Tag Archives: Puerto Rico

Marco Rubio Wins Puerto Rico Primary

The Hill reports: Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) is the projected winner of the Sunday Republican primary in Puerto Rico, where 23 delegates are at stake. With about 86 percent of the vote tallied, Rubio had 74 percent of the vote, with Donald Trump in a far-distant second with around 13 percent. Sen. Ted Cruz was hovering around 9 percent and …

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PUERTO RICO: 60 Couples Wed In Mass Ceremony [VIDEO]

Over 60 gay couples married on Sunday in Puerto Rico’s first such mass ceremony. The Associated Press reports: The event follows the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in late June requiring every state to recognize same-sex marriages. The U.S. island’s governor signed an executive order soon after that ruling to comply. Organizer Ada Conde, an attorney who filed a federal …

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Meanwhile In Puerto Rico

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Marriage Arrives In Puerto Rico

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PUERTO RICO: First Circuit Finally Rules Marriage Ban To Be Unconstitutional

Earlier this year the First Circuit punted on the appeal of Puerto Rico’s marriage case, saying that it would wait until SCOTUS rules. Today we finally got that decision. Via Lambda Legal: Today’s decision provides further recognition of the dignity and equality of LGBT people in Puerto Rico. We applaud the First Circuit for recognizing that Puerto Rico’s marriage ban …

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First Circuit Punts On Puerto Rico Marriage

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PUERTO RICO: Liberty Counsel Seeks To File Brief In Marriage Equality Case

Last week the Puerto Rican government announced that it was dropping its opposition to same-sex marriage. Enter, as always, the Liberty Counsel: Today Liberty Counsel filed a motion seeking permission to file an Amicus Curiae brief at the First Circuit Court of Appeals in defense of Puerto Rico’s law memorializing that marriage is the union of one man and one …

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PUERTO RICO: Anti-Gay Pols Will Sue To Force Governor To Defend Marriage Ban

“We believe it is totally contrary to the law, contrary to the constitution of Puerto Rico and contrary to the democratic foundations of our system of government for our governor to have taken a position on same-sex marriage.” – Puerto Rico House Rep. Maria Milagros Charbonier, announcing that she and other local politicians will sue the governor to force him …

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Matt Baume: Marriage News Watch

Clip recap: “It’s been nearly two months since marriage was supposed to start in Alabama, and the state still doesn’t have its act together. Texas just filed a lawsuit to prevent gays and lesbians from taking family medical leave. And it’s going to take at least five different bills to overturn Michigan’s marriage ban.”

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BREAKING: Puerto Rico Drops Defense Of Ban On Same-Sex Marriage

UPDATE: Lambda Legal celebrates. “In declining to further defend the Commonwealth’s discriminatory marriage ban, Puerto Rico’s government finally recognizes that denying marriage to LGBT people is harmful and cannot be justified. The marriage ban’s sole purpose is to perpetuate discrimination, and it is just plain wrong,” said Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, Staff Attorney for Lambda Legal. “Same-sex couples, LGBT people, and their …

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PUERTO RICO: Government Considers Ending Opposition To Same-Sex Marriage

Via El Nuevo Dia: The government of Puerto Rico is contemplating announcing this week a change of position and withdrawing its support for the Puerto Rican statute that recognizes marriage only as the union between a man and a woman. The position of the government of Puerto Rico is under review in the face of the written arguments that will …

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PUERTO RICO: Pastor Outed As Former Gay Porn Actor, Say’s He’s Now “Ex-Gay”

Via the British tabloid The Mirror: A priest whose secret past as a gay porn star was exposed when his x-rated movies were revived on the internet has refused to resign. Scenes from Pastor Jose Santiago’s porno past have been viewed by tens of thousands in Puerto Rico after they were posted on social network sites. Father Jose, 33 – …

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PUERTO RICO: First Circuit Court Sets Briefing Schedule For Marriage Case

Details.

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FRC Praises Puerto Rico Judge

“Judge Pérez-Giménez serves as a model of judicial restraint in the face of an epidemic of federal judges legislating from the bench on the issue of marriage. It is time for other courts to follow his example, and the Supreme Court shouldn’t allow activist lower courts to redefine states’ marriage laws.  Judge Pérez-Giménez not only rejected the constitutional arguments for …

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PUERTO RICO: Lambda Legal To Appeal “Aberrant” Marriage Lawsuit Dismissal

Via press release from Lambda Legal: “The court’s ruling directly conflicts with the wave of recent decisions finding these marriage bans unconstitutional and perpetuates the discrimination and harm done to same-sex Puerto Rican couples and their families,” said Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, Staff Attorney for Lambda Legal. “It defies the unmistakable import of the Windsor decision and flies in the face of …

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PUERTO RICO: Federal District Court Tosses Out Same-Sex Marriage Lawsuit

Saying that the Puerto Rico marriage equality lawsuit before them “fails to present a substantial federal question,” a US District Court today issued a dismissal based on the 1972 Minnesota Supreme Court case Baker V Nelson, which the US Supreme Court rejected that year on the same grounds. The suit was filed by Lambda Legal on behalf of three couples …

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PUERTO RICO: Lambda Legal Tells Court To Issue Summary Marriage Judgment

From their brief: As of this filing, thirty states and the District of Columbia recognize the constitutional right of same-sex couples to marry. Indeed, a remarkable and nearly unbroken seismic wave of federal court rulings across the country has struck down state statutory and constitutional marriage bans similar to Puerto Rico’s ban. Numerous federal courts have held that laws prohibiting …

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PUERTO RICO: Lambda Legal Files For Swift Overturn Of Same-Sex Marriage Ban

Via Lambda Legal: Today in the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, Lambda Legal filed a motion for summary judgment seeking to end the discriminatory ban on marriage for same-sex couples. Lambda Legal joined the lawsuit, Conde v. García Padilla, in June on behalf of five gay and lesbian couples and Puerto Rico Para Tod@s, an …

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PUERTO RICO: Marriage Lawsuit Filed

A lesbian couple married in Massachusetts in 2004 has filed a federal lawsuit that seeks to overturn Puerto Rico’s ban on same-sex marriage. Via the Washington Post: The suit filed Tuesday by attorney Ada Conde challenges the constitutionality of Puerto Rican laws that define marriage as between a man and a woman, as well as those that prohibit same-sex marriage …

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PUERTO RICO: Sweeping LGBT Rights Bill Passes, Heads For Governor’s Desk

Via press release from the National Lesbian & Gay Task Force:  The Puerto Rican House of Representatives today approved a sweeping nondiscrimination bill that protects lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in employment, housing, governmental services, public accommodations and private entities. Last week, the Senate approved the bill in a 15-11 vote and Gov. Alejandro García Padilla has vowed …

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