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
It’s Valentine’s Day, and all I can think about (well, until my partner comes home) are the two court cases, one today and one tomorrow, that could have a tremendous impact on LGBT families. In Florida today, the Senate Committee on Children and Families is voting on whether to permit adoption by same-sex parents. Heart-wrenching
New Jersey could shortly be the second state to legalize same-sex marriage, and the first to do so through the judiciary rather than the legislature. Lambda Legal’s groundbreaking case, Lewis v. Harris, will go before the state Supreme Court next Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. Garden State Equality, New Jersey’s LGBT-rights group, will be holding a
The Human Rights Campaign is asking people to write to their members of Congress and urge them not to cosponsor or vote for the “Marriage Protection Amendment,” a renamed version of the “Federal Marriage Amendment” defeated in 2004. They explain: This week, the American Family Association alerted their members to expect a vote in the
Three quotes to signify yesterday: From last night’s State of the Union address: Yet many Americans, especially parents, still have deep concerns about the direction of our culture, and the health of our most basic institutions. They’re concerned about unethical conduct by public officials, and discouraged by activist courts that try to redefine marriage. –
President Bush delivers his fifth State of the Union address tonight, with TV coverage scheduled from 9-11 p. m., EST. Luckily, last Sunday’s episode of The L Word is rebroadcast from 11 p. m.-12 a. m. Kind of like a nice glass of cold water after eating something I don’t like. (I know, I don’t
Washington today became the 17th state to ban discrimination towards LGBT people. Kudos to those who worked so hard to have this bill passed. In other political news this week, a Maryland circuit court ruled that denying marriage to same-sex couples is unconstitutional under the state constitution. It’s unclear what will happen as this ruling
Marketplace today reported on a growing trend in the U. S. military: marriages of convenience between servicemembers wanting the additional pay and benefits that come with marital status, and civilians wanting the extensive health benefits of military spouses. Ah, the sanctity of straight marriage. (I’ll ignore, for the moment, what this says about the healthcare system
One of my readers has asked about resources for non-bio moms who have lost custody or had their children taken by bio moms. The National Center for Lesbian Rights has published a list of cases involving custody rights, not all of which ruled favorably towards the non-bio mom. They also report on a decision by
The Family Pride Coalition is encouraging all LGBT families to attend the annual White House Egg Roll on April 17, 2006. Hundreds of families attend every year, and Family Pride wants ours to be among them. They will provide non-political t-shirts to identify participants as LGBT families. If you think you might attend, it’s worth
