EDITORIAL: Wedding Bells
Posted on Jul 06, 2009 at 10:08 am
The Washington Post
July 4, 2009
Same-sex couples in the District are getting closer to marriage equality. Same-sex marriages performed elsewhere will be recognized in the District beginning Monday. This joyous occasion will be complete when the rights and responsibilities afforded those couples are extended to same-sex couples who want to marry in the city. Council member David A. Catania (I-At Large) plans to introduce a bill to make that so. It can't happen soon enough. [Link]
July 4, 2009
Same-sex couples in the District are getting closer to marriage equality. Same-sex marriages performed elsewhere will be recognized in the District beginning Monday. This joyous occasion will be complete when the rights and responsibilities afforded those couples are extended to same-sex couples who want to marry in the city. Council member David A. Catania (I-At Large) plans to introduce a bill to make that so. It can't happen soon enough. [Link]
Path To Marriage Equality In D.C. Begins Tuesday
Posted on Jul 06, 2009 at 09:28 am
On Top Magazine
July 6, 2009
The path to legalizing the freedom to marry in the District of Columbia begins Tuesday as the city's new same-sex marriage recognition law takes effect. The law recognizes the marriages of gay and lesbian couples performed elsewhere. City Council members approved the new ordinance in a 12 to 1 vote in May, with former Mayor Marion Barry the lone dissenter, and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, a Democrat, signed the bill. Council leaders openly acknowledge their next move is to legalize marriage equality in the District. Because laws passed by the District are subject to a 30-day review period by Congress, before committing to marriage equality, the marriage recognition law was set afloat as a trial balloon. Several Republican congressmen, led by Ohio Representative Jim Jordan, objected to the law, but Democrats refused to join the chorus. Tuesday's start of the law then is a symbolic nod from Congress, a freedom to marry approval, no matter how tenuous. [Link]
July 6, 2009
The path to legalizing the freedom to marry in the District of Columbia begins Tuesday as the city's new same-sex marriage recognition law takes effect. The law recognizes the marriages of gay and lesbian couples performed elsewhere. City Council members approved the new ordinance in a 12 to 1 vote in May, with former Mayor Marion Barry the lone dissenter, and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, a Democrat, signed the bill. Council leaders openly acknowledge their next move is to legalize marriage equality in the District. Because laws passed by the District are subject to a 30-day review period by Congress, before committing to marriage equality, the marriage recognition law was set afloat as a trial balloon. Several Republican congressmen, led by Ohio Representative Jim Jordan, objected to the law, but Democrats refused to join the chorus. Tuesday's start of the law then is a symbolic nod from Congress, a freedom to marry approval, no matter how tenuous. [Link]
Judge Judith Retchin, rejecting an attack on a new law that the District of Columbia will honor “o
Posted on Jul 02, 2009 at 01:17 pm
Superior Court of the District of Columbia
June 30, 2009
“[E]ven if unmarried same-sex couples could receive the same benefits as married couples, courts have long held that different treatment can equate to discrimination whether or not the material benefits and services offered appear uniform.” [Link]
June 30, 2009
“[E]ven if unmarried same-sex couples could receive the same benefits as married couples, courts have long held that different treatment can equate to discrimination whether or not the material benefits and services offered appear uniform.” [Link]
One Birthday, One Reception and Some Very Hard Work
Posted on Jul 01, 2009 at 10:31 pm
Out For Justice (NCLR Blog)
June 30, 2009
Kate Kendell, Esq. of The National Center For Lesbian Rights talks about her whirlwind trip to Washington D.C. with her 13-year-0ld son, Julian, to attend President Obama's LGBT reception in the East Room of the White House. "It was clear to me that the President believes in full equality as a core value, a human value. That fact is reassuring. It is also clear that we as a community must continue a relentless drumbeat, insisting that the President act NOW to do all he can to make that commitment to equality a reality." [Link]
June 30, 2009
Kate Kendell, Esq. of The National Center For Lesbian Rights talks about her whirlwind trip to Washington D.C. with her 13-year-0ld son, Julian, to attend President Obama's LGBT reception in the East Room of the White House. "It was clear to me that the President believes in full equality as a core value, a human value. That fact is reassuring. It is also clear that we as a community must continue a relentless drumbeat, insisting that the President act NOW to do all he can to make that commitment to equality a reality." [Link]
Superior Court Rejects Marriage Referendum in D.C.
Posted on Jun 30, 2009 at 08:00 pm
The Washington Post
June 30, 2009
A Superior Court judge decided today not to delay enactment of a July 6 law that the D.C. government recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. Judge Judith E. Retchin ruled that she would not a grant a stay preventing the law from taking effect, as requested by opponents of marriage equality. The group of opponents had wanted a referendum on the issue, but the D.C. election board said that would be illegal under the District's Human Rights Act. [Link]
June 30, 2009
A Superior Court judge decided today not to delay enactment of a July 6 law that the D.C. government recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. Judge Judith E. Retchin ruled that she would not a grant a stay preventing the law from taking effect, as requested by opponents of marriage equality. The group of opponents had wanted a referendum on the issue, but the D.C. election board said that would be illegal under the District's Human Rights Act. [Link]
Where Blacks Lead the Fight for Gay Rights
Posted on Jun 27, 2009 at 05:50 pm
The American Prospect
June 26, 2009
In Washington, D.C., the diverse composition of the marriage-equality movement means that marriage-equality activists don't have to "reach out" to the black community, because they're already part of it. That doesn't mean marriage-equality activists don't face serious obstacles in garnering support among African Americans, but it makes racial divisions harder to exploit. The lesson is clear -- when the marriage-equality movement is integrated, outreach becomes less of an issue. [link]
June 26, 2009
In Washington, D.C., the diverse composition of the marriage-equality movement means that marriage-equality activists don't have to "reach out" to the black community, because they're already part of it. That doesn't mean marriage-equality activists don't face serious obstacles in garnering support among African Americans, but it makes racial divisions harder to exploit. The lesson is clear -- when the marriage-equality movement is integrated, outreach becomes less of an issue. [link]
Two Washington D.C. activists want Jackson investigated
Posted on Jun 26, 2009 at 04:34 pm
The Washington Blade
June 26, 2009
Two local activists are asking the D.C. Board of Elections & Ethics to investigate whether a voter referendum petition to overturn the city’s same-sex marriage recognition law should be disqualified because the minister behind it is not a legal D.C. resident. Attorney Cary Silverman, president of the Mount Vernon Square Neighborhood Association, and Martin Moulton, president of the D.C. Convention Center Community Association, said information they gathered from public records and submitted to the election board Wednesday shows that Bishop Harry Jackson Jr. appears to be a resident of Maryland, even though he affirmed in an affidavit that he lives in the District. “The available evidence suggests that Rev. Jackson does not fulfill the residence requirements of D.C. voter registration law,” the two men wrote in their request to the election board. “For these reasons, and based on the attached evidence, the D.C. Board of Elections & Ethics should reject his voter registration and petition for referendum.” [Link]
June 26, 2009
Two local activists are asking the D.C. Board of Elections & Ethics to investigate whether a voter referendum petition to overturn the city’s same-sex marriage recognition law should be disqualified because the minister behind it is not a legal D.C. resident. Attorney Cary Silverman, president of the Mount Vernon Square Neighborhood Association, and Martin Moulton, president of the D.C. Convention Center Community Association, said information they gathered from public records and submitted to the election board Wednesday shows that Bishop Harry Jackson Jr. appears to be a resident of Maryland, even though he affirmed in an affidavit that he lives in the District. “The available evidence suggests that Rev. Jackson does not fulfill the residence requirements of D.C. voter registration law,” the two men wrote in their request to the election board. “For these reasons, and based on the attached evidence, the D.C. Board of Elections & Ethics should reject his voter registration and petition for referendum.” [Link]
D.C. marriage law poised to take effect
Posted on Jun 26, 2009 at 04:26 pm
The Washington Blade
June 26, 2009
Attorneys for a minister seeking a voter referendum to overturn the District’s same-sex marriage recognition law are asking a D.C. judge to issue an injunction to suspend the July 6 deadline for meeting all the referendum’s requirements, including the submission of 21,000 valid petition signatures. Attorneys representing the city and a local gay rights group voiced strong objections to postponing the referendum deadline and vowed to file strongly worded motions opposing any stay order. Gay rights attorney, Mark Levine, called the request for a stay of the referendum deadline an unprecedented development that, if approved by the court, would overturn a key provision the city’s referendum law, which was approved by the D.C. City Council in the late 1970s and cleared by Congress. “Unlike other parties to this litigation, the city residents being targeted by the referendum consist of married couples, some with children, whose lives and families are affected by whether or not their marriages are legally recognized,” Levine said in a motion. “Those lives will be affected if the proponents get their way and enshrine them as de jure second-class citizens of the District of Columbia.” [Link]
June 26, 2009
Attorneys for a minister seeking a voter referendum to overturn the District’s same-sex marriage recognition law are asking a D.C. judge to issue an injunction to suspend the July 6 deadline for meeting all the referendum’s requirements, including the submission of 21,000 valid petition signatures. Attorneys representing the city and a local gay rights group voiced strong objections to postponing the referendum deadline and vowed to file strongly worded motions opposing any stay order. Gay rights attorney, Mark Levine, called the request for a stay of the referendum deadline an unprecedented development that, if approved by the court, would overturn a key provision the city’s referendum law, which was approved by the D.C. City Council in the late 1970s and cleared by Congress. “Unlike other parties to this litigation, the city residents being targeted by the referendum consist of married couples, some with children, whose lives and families are affected by whether or not their marriages are legally recognized,” Levine said in a motion. “Those lives will be affected if the proponents get their way and enshrine them as de jure second-class citizens of the District of Columbia.” [Link]
Editorial: Take the Plunge
Posted on Jun 22, 2009 at 07:55 pm
The Washington Post
June 21, 2009
THE D.C. BOARD of Elections and Ethics was right. A proposed referendum that sought to overturn the D.C. Council's law recognizing same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, which takes effect next month, was a violation of the District's elections law. The board's decision isn't the end of the process. Congress could step in. So far, it has shown the good sense to do nothing. Its 30-day review period is projected to end on July 6. Next the council is expected to consider legislation to legalize marriage equality in the District. Marriage is a cherished institution. It commits two loving people to each other. It nurtures families. And it should be open to all who want to be a part of it. [Link]
June 21, 2009
THE D.C. BOARD of Elections and Ethics was right. A proposed referendum that sought to overturn the D.C. Council's law recognizing same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, which takes effect next month, was a violation of the District's elections law. The board's decision isn't the end of the process. Congress could step in. So far, it has shown the good sense to do nothing. Its 30-day review period is projected to end on July 6. Next the council is expected to consider legislation to legalize marriage equality in the District. Marriage is a cherished institution. It commits two loving people to each other. It nurtures families. And it should be open to all who want to be a part of it. [Link]
The Clock Ticks Toward the Freedom to Marry in DC
Posted on Jun 20, 2009 at 12:05 am
DC City Paper
June 19, 2009
Supporters of a ballot measure conceded yesterday that their only hope was to have Judge Judith Retchin stop the clock from ticking toward a July 6 deadline—when the marriage recognition law goes into effect. With about two weeks needed to actually finalize the referendum language and prepare the petitions, supporters would only have a day or two to collect tens of thousands of signatures—if Retchin had yesterday immediately ordered that referendum is proper. [link]
June 19, 2009
Supporters of a ballot measure conceded yesterday that their only hope was to have Judge Judith Retchin stop the clock from ticking toward a July 6 deadline—when the marriage recognition law goes into effect. With about two weeks needed to actually finalize the referendum language and prepare the petitions, supporters would only have a day or two to collect tens of thousands of signatures—if Retchin had yesterday immediately ordered that referendum is proper. [link]