Federal Prop 8 Gay Marriage Lawsuit to Hammer Point that Being Gay is Not a Choice

While California's gay rights advocates are split between a 2010 and 2012 repeal effort, you've still got the Olson-Boies federal Perry v. Schwarzenegger lawsuit that's attempting to overturn Prop 8's damage. The means to the ends may differ, but both plans will live and die by strategy. Say what you will about the ballot repeal's strategy being led by the same people who bungled No On 8, but when it comes to Olson-Boies, is their strategy wholly flawed? In order to convince a federal audience that Prop 8 is unconstitutional by way of the 14th Amendment, Olson-Boies and their clients (under the umbrella Alliance Defense Fund) plan to bring in a string of expert witnesses to testify that being gay is not a choice; that it's decided by biology; and it is not a disorder. How come? Because if they can prove we've had no choice in the matter — so the thinking goes — it'll be easier to convince a judge that, like skin color, sexuality cannot be the basis for discrimination. The only problem with that? Federal protections are not always tied to biology and things we don't have choices about. Just look at religion: We're technically free to adopt any set of beliefs we want, change them at any time, or keep the same ones forever. But that choice remains constitutionally protected. So to go to great lengths to prove that sexuality is not a choice (and counter the defense's likely argument that it is), the Los Angeles Times argues Olson-Boies' strategy risks levying an unnecessary burden of proof on its own claim. Full Story from Queerty

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Iowa & Maine Looking Into NOM's Funding in Gay Marriage Fights

Government ethics commissions in Iowa and Maine are asking the National Organization for Marriage to provide answers to questions about its funding sources in campaigns to repeal those states’ same-sex marriage laws. NOM launched a "Reclaim Iowa" campaign on Aug. 24to pass a constitutional amendment that would reverse the state Supreme Court’s ruling in April legalizing marriage for gays and lesbians. The organization is major financial backer of Stand for Marriage Maine, which has succeeded in placing a referendum on the November ballot for a "voter’s veto" of the same-sex marriage law Gov. John Baldacci enacted in May. The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board told NOM in an Aug. 27 letter it must form a political action committee and list contributors if its campaign activities exceed $750. Full Story from Edge Boston

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Umbrella Group Created to Coordinate Prop 8 Repeal in 2010

More than 80 activists from across California met last Saturday as part of the California Coalition for Marriage Equality, an ad-hoc group comprised of more than 75 organizations across the state that are dedicated to the single and common goal of restoring marriage equality in California as quickly as possible. The group met at San Francisco State University to create a structure for the signature gathering effort that would restore marriage equality in California in 2010. The morning began with a keynote address from Ace Smith, noted California political strategist whose resume includes statewide ballot initiatives and Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. “This is a civil rights movement,” Smith explained to the activists who attended the conference. “You can’t script it. You have to let people go. They have to be able to organize freely, let themselves go. Capturing lightning in a bottle, it either happens or it doesn’t. You have to let it happen. It’s what you’re seeking to achieve, but you don’t do it by planning a typical campaign.” Activists quickly got to work after Smith’s speech. Five proposals, generated from around the state, were presented, and followed by several hours of discussion. The conclusion of that debate was the adoption of a comprehensive statewide signature gathering structure dubbed the Davis Plan, named after the hometown of one of the authors. Full Story from The Examiner

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Caliufornia.

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Many Vermont Gay/Lesbian Couples Opting for Small Weddings

Many gay and lesbian couples will hold small, low key ceremonies when they gain the legal right to marry this week.  Some say they've already had several celebrations of their relationship over the years and don't plan a big wedding. VPR's Ross Sneyd has our story. (Sneyd) Eileen Blackwood and her partner, Lynn Goyette, had a big commitment ceremony with family and friends on their tenth anniversary together.  That was 13 years ago. When civil unions came along in 2000, they had another ceremony, this one smaller, mostly with friends. This week they can get married. And they will. But pretty simply. Full Story from VPR News

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Vermont.

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Gay Marriage Watch: Weekly Gay Marriage Events Recap 8/30/09

Gay Marriage Watch Events List: We now publish updates daily, and a weekly recap of upcoming gay marriage events, along with our Hero of the Week and our Woody Award. For the posted stories during the week, just scroll down the blog or check the archives on the right. 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. 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 ---------------------------------------------- Hero of the Week: Kelly B. Huston, for this beautiful article about homosexuality and empathy: "As a therapist and student of human nature, I have become increasingly convinced that opposition to gay marriage is primarily driven by a lack of empathy. Empathy involves the ability to see and understand the world through a different framework from one's own... One of the first things you learn in Therapist School 101 is the importance of empathy, or seeing the world through someone else's eyes. Empathy is not necessarily correlated with intelligence, and counseling programs scrutinize students who, though they may have high grades or test scores, lack empathy. So I have tried many times to imagine what it would be like to be someone else, including someone who is gay." Read the whole thing - it's a great article. Go, Kelly, Go! ---------------------------------------------- Woody Award: Our woody award this week goes to letter writer John Shaull in Des Moines, for this lovely bit of advice to all the gays: "I agree with Butterfield's statement: "Churches cannot transform gays into straights." However, the same Jesus who healed the blind, changed a greedy tax collector and raised the dead can transform gays to straight. Now, that's radical." OK, let's go out on a limb here and say that of all the religions out there, and of all the forms of Christianity itself, Mister Shaull has happened upon the one true relgion. Let's accept, for the sake of argument here, that Jesus has the power to do just about anything. Why, then, would he change something that God himself had created? I no more "chose" this "lifestyle" than I "chose" to have brown hair and brown eyes. What Mister Shaull doesn't understand is that, as a gay person, any shame I have had about being a gay man has come from society itself, and small minded individuals that make a point of reminding me, again and again, how "different" I am from everyone else. It was only when I learned to be proud of who God made me that I began to live a healthy life, free from the crippling guilt imposed upon me by the likes of Mister Shaull. I can only hope that Jesus, with his great powers, can reach into Mister Shaull's heart and teach him a little compassion. Now that's radical. Enjoy your woody, Mister Shaull. ---------------------------------------------- Upcoming Gay Marriage Events (in Country, State, City Order) Canada, Montreal: 9/4: Mark Nelson and Gage Kristopher's Out In Events presents Out in the Parks, the official 2009 LGBT Six Flags Tour, a benefit for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund. La Ronde, 6 PM-3 AM. More Info Ireland, Limerick: 9/13-9/20: Limerick Pride 2009. More Info UK, England, Manchester: 10/18: Gay wedding show. More Info UK, England, Brighton: 11/15: Gay wedding show. More Info UK, Wales, Cardiff: 10/4: Gay wedding show. More Info USA, AZ, Tucson: 11/20: The first annual Wingspan Classic Golf Tournament will tee off at the Ritz-Carlton Dove Mountain Golf Club north of Tucson, Arizona Friday, November 20, 2009.  The proceeds of the event will be donated entirely to Wingspan, Southern Arizona’s GLBT community center that is in dire financial need. 12:30 PM. More Info USA, CA, Bakersfield: 9/8: Join local Equality Teams and Courage Campaign staff for a dessert potluck and an intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and local Equality Teams. 7-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Berkeley: 9/6: The Alameda County Equality Team (ACE-T) is kicking off Party for Equality - its new fundraising party series - with a Labor Party in Tilden Nature Area, Berkeley. 1-4 PM. More Info USA, CA, Citrus Heights: 9/6: Join us in Citrus Heights for some door-to-door neighborhood canvassing. We'll talk to voters about same-sex marriage to enlighten and spread truth. Before the canvass, we'll train and feed you! 5-8 PM. More Info USA, CA, Eureka: 9/18: Join Northern CA Field Manager Hope Wood and Central CA Field Organizer Anthony Ashe for a potluck and intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and for our local Equality Teams. 6:30-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Hayward: 9/17: Tabling in Hayward for Marriage Equality! Alameda County. 5:30-8:30 PM. More Info USA, CA, Irvine: 9/12: The IUCC Advocates for Peace and Justice Ministry along with Americans United for the Separation of Church and State-Orange County and the Orange County Equality Coalition will be sponsoring a showing of the award winning documentary "Scout's Honor." 6/8 PM. More Info USA, CA, Los Angeles: Every Monday: LA Equal Roots Meeting. More Info USA, CA, Los Angeles: Every Tuesday: Love Honor Cherish Meeting. More Info USA, CA, Los Angeles: Every Wednesday: Equality Network meeting. 7-9:30 PM. More Info (see Upcoming Events scroll in sidebar) USA, CA, Los Angeles: 9/7: Every year, the legendary Livonia Speaks concludes summer with her drag extravaganza, The Sassy Show! This Labor Day, Livonia has partnered with Equality Network to host a benefit to promote same-sex marriage equality and equal rights for all Americans. At Here Lounge, 8 PM-2 AM. More Info USA, CA, Los Angeles: 9/9: Join RENWL and the Hollywood, San Fernando Valley, San Gabriel Valley, Silver Lake, Venice and Westside Equality Teams and Courage Campaign staff for a dessert potluck and an intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and local Equality Teams. 7-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Los Angeles: 9/12-9/13: OUT West Coalition Boot Camp: learn the inner workings of running an effective campaign and how to ultimately repeal proposition 8. More Info USA, CA, Los Angeles: 9/13: Entertainment Industry Equality Team Kickoff: The Entertainment Industry Equality Team is comprised of working professionals and willing volunteers in the entertainment industry who will donate their talents to create compelling, informative (and hopefully viral) videos that can be used to promote Marriage Equality across the United States. We are in need of experienced above- and below-the-line members who can bring talent, relationships, equipment, locations and other resources to the table, particularly editors, composers, web programmers and all crew members. 10:30 AM-12:30 PM. At the Farmer's Market, Third & Fairfax. More Info USA, CA, Los Angeles: 10/11: Los Angeles Equality March and Rally in Solidarity with the National Equality March. 12-3 PM. More Info USA, CA, Modesto: 9/10: Join local Equality Teams and Courage Campaign staff for a dessert potluck and an intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and local Equality Teams. 7-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Mountainview: Every Sunday Thru Nov Election: Phonebanking for Maine Marriage Equality. 2-7 PM. More Info USA, CA, Palm Springs: 10/17: Palm Springs Equality Awards More Info USA, CA, Palm Springs: 11/7-11/8: Palm Springs Pride More Info USA, CA, Sacramento: 9/10: Equality California in partnership with Sweet invite you to an exclusive event featuring Suzanne Westenhoefer followed by Sacramento Monarchs basketball. 5:30 PM. More Info USA, CA, Sacramento: 9/16: Join the Sacramento, Placer, Yolo, and Solano County Equality Teams, Volunteer Organizer Courtney Shelley, Northern CA Field Manager Hope Wood and Courage Campaign Chief Operating Officer Sarah Callahan for a potluck and intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and for our local Equality Teams. 6:30-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Sacramento: 11/7: Camp Courage Sacramento - Camp Courage is an intensive 2-day training program that teaches principles of community organizing; Camp Courage intends to train those working to restore marriage equality in California. More Info USA, CA, Salinas: 9/14: Join local Equality Teams and Courage Campaign staff for a dessert potluck and an intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and local Equality Teams. 7-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, San Bernardino: 9/18: Join the High Desert and Inland Empire Equality Teams, the Courage Campaign Equality Program staff & Courage Campaign Founder Rick Jacobs for a dessert potluck and intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and local Equality Teams. 6:30-8:30 PM. More Info USA, CA, San Diego: 11/14: 2009 San Diego Equality Awards. More Info USA, CA, San Francisco: 10/11: 6th Annual Coast to Coast Bridge Walk: Meet at 9:30am at Crissy Field and together we will march the span of the Golden Gate Bridge.  This is a great event for kids, dogs, grandparents and the whole family.  We will have speakers and cake to toast our efforts thus far and a short conference call with the National March happening simultaneously in D.C. More Info USA, CA, San Jose: 9/10: Movie Night, Thursday, September 10. Sponsored by Marriage Equality Silicon Valley and the Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center, critically-acclaimed documentary "Ballot Measure 9" will have its South Bay première. This highly charged film can't be missed; please visit our website to learn more and view a trailer. Doors open at 6:30 P.M. More Info USA, CA, San Jose: 9/10: Equality California's Silicon Valley Office Grand Opening, Thursday, September 10. Join our friends at EQCA from 5 to 8 P.M. More Info USA, CA, San Jose: 9/13: Rev. Troy Perry speaks at MCC service, Sunday, September 13. The Metropolitan Community Church of San José is moving to a new location, sharing space with the Grace Baptist Church, 484 E. San Fernando Street (corner of Tenth), San José. Join the MCC for their first service in their new home at 6:00 P.M. More Info USA, CA, San Jose: 9/26: BAYMEC Dinner, Saturday, September 26. This year's BAYMEC dinner marks its 25th anniversary, and is titled "Electing Partners in Equality." Meet and greet LGBT elected officials and candidates, and others committed to equal rights for the LGBT community. The keynote speaker will be Lieutenant Dan Choi, Iraq War veteran and advocate working to repeal the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. The reception will begin at 6:00 P.M., with the dinner and awards ceremony following at 7:00 P.M. More Info USA, CA, San Luis Obispo: 9/15: Join loca Equality Teams, the Courage Campaign Equality Program staff & Courage Campaign Founder Rick Jacobs for a dessert potluck and intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and local Equality Teams. 7-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Santa Clara: 9/4: Join the Santa Clara County Equality Team, Northern CA Field Manager Hope Wood and Courage Campaign Founder Rick Jacobs for a potluck and intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and for our local Equality Teams. 6:30-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Sonoma: 10/10: Geoff Kors will discuss strategy and next steps in the fight for equality in California. Enjoy wine and appetizers. 3-5 PM. More Info USA, CA, Stockton: 9/11: Join local Equality Teams and Courage Campaign staff for a dessert potluck and an intimate discussion about the Courage Campaign's vision for the next campaign and local Equality Teams. 7-9 PM. More Info USA, CA, Valencia: 9/25: Mark Nelson and Gage Kristopher's Out In Events presents Out in the Parks, the official 2009 LGBT Six Flags Tour, a benefit for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund. Six Flags Great Adventure, 6 PM-Midnight. More Info USA, CA, Vallejo: 9/11: Mark Nelson and Gage Kristopher's Out In Events presents Out in the Parks, the official 2009 LGBT Six Flags Tour, a benefit for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund. Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, 5 PM-11 AM. More Info USA, CA, Valley Village: 9/12: Dialing for Marriage Equality in Maine. 11 AM-2 PM. More Info USA, CA, Visalia: 9/2: Time for another phone bank! Always exciting! See everyone there. 5-7 PM. More Info USA, CA, West Hollywood: Every Tuesday: Love Honor Cherish weekly meeting to discuss gay marriage strategy, 7:30 PM. More Info USA, CA, West Hollywood: 9/7: The Sassy Show Presents "A Benefit for Equality Network", Here Lounge, 8 PM-2 AM. More Info USA, CA, West Hollywood: 9/27: Put on by Love Honor Cherish, the activist group seeking to regain marriage rights for gays & lesbians in California on the 2010 ballot, Something Old, Something New will sell both new and old furniture, clothing, antiques, collectibles, electronics, books, art, media, and household items in West Hollywood Park. More Info USA, CA, West Hollywood: 10/24: Come celebrate Studio One with a night of Disco, Magic and Love - Keep the Music Playin Productions Presents A Fundraiser For Equality California to Help Fight Prop 8. Tickets: $30 before September 15, $35 after. $40 at the door if available. 9 PM. More Info USA, CA, West Hollywood: 11/7: An Action / Rally to officially kick-off a new campaign to enact marriage equality in California, thereby overturning Prop 8. 5-8 PM. More Info USA, DC: 9/30: Rally for gay marriage at the True Reformer building on U Street NW, 7 PM. More Info USA, DC: 10/10: On October 10-11, 2009, we will gather in Washington, D.C. from all across America to let our elected leaders know that now is the time for full equal rights for LGBT people. This is simply a major national strategy to kick start our national grassroots Equality Across America campaign. More Info USA, DC: 10/11: 6th Annual Coast to Coast Bridge Walk: Marriage Equality New York is moving their annual Wedding March, traditionally across the Brooklyn Bridge, to Washington D.C. this year to participate in the Equality Across America rally for LGBT rights. More Info USA, ME, Portsmouth: 10/18: Over 30 select wedding professionals will participate as exhibitors, each one screened to be LGBT-friendly. Travel planners, Gift Companies and Home & Family-Planning Resources also will be represented. Other highlights will include Music, Interactive Presentations, Samples & Fabulous Fun! 12:30-3:30 PM. More Info USA, NJ, Jackson: 9/18: Mark Nelson and Gage Kristopher's Out In Events presents Out in the Parks, the official 2009 LGBT Six Flags Tour, a benefit for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund. Six Flags Great Adventure, 6 PM-Midnight. More Info USA, NY, 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 USA, NY, Chautauqua: 9/12-13: The Rainbow Pride Connection will hold a conference Sept. 12-13 on the grounds of Chautauqua Institution. The conference is being organized by the members of the LGBT community in Chautauqua County and Erie, Pa. There will be workshops and presentations including ''Estate Planning, Legal Issues & Same-Sex Marriage" and "Interpreting the Bible Regarding Homosexuality" as well as breakout sessions covering issues specific to gay, lesbian and transgender people. More Info USA, VT, Montpelier & Burlington: 9/1: The Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas is known for its ugly language at demonstrations. The group is coming to several spots in Montpelier and Burlington September 1st, bashing Vermont for legalizing same-sex marriage. Counterprotests are being planned at both locations. More Info ----------------------------------------------- fini

Washington's Referendum 71 Already Creating Headaches, Lawsuits

The first thing you notice in the basement of the Secretary of State’s Office is the silence. It is an uneasy quiet, a deceptive calm, for this is and has been for weeks the eye of the political hurricane known as Referendum 71. Hour after hour, election workers are examining each of 137,689 signatures collected on referendum petitions to determine which belong to registered voters. Peering over their shoulders, tracking every twitch and tally, are observers from opposing camps of those behind the measure and those set on keeping it off the ballot. Tuesday, state election officials think they’ll know if Referendum 71 is ready to go before voters in November. At stake is whether here in Washington same-sex couples registered with the state as domestic partners will become legally indistinguishable from married heterosexual couples. Full Story from Herald.net

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Eight Parties File Petition Agianst Decriminialisation of Being Gay in India

So far, about eight parties have filed petitions against the decriminalisation of homosexuality. If they were to unite, a rainbow-coloured banner, not unlike the flags waved about during queer marches, would be apposite. For they're a motley bunch of people from astrologers and politicians to priests and serial filers of public interest litigations. Most of them have predictable arguments against homosexuality: it's against the order of nature, it's a nasty foreign habit, it's bound to plunge India into a moral apocalypse and so on. One of the petitioners is the Apostolic Churches Alliance, which its general overseer Sam Varghese described as an "alliance of Christian independent churches''. Varghese is the pastor at Life Fellowship, a church in Trivandrum. According to him, homosexuals, who practice a "perversion of god's order'' are not immutable. "They can be made straight,'' he said. "God can help them. We are willing to help them.'' He added that he knows of men who have been helped to overcome their temporary deviance to lead "normal, married'' lives. "We love them as god loves them,'' he asserted. There's no love lost between queer folk and Bhim Singh, chairman of the Jammu & Kashmir National Panthers Party. Why is a party committed to reuniting Kashmir with its Pakistani sibling bothering with 377? "I am heading a political party,'' Singh blustered. "I have a responsibility towards my people in general. I cannot allow two judges or politicians to mislead as far as human morality is concerned. This is an American invasion.'' But homosexuality has been around in the subcontinent centuries before America came into being. "Everything is going on for centuries,'' he argued. "Will you recognise murder as legitimate?'' Full Story from the Times of India

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Lesbian Couple to Hold First Gay Marriage in Swaziland

Two ladies have taken a bold decision to marry each other—in a first ever gay marriage case for this country that will no doubt set the tongues wagging. The lesbians have come out publicly to state their case for a first gay marriage case as they intend to get married in just six months. The couple held its engagement ceremony yesterday afternoon, which was attended by family members and friends. The words, ‘would you marry me’ are said by normally straight man and female couples when they declare their intentions of taking their relationships to the next level—which is marriage. However, in Manzini yesterday these words were said by a female who was charming another female when proposing marriage. This was history in the making because the woman who was being proposed agreed and in six months time the couple will happily exchange their vows. Full Story from the Times of Swaziland

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

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Prop 8 Trial May Get Ugly

The issue before a federal judge in January will be same-sex marriage in California and whether the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, with its guarantees of equal protection and due process of law, prohibits Proposition 8 and other bans on the right to marry. As a constitutional case, it will involve its share of arguments about meeting legal tests for various levels of judicial scrutiny and whether homosexuals constitute a "discrete" group. Dry stuff indeed, and yet the lawsuit against Proposition 8 also threatens to be an emotionally wrenching case about the nature of homosexuality, just as the proposition itself was one of the most rancorous and divisive issues to face California voters in recent years. Is sexual orientation inborn or a choice? Can it be changed? If so, should it be changed? Do gay and lesbian partners make good parents? As good as straight parents? Do homosexuals contribute as much to society as heterosexuals? Would their marriages harm the unions of heterosexual couples and the institution of marriage? As the case unfolds, it could pose those and other questions, presenting an opportunity to debate seemingly every prejudicial canard about gays and lesbians. And what's especially dishearteningis that it is the plaintiffs -- those seeking to end the state's ban on same-sex marriage -- who may force the debate for the purpose of dismissing those tired biases and strengthening their constitutional argument. Full Story from the LA Times

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

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Nine Gay and Lesbian Couples Married in Iowa Church

Eighteen Minnesotans crossed the state line into Iowa on Saturday morning with an entourage of friends and family. Nine married couples of the same sex returned home that evening, singing karaoke aboard the self-styled "love bus" on their merry way. "To actually be legally married is a dream come true," said Judith Weir, 73, who married her partner of 17 years, Olly Staneslow, 75, at the First Unitarian Church in Des Moines. Both previously married to men, they now live together in St. Paul. "It's like maybe we can stop being treated as second-class citizens. You can't choose who you fall in love with." Iowa drew the eyes of the nation in April when the state Supreme Court opened the door to same-sex marriages, and it has been drawing those couples themselves ever since. Full Story from the Des Moines Register

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Iowa.

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Documentary Explores Marriages of Convenience in the Muslim World, Including Gays/Lesbians

A segment of this documentary examines MOCs between a Muslim lesbian couple and an MOC they planned. http://queeristan.blogspot.com/2009/01/mock-marriages.html Across the globe and especially in America, hundreds of other gay Muslims have started to pursue marriages of convenience- or MOC as they are known- in which gay Muslims seek out lesbian Muslims, and vice versa, for appearances sake. The ability to get their family's back off and lead their lifestyle, even if it is one of secrecy, to most "it's a great option, " Many count the numerous benefits -"I get married to a lesbian, we sleep in different rooms and remain friends. Meanwhile I can have a boyfriend," says one Muslim gay man. Full Story from After Ellen

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Bermuda Minister to Open Gay Friendly Church

Pastor Sylvia Hayward-Harris insists shunning gay people is not Christian and those who preach it is wrong are "hypocritical". She is in the process of opening The Vision Church of Bermuda (TVC), a radically inclusive Pentecostal church, and invites people of every sexual preference, race, age and occupation to join her in worship. Pastor Hayward-Harris said: "Many traditional churches are very judgmental and often hypocritical. Full Story from the Bermuda Sun

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Hugh Hefner on Gay Marriage

Even now, the twice-divorced 83-year-old entrepreneur, famous for his numerous romantic exploits over the years, tells The Daily Beast that gay marriage isn't hurting anyone. "Without question, love in its various permutations is what we need more of in this world," he said. "The idea that the concept of marriage will be sullied by same-sex marriage is ridiculous. Heterosexuals haven't been doing that well at it on their own." Full Story from the Advocate

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Grand Rapids, Michigan College Tells Professors: Shut Up Abut Gay Marriage

Some college professors at Calvin College are angry over a memo urging that they not support gay issues, such as same sex marriage. The Board of Trustees at Calvin College sent the memo in August. The memo says that it's not acceptable to the board for faculty and staff to teach, write, or support homosexual issues. The controversy comes as Calvin prepares for the start of school. Faculty members are downright angry about being denied their say in a controversial issue. Full Story from WWMT

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Michigan.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Three Men Arrested in Senegal for Being Gay, Two Convicted

There have been new arrests and convictions for same-sex relations in Senegal, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission reported Aug. 20. Two men from the town of Darou Mousty were convicted in mid-August of illegal sexual acts "against nature" and jailed for two and five years respectively, IGLHRC said. A third man, age 17, arrested at the same time faced trial Aug. 24. The situation of a fourth man arrested at the same time is unknown. Full Story from PrideSource

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Vermont Gay Marriages Start off Slowly

Bed-and-breakfast owner Jeff Connor was hoping for a boom in business once Vermont opened the door for same-sex couples to marry. The law takes effect Tuesday, but he's still waiting. So far, he has only one wedding celebration planned at the 11-unit Grunberg Haus, in Duxbury. It's for Sept. 8. "I guess the word's still getting around out there," said Connor, who runs the inn with wife Linda. Unlike the rush that followed Vermont's adoption of civil unions in 2000, the state's adoption of full marriage rights for same-sex couples hasn't turned it into a gay marriage mecca. And it may not. Full Story from Newsday

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Vermont.

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Washington Referendum 71 Signature Check to Finish Today

State election officials have now checked just under 130,000 Referendum 71 signatures, the measure aimed at overturning Washington's new "everything but marriage" same-sex domestic partner law. Last month proponents turned in approximately 137,689 signatures. Of the signatures checked, 114,583 have been accepted and 15,413 have been rejected, officials said Friday. The overall error rate is now 11.86 percent. To win a spot on the November ballot the error rate can't go above 12.4 percent. The signature check will be finished Tuesday. Full Story from Seattle PI

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Massachusetts Gay Marriage Case May Have Best Shot at Supreme Court

While the high-profile, Ted Olson- and David Boies-managed legal fight against California's Proposition 8 captures headlines, a carefully planned case quietly under way in Massachusetts federal court could be the gay marriage test with the greatest national impact. The challenge, Gill v. Office of Personnel Management, is one of four lawsuits in different parts of the country that ask federal courts to strike down all or parts of the 1996 federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The suits, and the Gill case in particular, according to advocates and scholars closely watching their progress, are just the opening shots in a struggle destined for the U.S. Supreme Court. "If you're looking to effect legal change, you're looking for plaintiffs who have been harmed, a lawsuit reasonably well-funded, and the legal expertise to take it up [to] the appellate process," said Arthur Leonard of New York Law School, an expert on gay and lesbian legal issues. The Gill case meets that description, he and others believe. Full Story from Law.com

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Massachusetts.

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Top Chef's Tom Colicchio Speaks Out on Gay Marriage

First of all, thanks to all who wrote for the sweeping, decisively positive response to the question I posed at the end of last week’s blog. It’s always been a goal of mine, in doing Top Chef, not only to help the chefs become better at their craft, but also to inspire the viewer to play and create in the kitchen and to enjoy the process more, perhaps, than before s/he tuned in. Keep the anecdotes coming … and keep on cooking …. This week, our chefs cooked for joint bachelor/bachelorette parties, and Ashley spoke articulately about her dismay and discomfort cooking to celebrate an upcoming wedding when gay people are still denied the right to wed throughout most of the world. I’m going to go out on a limb and say a few words about same-sex marriage: First of all, part of the problem with the issue is that it is framed by opponents as a discussion of whether gay people should get special rights. This is specious – yes, special legislation or court decisions grant them the right to wed in a particular state, however this is done to ensure that they share equal protection under the law by finally being able to avail themselves of the same rights as everyone else. They are not seeking special treatment, just equitable treatment. Second, religion has no business being part of the discussion. When a couple is wed in a house of worship, the officiant may be performing a religious rite, but as far as the law is concerned, that officiant has been authorized to perform a civil function, plain and simple. And even were same-sex marriage to be legalized by the state, no one would be holding a gun to the heads of the clergy to require them to perform a ceremony that their faith or personal creed does not condone. Just as some rabbis would not perform my marriage to my wife because I wasn’t Jewish, clergy can decline performing same-sex marriages; gay couples can either find clergy willing to officiate or can be wed in a civil setting. The idea that religious leaders are continuing to shape state law is just wrong. The institution of marriage should be available to all. The idea that you can have a life-long partner and not make decisions for them in a hospital, not share in insurance benefits, not automatically have parental rights unless you are the birth parent, is just flat-out wrong. Full Story from BravoTV.com

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

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Edge Boston Interviews RI NOM Director About Anti Gay Marriage Plans

The National Organization for Marriage burst onto the public eye with a much-parodied video, "The Gathering Storm." The "storm" metaphor fit its leader, Maggie Gallagher, who has become a lightning rod for both sides of the marriage debate. NOM has been one of the leading opponents of same-sex marriage in the country. Most recently, the organization has devoted its resources to a line-in-the-sand effort to see to it that Rhode Island does not become the latest New England state to allow same-sex couples to wed. As the very last state in New England that has not legalized same-sex marriage, Rhode Island holds particular significance for both sides. Its GOP governor opposes such a measure, but the issue is very much alive. Full Story from Edge Boston Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Rhode Island. To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.  

NOM Outspends Both Candidates in Iowa House Race With Anti Gay Marriage Ads

An out-of-state group working against gay marriage has spent more money on television ads for a Sept. 1 Iowa House race than either candidate has raised in cash, reports filed Thursday show. Democratic House District 90 candidate Curt Hanson raised $42,882 to compete in the special election, while GOP candidate Stephen Burgmeier raised $63,101, the reports show. A disclosure report filed by the New Jersey-based National Organization for Marriage, a group that opposes marriage for same-sex couples, has spent $86,080 on television ads in support of Burgmeier, according to a report filed Aug. 20. Full Story from the Des Moines Register

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Iowa.

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Gay Rights Group Sues to Keep Referendum 71 Off Ballot; Donors Cannot Keep Names Hidden

A group supporting Washington's expanded gay-rights law has sued the secretary of state in an attempt to keep Referendum 71 from qualifying for the November ballot. Washington Families Standing Together says it's concerned the Secretary of State's Office has accepted signatures that should have been rejected for the referendum, which seeks to put the domestic-partnership law up for a public vote. Thursday, the same day the lawsuit was filed, the state Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) decided the group backing R-71 would not be exempt from disclosing the identities of its donors. Full Story from The Seattle Times

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Traveling for a Cause: Gay Marriage

So, it’s officially the end of August, the time when everyone thinks: “What did I do the past three months?” True, you didn’t go camping in Yosemite, you rainchecked seeing the Eiffel Tower with your family, and you told everyone that you went to Venice (California, not Italy, but you’ll make sure they don’t find out the difference). But let’s be optimistic: The summer’s far from over. So instead of going to Europe, Japan, or, the most popular choices this season — North Korea, Iran, Afghanistan — why not stay in the U.S. and squeeze in a few short trips before Autumn? Better yet, why not travel to a destination that’s home to one of the country’s most controversial social issues? If you’re tired of street protests and seeing friends and co-workers in same-sex relationships that cannot lead to a legal wedding in one of our Most Enlightened 44 states, travel to one of the six (by next January — with no vetos, that is) where a couple can enjoy such a union. In that spirit, here are some same-sex-marriage travel tips*: Full Story from The Faster Times

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

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Greens in Australia Trying to Make Civil Partnerships Legally Recognized

The ACT Government says it might vote against the Greens' proposal to grant legal status to civil union commitment ceremonies, despite it being ACT Labor policy. Homosexual Labor minister Andrew Barr, who plans to register a civil partnership with his long-term partner Anthony Toms later this year, said yesterday he was prepared to go against his personal view and vote against the Greens' Bill if Cabinet decided to do so. ''I'm a minister in a government, that's the responsibility you have as a member of Cabinet and as a member of the Labor Party,'' Mr Barr said. Full Story from The Canberra Times

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Australia.

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Linda Ronstadt Speaks Out in Gay Marriage, Prop 8

...Something needs to be done to bridge the gay gap in the Hispanic community. It’s an important bridge to gap. I was a witness at the same-sex marriage of my good friend Marcela Davison Aviles [CEO of the Mexican Heritage Corporation] and I’ll never forget the hurt in her voice when Prop 8 [California’s anti-gay-marriage initiative] passed. It makes you feel bad when you’re dis-liked, it hurts your feelings in a terrible, terrible way. I know that one of the reasons it turned out the way it did was because a lot more Hispanics came out to vote that year, because they wanted to vote for Obama. But how can you have a full and authentic expression of who you are if you have to live that way and hide it? As long as you have to pretend, it’s like ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ – and who wants to live that way? Full Story from Planet Out

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

New Jersey Catholic Bishops Using Churches to Campaign Against Gay Marriage

Roman Catholic bishops in New Jersey have begun a new campaign opposing same-sex marriage. The push comes in anticipation of a possible vote on the issue by state lawmakers after the November election. At the bishops' direction, a 2,300-word letter was distributed in parish bulletins last Sunday. It notes long-standing Catholic teaching that marriage is "the union of one man and one woman." Full Story from Philly.com

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in New Jersey.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Top Chef Episode Covers Gay Marriage Debate

Last week offered an exciting Top Chef two-fer: The season finale of Top Chef Masters, which quietly asserted itself as perhaps my favorite episode in franchise history (as I wrote in that blog, it was like watching a real-life, extended cut of the climactic meal in Big Night), and the premiere of this season’s Top Chef, which introduced new blood, a new city, and lots of new gambling-themed gimmicks. So it was perhaps inevitable that Week Two would be a big comedown for your friendly recapper, because I’m already wrung out from last week’s finale/premiere double bill and because I’m looking at a chaff-filled 16 contestants clogging up the screen. Who are these people? Why should I care about them? Could someone wake me when the six or seven who clearly have no chance are finally eliminated. All right, enough whining. I press on. Tonight wasn’t a terribly memorable hour, with a couple of rote challenges and not too many juicy developments. If it’s remembered for anything, it will probably be the mild controversy about the bachelor/bachelorette party Elimination challenge, which didn’t sit well with Ashley, who’s a lesbian and therefore not happy having to honor an institution in which she and others gay and lesbians (including two others from this season’s group) cannot legally take part. I really don’t feel like dipping my toe in this issue—the obnoxious comment board flare-ups over Ted Kennedy’s death have been unsettling enough for one day—but Ashley’s objections were surprisingly strong and perhaps flipped the script a bit on “defense of marriage” types who are always fretting about how the institution” is threatened. Full Story from AVClub.com

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Guam Community Meeting on Watered Down Designated Benificiary Agreement, Not Gay Marriage

The measure is known as the Designated Beneficiary Agreement. If enacted into law, it will allow individuals who enter into this legal union to receive benefits that range from health and life insurance to GovGuam employee retiree benefits. Bill 212 was introduced by Senator Jim Espaldon, who called the legislation an alternative to Bill 185, introduced by Vice-Speaker BJ Cruz as The Domestic Partnership Bill. Tonight's meeting is to receive a consensus on the legislation from Guam's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. Said Cruz, using an automotive analogy, "It is like asking for an Infinity, compromising down to an Ultima, saying you'd accept a Sentra, and now we are just taking bus passes to get where we need to go." The vice-speaker of the 30th Guam Legislature contends the Designated Beneficiary Agreement is a sellout to the GLBT community's initial desire to have a bill that provides them with all of the same legal rights that heterosexual couples enjoy via a legal partnership. Senator Sspaldon sees it otherwise, saying, "I listened to those arguments and came up with this Bill 212, and I hope it's a compromise where both parties are satisfied." He reasoned that his bill is truly a viable alternative to the controversial Domestic Partnership Bill, which was harshly criticized by the Catholic Church, but supported overall by Guam's GLBT community. Full Story from KUAM.com

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Both Sides Have Complaints About Referendum 71 Signature Count in Washington

For a month, rotating teams of gay-rights supporters and opponents have crowded into a basement room, watching as state workers check every signature on a referendum that seeks to overturn the latest expansion of gay rights. They have not become friends. In fact, they've had complaints. Religious conservatives with Protect Marriage Washington, the group trying to put Referendum 71 on the ballot, speak of a chumminess between elections workers and gay-rights supporters that excludes them. They've complained about signature checkers who wear headphones while they work, saying the music could be distracting. They've accused staff of speeding up the count, which they believe has led to the rejection of more signatures. They've complained that supervisors have rolled their eyes at their concerns. Full Story from the Seattle Times

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.

Former Maryland Governor Tom Schaller Now Supports Gay Marriage

Tom Schaller is commended for his thoughtful commentary in the Baltimore Sun regarding marriage equality for same-gender couples ("Md. should be a leader on gay marriage," Aug. 25). While serving as Prince George's County executive and governor of Maryland, I was a forceful advocate for enacting laws that ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Despite our successes, however, in addressing employment, housing and public accommodations discrimination against gays and lesbians, I was firm in my statements that I believed "marriage should be between a man and a woman." This was especially true during my 1998 re-election campaign. I was wrong! Allowing same-gender couples to join in the institution of marriage, and to experience the commitment and security of being legally married, does nothing to diminish or alter the institution of marriage itself. It does, however, promote healthy, stable families. Full Story from the Baltimore Sun

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in Maryland.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with "subscribe blog" as the subject. Or 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.