The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Westboro Baptist Church, an anti-gay hate group, had a first amendment right to protest near the funerals of American soldiers killed in Iraq. U.S. House Speaker John Boehner announced he will convene a bipartisan meeting to determine how Congress can defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in […]
A few little things happened in LGBT-related politics this week, hmm? The Department of Justice announced that it has concluded that the part of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) preventing the federal government from recognizing legal marriages of same-sex couples is unconstitutional. The DOJ will therefore not defend it in two pending cases in
The Pentagon has revealed its plan for implementing repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. New talks on comprehensive immigration reform legislation could mean a new chance to pass the Uniting American Families Act. A civil union bill in Hawaii could hit the governor’s desk by the end of next week, the Honolulu Star Advertiser opines.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) released a new report, “Injustice at Every Turn,” that demonstrates the extent of discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming people in many areas, including education, health care, employment, and housing. Thirty-three members of Congress are calling on the departments of
President Obama, in his State of the Union address, noted the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and called on college campuses that had banned military recruiters and ROTC because of the policy to allow them to return. Some LGBT advocates are saying colleges should not do so until servicemembers are protected against gender identity
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) proposed new federal regulations that would ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity in its core housing programs. (My piece on this at Keen News Service. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case of a group of clergy who want
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said he would work to help implement the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, even though he opposed the legislation. President Barack Obama renominated Edward C. DuMont to be a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. If the Senate approves his nomination, DuMont would become
Don’t Ask. There’s no telling. The Senate vote on repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is scheduled for tomorrow. Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) is planning to have service members sitting in the public gallery of the Senate chamber until the vote. Remember ENDA? Chris Geidner of Metro Weekly has a good article on what
The U.S. Senate failed to move forward a defense spending bill that included provisions to repeal the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy. Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), along with co-sponsors Susan Collins (R-ME), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Mark Udall (D-CO) introduced a free-standing bill for repeal. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice made
The Pentagon’s top four leaders testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee in favor of repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. John McCain and some Republicans, however, weren’t convinced. U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Stephen Reinhardt declined to recuse himself from the Prop 8 case. Opponents of marriage equality had asked him to withdraw
