. . . but we couldn’t. The New York State Senate failed to pass a marriage equality bill yesterday on a vote of 24-38. Not even close. Never mind that the state has one of the biggest meccas of LGBT life in the country, and is home to the Stonewall Inn, the place where the […]
Happy Monday, everyone! To start the week, here’s a passage I like from a Bay Windows article by Rev. Irene Monroe, one of the officiants at the wedding of Cambridge, Mass. Mayor E. Denise Simmons and Ms. Mattie Hayes. Mayor Simmons is also the mother of four and is raising her three grandchildren. She and
A very many congratulations to Mayor E. Denise Simmons of Cambridge, Mass., and her partner Mattie B. Hayes, who will wed on August 30. Mayor Simmons is the country’s first out, lesbian, African American mayor. She is also the mother of four and grandmother of three, and is raising her grandchildren. I’m thinking I could
Yee hah. Another huge week in LGBT political news. Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court challenging the constitutionality of Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. The suit claims that DOMA “unfairly excludes more than 16,000 Massachusetts married same-sex couples and their families from critically important rights
Here are a few select photos from this year’s Boston Pride, with a focus on family matters. Unfortunately, I got there too late to see most of the school groups that marched, since I was running over from Cambridge where I’d been covering the mayor’s annual Pride Brunch, but you can see last year’s set
May 17, 2004: The first legal marriages of same-sex couples in Massachusetts. Still locust-free here in the Bay State.
Three of the four states to enact marriage equality for same-sex couples are ignoring the existence of those with two moms or two dads. On the marriage license applications for Connecticut, Iowa, and Vermont* (PDF’s), applicants are asked to enter their names, with no requirement that one be “groom” and one be “bride.” So far
The news keeps getting better: The Washington, D.C. Council voted today to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. Like Vermont. And Iowa. And Massachusetts. And Connecticut. The Washington Post reports that the Council will likely take a final vote on the legislation next month. Congress must then approve—meaning the outcome is far from certain.
After I published my story on the 20th anniversary of the Gay-Straight Alliance at Phillips Academy Andover, I received this letter from alumna and writer Robin Chotzinoff, who now lives in Texas. She shares not only her reaction to how times have changed, but also what her 11-year-old daughter is doing to support LGBT rights.
(Originally published in Bay Windows, February 26, 2009. I did this piece to cover a local event, but I thought it might be of wider interest. Phillips Academy Andover has the second-oldest gay-straight alliance in the country—though it is perhaps better known for being the school of George H.W., George W., and Jeb Bush. Stay
