Tag Archives: marriage equality

AUSTRALIA: Multiple Marriage Bills Announced

The Guardian reports: Labor and a group of Greens and independent MPs have separately given notice that they will introduce private members’ bills to legalise same-sex marriage. Greens MP Adam Bandt and independents Cathy McGowan and Andrew Wilkie gave notice on Tuesday of a cross-party marriage equality bill, in identical terms to one before the previous parliament. On Tuesday, as …

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AUSTRALIA: PFLAG Hits Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull With Ad Mocking Marriage Plebiscite [VIDEO]

Via press release from PFLAG Australia: Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays has stepped up its campaign against a marriage equality plebiscite with the release of a new advertisement. The ad highlights the fact politicians can ignore the result of a plebiscite, as well as the plebiscite’s $160 million price tag. PFLAG national spokesperson, Shelley Argent, said, “As parents, …

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AUSTRALIA: Parties Plot To Stop Malcolm Turnbull’s Marriage Referendum, Demand Vote In Parliament

Two days ago Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s Liberal Party announced that a national referendum on same-sex marriage will take place in February. Not so fast, says the opposition. Via Australia’s ABC News: A plebiscite on same-sex marriage is looking less likely, with the Federal Opposition determined to have a parliamentary vote to change marriage laws instead. The Government has promised …

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Liberty Counsel’s Mat Staver: It’s Time For Christians To Engage In Civil Resistance Against SCOTUS [VIDEO]

“We are coming to the position where we are in the same place that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had to make a decision, where the founders of this country had to make a decision that we will either obey God or we will obey man. And when those two directly, inherently, irrevocably collide with one another. We are in …

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AUSTRALIA: Government Breaks Promise, Will Push Marriage Referendum Back To February 2017

The Sydney Morning Herald reports: The Turnbull government will push back the date of the proposed same-sex marriage plebiscite until February 2017, breaking a flagship pledge. The Prime Minister had said he wanted the vote to be held this year. However a spokesperson for Mr Turnbull told Fairfax that Special Minister of State, Scott Ryan, received advice last week from …

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Court Dismisses Remaining Suits Against Kim Davis As Moot Because Gays Are Marrying “Without Incident”

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports: A federal judge on Thursday dismissed three lawsuits pending against Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis over her refusal to issue marriage licenses in 2015, following the legalization of same-sex marriage by the U.S. Supreme Court. The issue is now settled, U.S. District Judge David Bunning wrote in his order. At Davis’ request, Gov. Matt Bevin and …

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HAWAII: Openly Lesbian State Rep Who Voted Against Same-Sex Marriage Loses Democratic Primary

Back in 2013, Hawaii state Rep. Jo Jordan became the first openly LGBT legislator in history to vote against same-sex marriage, earning her wild praise from hate group leaders Tony Perkins and Brian Brown. Today JMG reader Donovan writes to let us know that Jordan lost her seat to a former Green Party member in Saturday’s Democratic primary. Good.

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MISSISSIPPI: Federal Court Rejects State’s Bid To Enforce Anti-LGBT Hate Law During Appeal Process

BOOM. Another win for Roberta Kaplan. Chris Geidner reports at Buzzfeed: A federal appeals court on Friday denied Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant’s request that the state be allowed to enforce a recently passed anti-LGBT religious exemption law while the state appeals a trial court’s order halting enforcement of that law. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, in denying the request …

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Brian Brown To Supporters: You People Are Pathetic

Any professional fundraiser will tell you that the best way guarantee donations is to tell your supporters how much they suck for not sending enough. From Brian Brown: NOM began our critical Summer Membership Drive on July 22nd. We’re now three weeks into our drive — the halfway point — and we have only received 256 contributions from our members. …

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ALABAMA: Court Orders Trial For Justice Roy Moore

A very late update from AL.com: Suspended Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore will go on trial next month on judicial ethics charges after the Alabama Court of the Judiciary late Monday issued an order that denied Moore’s request to dismiss the charges. The court, in a brief one-page order, also denied a motion by the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission …

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SHE SAID YES: Girlfriend Of Brazilian Olympic Rugby Player Isadora Cerullo Proposes As Team Cheers

Roughly translated from ABC España: The gold medal-winning Australian female rugby delegation isn’t alone in celebrating. Isadora Cerullo, who plays for Brazil, tonight received a marriage proposal from her partner, who works as a volunteer for the Rio Games. The proposal was accepted and sealed with a kiss in front of journalists from around the world. The proposal took place …

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ALABAMA: Haters Rally For Justice Roy Moore As Court Says It Will Soon Decide On Booting Him From Bench

ABC News reports: Alabama’s Court of the Judiciary said it will soon decide whether to remove Alabama’s suspended chief justice, Roy Moore, from office after hearing Monday from both sides on his misconduct charges. Moore is accused of violating judicial ethics by urging probate judges to defy the federal courts and keep denying marriage licenses to gays and lesbians, months …

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ALABAMA: Judge Won’t Issue Gay Marriage Licenses Because Jesus, Gets Busted For Nude Selfies

The Associated Press reports: An Alabama probate judge accused of sending sexually charged messages and nude photos to a woman he met when she went to his office to wed another man has agreed to a six-month unpaid suspension, his lawyer said Thursday. Tallapoosa County Probate Judge Leon Archer regrets his actions and cooperated fully with a probe that resulted …

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NORTH CAROLINA: Court Hearing Begins On Lawsuit To Overturn Magistrates’ Same-Sex Marriage Opt-Out Law

The Associated Press reports: Roughly 5 percent of North Carolina’s magistrates are refusing to marry same-sex couples for religious reasons, and lawyers for the state say people suing in federal court have no standing to challenge these opt-outs as unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Max Cogburn scheduled a hearing for Monday in Asheville in part to consider a motion by the …

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Billboard Of The Day

Via press release: Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) civil rights organization, revealed a new billboard off I-85 calling out disgraced, notoriously anti-LGBTQ Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore. The billboard, which reads “#NoMoore: Dismiss Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore” goes up as Moore, suspended from the …

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Trump Spox in 2012: Gay Is Not Normal, Accept That

Donald Trump is the true friend of the LGBT community, not Hillary Clinton, and spoke-nutjob Katrina Pierson has parroted those words many times. Oh, but wait. Dominic Holden reports at Buzzfeed: But Pierson, the official national campaign spokesperson for the Trump campaign, did not express such warm sentiments to gays in 2012. “Gay is not normal, accept that,” she said …

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Joe Biden Officiates Same-Sex Wedding

ABC News reports: Vice President Joe Biden officiated his first wedding ever — and it was for a same sex couple. Biden officiated over the wedding of two longtime White House staffers, Brian Mosteller and Joe Mahshie, at the Naval Observatory on Monday, his office said. Posting a photo of the ceremony on Twitter, Biden wrote, “Proud to marry Brian …

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AFA Becomes Third Hate Group To Yank Support For FADA Because It Also OK’s Anti-Straight Discrimination

Two weeks ago the Family Research Council abruptly withdrew its support for the so-called First Amendment Defense Act (FADA) because of new language that also legalizes discrimination against married straight couples on the basis of “religious belief or moral conviction.” Last week the Liberty Counsel did the same. Today the American Family Association becomes the third anti-LGBT hate group to …

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Liberty Counsel: We Stopped Gay Marriage In Romania

Two days ago I reported that anti-gay groups affiliated with the Eastern Orthodox Church won a court ruling in Romania that will allow a national referendum on a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Today the Liberty Counsel takes credit. Via press release: In a major victory for natural marriage and the right of Romanian citizens to determine their own destiny, …

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Dem Rep. Mark Takai Dies Of Cancer At Age 49

While still a Hawaii state rep, Takai played a critical part in the 2013 passage of his state’s same-sex marriage bill. He was elected to the US House in 2014. NBC News reports: U.S. Congressman Mark Takai, who served as the representative for Hawaii’s first district, has died, NBC News has confirmed. Takai, 49, announced in May he would not …

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