Joe.My.God. LGBT News

Via the Associated Press: Obama is speaking at a White House event where he’ll sign an executive order increasing the minimum hourly wage for federal contractors from $7.25 to $10.10. He first announced the measure during his State of the Union address. Because the measure applies only to new contracts, the White House says it will affect just a few …

3500 canceled flights so far.

“There is Michelle Obama and the $12,000 gown by Carolina Herrera, and the French president Hollande is in the middle, and there’s Obama. You’ll notice that this dress is bigger than the president of France. Here, let me make one more adjustment here and I’ll show you this again. Take a look at that picture. The little guy in the …

Today is potentially a very big day in Texas. Via Lone Star Q: A federal judge in San Antonio will hear arguments Wednesday morning on whether he should bar Texas from enforcing its bans on same-sex marriage pending a trial. Two same-sex couples are seeking a preliminary injunction in their lawsuit challenging the state’s marriage bans on grounds they violate …

BIG news via the Louisville Courier-Journal: A federal judge Wednesday struck down Kentucky’s ban on recognizing valid same-sex marriages performed in other states, saying it violates the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the law. U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II joined nine other federal and state courts in invalidating such bans. Ruling in a suit brought by …

Via press release from the Forum For Equality Louisiana: Forum for Equality Louisiana, the statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender human rights organization, together with four couples today filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s constitutional ban on recognizing same-sex marriages legally performed outside the state. The lawsuit charges that Louisiana’s refusal to recognize same-sex marriages violates the US constitutional guarantees …

“Dear Joe, One stormy night, I drove to a mailshop hidden deep in a nearly deserted stand of warehouses. I’d heard something was up and wanted to see for myself. As I rounded the final turn, my eyes nearly popped. Tractor-trailers pulled up to loading docks, cars and vans everywhere and long-haired, earring-pierced men scurrying around running forklifts, inserters and …