White House Shows its Rainbow Colors This Week
It was a big week in LGBTQ news at the White House—or a big week in federal news for the LGBTQ community, depending on how one looks at it.
Politics and Law
Florida Poised to Reject Adoption Discrimination
There’s a little more sunshine in the Sunshine State today. The Florida Senate yesterday blocked an effort by the state House that would have allowed any private adoption agency to discriminate based on prospective parents’ sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as family status and religious or political beliefs.
Bill Moves Ahead in Florida to Allow Adoption Discrimination
A Florida House committee passed a bill yesterday that would allow any private adoption agency to discriminate against prospective parents based on sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as family status and religious or political beliefs.
Court Blocks FMLA Leave for Same-Sex Spouses
A judge has blocked the U.S. Department of Labor’s new rule that married same-sex spouses who are otherwise eligible could to take time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), even if they don’t live in states that recognize their marriage.
Help Stop LGBTQ-Discrimination Bill in Indiana
The Indiana legislature on Monday voted in favor of a “religious freedom” bill that is a thinly disguised attempt to allow anti-LGBTQ discrimination. Here’s how you can help stop it, wherever you live.
Families and LGBT Equality: Past, Present, and Future
Janson Wu, executive director of GLAD (Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders), is leading one of the several LGBT legal organizations bringing marriage equality before the U.S. Supreme Court this spring. I asked him recently about the interplay among marriage equality, parental rights, and other issues that impact LGBT parents and our children, and about the past, present, and future of our movement.
LGBT Women More Likely to Live in Poverty
A new report from a wide range of research and advocacy organizations shows that because of discriminatory laws, LGBT women are among the most at risk of poverty in the U.S.–and that this can impact their starting and raising a family.
8 Things to Know about the “Voices of Children” Brief
Last Friday, the voices of children with same-sex parents were sent to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Family Equality Council, COLAGE, and Kentucky teen Kinsey Morrison filed a “friend of the court” brief in support of marriage equality and highlighting the impact of inequality on children and young adults raised by same-sex couples.
Disabled Lesbian Mom War Vet Denied Benefits for Spouse and Daughter
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has told a disabled Iraq war veteran that she much pay back federal veterans benefits for her legal wife and daughter because the state of Texas does not recognize her marriage.
Mombian Monthly Recap — February
February always seems to fly by for me. In case it does for you, too, and you’ve missed some Mombian posts, I thought I’d recap some of my favorites.