Marriage Equality

The Associated Press reports: A second high court in Japan ruled on Wednesday that the government’s policy against same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, the latest in a series of decisions upholding plaintiffs’ demands for marriage equality. The Tokyo High Court called the ongoing ban “a groundless legal discrimination based on sexual orientation”, saying it violates the constitutional guarantee of right to …

The South China Morning Post reports: The Thai king has signed same-sex marriage into law, the official Royal Gazette said Tuesday, making Thailand the first country in Southeast Asia to recognise marriage equality. King Maha Vajiralongkorn gave royal assent to the new law, passed by parliament in June, which will take effect in 120 days – meaning the first gay …

“In 2011, Kamala Harris refused to defend California’s ban on same-sex marriage. She refused to argue that some families should have fewer rights than other families. It meant a lie. She was fighting for families, like mine. “Now, in 2022, I faced a similar situation when after Roe v. Wade was overturned, Michigan’s archaic abortion ban was resurrected. But Vice …

The Washington Post reports: The 2024 Republican convention platform that aides to Donald Trump have drafted stops short of explicitly calling for a constitutional amendment to give embryos or fetuses constitutional rights and does not call for any national bans on abortion, confirming the concerns of antiabortion activists. The document, with a long introduction in the voice of Trump, the …

Gallup Polling reports: More than two in three Americans continue to believe that marriage between same-sex couples should be legal (69%), and nearly as many say gay or lesbian relations are morally acceptable (64%). Both readings have been consistently above the 50% mark since the early 2010s and above 60% since 2017. The latest 69% of Americans who support legal …

Reuters reports: Thailand’s Senate passed the final reading of a marriage equality law on Tuesday, paving the way for it to become the first country in Southeast Asia to recognise same-sex couples. The bill comes after more than two decades of effort from activists and politicians, after previous drafts did not reach parliament. With the support of nearly all lawmakers …

Axios reports: The U.S. has not seen any negative effects on marriage, divorce or living arrangements among all couples since Massachusetts issued the first state-sanctioned, same-sex marriage licenses 20 years ago, a new analysis says. A review of nearly 100 studies examining the consequences of same-sex marriage on multiple measures of family formation and well-being found no harm to different-sex …

Radio Liechtenstein reports: The state parliament has cleared the way for marriage for everyone in Liechtenstein. The second readings of various laws that needed to be adjusted were successfully carried out. This will allow Liechtenstein to marry same-sex couples like its neighboring countries. Read the full article. The snippet above is via Google Translate as the site is in German. …

Honolulu Civil Beat reports: The state Senate today easily approved House Bill 2802, which will ask voters in November to rescind a provision in the Hawaii Constitution that gives the Legislature the authority to limit marriage to opposite-sex couples. Article 1, Section 23 reserves to the Legislature the authority to define marriage, even as same-sex marriage has been federal law …

The Associated Press reports: Lawmakers in Thailand’s lower house of Parliament overwhelmingly approved a marriage equality bill on Wednesday that would make the country the first in Southeast Asia to legalize equal rights for marriage partners of any gender. The bill passed its final reading with the approval of 400 of the 415 members of the House of Representatives in …

The Virginia Mercury reports: In the first signals of how he’ll act on legislation approved by Virginia’s Democratic General Assembly, Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a largely symbolic bill protecting same-sex marriage but took a more adversarial stance to bills dealing with gun control, reproductive rights and marijuana. Youngkin had until Friday night to take action on 84 bills the legislature …

CNN reports: Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee has signed a bill that allows people in the state to refuse to “solemnize,” or perform, a marriage if they disagree with it. Last week, Tennessee state lawmakers passed HB 878, which states “a person shall not be required to solemnize a marriage.” In Tennessee, only certain people can “solemnize” the “rite of …

USA Today reports: Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito attempted an “I told you so” on Tuesday when he criticized a judge’s dismissal of potential jurors in a workplace discrimination case because they believed homosexuality is a sin. Alito said that’s exactly the type of outcome he warned against when, against his objections, the Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that the …

Reuters reports: Greece’s parliament approved a bill allowing same-sex civil marriage on Thursday, a landmark victory for supporters of LGBT rights that was greeted with cheers by onlookers in parliament and dozens gathered on the streets of Athens. The law gives same-sex couples the right to wed and adopt children and comes after decades of campaigning by the LGBT community …

“I respect the Supreme Court’s decision. We’ve abided by that in Florida even though our Constitution defines it as between a man and a woman. But I think what we need to recognize is, you know, you are going to have people try to wield power against our religious institutions and try to marginalize them simply by upholding the biblical …

The Associated Press reports: Greece’s center-right government said Thursday it would fulfill a commitment to legalize same-sex marriage, sidestepping staunch opposition from the country’s influential Orthodox Church. The legislation would be brought to parliament during the house’s current term, which ends in 2027. The statement comes after the Church’s governing Holy Synod issued a 1,500-word opinion late Wednesday, expressing strong …

Reuters reports: Thai lawmakers on Thursday overwhelmingly passed four draft bills on same-sex marriage in their first reading, moving the country closer towards its legalisation in a country with one of Asia’s most open and visible LGBT communities. All but 10 lawmakers present in parliament’s lower house voted to approve the draft legislation, paving the way to the formation of …

Pew Research reports: Attitudes about same-sex marriage vary widely around the world, according to several Pew Research Center surveys fielded in 32 places in the last two years. Among the surveyed publics, support for legal same-sex marriage is highest in Sweden, where 92% of adults favor it, and lowest in Nigeria, where only 2% back it. In the US, 63% …

The Associated Press reports: Thailand’s Cabinet on Tuesday approved an amendment to its civil code to allow same-sex marriage, with an expectation for the draft to be submitted to Parliament next month. Karom Polpornklang, a deputy government spokesperson, said the amendment to the Civil and Commercial Code will change the words “men and women” and “husband and wife” to “individuals” …

The Dallas Morning News reports: Dianne Hensley felt guilty. sitting behind her desk at the county courthouse in Waco, she could hear someone crying outside her office door. The young woman wanted to get married, Hensley recalled, but she couldn’t find anyone to do the ceremony. It was 2016, the year after the U.S. Supreme Court toppled bans on same-sex …