A Note from Evan Wolfson
As we celebrate both Mother's Day and Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, we are reminded that wherever the fight for marriage equality leads us, we find women, mothers and Asian Pacific American trailblazers at the vanguard of the movement. These women, mothers, and leaders have taken up the challenge against sexism, while working on every level to stabilize families and to achieve greater freedom for us all.
Freedom to Marry acknowledges and honors the involvement of these women who have helped lead the movement or have been instrumental in shepherding us to a next step, from couples like Ninia Baehr and Genora Dancel who rejected the mantle of second class citizenship with their landmark case that led to the first, historic ruling for marriage equality by Hawaii's pioneering Judge Kevin Chang; and leaders like Mary Bonauto, lead counsel in the Massachusetts case that brought equal marriage rights to gay couples and their families in Massachusetts.
The work of attorneys like Bonauto, Civil Rights Project Director of New England's Gay & Lesbian Advocates and Defenders' and a mother of two, is joined by allies such as New York Supreme Court Judge Doris Ling-Cohen; and organizations like the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF), a primarily non-gay organization, which took a stand for marriage equality last year, making clear that the freedom to marry is a question of civil rights as well as fairness.
To paraphrase John Quincy Adams, these women inspire us to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more. Their contribution to the advancement of marriage equality is immeasurable.
Follow developments in the movement for marriage equality on our website, and in future issues of Freedom to Marry's bi-monthly E-Update.
Reports from the Front
Celebrating APA Voices during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
By Andy Wong, Coalition Manager, Asian Equality
May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, a time to celebrate the many contributions of Asian Pacific Americans (APA) that have helped to enrich this country. This year, I would like to honor the APA individuals and organizations that are advancing the struggle for marriage equality. Indeed, when it comes to marriage equality, APAs are not simply standing on the sidelines; many are spearheading the struggle nationwide.
Click here to read the full essay, by Andy Wong.
Mother's Day postcards from PFLAG
PFLAG is urging people to join their month-long "Dear Senator" campaign by sending senators postcards, with the theme: "Dear Senator: All I want for Mother's Day is for you to vote NO on the Federal Marriage Amendment ..."
"A no vote on the Federal Marriage Amendment would be the best gift any parent could get this year for Mother's Day or Father's Day," said Samuel Thoron, National President of PFLAG, in a press release. "This is literally giving the gift of fighting discrimination against our children — and there's nothing a parent could want more."
For more information, click here.
The Latest News
For the latest news, opinions, and polls, including these articles, check out our website.
Mass. judge opposes anti-gay amendment
Lowell Sun
May 4, 2006
Chief Justice Margaret Marshall asks if the citizens of Massachusetts can take a ballot vote whether to take the freedom to marry away from gay and lesbian couples, what's stopping them from reinstituting slavery?
Family, unvalued
Human Rights Watch
May 2, 2006
Thousands of U.S. citizens and their foreign partners face enormous hardships, separation and even exile because discriminatory U.S. immigration policies deprive these couples of the basic right to be together, Human Rights Watch and Immigration Equality said in a report released today.
Why we need to talk about marriage equality
Washington Blade
May 1, 2006
"Question your friend or your father about what they are saying — make them actually think about their words. Don't let go unchallenged a flippant brush-off comment about 'there's no need for gay marriage.' Put up your dukes and fight back."
