- Florida’s Senate tabled a bill that would have granted adoption rights to same-sex couples.
- A Missouri Circuit Court has granted foster-parenting rights to a lesbian couple. It is unclear whether the state will appeal the ruling.
- New Jersey’s Supreme Court heard arguments on behalf of couples claiming that denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples is unconstitutional. It is unknown when the state will make its ruling.
- In New York, the State Appellate Court rejected the argument that same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Despite the setback, the Empire State Pride Agenda notes that they always expected this would ultimately be decided by the state’s highest court. The issue is in fact already before it, because of an earlier appellate decision from a different department.
Finally, some thoughts on how we’re framing the debate. Steve at Adamant Sun notes perceptively that much of the disconnect between those for and those against LGBT rights has to do with whether or not one views being gay is a choice. Those who view being gay as a choice will approach the whole matter of gay rights, hate speech, etc. from a completely different set of assumptions.
Iowa governor Tom Vilsack also chips in his two cents this week, making what I call the “Britney argument” in favor of same-sex marriage, saying “I personally don’t think that it is fair . . . for Britney Spears, who was married for 51 hours to some guy in Las Vegas (for) that guy (to have) more rights than someone who’s been committed to another person for 25 years.” (Thanks to the Gay & Lesbian Leadership SmartBrief for the heads-up.)
It was an eye opener for me. In the bay area, San Leandro High Schools specifically, there is an attempt to put up these signs. Please note how tame the signs are.
The debate stemmed on a (straight) parents blog about how wrong those signs were, how the schools shouldn’t be promoting sexual behavior. That’s when I spoke up about it not being about sexual behavior but identity.
And on it went from there. It was actually a very well mannered disagreement and I was surprised at the number of straight parent blogs that agreed with me and ended up adding me to their blogroll. That was a good feeling.
But if you look at the signs you can see how the two different sources view them. Since I believe we are born gay, I see those signs as accepting of one’s humanity. Since my ‘opponent’ (for lack of a better term) thinks that being gay is a choice, he saw the signs as well, promoting a choice and he wanted to condemn that choice. I had to mention that is not condemning a choice but condemning a person’s identity, their personhood.
He was very upset that when he disagreed with choices, he was condemned for giving hate speech. I simply pointed out that condemning a person’s identity IS hate speech, so that he could understand why some of us will shout back, you don’t have the freedom to shout condemnation and just be patted on the back for it.
But if they view it as choices, then they will be completely at a loss as to why we take it so personal. It was a very eye opening discussion. Unfortunately, it is dispersed over the comments of several threads on his and my blog and isn’t really ‘all in a row’.
But they really don’t know the hurt they do. Sincerely, they believe they are just condemning choices, are dumbfounded at the reaction, and I think perhaps our community should focus some effort on correcting that misconception.
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