The Maryland Supreme Court heard arguments from 19 gay and lesbian residents, urging them to strike down a law banning same-sex marriage. The New Jersey State Assembly’s judiciary committee approved a bill to create civil unions with the same rights as marriage, despite a push from LGBT-rights groups to call these unions “marriage.” The full […]
Blue Jersey’s second ad for marriage equality features the same two women—one married, one “civil unionized”—as the first. This time the pair are doing their respective taxes. “Single, Married, Divorced, Widowed?” the civil-unionized woman reads in puzzlement. None of the categories fit her. The ad fails, however, to address the obvious comeback: “Well, won’t they
Not to be outdone by Conservative Jews, the Swedish Lutheran Church, the country’s largest denomination, has said same-sex couples will be able to have their unions blessed in any of its congregations as of January 2007. Individual priests may refuse to conduct such ceremonies, but the congregation must ensure a blessing is provided. Although Sweden
The governing committee of Conservative Judaism has ruled to permit same-sex commitment ceremonies and the ordination of gay and lesbian rabbis. They did not, however, go so far as to approve same-sex marriage. Although the committee’s decision was not unanimous, enough members approved to make it valid, “meaning that it is a well-founded interpretation of
Mary Cheney, daughter of Vice President Dick Cheney, and her partner, Heather Poe, are expecting a baby. “A source close to the couple” says that Cheney is pregnant and expecting in the spring. Pam has already hit the heart of the matter at Pam’s House Blend, noting that Virginia, where the couple lives, will not
Progressive site Blue Jersey today launched Think Equal, a campaign “to educate the public on the legal and real world differences between civil unions and marriage.” Their first of several short ads is a winner, with two women—one married and one “civil unionized,” discussing the rights and benefits of each status. The ad is based
An article in Salon last week claimed “There is a gay agenda — winning elections.” It’s a heartening look at the impact wealthy LGBT Americans had on the 2006 mid-term vote. “They turned the 2006 election into an object lesson in targeted giving that could fundamentally change the way politicians think about the consequences of
I will be hosting the January Carnival of Bent Attractions here at Mombian. This blog carnival is published monthly and is made up of submitted posts on topics of interest to the gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, trans and queer communities—not just LGBTQ parenting topics, though those are welcome. If you are interested in submitting a post,
The best news this week is international. South Africa has become the first country in Africa and the fifth in the world to legalize same-sex marriage. Acting President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka signed the Civil Union Act, and it went into effect yesterday. The Act allows for unions to be recognized by either a marriage or a
It’s World AIDS Day. Let’s review: There were 2.9 million AIDS-related deaths in 2006. 4.3 million people were newly-infected with HIV, bringing the total of number of HIV-infected individuals worldwide to 39.5 million. 40% percent of new adult HIV infections worldwide in 2006 occurred among young people 15 – 24 years old. More adult women
