Out in America Features» Marriage

Court orders Prop. 8 trial videos to remain sealed

OIA Staff — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:54:55 +0000

A federal appeals court barred public release Thursday of videos of the trial over California’s ban on same-sex marriage, saying the trial judge, at the insistence of the U.S. Supreme Court, had promised that the recordings would not be broadcast. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco did not say how or [...]

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Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich Blast Gay Marriage At New Hampshire GOP Debate

OIA Staff — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 03:48:11 +0000

Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich criticized gay marriage during Saturday night’s Republican debate in New Hampshire. The issue came up when a Yahoo! News reader asked, “Given that you oppose gay marriage, what do you want gay people to do who want to form loving, committed, long-term relationships? What is your solution?” Romney and Gingrich [...]

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U.S. judge mulls overturning federal marriage law

OIA Staff — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 03:45:22 +0000

A U.S. judge appeared sympathetic to a lesbian federal employees bid to strike down a law denying health-insurance benefits to her spouse, in the first hearing since the Obama administration decided to quit defending the statute.U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White heard two hours of arguments on Friday at a hearing on a challenge to the [...]

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A Third Of Gay Marriages in Canada May Be Invalid

OIA Staff — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 03:52:18 +0000

Since Canada legalized same-sex marriage in 2004, some 15,000 gay and lesbian couples have jumped the broom. But now a lawyer for the Canadian government is claiming up to a third of those marriages may be invalid because they were between foreigners who couldn’t wed in their native countries. via. Read the full article @ [...]

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Newt Gingrich Signs Pledge To Ban Same-Sex Marriage Constitutionally

OIA Staff — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 02:15:29 +0000

Two-time adulterer and three-time serial monogamist Newt Gingrich has affirmed his support for a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage because supposedly the institution of same-sex marriage will erode so-called traditional marriage, but divorce and infidelity will not. via. Read the full article @ Newt Gingrich Signs Pledge To Ban Same-Sex Marriage Constitutionally Read more [...]

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Almost Half of Hawaiians Support Same-Sex Marriage

OIA Staff — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 15:25:53 +0000

More Hawaiians support the legalization of same-sex marriage than do not. The survey conducted by Public Policy Polling shows that 49% of respondents are ok with giving lesbian and gay couples the right to marry. via. Read the full article @ Almost Half of Hawaiians Support Same-Sex Marriage Read more articles @ our blogBecome a [...]

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SLDN To Sue Over DOMA

OIA Staff — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 17:30:00 +0000

The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network will argue that the federal Defense of Marriage Act violates the Fifth Amendment right to due process, in what the group says will be the first case of its kind. “That has never been done before,” Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of SLDN, told The Huffington Post. Sarvis, who spoke about [...]

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Vermont Governor Presides over Lesbians’ Marriage

OIA Staff — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:27:54 +0000

Peter Shumlin married a lesbian couple in a small ceremony in his office. The first-term Democrat presided over the marriage Wednesday of 55-year-old Michele “Mitch” Beck and 56-year-old Ann Beck, of Royalton. via. Read the full article @ Vermont Governor Presides over Lesbians’ Marriage Read more articles @ our blogBecome a fan on FacebookFollow us [...]

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Married Binational Same-Sex Couple Face Deportation in San Francisco

OIA Staff — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 15:40:15 +0000

A married binational same-sex couple face possible deportation proceedings despite having been wed for seven years, and without regard for the fact that one of the men is the primary caregiver for his husband, who suffers from AIDS. But not for much longer. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has ordered Makk to leave the [...]

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American Psychological Association Supports Marriage Equality – HRC

OIA Staff — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 14:23:10 +0000

The policy making body of the American Psychological Association (APA) unanimously (157-0) passed a resolution supporting full marriage equality for same-sex couples. Reacting to this important move, Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese made the following statement: “The American Psychological Association has long supported equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community based on [...]

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Obama Backs Repeal of Defense of Marriage Act

OIA Staff — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 15:33:05 +0000

President Obama on Tuesday endorsed a bill by California Sen. Dianne Feinstein that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, which for 15 years has denied all federal recognition of married same-sex couples. Gay rights groups that had pressured Obama to take a firm stand on same-sex marriage heralded the move as historic. Until Tuesday, [...]

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Obama: Marriage Should Be Left To States

OIA Staff — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 17:03:09 +0000

President Obama was asked if he believes that civil marriage is a constitutional right during his press conference this morning. Rather than answering that question, Obama reiterated his record on LGBT issues and argued that marriage is best left to the states. What happened in New York “was a good thing,” Obama said. “I think [...]

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White House Asked If It’s Concerned about Same-sex Marriage

OIA Staff — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 14:18:55 +0000

The White House continues to be pressed on Obama’s same-sex marriage position. From yesterday’s press briefing: via. Read the full article @ White House Asked If It’s Concerned about Same-sex Marriage Read more articles @ our blogBecome a fan on FacebookFollow us on Twitter

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Maine Taking Another Run At Marriage?

OIA Staff — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 14:16:20 +0000

Since the defeat, gay rights advocates said they have been working behind the scenes to try to change public opinion and said same-sex marriage could come up for a vote again in 2012 in the form of a citizens’ initiative. “We do have that option, and we’ll decide once we get to the point where [...]

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NJ Couples Seeking Same-sex Marriage

OIA Staff — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 14:11:31 +0000

Seven gay and lesbian New Jersey couples, along with many of their children, are going to court to try to force the state to recognize gay marriage. The families say in their legal complaint that the state’s civil union law designed to give gay couples the same legal protections as married couples has not fulfilled [...]

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Judge Upholds Wisconsin’s Domestic Partnership Registry

OIA Staff — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:44:21 +0000

A judge ruled Monday that Wisconsin’s domestic partnership registry does not violate the state’s constitutional amendment that prohibits marriage for loving and committed gay and lesbian couples. Signed into law by former Gov. Jim Doyle (D) in 2009, Wisconsin’s domestic partnership registry provides limited, but important, protections for gay and lesbian couples, including the ability [...]

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Gallup Confirms: For First Time, Most Americans Favor Gay Marriage

OIA Staff — Wed, 25 May 2011 00:16:18 +0000

Confirming what several other national polls have found in the last few months, the latest Gallup poll says that a majority of Americans support legal gay marriage for the first time. According to the poll, 53 pecent of Americans believe same-sex marriage should be recognized by the law as valid, with the same rights as [...]

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New Bill Supporting Same-Sex Marriage Is Introduced in NY Assembly

OIA Staff — Wed, 11 May 2011 16:30:46 +0000

With only weeks to go before the end of the legislative session in June, a senior Democratic lawmaker in the New York State Assembly introduced legislation on Tuesday to legalize same-sex marriages, signaling that Assembly lawmakers were unwilling to wait for efforts by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and gay rights groups to pull together enough [...]

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US Navy Gives OK for On Base Same-Sex Marriages

OIA Staff — Tue, 10 May 2011 16:42:29 +0000

It would appear the Navy has decided to let same-sex couples in the Navy, get married in Navy chapels that are located on bases in state where same-sex marriage is legal, and will allow willing Navy chaplains to perform those ceremonies. The changes came in the form of an April 13 advisory memo issued to [...]

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Uruguay Moving To Legalize Same-Sex Marriage

OIA Staff — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 19:17:17 +0000

Uruguay’s Parliament is considering legislation to legalize same-sex marriage in that South American nation. This move means that the United States is moving further and further behind the world with regards to LGBT equality. via Lez Get Real. Read the full article @ Uruguay Moving To Legalize Same-Sex Marriage Read more articles @ our blogBecome [...]

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Gay Partner Deportations To Continue

OIA Staff — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 17:08:12 +0000

An announcement by immigration officials in Washington on Monday that they were delaying decisions on some immigration cases involving gay couples led to a surge of expectations among gay advocates that the Obama administration had taken a small but significant step toward recognizing same-sex marriage. But on Tuesday, immigration officials moved swiftly to clarify their [...]

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Introduction of Respect for Marriage Act

OIA Staff — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 14:09:25 +0000

In response to today’s introduction in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives of the Respect for Marriage Act, which would repeal the 1996 so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Lambda Legal National Marriage Project Director Jennifer C. Pizer issued the following statement: “DOMA now is viewed with deep skepticism from all sides. When [...]

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Monogamy or Open-Relationship? – life beyond therapy

OIA Staff — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 14:00:28 +0000

As of this writing, same-sex couples can marry in some states of the USA and in some European countries. It’s wonderful that we have that option. However, this raises an interesting question: Now that we can get married: do we want to? Another question I hear a lot from my clients: “Whether we get married [...]

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MD State Senator Reverses Opinion, Now Supports Marriage Equality

OIA Staff — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 20:55:27 +0000

Democratic Maryland State Senator James Brochin, who up until now had been against marriage equality, has completely changed his position. He’ll now be one of the 21 state senators who support Maryland’s marriage equality bill. via. Read the full article @ MD State Senator Reverses Opinion, Now Supports Marriage Equality Read more articles @ our [...]

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Both Sides Push New Laws on Same-sex Marriage

OIA Staff — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:20:57 +0000

Lawmakers in Rhode Island and Maryland are taking up bills to legalize same-sex marriage, advocates in New York are making a renewed push, and opponents are fighting for constitutional bans in Indiana and Wyoming and to reimpose bans in Iowa and New Hampshire. The flurry of activity nationwide has activists on both sides of the [...]

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Comedian Joan Rivers Supports Marriage Equality

OIA Staff — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 13:04:32 +0000

Joan Rivers is the latest celeb to lend her voice to New York’s ongoing fight for marriage equality. Check out this short, but sweet video she filmed for the cause! via. Read the full article @ Comedian Joan Rivers Supports Marriage Equality Read more articles @ our blogBecome a fan on FacebookFollow us on Twitter

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Iowa House Votes 62-37 to Ban Same-Sex Marriage, Civil Unions

OIA Staff — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 20:59:25 +0000

Following debate this morning, the Iowa House voted 63-37 to approve House joint Resolution 6, a constitutional amendment that would not only ban same-sex marriage, but civil unions and domestic partnerships as well. via. Read the full article @ Iowa House Votes 62-37 to Ban Same-Sex Marriage, Civil Unions Read more articles @ our blogBecome [...]

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Maryland: Majority Support Marriage

OIA Staff — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 15:48:26 +0000

According to Annapolis-based pollster Gonzales Research, 51 percent of Maryland residents support gay marriage. Endorsements break down along party lines, with 65 percent of Democrats and 52 percent of independents favoring same-sex marriage, while only 24 percent of Republicans back the concept. via. Read the full article @ Maryland: Majority Support Marriage Read more articles [...]

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Supreme Court Rejects Appeal by D.C. Marriage Equality Opponents

OIA Staff — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 17:45:52 +0000

An appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court by Bishop Harry Jackson and opponents of same-sex marriage in the District of Columbia has been rejected. Jackson had been seeking to put a proposal on the ballot to overturn the District’s marriage law that gives same-sex couple the same rights to marriage as their heterosexual counterparts. via. [...]

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Maryland set to expand gay rights, same-sex marriage

OIA Staff — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:35:18 +0000

Maryland is poised to become the sixth state to recognize same-sex marriage as proponents say they believe they have enough support to pass such a measure in the upcoming legislative session. via. Read the full article @ Maryland set to expand gay rights, same-sex marriage Read more articles @ our blogBecome a fan on FacebookFollow [...]

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UPDATED: Chick-fil-A Partners With Rabid Anti-Gay Group

OIA Staff — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 17:13:03 +0000

You might like the tasty pickles that they put on their chicken sandwiches, but if you’re eating at Chick-fil-A, you’re also eating at an establishment that partners with some of the most ferocious anti-gay groups around. Take a look at an event scheduled for February 2011, co-sponsored by Chick-fil-A and the Pennsylvania Family Institute, the [...]

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Eight Out Of Nine Countries Allowing Same-Sex Marriage First Allowed Gay Soldiers

OIA Staff — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 16:22:46 +0000

Following the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, Equality Matters finds that most countries to legalize same-sex marriage first allowed gays soldiers to serve openly. Of the nine countries that allow same-sex marriage and have a standing military, eight of them first allowed gays and lesbians to serve openly in their militaries. via. Read the full article @ Eight Out Of Nine Countries Allowing [...]

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Joe Biden: Support for Same-sex Marriage Is Coming

OIA Staff — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 17:21:07 +0000

Vice President Vice President Joe Biden predicted Friday the evolution in thinking that will permit gays to soon serve openly in the military eventually will bring about a national consensus for same-sex marriage. via. Read the full article @ Joe Biden: Support for Same-sex Marriage Is Coming Read more articles @ our blogBecome a fan on [...]

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Marriage equality in Maryland by spring?

OIA Staff — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 17:10:09 +0000

“Guardedly optimistic.” That’s how openly gay Maryland State Sen. Richard Madaleno (D) described his feeling about the posibility the state legislature will pass a marriage equality bill in its next 90-day session, which runs from January to mid-April of next year. On a scale of 1 to 10, “we’re in the six, seven, eight range,” [...]

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AP Poll Finds Majority Nationwide Support for Marriage

OIA Staff — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 15:09:34 +0000

Recent polls are showing consistent majority support across the country for the legalization of marriage for gay and lesbian couples. In an August poll conducted by the Associated Press, 58% of Americans believed same-sex couples should be entitled to the same government benefits as married heterosexual couples. This reflected a steady increase from 51% in [...]

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Watching the Watchdog

OIA Staff — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:48:35 +0000

If you are like me, you are torn about our community’s recent boycotts of Target, Hyatt & Bestbuy due to the companies’ contributions to anti-gay marriage candidates. I began to wonder about the identities of the candidates who benefit from Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) PAC contributions. What about PAC donations by companies rated 100% by [...]

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Christian-based Legal group seeks to force Calif to defend Prop 8

OIA Staff — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:11:38 +0000

A Christian-based legal group is attempting to force California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown to appeal a federal district court ruling that found the state’s gay marriage ban, Proposition 8, unconstitutional, the AP reported. The Pacific Justice Institute filed its case Monday in the Third District Court of Appeals in Sacramento. VIA. [...]

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Court says gay couples can’t divorce in Texas

OIA Staff — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:40:50 +0000

A Texas appeals court says gay couples legally married in other states cannot divorce in Texas, where same-sex marriages are banned. The 5th Texas Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that a Dallas judge didn’t have jurisdiction to grant a divorce to two Dallas men who wed in Massachusetts. The court also says Texas’ same-sex marriage [...]

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New York City clerk required to educate public about marriage equality

OIA Staff — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 15:11:16 +0000

NYC City Council Speaker Christine Quinn helped pass legislation which requires the City Clerk to inform couples registering for domestic partnerships about other states and countries where they can get married. Same sex marriages performed elsewhere are recognized as valid marriages by the state of New York. VIA. Read the full article @ New York [...]

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Cheyenne gay couple challenges Wyoming marriage law

OIA Staff — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:43:25 +0000

A gay couple has filed a federal lawsuit in Cheyenne challenging the Wyoming law that defines marriage as existing only between a man and a woman. David Shupe-Roderick, 25, and Ryan W. Dupree, 21, — who are representing themselves in court, although neither is a lawyer — said the Laramie County Clerk’s Office refused to [...]

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Church trial set for Presbyterian minister who performed gay weddings

OIA Staff — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 16:29:49 +0000

A retired Presbyterian minister is facing a church trial for performing weddings of gay couples during the brief period when same-sex marriage was legal in California. The Rev. Jane Spahr has been accused of publicly, intentionally and repeatedly violating church doctrine when she presided at the weddings of 16 couples between June and November of [...]

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Mexican Cardinal Claims Proof Of Bribery In Same-Sex Marriage Ruling

OIA Staff — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 15:27:27 +0000

Apparently, the Roman Catholic Cardinal who alleged that the mayor of Mexico City bribed the Supreme Court of that nation has proof of the ill deeds, though he will not say what the proof is, where it came from, or allowed anyone to inspect it. Cardinal Juan Sandoval Iñiguez alleged that Mayor Marcelo Ebrard bribed [...]

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California marriages on hold until appeal decided

OIA Staff — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 14:48:08 +0000

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has just issued its own stay of a lower court ruling in the federal Proposition 8 case, meaning same-sex couples will not be able to legally marry in California until an appeal of the decision in Perry v. Schwarzenegger is decided. VIA. Read the full article [...]

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Justice Department Has Two Months To Appeal DOMA Ruling

OIA Staff — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:49:30 +0000

President Barack Obama has two months to appeal a ruling by Judge Tauro ruling that a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act, namely Section 3, is unconstitutional. The judgement was only just entered on 12 August, and according to Rule 4(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Rules of the Appellate Procedure, the deadline for appealing is [...]

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Mexican High Court: All Mexican States Must Recognize Gay Marriages

OIA Staff — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:06:16 +0000

By a 9-2 vote, the Supreme Court of Mexico has ruled the marriages of same-sex couples performed in Mexico City must be recognized by all Mexican states. The court had also ruled last week that the Mexico City’s law permitting marriage rights for same-sex couples is constitutional, rejecting an appeal by Mexican federal officials, arguing [...]

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Margaret Hoover Asks Fellow Conservatives to Support Marriage For All

OIA Staff — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 17:21:11 +0000

Fox News contributor Margaret Hoover follows up January’s pro-same-sex marriage column with a plea to the network’s viewers and online readers: don’t be on the wrong side of history Now, with a decision handed down that social conservatives despise, a judge whose sterling reputation as a conservative for twenty years on the federal bench is [...]

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Mexican Supreme Court Upholds Mexico City Same-Sex Marriage Law

OIA Staff — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 13:18:40 +0000

By an 8-2 vote, The Mexican Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of Mexico City’s law allowing same-sex marriages. The Mexican High court ruled that the law did not violate the constitution and said that nowhere does the Mexican Constitution define what a family is, thus was valid in allowing gay couples to possibly adopt [...]

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Beautifully Bisexual – life beyond therapy

OIA Staff — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 17:12:33 +0000

Recently, at a social gathering, a fabulous woman came up to me and said, “So, you, Mr. Psychologist…why don’t you ever write anything about us bisexuals? Your columns always neglect us.” So, here, to address her request, is a column about being “beautifully bisexual.” A while back I had a client who described herself as [...]

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BREAKING: Judge declares Prop 8 unconstitutional

OIA Staff — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 21:26:03 +0000

Same-sex couples and their families won a huge victory Wednesday as U.S. District Court Chief Judge Vaughn Walker ruled California’s Proposition 8 violates both the equal protection and due process clauses in the U.S. Constitution. Says the ruling’s conclusion: “Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial [...]

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Report on California’s Proposition 8 Campaign Released

OIA Staff — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 17:14:27 +0000

A massive, 511-page report on Proposition 8 underwritten by The LGBT Mentoring Project has been released. It’s very easy for people to read the entire report, or just a section. The goal of the report was to learn about winning future ballot measures on same-sex marriage. It’s all here — readable as sections here — and [...]

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