District of Columbia

On December 18, 2009, Mayor Adrian Fenty signed a marriage bill which ended the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage, after it twice passed by an overwhelming majority of City Council members. As of March 3, 2010, following a Congressional Review period, same-sex couples in the District of Columbia can now apply for a marriage license. For information about how to get married in DC: Supreme Court of DC Marriage Bureau Section and District of Columbia Office of GLBT Affairs.

In 2009, the DC Council also passed and the mayor signed a bill that ensures out-of-state marriages of same-sex couples are respected and treated equally under law. The law took effect in July 2009.

In 1992, the District City Council passed a domestic partnership law, which offered a few (less than 8 of 212 in the DC code) protections and responsibilities to same-sex couples and their families, but the U.S. Congress blocked this law from taking effect until 2002. Over the years, the domestic partnership law was expanded to include all of the same protections and responsibilities that marriage provides (referred to as broad domestic partnership), but not the equality that only comes with marriage.

State advocacy groups and a very active grassroots community of supporters continue to work to protect marriage.
 
Status: Marriage
 
Groups Actively Working on Marriage 
 
Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance: a local, all-volunteer, non-partisan, non-profit political organization, fighting for the civil rights of gay men, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders

DC for Marriage: an emerging group of local residents working towards equal rights and responsibilities for same sex couples in the District of Columbia

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Democratic Connecticut Attorney General Candidates pledge to join fight against DOMA

All three Democratic candidates for Attorney General of Connecticut have expressed that they would lend their support to Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s federal lawsuit challenging DOMA, while the three Republican candidates in the race are opposed to Connecticut participating in the case.

Karl Rove and his Gay Dad

It's not exactly startling to see that Karl Rove has denied he was aware his own father was gay, even as he guided the GOP into anti-gay wedge politics in the last decade (the Christianists, he coolly calculated, had potentially way more votes for the GOP than gays and their families). But it is important to note that it is untrue that he had no idea his dad was gay or that he was unaware it was the reason for his parents' divorce.

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Resources Related to

Frequently Asked Questions About Marriage Recognition for Same-Sex Couples in Maryland

Lambda Legal, American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, Equality Maryland, and the American Civil Liberties Union: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Guide for same-sex couples in Maryland who married out of state.

FAQ about Maryland Attorney General’s Opinion on Out-of-State Marriage Licenses

Equality Maryland's answers to frequently asked questions.

Moving the Middle on Marriage:  Lessons from Maine and Washington

If advocates can successfully tap into the true spirit of marriage and convince the middle that gay couples want to get married for the same reasons that straight couples do, we think we will be able to address the middle’s remaining concerns and help move that group, and the country, more quickly towards support for marriage.

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