Iowa marriage ban amendment fails to clear procedural vote

The push to rescind marriage rights for same-sex Iowa couples hit a wall this week, after the state Senate, in a procedural vote, refused to move forward on a constitutional amendment that would have required the state to recognize only unions between a man and a woman. 

The 26-24 party-line vote follows an earlier promise by Democratic Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal (pictured) to refuse to consider any bill that would reverse marriage equality.

Mark and Dante - Just married, and they need your help

Last month, Change.org members Mark Reed-Walkup and Dante Walkup got married in Washington, D.C., where same-sex marriage is legal. After their wedding, they couldn't wait to get home to Texas and share the joy with their Dallas community.

Unfortunately, the Dallas Morning News didn't share their sentiments -- turns out the paper refuses to print gay wedding announcements in its Wedding Section. 

Mark and Dante are fighting back. Join them in telling the Dallas Morning News to print same-sex wedding announcements in its Weddings section.

Former gubernatorial candidate goes after remaining Iowa judges who established gay marriage

Bob Vander Plaats (pictured), a 2010 candidate for Iowa's Republican gubernatorial nomination, is working to oust the remaining four state Supreme Court judges who were part of a unanimous decision establishing marriage equality in the state. 

The other three judges who were part of that decision have already been voted off the court. 

"We're getting an organization in every county. With ambassadors and grass-roots coordinators. So that we can activate on pro-family issues," Vander Plaats said.

Out lawmakers prepare to fight for marriage rights

Openly LGBT state lawmakers in Maryland and New York are gearing up to fight for marriage equality bills. Maryland elected three additional out lawmakers in 2010, bringing the state's total to seven.

"We've never been in a better position," said Maryland State Sen. Richard Madaleno (pictured).

Gay Facebook co-founder engaged to be married

Chris Hughes (left), who helped create Facebook, is engaged to be married to his boyfriend, Sean Eldridge, the couple announced. 

No date has been set, as they hope to wait until marriage is legal for same-sex couples in New York.

Oh, Danny boy! Ireland recognizes established same-sex partnerships

Couples who have entered into legal marriages or civil partnerships abroad will be recognized under Ireland's new civil partnerships law. Irish citizens will be allowed to form their own same-sex civil partnerships beginning in April.

Marriage repeal not among priorities for New Hampshire GOP

Republican leaders in New Hampshire did not include a repeal of the state's marriage equality law on a list of their top legislative priorities, but those opposed to same-sex couples marrying say that doesn't mean the state Legislature won't vote on the issue. "The gay marriage issue will come up at the appropriate time," said Kevin Smith of Cornerstone Action.

HRC Urges President Obama to Support Marriage Equality for all Americans

The Human Rights Campaign yesterday urged President Barack Obama to support marriage equality for all Americans.  In December, the President said his views were “evolving.” HRC today urges him to take the next step and embrace full marriage equality for all Americans.

“All families deserve the recognition and respect of their government. We know the President supports us.  It’s time for him to help lead the American public toward full equality for all Americans,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese.  “We ask him to fully recognize the dignity of LGBT Americans and their families by supporting marriage equality.”

Earlier today, the Department of Justice filed a brief appealing two federal court rulings that found the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional. The Administration claims that it has a duty to defend the laws that are on the books, despite the President publicly decrying DOMA as discriminatory.  We disagree. And at the very least, the Justice Department can and should acknowledge that the law is unconstitutional. 

Now is the time for the President to stand firmly against bigotry and discrimination in our laws and for the full inclusion of our community in marriage.

After the Department of Justice filed the brief in federal court yesterday, HRC issued a nation-wide action alert to its 1.3 million members and supporters asking them to urge the President to support marriage equality.  

The evolution of marriage and gay rights

The changing definition of marriage between opposite sex couples and evolving gender roles have helped pave the way for marriage equality, according to Stephanie Coontz, a professor at Evergreen State College in Washington state.

New governors call for marriage equality

In inaugural speeches last week, the new governors of New York and Rhode Island each called on their state legislatures to pass bills that would legalize marriage for same-sex couples. "When marriage equality is the law in Rhode Island, we honor our forefathers who risked their lives and fortune in the pursuit of human equality," said Gov. Lincoln Chafee, I-R.I. Rhode Island House Speaker Gordon D. Fox, who is openly gay, said he expects the Legislature will vote on the issue early in the current session. 

"I want to be the governor who signs the law that makes equality a reality in the state of New York," said Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y. (pictured), at his inauguration.

Candidates for RNC chairman reject marriage equality

Each of the candidates running to lead the Republican National Committee say they favor restricting legal marriage to opposite-sex couples. "I don't believe anybody should be denied dignity in this discussion, everyone should be loved. But at the end of the day, I believe that marriage -- through the sanctity of marriage -- should be between one man and one woman," said Reince Priebus, the Wisconsin Republican Party chairman, who is considered a front-runner for the national position. Current RNC Chairman Michael Steele earlier promised the National Organization for Marriage that the GOP would work to stop marriage equality.

New Hampshire is next battleground in gay marriage fight

National anti-gay groups are set to descend on New Hampshire in an effort to reverse the state's marriage equality law, according to this article in The Concord Monitor. 

"I think long term the people of New Hampshire support marriage equality, and support equality period ... In the short term, I think we've got a battle on our hands," said Mo Baxley, executive director of New Hampshire Freedom to Marry.

Obama's changing views on gay marriage a 'game changer'?

President Barack Obama's indication last week that his views on marriage equality may not be written in stone is already significant, but if Obama eventually announced that he supported marriage rights for same-sex couples, it could be a "game changer," advocates say. Obama, who has long supported legal civil unions, said he now realizes this arrangement is not enough for many gay and lesbian couples.

The failed argument against gay marriage

Kenji Yoshino, writing for Slate, explains why the common "gays can't procreate" argument against legalizing gay marriage fails.

GOP ought to embrace marriage equality, says former RNC chairman

Ken Mehlman, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, says supporting loving couples -- whether they're gay or straight -- should be a priority for the GOP. "[T]he party of Lincoln ought to be about giving people more personal freedom," he says.

Will Obama support marriage equality in 2012?

With the ground shifting beneath him on the question of marriage rights for same-sex couples, President Barack Obama will have to evolve quickly on the issue if he is to win the ardent support of LGBT voters in the next presidential election, according to Richard Socarides, who once advised President Bill Clinton on LGBT issues. 

Obama recently told a blogger who asked about his current position on marriage, "Attitudes evolve, including mine."

Quote of the Day: Reverend Jesse Jackson

"We stand with you today to support Marriage Equality, and to declare that Proposition 8 must be struck down as unconstitutional." - Rev. Jesse Jackson at today's Marriage Equality USA gathering at today's Prop. 8 hearing as reported by Change.org

Thank the Iowa Supreme Court justices who got the boot because they ruled in favor of gay marriage

Kevin Cathcart, Executive Director of Lambda Legal writes:

"Last week, three well-respected Iowa Supreme Court justices—Chief Justice Marsha Ternus, Justice David Baker and Justice Michael Streit—lost retention elections following a vicious campaign by antigay groups. The justices were targeted because of the Court's 2009 unanimous decision in favor of marriage equality in Lambda Legal's historic lawsuit. We can't let extremists politicize our courts.

Hundreds of people around the country have pledged to fight back by protecting fair courts and fair judges. Join us!"

SIGN THE PLEDGE and share this message with your friends.

Yesterday, Lambda Legal asked their Facebook followers how they would say thank you to the justices. Hundreds have already responded. Here are some of the highlights:

"There is no way I could thank them enough for their courage to do the right thing. I wish there was a way to express my gratitude in a manner befitting the magnitude of their service."


"Thank you for your courageous stance, and thank you for standing for what you believed in. You deserve to be commended for your honesty."


"Thank you for fighting to make it possible. Laura and Kimberly, married in Iowa City, July 30."

New Federal Challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act Filed

The Human Rights Campaign today praised the filing of two new federal lawsuits challenging the denial of federal rights, benefits and responsibilities to same-sex couples lawfully married under the laws of their states. These cases, Pedersen v. Office of Personnel Management, brought by Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), and Windsor v. United States, brought by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), challenge the constitutionality of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a federal law adopted in 1996 that bars federal recognition of marriages between same-sex couples, even when those marriages are legal in the couples’ home states.

In Pedersen, filed in federal district court in Connecticut, GLAD is representing five married same-sex couples and a widower from Connecticut, New Hampshire and Vermont who have been denied specific federal rights and benefits, including access to time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act, federal employee health benefits, and Social Security benefits. Earlier this year, GLAD secured an initial victory in a similar case involving married Massachusetts couples, Gill v. Office of Personnel Management, when a federal district judge in Boston ruled that DOMA is unconstitutional. That decision is currently being appealed by the U.S. Department of Justice to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

In Windsor, filed in federal district court in New York, the ACLU is representing a widow who, after the death of her spouse, faces significant federal estate taxes, a financial burden that other, different-sex surviving spouses would not have to face. The plaintiff and her late spouse were lawfully married in Canada, and that marriage is recognized under New York law.

“These cases provide further evidence that the so-called Defense of Marriage Act is not simply an abstract insult to the dignity of same-sex couples and their families – although it is indeed a deeply offensive law. DOMA causes real harm to people like Joanne Pedersen, Ann Meitzen and Edie Windsor, denying them economic security, health coverage and other critical federal rights and benefits that other married couples take for granted,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese. “We thank the courageous plaintiffs and our friends at GLAD and the ACLU for taking these important steps to ensure that the federal government treats all married couples equally.”

More information about these cases and the plaintiffs is available at www.glad.org/doma and www.aclu.org/lgbt-rights/windsor-v-united-states.

One more reason to love Betty White

Betty White's all for gay marriage in the new issue of Parade magazine.