Marriage Equality

Just in via email: My name is Alfie Arcuri and I’m the first openly gay winner of The Voice Australia. I am big fan of your blog and it would be awesome if you had the time to share my video Love is Love.  I am a strong advocate for the gay and lesbian community and I perform and dedicate …

The West Australian reports: Conservative MPs believe up to 100 amendments are needed to a same-sex marriage Bill being proposed if the Yes vote succeeds, posing a major test for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull as he seeks to manage an emerging partyroom split. With expectations growing that the Yes vote will be successful next month, conservative MPs are preparing a …

Courthouse News Service reports: A federal judge ruled Monday that Kentucky taxpayers are still on the hook for attorney fees for the couples who sued Kim Davis, a county clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples after the historic U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage. In July, U.S. District Judge David Bunning ordered Kentucky to pay …

The Guardian reports: Cory Bernardi does not accept there will be an overwhelming “yes” vote in the same-sex marriage postal survey, with more than 70% of forms returned. The Australian Conservatives leader said he believed people were pressured by political correctness and were saying they voted “yes”, even if they had voted “no”. “I’m not even conceding defeat quite frankly,” …

The Sydney Morning Herald reports: Gay couples – but not straight ones – will be able to marry for free in some of the City of Sydney’s most prominent buildings and parks, in a move that will outrage the progressive council’s conservative critics. A motion passed on Monday night will allow same-sex couples to hire community facilities, halls and parks …

From the Facebook page of attorney Helmut Graupner: In a decision of 12 October just delivered, the Austrian Constitutional Court followed all my arguments and reversed its case-law (that segregation in marriage and registered partnerships is admissible.) I am representing five children (and their same-gender parents) arguing that the marriage ban stigmatizes the children as illegitimate and the families as …

The Sydney Morning Herald reports: Finding the same-sex marriage debate heavy going? Well, it may surprise you to find out New Zealand’s been through all this already. Which is why, on the eve of the November 7 postal survey vote deadline, our friends over the “ditch” have decided to give us some sage advice. This tongue-in-cheek “Open Letter to Australia” …

The Sydney Morning Herald reports: Several Sydney clerics are in revolt over the Anglican Church’s decision to donate $1 million to the “no” campaign on same-sex marriage, declaring themselves shattered and disappointed. Archbishop Glenn Davies revealed the donation at the opening of the 51st Synod on Monday, declaring same-sex marriage “unwarranted”. “The stakes are high and the cost is high,” …

Chris Johnson reports at the Washington Blade: The U.S. Supreme Court has set Dec. 5 as the day for oral arguments on whether a Colorado baker has a First Amendment right to refuse to make wedding cakes for same-sex couples over religious objections. The high court announced Friday the case, known as Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, will be …

Politico reports: Romania is gearing up to hold a referendum to amend the constitution to prohibit gay marriage, a move that civil rights groups warn could put the country on an “illiberal” path alongside the likes of Hungary and Poland. Romania’s civil code forbids same-sex marriage, and civil partnerships — whether between heterosexual or gay partners — are not legal. …

The Sydney Morning Herald reports: Australians appear to be unmoved by anti-same-sex marriage warnings of creeping gender ideology, social destruction, or sexual confusion, with the case for change surging ahead. With more than a month to go in the government’s controversial postal survey, an aggregation of public polling and some recent unpublished research shows the “yes” case for legalising same-sex …

The Guardian reports: The US rapper, Macklemore, issued a call for equality after an emotional performance of his hit single, Same Love, in a much-hyped pre-game show at the NRL grand final. The performance at ANZ Stadium in Sydney follows a bizarre week in which the hip-hop artist became the focus of national attention due to his decision to play …

The BBC reports: Two men have become the first gay couple to marry in Germany, on the day gay marriage became legal there. Karl Kreile and Bodo Mende, a couple for 38 years, exchanged their vows at the town hall in Schöneberg, Berlin. Registry offices in several German cities were opening, unusually, on Sunday to allow couples to wed on …

From a press release published today by Christian Newswire: Australia is in the middle of a government mandated postal survey to decide the future of marriage between a man and a woman. The polls are predicting a defeat for those who believe in the biblical definition of marriage. Australian Christians are asking for prayer from all over the world for …

The Sydney Morning Herald reports: Calls from politicians, including a former PM, and others to ban US hip hop artist Macklemore from singing his hit Same Love at the NRL grand final have seemingly backfired, with the song shooting to the top of the Australian iTunes charts. Despite being first released in 2012 by the Seattle-based rapper and his co-writer …

The Guardian reports: A robocall in which Cory Bernardi warns marriage equality will lead to “radical gay sex education” is set to target 1m homes. In several interviews on Thursday, Bernardi has confirmed the robo-call campaign slated for South Australia and Victoria, first revealed by Nine News. He has said that Australian Conservatives will pay for the exercise but declined …

The Sydney Morning Herald reports: Former prime minister Tony Abbott has backed a call from same-sex marriage opponents to ban American rapper Macklemore from performing his pro-gay song Same Love at the NRL grand final. Former player Tony Wall, who played first grade briefly in the mid 1990s, is petitioning NRL boss Todd Greenberg to halt the half-time performance and …

The Guardian reports: Two weeks after she put herself at odds with her father, the country’s former prime minister, with a post on Instagram, Frances Abbott has appeared in an advert calling on Australians to back marriage equality in the country’s non-binding, voluntary survey. “You can’t help who you fall in love with. Love just happens sometimes and it’s unexpected …

The Australian reports: Two women have locked lips on stage during an anti-same sex marriage event in Melbourne, disrupting a “no” campaigner’s speech. The protesters kept kissing as they were dragged from the stage by security at the Coalition for Marriage’s Victorian campaign launch on Saturday night. Australian Christian Lobby chief Lyle Shelton shared a video of the incident on …

The Guardian reports: The man charged with assaulting Tony Abbott has denied the alleged attack had anything to do with the same-sex marriage postal vote. Hobart DJ Astro “Funknukl” Labe, 38, was charged with one count of common assault on Friday over an alleged attack on the Hobart waterfront on Thursday afternoon. Labe was wearing a rainbow “yes” badge when …