Category: LGBT

Richmond Times Dispatch:

RICHMOND — A federal appeals court today denied motions for a stay of its gay marriage ruling.

Same-sex couples will be allowed to apply for marriage licenses effective Aug. 20, said Michel Kelly, spokesman for Attorney General Mark R. Herring.

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Last week, Herring had asked the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for a stay of its recent ruling on Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban — contrary to the plaintiffs in the case, who seek to overturn the ban immediately.

Washingtonpost.com:

RICHMOND, Va. — A federal appeals court has struck down Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban.

A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond ruled Monday that state constitutional and statutory provisions barring gay marriage and denying recognition of such unions performed in other states violate the U.S. Constitution. The Virginia gay marriage case is one of several that could go to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In February, U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen ruled that Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban violates equal protection and due process guarantees. Lawyers for two circuit court clerks whose duties include issuing marriage licenses appealed.

The lawsuit was filed by two Norfolk men who were denied a marriage license and two Chesterfield County women whose marriage in California is not recognized by Virginia.

It looks like Virginia will be joining the 21st century in spite of its bad self and in spite of Bob Marshall and Ken Cuccinelli.  That has to be good news for couples who simply want to be allowed to do what other couples can do–be legally married.

NYpost.com:

Guinness beer has pulled its sponsorship from New York’s famed St. Patrick’s day parade over a controversial policy that prohibits gays and lesbians from marching openly, according to reports.

“Guinness has a strong history of supporting diversity and being an advocate for equality for all,” the company said in a statement on the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation website.

“We were hopeful that the policy of exclusion would be reversed for this year’s parade. As this has not come to pass, Guinness has withdrawn its participation. We will continue to work with community leaders to ensure that future parades have an inclusionary policy.”

Heineken and Sam Adams  also pulled sponsorships from St. Patrick’s Day Parades. Both mayors of New York City and Boston have boycotted their respective parades because gays are not allowed to march openly or under a GBLT banner.

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For whatever reason, Jan Brewer did the right thing.  Was she motivated by principle or was she motivated by money?  Does it really matter?  She vetoed a discriminatory bill.

Will this kind of bill take hold in other states?  It already has.  Many states have similar bills that are sneaking their way through various legislatures.   It is up to people of conscience to say no.  It is up to corporations who might be doing business in the state to let their feelings be known.  Apple, American Airlines, Marriott and Super Bowl XLIX all spoke up stating that those types of values did not represent their brand.  Both U. S. Senators also lobbied against the state bill.

I am sure there are disappointed rednecks and bigots in Arizona today.

Huffingtonpost.com:

A federal judge ruled Virginia’s ban on gay marriage unconstitutional late Thursday.

From the ruling:

The Court finds Va. Const. Art. I, § 15-A, Va. Code §§ 20-45.2, 20-45.3, and any other Virginia law that bars same-sex marriage or prohibits Virginia’s recognition of lawful same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions unconstitutional. These laws deny Plaintiffs their rights to due process and equal protection guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.

U.S. District Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen wrote that the constitutional right to equality should apply to all, including same-sex couples seeking marriage licenses.

“Our Constitution declares that ‘all men’ are created equal. Surely this means all of us,” wrote Allen, an Eastern District of Virginia judge in Norfolk.. “While ever vigilant for the wisdom that can come from the voices of our voting public, our courts have never long tolerated the perpetuation of laws rooted in unlawful prejudice. One of the judiciary’s noblest endeavors is to scrutinize law that emerge from such roots.”

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Washingtontimes.com:

The Senate on Thursday passed a historic bill to prevent discrimination against gay and transgender employees — sending the bill to the House where GOP leaders have signaled that it’s dead on arrival.

Ten Republicans joined all Democrats in a 64-32 bipartisan vote. House Speaker John A. Boehner said earlier this week he will not bring it up for a vote.

“The bill is currently not scheduled in the House,” Rory Cooper, a spokesman for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, said Thursday. “I hope Majority Leader Reid soon addresses the dozens of House-passed bills that have been ignored in the Senate that create jobs, improve education and create opportunity while Americans struggle to find a good-paying job.”

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