Marriage Equality

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 …

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 …

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 …

The Bermuda News reports: The Governor has given assent to the Domestic Partnership Act 2017, Government House has just confirmed, meaning the legislation can now take effect. In a statement this afternoon [Feb 7], Governor John Rankin said, “After careful consideration in line with my responsibilities under the Constitution, I have today given assent to the Domestic Partnership Act 2017.” …

The West Australian reports: He’s the man who strongly opposed gay marriage, arguing it was against traditional family values. Now it’s been revealed Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce is expecting a baby with his former staff member, after leaving his wife of 24 years. Mr Joyce’s former wife, Natalie, said she was “deeply saddened” by the affair given her husband’s …

The Associated Press reports: An international court ruling saying Costa Rica should allow same-sex marriage has upended the Central American nation’s presidential race, turning an evangelical candidate who opposes it from an also-ran with just 2 percent in the polls into the leading contender in Sunday’s vote. Following last month’s decision by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Fabricio Alvarado, …

The Independent reports: A Russian same-sex couple who had their marriage recognized after finding an apparent legal loophole have been charged with “intentional damage to passports or negligence”. Eugene Wojciechowski and Paul Stotzko tied the knot in Denmark on 4 January and returned home to Russia, where their documents were stamped and approved, despite same-sex marriage being illegal in the …

The Belfast Telegraph reports: Three senior unionists who were involved in establishing power-sharing at Stormont 20 years ago have called for a referendum on issues currently causing deadlock in the talks. These include whether there should be a stand-alone Irish Language Act for Northern Ireland, same-sex marriage laws and our abortion laws. Former Ukip MLA David McNarry, ex-Ulster Unionist chairman …

The Birmingham News reports: A bill to eliminate marriage licenses in Alabama and set up a process under which probate judges accept affidavits from couples as official records of marriage has passed the Alabama Senate. The cost would be the same that it now costs to buy a marriage license. The requirement of a ceremony to solemnize the marriage would …

The BBC reports: The Inter-American Court Of Human Rights has ruled that same-sex marriages should be recognised. The court’s rulings apply to countries which have signed the American Convention on Human Rights. Some of the signatories already recognise same-sex marriages while others recognise same-sex civil unions. But others, such as Bolivia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Paraguay and Peru do not …

The Guardian reports: The Catholic Archbishop of Sydney Anthony Fisher said people of faith might describe 2017 as “annus horribilis” because of euthanasia laws in Victoria, the exposure of child sexual abuse in the Catholic church, and the legalisation of same-sex marriage were failures that challenged “our Christian conceptions of life”. “Like any year, this one has had its challenges …

Reuters reports: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday expressed his support for same-sex unions, after previously declaring his opposition to gay marriage, in an about-face that may displease bishops in the mainly Roman Catholic country. Speaking at a gathering of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in his hometown Davao City, Duterte vowed to protect the rights of homosexuals …

The Telegraph reports: Australia’s first gay weddings took place on Saturday, ushering in a new era after the country’s marriage equality law came into effect this month. The historic reforms were given royal assent on December 8, the final step in a process that began with a national postal vote in September. There was supposed to be a 30-day waiting …

Via press release from Lambda Legal: The Supreme Court of Hawai’i today heard oral argument in the case of C.C. v. D.D., in which Lambda Legal is urging the Court to uphold a lower court ruling that, just like different-sex spouses, same-sex spouses must be treated as the presumed parents of children born during their marriage, with equal rights and …

Minutes ago the Bermuda Senate voted 8-3 to repeal same-sex marriage and replace it with domestic partnerships. Last week the Bermuda House approved the bill in a 24-10 vote. The bill now goes to the governor and if he signs it, Bermuda will become the second place in the world where same-sex marriage was repealed after having been legal. The …

The Associated Press reports: Australia’s prime minister rushed gay marriage into law on Friday by gaining a final signature on a bill hours after it was overwhelming endorsed by Parliament and as the nation started planning weddings that can take place in a month. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull traveled to Government House where Governor-General Peter Cosgrove signed the bill into …

The Guardian reports: Australia’s parliament has legislated for marriage equality, passing a bill almost unanimously to allow two people, regardless of sex, to marry. On Thursday the House of Representatives passed a cross-party bill after an unprecedented national postal survey gave unstoppable momentum to legislate the historic social reform. Australia, which changed the law in 2004 to say that marriage …

The Daily Telegraph reports: Same-sex marriage faces its final test in Parliament this morning when politicians vote on final changes to the historic bill proposed by Tony Abbott. Labor predicts the bill can pass parliament as early as 2pm today — the final scheduled sitting day of the year — if no last-minute changes to the bill are made. But …

The Associated Press reports: David Ermold will return to the Rowan County courthouse Wednesday, nearly two years after Clerk Kim Davis refused to give him a marriage license because he was gay. Only this time, he does not want a license. He wants Davis’ job. Ermold filed to run for county clerk on Wednesday, hoping to challenge the woman who …

Deutsche Welle reports: Same-sex couples will be allowed to marry in Austria from 2019, according to a ruling by the country’s Constitutional Court announced on Tuesday. Same-sex couples in Austria have been able to enter only into “registered partnerships” since 2010, with nearly the same rights of married couples. But the court ruled that “the distinction between marriage and registered …