Tag Archives: marriage equality

NOM president Brian Brown today published another of his unintentionally amusing rants about them devil gays, this time exploiting Good Friday to compare himself to Jesus. An excerpt: He celebrated his last supper on earth with his disciples, knowing that he would be betrayed, and prepared himself for his barbaric crucifixion and death today, Good Friday. How quickly they turned …

The San Jose Mercury News report: Stephen Reinhardt, a judge on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, has died. He was 87. Reinhardt was considered to be one of the most liberal judges on the court. President Jimmy Carter appointed Reinhardt to the federal courts in 1980. One of Reinhardt’s most notable high-profile rulings in recent years was a 2012 …

The Irish Times reports: MPs have voted to give a second reading to a bill that would give same-sex couples in Northern Ireland the right to marry. Introducing the bill in the House of Commons on Wednesday, South Armagh-born Labour MP Conor McGinn said he was doing so “with reluctance and some disappointment”. He added: “This measure is long overdue. …

The Associated Press reports: Thousands of Croatian far-right supporters marched Saturday in downtown Zagreb to protest an international convention they said indirectly legalizes gay marriages and gives rights to transgender people. The protesters sang patriotic songs and chanted slogans against Croatia’s centre-right government, which last week approved the Istanbul convention that was adopted by the Council of Europe in 2011, …

The Belfast Telegraph reports: A bill aimed at legalising same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland is set to go before the House of Commons next week. The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Northern Ireland Bill will be tabled by Labour MP Conor McGinn [photo] on Wednesday. It will be introduced under the Ten Minute Rule, which allows for an MP to make …

Via press release: Liberty Counsel filed a brief today in Rowan County Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis’ appeal of attorney’s fees awarded to the ACLU for suing Davis in 2015 when she stopped issuing marriage licenses while seeking an accommodation for her religious beliefs. Davis previously won her fight for religious freedom when U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning issued an …

Kim Davis is flogging her book to the Christian Post: “The only mean or negative thing I ever said to a same-sex couple who wanted a marriage license was ‘No,'” Davis told The Christian Post. “Instantly, the mainstream media painted an unfair picture of me as a terrible person — and most of the time, they didn’t even talk to …

Ben Winslow reports at Salt Lake City’s Fox affiliate: A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a man seeking the right to marry his laptop. In an order obtained by FOX 13 on Monday, U.S. District Court Judge David Nuffer rejected a lawsuit leveled by Chris Sevier, who argued that if same-sex marriage is legal he should be …

Suspended without pay! The Oregonian reports: The Oregon Supreme Court Thursday took the unusual step of suspending a sitting state court judge — Vance Day of Salem — for three years. The high court found that Day — a Marion County Circuit Court judge — had committed “willful misconduct” and made “willful misstatements” to investigators to cover-up the truth. Among …

Nashville’s NBC affiliate reports: What would you think if you saw your wedding picture being used in a political attack ad? That’s the spot a local gay couple is finding themselves. Their wedding was officiated by a candidate for state senate, but the couple says they didn’t sign up to be caught in the mudslinging. The Air Force veteran, who …

Over at The Friendly Atheist our friend Hemant Mehta has purchased a copy of Kim Davis’s book and provides some amusing commentary. A few excerpts: Both Davis and Huckabee go on and on about how Pope Francis met with her to express his support. Huckabee even said the Pope “endorsed her stand.” That’s literally not what the Vatican said. They …

From the Hollywood Reporter: The ever-blurring lines between politics and pop culture grow fuzzier — and more fabulous! — when Democrat Leader Nancy Pelosi pays a surprise visit this week to RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. Pelosi represents California’s 12th district in Congress, which includes all of San Francisco — so it’s safe to say she’s found her way around …

The Tennessean reports: House Republicans effectively killed a bill Wednesday that would prohibit child marriages in Tennessee, citing an obscure legal theory that passing the bill could deter a conservative lawyer’s case against gay marriage. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Darren Jernigan, D-Old Hickory, calls for the state to outlaw marriages where one of the parties is under 18 years …

Christian News reports: The Christian owners of a bridal shop in Pennsylvania who have been receiving threats since declining to assist a lesbian with her wedding last July have decided to close their business due to fears of an impending ordinance that would require them to violate their faith, as well as the inability to market themselves in light of …

Australia’s News Corp affiliate reports: If only Cher could turn back time. The international pop star has issued a stunning online apology for appearing in a controversial photo with the Prime Minister at Mardi Gras on Saturday. Malcolm Turnbull can be seen widely grinning in a picture with the American singer, who dazzled thousands of spectators by walking out into …

Portland’s ABC affiliate reports: An appeal has been filed with the Oregon Supreme Court in hopes of overturning a $135,000 penalty given to the owners of a Gresham bakery who refused to bake a cake for a gay couple. The Oregon Court of Appeals upheld a decision by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries to penalize owners of Sweet …

CNET reports: Australia made same-sex marriage legal in December, after more than 61 percent of the country declared in a survey that they were for it. Apple was on the side of the majority, making its feelings clear well before the survey. So its latest iPhone X ad — specifically for the Australian market — celebrates some of the first …

South Carolina’s WHNS-TV reports: Upstate lawmakers are working to pass a new bill that will probably get people talking. According to the SC Statehouse website, the bill, entitled the “Marriage and Constitution Restoration Act,” was introduced in the House, read for the first time and referred to Committee on Judiciary on February 15, 2018. “‘Parody marriage’ means any form of …

The San Francisco Chronicle reports: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who sits atop most polls and has raised the most money in the 2018 California governor’s race, begins spending some of it Monday with his first campaign ad. It features the then-San Francisco mayor presiding over the first same-sex marriages in the city on this day 14 years ago. “Today, we …

Via press release: NOM played a significant behind-the-scenes role in the tremendous victory in Bermuda. Our team advised pro-marriage supporters there on strategies to preserve marriage and I travelled there twice to meet with activists from Preserve Marriage Bermuda to discuss potential strategies. In 2016, Bermuda conducted a national referendum to advise the Parliament on whether gay ‘marriage’ should be …