Out in America Features» Virginia

Flying the Colors – General Gayety

OIA Staff — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 14:59:17 +0000

At the start of June, citizens of Richmond, Va., noticed an addition to the flagpole outside the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Underneath the American flag waved a rainbow flag. The two banners, Old Glory and Newish Pride-y, flapped in the breeze. Then gums flapped, too, and within seconds Richmond had its very own flag [...]

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Virginia DADT Bill Dies In Subcommittee

OIA Staff — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 14:55:43 +0000

A Virginia House subcommittee voted on Tuesday to pretty much kill the bill put forward by Delegate Bob Marshall of Prince William to keep Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell in place for the Virginia National Guard. Marshall had argued that the policy should keep going in Virginia. via. Read the full article @ Virginia DADT Bill [...]

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Longtime Truro Church minister fired for accessing online pornography at work

OIA Staff — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 16:03:40 +0000

A longtime priest, Episcopal Rev. Marshall Brown, who helped 14 Virginia parishes leave the main church in protest of the elevation of openly gay Bishop Gene Robinson, at one of the country’s largest and most prominent conservative Anglican churches has been fired for repeatedly using a church computer to surf for pornography, an official at [...]

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Virginia Delegate Bob Marshall Wants DADT-Like Gay Ban for Virginia National Guard

OIA Staff — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:56:16 +0000

Virginia Delegate Bob Marshall, a Republican, plans to introduce legislation that would ban gay troops from serving openly in the state’s National Guard, The Washington Times reported. Reacting to Congress’ decision over the weekend to repeal the Pentagon’s gay ban, known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Marshall said his bill would bar “active homosexuals” from [...]

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No ‘rampant discrimination’ against gay employees to argue for law, McDonnell says

OIA Staff — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 13:54:42 +0000

Gov. Bob McDonnell said today that Virginia does not need to write protections for gays and lesbians into state statute because he has not seen evidence of discrimination in the state workforce. Breaking with the practice of his Democratic predecessors, McDonnell did not include sexual orientation in an executive order he issued barring discrimination in [...]

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No, Virginia, There Is No Nondiscrimination Policy

OIA Staff — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:42:00 +0000

News Analysis: Virginia Gov. McDonnell’s executive directive on employment discrimination is about appearances, not policy Over the past month, three differing documents produced by two statewide elected officials in Virginia have led to a whole lot of confusion about where the Commonwealth stands on protection of LGBT people from discrimination. Following outrage over Attorney General [...]

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Virginia House votes against consideration of gay protections bill

OIA Staff — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:23:21 +0000

A Northern Virginia delegate unsuccessfully tried a parliamentary maneuver Tuesday to force a floor vote on a measure that would ban discrimination in public employment on the basis of sexual orientation. The House has repeatedly rejected such legislation and voted against floor consideration of the bill 55 to 42. Del. Ken Plum, a Democrat from [...]

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Gay Protections Said Invalid In Virginia Universities

OIA Staff — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:57:41 +0000

Virginia’s public colleges and universities do not have the legal authority to protect gays against discrimination, the state’s attorney general has ruled. In a letter to the presidents and governing boards of the schools, Ken Cuccinelli said Thursday the institutions had “acted without proper authority” in adopting rules regarding sexual orientation. Such rules were “invalid,” [...]

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Virginia: State Employees Lose Protections from Anti-LGBT Discrimination

OIA Staff — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 14:55:51 +0000

Gov. McDonnell has signed a new executive order that strips former protections from discrimination based on sexual orientation for employees of the Commonwealth of Virginia, while legislation to protect those employees has died in the state’s legislature. On Monday, Feb. 8, the state Senate passed legislation to protect public employees from discrimination based on sexual [...]

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‘Ex-Lesbian’ Mom Disappeared With Daughter

OIA Staff — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:36:29 +0000

The birth mother of a 7-year-old Virginia girl must transfer custody of the child to the woman’s former lesbian partner, a Vermont judge ruled, adding that it seems the woman has “disappeared” with her daughter. Vermont Family Court Judge William Cohen ordered Lisa Miller of Winchester, Va., to turn over daughter Isabella to Janet Jenkins [...]

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Vermont Judge Awards Custody of Child to Non-Biological Lesbian Mom

OIA Staff — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:36:17 +0000

In a stunning decision, Rutland Vermont Family Court Judge William Cohen ruled Friday that he is awarding sole custody of 7-year-old Isabella Miller to her non-biological lesbian mother, Janet Jenkins. For six years, the case has been jumping between courts in Vermont, where Jenkins lives, and Virginia, where her former lesbian spouse, Lisa Miller, now [...]

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