Tag: gay marriage

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Fantasia Barrino says anti-gay Instagram “taken out of context”

Former American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino says her words were taken out of context by LGBT bloggers who called out a rambling message she posted on Instagram that appeared to condemn marriage equality.

The message, which appears to now have been deleted, stated: “I Rise ABOVE IT ALL!!! THE WORLD IS GONE MAD. KIDS, THE GOVERNMENT, THE church House… Everybody Trying!!!!!!! Its a lot that going on that the Bible speaks about we should Not be doing. Weed legal in some places, Gay Marriage Legal BUT YET IM JUDGED!! Im not doing Nothing for you… My Life!!!!”

Barrino said in a new post that bloggers and the public misinterpreted her comments, which she said were intended to condemn judgment in general.

“It has been brought to my attention that something I said was taken out of context,” she wrote. “I Fantasia Monique Barrino don’t judge anyone because I don’t want to be judged. The gay community is one of my largest supporters. I support the gay community as well as they support me. Bloggers please stop misrepresenting the facts.”

Fantasia’s PR team says the singer’s comment about marriage equality being an example of a world gone mad were “taken far out of context“:

Comments made by Ms. Barrino through her Intragram account were recently taken far out of context, and the purpose of this release is to set the record straight. Ms. Barrino is not now, nor has she ever been an opponent of the LGBT community. She has supported and performed at numerous events that are sponsored by the LGBT community.
Whether it’s through a live performance or placement on social media, Ms. Barrino uses every opportunity to reach out and connect with her fans, all of her fans.

Not sure about you – and I appreciate Ms. Barrino’s talent – but how “out of context” can “a lot that going on that the Bible speaks about we should Not be doing. Weed legal in some places, Gay Marriage” be?  Pretty clear she thinks gay marriage we should not be “doing.”

Sounds more like a lot of damage control to me.

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President Obama supports same-sex marriage in Illinois

President Obama has weighed in on the possible marriage equality bill that may come to a vote in Illinois this January:

“While the president does not weigh in on every measure being considered by state legislatures, he believes in treating everyone fairly and equally, with dignity and respect,” White House spokesman Shin Inouye told the Chicago Sun-Times on Saturday.

“As he has said, his personal view is that it’s wrong to prevent couples who are in loving, committed relationships, and want to marry, from doing so. Were the President still in the Illinois State Legislature, he would support this measure that would treat all Illinois couples equally.” Inouye said.

State Sen. Heather Steans (D-Chicago) and state Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago) are the lead sponsors of the “Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act.” They intend to put the measure up for a vote during the upcoming January lame-duck session.

Democrats control both houses of the state legislature and Gov. Quinn says he’ll sign the bill if it hits his desk.  Fingers crossed…

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Maine: Same-sex marriage begins!

The first five same-sex couples who arrived to get marriage certificates walk up the steps of Portland City Hall (Maine) on Friday, December 28, 2012.

They begin to get officially married tomorrow, Saturday the 29th!

Update: First couple to get married under new marriage equality law – “We finally feel equal and happy to live in Maine,” Steven Bridges told the Bangor Daily News after marrying Michael Snell. Same-sex couples can now marry in Maine.

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Majority in Great Britain support marriage equality

According to a poll conducted for The Guardian, 62% of Britain’s voting public endorses Prime Minister David Cameron’s plan for marriage equality:

The ICM poll conducted just before Christmas found 62% of voters now support the proposals, with half this number – 31% – opposed. Most previous polls have found opinion leaning the same way, although the two-to-one margin revealed on Wednesday is particularly emphatic. An ICM online survey for the Sunday Telegraph in March asked the identical question – which expressly reminds people that the option of civil partnerships already exists for gay couples – and established a 45%-36% lead for the reformers.

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Uruguay marriage equality Senate bill vote postponed

Uruguay’s Senate was expected to vote on and pass its marriage equality bill today. Opponents of the bill slowed that progress down a bit.

Via On Top Magazine:

The “Marriage Equality Law” seeks to modify some 20 articles of the Civil Code, including whose surname goes first when children are named.

Opponents asked for the bill’s vote to be postponed until the Senate’s first meeting in April to allow more time to study the proposal. The request received unanimous approval.

The bill has already received an initial nod in the Senate and it cleared the nation’s lower house earlier this month.

President Jose Mujica has said he’ll sign the bill into law. Uruguay currently recognizes gay couples with civil unions. After a couple has lived in a “stable relationship” for 5 years, they may petition the government for the recognition.

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Marriage equality makes list of “Top Legal Quotes of 2012”

The Advocate points to a recent list of the top legal quotes of 2012 compiled by the editors of the National Law Journal which includes this line from the 9th Circuit Court’s decision to invalidate Proposition 8: 

“Had Marilyn Monroe’s film been called How to Register a Domestic Partnership with a Millionaire, it would not have conveyed the same meaning,” the decision read. 
The case in question, Perry v. Hollingsworth, challenging the constitutionality of California’s voter-approved ban on marriage equality, will soon be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Marriage equality comes to São Paulo State in Brazil

This week in Brazil, São Paulo State gave the green light to same-sex marriages.

Brazilian Law Blog reports:

Brazil is about to see something that we only heard about from the United States: a massive movement of people going to one specific State, in order to get married there. This is because São Paulo State (where São Paulo city is located) has updated its registration rules in order to allow the automatic registration of same sex marriages, without the need of a previous court order. This change has followed, with some delay, a decision from the Brazilian Supreme Court regarding same sex marriage.

The state of Sao Paulo has 41 million residents! The city of Sao Paulo is the largest in the southern hemisphere.

(via JMG)

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Henry Rollins on marriage equality

In a post called “Gay Marriage is Punk Rock” at LA Weekly, former Black Flag frontman and perennial ally Henry Rollins celebrates marriage equality in Washington State and wonders when we’ll finally be able to just call same-sex nuptials what they are: “marriage,” no prefix, no suffix, no “othering.”

“Hats off to Washington state where, recently, hundreds of same-sex couples were legally married. I am elated as much as I am frustrated by why this country refuses to wake up and smell the 14th Amendment of the Constitution. I feel for everyone who wanted to get married for so long and were made to feel so bad about who they are. I feel worse for all the Americans in the large number of remaining states still waiting for their turn to enjoy the freedoms and protections bestowed upon them by their very citizenship.

“There is still a long way to go. Marriage equality is a term so ridiculous on its face that when you hear it mentioned, you would think you were in Riyadh. Years from now, perhaps we can lose the equality part, the same-sex part and call it what it is — marriage. As much as the homophobes, an ever-thinning herd, whines and screeches, the earth is shifting underneath their feet and things are getting better all the time. This is going to be an incredible century. Didn’t get off to a very good start but we are making some bold and exciting strides forward.” – Henry Rollins, writing for LA Weekly.