woody Award: Our woody award this week goes to Rev. William Gillison in Buffalo, NY, an African American minister, for this: “We know what we have gone through as an ethnic group. We feel the terminology, the definition itself, has really been hijacked,” he said. “Unfortunately, it’s just another ploy to garner more support from people who may not understand what the civil rights struggle was all about.” Reverend Gillison entirely misses the point. As a gay man, I have a huge admiration for the black community. I learned about their struggles in school, and about the awful things our country did to them in the name of slavery. I understand the great hardships they faced even after the slaves were freed. I am proud of their struggle in the Sixties, and the directio that struggle turned this nation in. And I am well aware of the strugg;es African Americans still go through to this day, often treated as less-than whites, jailed at a rate that's nothing short of horrific, and insulted with a racism that, while more subtle than it was in earlier years, is nonetheless certainly still in existence, even after the election of Barack Obama. I also understand the struggles of the gay community. And while they are certainly not the same as the ones the black community has faced, they are no less horrific in their specifics: sanctioned government raids on our gathering places and jailtime for our mere existence; in some countries, even death meter out by the government. Constant struggles, especially in the early years, to even form a community in the face of almost universal loathing and disgust. Even the thing we're often accused of by the black community, the fact that we can hide what we are and "pass" in society, isn't the blessing it might appear - imagine years upon years of hiding, looking over your shoulder, fear of being found out and hurt or worse, and the inability to show any affection to the one you love anywhere but behind closed doors. So yes, the struggles are not exactly the same. But oppression is oppression. And rights are rights. And when we call our struggle a civil rights struggle, it's not a "hijacking" but a sign of respect - casting ourselves in the black community's image because we admire the progress made by those brave souls throughout history. So when someone like the good Reverend accuses us of "using" civil rights as a ploy, it's like a stab in the back. I hope that calmer voices prevail, and tyhat our two communities learn to work with each other to advance both of our causes instead of being pitted against one another, which would benefit our oppressors, as it so often has in the past. In the meantime, Reverend Gillison, out of respect, no woody for you. Just an olive branch. Gay Marriage Watch: Now on to this week's Gay Marriage Watch. The blog is now organized almost entirely by area, with news of the week, upcoming marriage equality events, and great recent articles and columns. For a longer history of past news stories, just click on one of the older Gay Marriage Watch blogs from our archives. To subscribe to this blog, or if you have any thoughts about how we can make this feature better or easier to use or any updates on the issues covered here, let me know at info@purpleunions.com. We now publish updates daily, and a weekly recap on Sundays. You can also now find us on Facebook - just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you'll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We're also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc Enjoy the rest of the Watch! --Scott ---------------------------------------------- AUSTRALIA: --news--> 5/18: Today marks one year since the introduction of the controversial civil partnership laws in the ACT. Source 5/20: The ACT Greens are planning to reintroduce legislation that would legalise civil unions for same-sex couples. Source ---------------------------------------------- CANADA: --upcoming events--> Vancouver: 5/26: Gather at 6pm at Morton Park (corner of Davie Street and Denman Street). More Info ---------------------------------------------- FINLAND: --news--> 5/21: The clerics of the Finnish Orthodox Church of the Constantinople Patriarchate are going to participate in the European Forum of LGBT Christian Groups Conference Courage to Follow the Law of Love which opened Tuesday in Järvenpää and Helsinki, Finland. Source ---------------------------------------------- INDIA: --articles--> Family pressure is disgusting: Indian gays, from The Tines of India Source ---------------------------------------------- IRELAND: --news--> 5/24: Eamon Farrell to marry his partner in Europe this Summer. Source ---------------------------------------------- NETHERLANDS: --upcoming events--> Amsterdam: 7/31-8/2: Organizers of Amsterdam Gay Pride have announced that during the celebration in August, Mayor Marius Job Cohen will marry five same-sex couples compromised of one American and one Dutch national. The action commemorates the 400 years of links between the Dutch and the American city they called New Amsterdam, with the hope it will inspire progress toward full marriage equality in the United States. More Info ---------------------------------------------- ROMANIA: --news--> 5/23: --Some scores of people, mostly young members of the Noua Dreapta (The New Right) organization, got together today at a march against homosexuality in Bucharest, displaying placards and chanting for "normality in Romania", few hours before the annual gay parade. Source --Around 300 people, among them representatives from other European countries marched in the parade to ask Romanian authorities to recognize gay marriage. Source ---------------------------------------------- RUSSIA: --news--> 5/20: Lesbian couple who was denied a marriage licens in Moscow on 5/12 plans to marry in Toronto and return to Russia to demand rights. Source ---------------------------------------------- UNITED KINGDOM: --news--> 5/21: Britain’s two current Green MEPs, Caroline Lucas (South-East England) and Jean Lambert (London), are backing calls for an end to the ban on same-sex marriage in the UK and in other EU member states. Source --upcoming events--> Cardiff: 10/4: Gay wedding show. More Info Manchester: 10/18: Gay wedding show. More Info Brighton: 11/15: Gay wedding show. More Info ---------------------------------------------- USA: --news--> 5/17: "Sex and the City" star Cynthia Nixon announced her engagement to her husband/wife-to-be Christine Marinoni on Sunday at a rally for gay marriage, according to Access Hollywood. Source 5/18: --Tony Kushner said he’d prefer that gay marriage be implemented nationwide by a Supreme Court ruling rather than “having to fight this thing state by state for the next 10 years.” Source --About a third of Americans today believe gays and lesbians should be allowed to get legally married, up from 27 percent in June 2006 and 20 percent in March 2004. On the other hand, 29 percent of the public think there should be no legal recognition given to gay and lesbian relationships, down from 40 percent in 2004. The remaining one third (33 percent) think gays should be allowed a legal partnership similar to but not called marriage. Source --The folks that created the "Gathering Storm" ad have released an ad with children making fun of biblical stories and saying it is ok to have two grandmas. Source 5/19: --NPR contributor Nancy Goldstein has calculated the "gay tax" -- the amount gay couples must spend to receive the same services that married heterosexual couples can count on everyday. Source --Amway founder Richard DeVos on gay marriage: "I would say, "I understand who you are. I accept who you are. Live your life. I will respect you. But don't keep asking for favors." Don't ask for a concession on the marriage issue, which is not vital to them, in my opinion. They've made it a vital issue because they want to." Source 5/20: A coalition of gay and lesbian rights groups are urging President Obama to turn down defending the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Source 5/21: David Mixner calls for a March on Washington for Marriage Equality this November. Source 5/22: Queer as Folk's Michelle Clunie on gay marriage: "I do not see it as an obligation or even a duty. I see it as an honor to stand up for one of our greatest communities in the nation. You are my brothers, my sisters, my friends, my colleagues and mentors and I will fight side by side with you until we have set right this atrocity and war on basic human rights." Source 5/23: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will soon announce that gay American diplomats will be given benefits similar to those that their heterosexual counterparts enjoy, U.S. officials said Saturday. Source 5/24: Lucy Lawless and Eva Tamargo star in new English/Spanish PSA for gay marriage. Source --upcoming events--> --6/28: Million Gay March: Annual event on the 40th anniversary of Stonewall in all 50 states. More Info --5/26: Rallies country-wide on the day of the CA Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. More Info ---------------------------------------------- USA, ARIZONA: --upcoming events--> Phoenix: 5/26 : Gather at 6pm at the southwest corner of Camelback at 7th Avenue for a rally and then march. More Info ---------------------------------------------- USA, CALIFORNIA: --news--> 5/19: A state legislator today introduced a resolution calling for the immediate repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. Sponsored by Equality California, the resolution was introduced by Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, D-Santa Monica. Source 5/22: California Supreme Court to rule on Prop 8 and gay marriage on Tuesday, 5/26. Source Auburn: 5/26: Gather at 5:30pm at the Placer County Courthouse (101 Maple Street). More Info Bakersfield: 5/26: Gathering in three locations at 5pm. Rally location #1 - Mall View & Mt Vernon; Rally location #2 - Outback Steakhouse on Stocdale Hwy; or Rally location #3 at Rosedale and Coffee. More Info Costa Mesa: 5/26: Gather at the Fairview Community Church, 2525 Fairveiw Road from 5:30 to 7 p.m. More Info Davis: 5/26: Gathering at Central Park at the new stage south of the carousel from 6-7:30pm. More Info Delano: 5/26: Gather at Delano Cecil Park at 5:30pm. More Info Eureka: 5/26: Gather at Arcata plaza and County Courthouse in Eureka.  6PM. More Info Fresno: --5/24: Come phone for equality! Come beat the Central Valley HEAT! Come phone bank with the Fresno County Equality Team. More Info --5/24: Canvass Event with Fresno Equality Team (Equality Team Event). More Info --5/25: Meet in the Middle Planning Meeting, 6 PM, Westley UMC. More Info --5/26: Rally on the day of the California Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. Source --5/29: Harvey Milk Candlelight Vigil (Visibility): A champion of hope and civil rights for those of sexual minorities, Harvey Milk was one of the most prominent individuals in the entire history of the gay rights movement. He fought against a California proposition against greater odds than we did - and won. We can't let his spirit down, but first, there has to be awareness. More Info --5/30: Meet in the Middle - statewide gathering in Fresno with Charlize Theron attending. More Info Hollister: 5/26: 5 PM 4th & San Benito (grassy field in front of Gavilan College satellite campus). More Info Long Beach: 5/26: March starting at Alamitos Ave. an Broadway at 7:00pm, followed by a Rally at Bixby Park (corner of Broadway and Cherry Ave. ) at 8:00pm. More Info Los Angeles: --5/26: Two Locations: Gathering in two locations at 6pm: Rally location #1 in Hollywood at 647 N San Vincente Boulevard (Santa Monica and San Vincente); Rally location #2 in Santa Monica Courthouse (1725 Main Street). More Info --5/26: Third location: 5-6 PM at Pershing Square Park, 532 S. Olive St. More Info --6/12-6/14: Los Angeles Pride More Info --7/9-7/19: Outfest is the oldest continuous film festival in Southern California. Since its founding in 1982, Outfest has presented more than 4,500 films and videos for audiences of over half a million people. More Info --8/1: Los Angeles Equality Awards. More Info --Every Monday: LA Equal Roots Meeting. More Info Modesto: 5/26: Community gathering at 5:30 pm at Graceada Park, 401 Needham St. downtown Modesto. More Info Monterey: 5/26: Gather at 5pm at Colton Hall at 580 Pacific Street.  Event is co-sponsored by the Monterey County Chapter of Marriage Equality and Salinas Valley Equality.  More Info Palm Springs: --10/17: Palm Springs Equality Awards More Info --11/7-11/8: Palm Springs Pride More Info Palo Alto: 5/26: Gather at Corner of El Camino Real and Embarcadero (across from Stanford University entrance at Galvez/El Camino).  11AM. More Info Rancho Cucamonga: 5/26: Gathering at the corner of Day Creek and Foothill Boulevard at 7pm.  More Info Sacramento: --5/26: Gather at 5:30pm at the Sacramento Gay & Lesbian Center (1927 L Street, Midtown). More Info --5/30: Statewide Rally at Capitol Building to Kick off Pride More Info --5/30: End of May Sacramento Canvassing Event. We are going to do another canvassing event! We are going to start having regularly scheduled canvassing events throughout the Sacramento area, every two weeks (pending the Prop 8 decision, stay tuned!). We will have them Saturday mornings so as to enjoy the cool part of Sacramento's day! Source Salinas: 5/26: Gather at 4:30pm at the Monterey County  Courthouse at the corner of W. Alisal Street & Church Street.  Event is co-sponsored by Salinas Valley Equality and the Monterey County Chapter of Marriage Equality USA. More Info San Diego: --5/26: Two Locations: Gather at 6pm at the Escondido City Hall (201 North Broadway) in Escondido; Gather at 5pm at Balboa Park (6th Ave & Laurel Street) in San Diego. Rally on the day of the California Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. More Info --5/30: Canvass! in SD with the Mama Bear Alliance Equality Team (Equality Team Event). More Info --7/18-7/19: San Diego Pride More Info San Francisco: --5/25: Interfaith Prayer service at Grace Cathedral (1100 California St). All peaceful loving people are invited to come together for this service, no matter what their position on the court case may be. More Info --5/26: Rally on the day of the California Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. More Info --5/26: 8:30-9:15 AM: Service/Blessing at St. Francis Lutheran Church (152 Church St, across from Safeway). More Info --5/26: 9:15-10 AM: March from Saint Francis to Civic Center Plaza. More Info --5/26: 9:30-10:30 AM: California Supreme Court steps (400 McAllister St) Everyone is invited to stand with us on the steps to receive the ruling. More Info --5-6 PM: Pre-March Rally at SF City Hall (speakers include Terry Stewart, Kate Kendell and others). More Info --6-7 PM: March to MLK Memorial at Yerba Buena Gardens (4th and Mission, next to Metreon). More Info --7-8:30 PM: Post-March Gathering at Yerba Buena Gardens, (speakers including Rev. Amos Brown , Christine Chavez, couples music, and next steps). More Info --6/27-6/28: San Francisco: Pride More Info San Jose: --5/26: Gathering at 5:30pm at the Billy de Frank LGBT Center at 938 The Alameda. For more information, contact Gloria Nieto at glorianieto@comcast.net or 6 PM, gather at Plaza de César Chávez  at S. Market St. and Park Ave. We will march to SJ City Hall at 200 E. Santa Clara St. for a rally. More Info --6/20: San Jose Canvassing: Friends of mine and I are setting up a canvassing event at my house on Saturday June 20. We will be talking to voters about same-sex marriage so we can vote Prop 8 out of our constitution in 2010 (if it is upheld by the State Supreme Court). We will be focusing on voters who are likely friendly/open to our cause. More Info San Luis Obispo: 5/26: Gather at 5:30pm at Mitchell Park in San Luis Obispo at Osos and Pismo Streets. More Info Santa Ana: 5/26: Gather at 6pm at the Old Orange County Courthouse (211 W. Santa Ana Blvd, Santa Ana). More Info Santa Rosa: 5/26: Gathering on the steps of the Santa Rosa City Hall (100 Santa Rosa Avenue and corner of 1st Street) at 6pm. More Info Ukiah: 5/26: Gather at 6pm at Alex Thomas Plaza (State Street). More Info Visalia: 5/26: Gather at 6pm at the Tulare County Courthouse (221 S. Mooney Blvd). More Info Ventura: 5/26: ather at 5:30pm at the Ventura County Government Center on the corner of Telephone Road and Victoria Avenue.  More Info West Hollywood: 5/26: Rally on the day of the California Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. Source --articles--> Expect 'two centuries' to settle church-gay issues, historian says, by Cathy Lynn Grossman Source ---------------------------------------------- USA, COLORADO: --news--> 5/22: On Monday, the Governor quietly signed a gay rights benefits bill. Source --upcoming events--> Denver: --5/26: Gather at the Wellington Webb Building (intersection of Colfax and 15th). More Info ---------------------------------------------- USA, FLORIDA: --news--> 5/19: Women kept from dying partner's bedside in Miami hospital files suit against hospital. Source --upcoming events--> Tampa: 5/26 Gather at 6:30pm at the Joe Chillura Courthouse (corners of Morgan, Kennedy, Pierce & Madison). More Info ---------------------------------------------- USA, GEORGIA: --upcoming events--> Atlanta: 5/26: Gathering is being planned. More Info ---------------------------------------------- USA, HAWAII: --upcoming events--> Hilo: 5/29-5/30: Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival showings on the Big Island. More Info --------------------------------------------- USA, IOWA: --news--> 5/23: A large field of potential GOP challengers is weighing the prospect of taking on Democratic Gov. Chet Culver as he seeks re-election to his second term next year. Source --------------------------------------------- USA, ILLINOIS: --news--> 5/21: The Illinois General Assembly is expected to approve a measure next week that would legalize civil unions. Source --upcoming events--> Chicago: 5/26: Rally on the day of the California Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. More Info Springfield: 5/26: Gather at 5:30pm at the Illinois Supreme Court Building (202 E Capitol). More Info --------------------------------------------- USA, INDIANA: --upcoming events--> Indianapolis: 5/26: Gather at City County Building - Corner of Washington and Delaware St. 2PM until nightfall. If you can't make it at 2PM, We will be there ALL DAY. Please join us as soon as you are done with Work or School. We need EVERYONE out in FORCE to make this a success!!! More Info --------------------------------------------- USA, IOWA: --upcoming events--> --5/28: Gay-rights group One Iowa will host a fundraiser to "protect the freedom to marry in Iowa," the invitation says. Howard Dean will be the lead guest at "History in the Heartland" on May 28. Tickets for the event, to be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the home of One Iowa Executive Director Carolyn Jenison, cost $100 for individuals, $250 for "friends," $500 for "supporters," $1,000 for "sponsors" and $2,500 for "hosts." More Info --articles--> The reluctant activists, by Matthew H. Smith Source --------------------------------------------- USA, KENTUCKY: --upcoming events--> Cincinnatti: 6/20: Equality - Don't Stop Believin', Kentucky Equality Federation's first major fundraiser will take place at Adonis in Cincinnati, with after party events taking place at Yadda Club in Covington, KY. More Info --------------------------------------------- USA, MAINE: --news--> 5/19: Maine election officials on Tuesday approved the question that would appear on the ballot if opponents of the recently enacted same-sex marriage law collect enough signatures: “Do you want to reject the new law that lets same-sex couples marry and allows individuals and religious groups to refuse to perform these marriages?” Source 5/21: Gay rights group says Catholic Church in Maine violating tax law. Source --------------------------------------------- USA, MARYLAND: --news--> 5/18: Maryland State Senator Brian Frosh (D, Montgomery County), chair of the Judicial Proceedings Committee, told The Gazette he plans next year to co-sponsor – with Senator Richard Madaleno (D, Montgomery County) – legislation that would legalize same-sex marriage in Maryland. Source --------------------------------------------- USA, MASSACHUSETTS: --news--> 5/17: A study says the over 12,000 same-sex marriages performed in Massachusetts since 2004 have pumped over $111 million into the state's economy. Source --upcoming events--> Boston: 5/26: Gather at 7pm at Copley Plaza. More Info --------------------------------------------- USA, NEBRASKA: --news--> About two-thirds of Omaha residents would support some sort of legal recognition of gay couples' relationships. Source --------------------------------------------- USA, NEVADA: --news--> 5/18: Several democratic wards voted on gay marriage resolutions; Ward 8 approved it, but Ward 5 denied it after several local churches sent members to the meeting. Source 5/19: New poll shows 50% against civil unions, 38% in favor. Source 5/21: Nevada Resort Association endorses domesti partner bill. Source --------------------------------------------- USA, NEW HAMPSHIRE: --news--> 5/17: New Hampshire's Legislature is expected to vote Wednesday on an amendment Gov. John Lynch says he must have to sign gay marriage into law. Source 5/19: The Senate Judiciary Committee today voted 3-2 to recommend greater legal protections for religious groups and institutions to win Gov. John Lynch's approval of gay marriage. Source 5/20: --The state Senate has approved changes New Hampshire's governor demanded to sign legislation to make his state the sixth to allow gay marriage. Source --A divided New Hampshire House has refused to go along with changes the governor demanded to make his state the sixth to allow gay marriage. Instead, it voted to further negotiate with the Senate. Source 5/21: New Hampshire House won't vote again on the gay marriage bill until June. Source --------------------------------------------- USA, NEW YORK: --news--> 5/17: --In an event that generously mixed politics and religion, thousands of gay marriage opponents rallied outside of the New York City offices of Governor David Paterson on May 17 and called on the state Senate and God to stop the advance of same sex marriage in New York. Source --Gov. David A. Paterson urged the Senate Sunday to take quick swift action on legislation that would allow same sex couples to marry. Source 5/21: Anti-gay marriage effort in New York state is poorly organized, funded. Source 5/23: New NYC Poll: 48% in favor of gay marroage, 42% opposed. Source --upcoming events--> Albany: 5/26: Rally on the day of the California Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. Source Brooklyn: 9/9: Family Law Day, In Conjunction with Lavender Law 2009, Brooklyn, NY, Co-sponsored by the National Lesbian & Gay Law Association and the National Family Law Advisory Council of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. More Info New York: 5/26: Gathering planned the 5/26. More Info --articles--> New York Marriage Equaltiy Opponents Feeling Outgunned, by Killian Melloy Source NY Marriage Fund Web Ads On NYMag Posts, by Jerry Portwood Source ----------------------------------------------- USA, NEVADA: --news--> 5/18: The Domestic Partner bill, Senate Bill 283 now goes back to the Senate to see if it agrees with the amendments that the Assembly added. If it passes the Senate again, it would land on the desk of Gov. Jim Gibbons, who has said he would veto it. The bill originally passed in the Senate 12-9. Source 5/19: The Nevada Senate gave final legislative approval Tuesday to a bill that gives domestic partners, whether gay or straight, many of the rights and benefits that Nevada offers to married couples. Source ----------------------------------------------- USA, NORTH CAROLINA: --upcoming events--> Charlottesville: 5/26: Gathering planned at 6pm. More Info ----------------------------------------------- USA, OREGON: --news--> 5/21: Coquille Indian Tribe gay marriage law gies into effect. Source ----------------------------------------------- USA, PENNSYLVANIA: --news--> 5/18: A state senator says he will introduce a measure to amend the Pennsylvania Constitution to ban same-sex marriage. Source --upcoming events--> Philadelphia: 6/14: Philadelphia Pride More Info ----------------------------------------------- USA, RHODE ISLAND: --news--> 5/19: The Legislature is currently considering two bills: One would legalize same-sex unions. The other would have the exact opposite effect--amend the state constitution to limit the definition of marriage to be a union between one man and one woman. Source 5/21: Rhode Island legislature considering gay divorce law. Source ----------------------------------------------- USA, TEXAS: --news--> The mayor of San Angelo, Texas, has resigned just ten days after a landslide re-election victory to pursue his relationship with his gay partner, an illegal immigrant. Source --upcoming events--> Dallas: --5/26: Queer Liberaction, a local direct action group organized in the wake of Prop 8's passage last November, is already planning to hold a rally at 7 p.m. at the intersection of Cedar Springs Road and Oak Lawn Avenue on the 5/26, when the CA Supreme Court announces their decision. More Info --Ongoing: Dallas: Queer Liberaction meetings, 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month at Buli Cafe, located at 3908 Cedar Springs. Meetings start at 7 pm. More Info Houston: 5/26: Gathering planned at 5:30pm on the 5/26. For more information, contact Meghan Baker: More Info San Antonio: 5/26: Rally on the day of the California Supreme Court decision on Prop 8. More Info ----------------------------------------------- USA, UTAH: --news--> 5/18: Utah Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert says he doesn't support civil unions between gay couples. Source 5/23: Mike Thompson, Equality Utah's executive director is leaving the 5-year-old organization after four years at the helm. Source --articles--> Gay Community Dismayed by Loss of Guv as Ally, by Aaron Vaughn Source ----------------------------------------------- USA, WASHINGTON --news--> 5/18: Gov. Chris Gregoire is signing legislation today (at 10:30 in Seattle) to expand the rights of same-sex couples. Source --upcoming events--> Seattle: 5/26: Gather at 5pm at Westlake Corner Park, 400 Pine Street. More Info ----------------------------------------------- USA, WASHINGTON DC --news--> 5/19: The new chief Republican counsel for the Senate Judiciary Committee wrote a blog post last month in which he linked same-sex marriage to pedophilia, according to a Web site that has since been taken down. Source 5/21: Some lawmakers are introducing a bill in the House to define marriage in District of Columbia as between one man and one woman. Source 5/22: --Some pastors in the District want several city council members ousted for voting in favor of recognizing homosexual marriages" that are legal in other jurisdictions. Source -- Gay activists discussing a march on Washington DC in October, 2009. Source --articles--> Gay Marriage And D.C., by Ta-Nehisi Coates Source ----------------------------------------------- USA, WISCONSIN --news--> 5/22: Wisconsin legislative committee ok's civil unions. Source ----------------------------------------------- fini