Tag: marriage equality

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Bi-national gay couples ask to come home for the holidays

Across the globe this year, binational LGBT couples are living in exile or living separated from one another because of discriminatory laws in the United States.

Despite being U.S. citizens, the American half of these couples is forced to choose between love and country.

Jesse, an American citizen from New York, and Max, his partner of more than 10 years who is a citizen of Argentina, are currently living in exile in London due to Jesse’s inability to sponsor Max for a green card because of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

Jesse, a born-and-bred New Yorker, has to live thousands of miles from his parents and sister year after year, missing every holiday and family celebration.

Jesse and Max are in a new holiday campaign from several LGBT organizations highlighting the inequality faced by binational LGBT couples.

However, this wrong could be solved tomorrow.

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano has the power to issue these couples “humanitarian parole,” bringing binational couples home for the holidays.

Please go to www.getequal.org/gethome to sign the petition asking Secretary Napolitano to bring Jesse, Max, and thousands of other exiled and separated couples home this holiday season!

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Marriage equality boosts gay men’s health, lowers stress

A new study suggests legalized same-sex marriage may provide gay men with more than just legal benefits.

For the study, published in the Dec. 15 issue of the American Journal of Public Health, researchers compared health records on 1,211 gay patients at a community health clinic in Massachusetts in the years before and after same-sex marriage was legalized in 2003.

In the year after same-sex marriage was legalized, gay and bisexual men were significantly less likely to visit the clinic for medical and mental health care. Gay men saw reductions in their hypertension, depression, and frequency of stress-related disorders called adjustment disorders, health records showed. These reductions contributed to a 13% drop in health care visits and 14% drop in health care costs.

Earlier studies have shown that laws preventing lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals from marriage may have a stressful impact on those populations.

“Marriage equality may produce broad public health benefits by reducing the occurrence of stress-related health conditions in gay and bisexual men,”study author Dr. Mark K. Hatzenbuehler, a researcher at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, said in a written statement. “This research makes important contributions to a growing body of evidence on the social, economic, and health benefits of marriage equality.”
(via CBS News)

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CA group has until May 14th to gather Prop 8 repeal signatures

A Los Angeles-based group called Love Honor Cherish has been cleared to collect the 807,615 voter signatures required to qualify its initiative for the November 2012 ballot, the secretary of state’s office said. The deadline for the petitions and signatures is May 14th.

The repeal initiative submitted by Love Honor Cherish would strike Proposition 8 and state instead “that marriage is between only two persons and shall not be restricted on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, or religion,” according to a summary prepared by the California Attorney General’s office. It also contains language stating that clergy would not be required to perform marriages that violate their religious beliefs, if the initiative passes.

Prop 8 was passed in 2008 with 52% approval five months after the California Supreme Court legalized marriage equality.

LGBT activists are awaiting a ruling from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on whether last year’s lower court decision that struck down Prop 8 will be upheld.

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New Hampshire veteran will not be voting for Mitt Romney

New Hampshire resident Bob Garon, speaking to reporters about his encounter with Mitt Romney. Garon added that he finds Romney to be untrustworthy. “You can see it in his eyes.”

“I was undecided. But I’m totally convinced today that he’s not going to be my president, at least in my book. At least Obama will entertain the idea. This man is ‘no way, Jose.’ Well, take that ‘no way, Jose’ back to Massachusetts. Because I’m gay, alright? And I happen to love a man just like you probably love your wife. Alright? And I think that he or she or whatever are entitled to the same rights that I have.

“I fought for my country, I did my thing, and I think that my spouse should be entitled to the same entitlements as if I was married to a woman. What the hell is the difference? I was definitely offended. He doesn’t even open the door to a conversation. It’s just a boom! But I did ask him ‘yes or no,’ so I got what I asked for.”

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Bigoted Troy mayor meets a gay family

After the dust up last week when it was discovered newly elected mayor of Troy, MI, used the word “queers” in a tweet disapproving of marriage equality in NY state, a lesbian married couple and their two daughters powerfully address the mayor Janice Daniels, at a city council meeting.

Good for the mother for taking a direct but not hateful approach to the issue.

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Michele Bachmann debates marriage equality with high school students

At an appearance in Waverly, IA, Michaele Bachmann set the stage for the following exchange with comments about “true tolerance” in the context of religious displays in school:

“I think we have really forgotten what true tolerance means,” Bachmann said. “True tolerance means allowing people to express themselves and their beliefs. There might be people in this room that have no faith at all. You’re welcome here. Everyone is welcome here. But that doesn’t that mean that we squelch people’s speech that have religious-based values either. And we need to allow people to speak.”

She then turned to Jane Schmidt, a Waverly High School student and president of the school’s Gay-Straight Alliance. Here’s their exchange in full:

JANE SCHMIDT: One of my main concerns is government support for the LGBT community. So my question is what would you do to protect GSAs in high school and support the LGBT community.

BACHMANN: Well, No. 1, all of us as Americans have the same rights. The same civil rights. And so that’s really what government’s role is, to protect our civil rights. There shouldn’t be any special rights or special set of criteria based upon people’s preferences. We all have the same civil rights.

JANE SCHMIDT: Then, why can’t same-sex couples get married?

BACHMANN: They can get married, but they abide by the same law as everyone else. They can marry a man if they’re a woman. Or they can marry a woman if they’re a man.

JANE SCHMIDT: Why can’t a man marry a man?

BACHMANN: Because that’s not the law of the land.

JANE SCHMIDT: So heterosexual couples have a privilege.

BACHMANN: No, they have the same opportunity under the law. There is no right to same-sex marriage.

JANE SCHMIDT: So you won’t support the LGBT community?

BACHMANN: No, I said that there are no special rights for people based upon your sex practices. There’s no special rights based upon what you do in your sex life. You’re an American citizen first and foremost and that’s it.

ELLA NEWELL, a junior at Waverly High School: Wouldn’t heterosexual couples, if they were given a privilege then, that gay couples aren’t, like given that privilege to get married, but heterosexual couples are given a privilege to get married?

BACHMANN: Remember every American citizen has the right to avail themselves to marriage but they have to follow what the laws are. And the laws are you marry a person of the opposite sex.

There. Got that? You might have to re-read it a few times to follow Ms. Bachmann.

Gays want “special privileges” while people like Ms. Bachmann follow the law of the land.

Even more reason why “the law of the land” needs to change.

Society evolves.

Forward.

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“It Gets Better” from the Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty

My first marriage ceremony with Michael was in Ontario,Canada, in the city of Toronto. And it was not only the emotional experience we thought it would be, but I’ll never forget the respect we were afforded.

We were married in Toronto shortly after marriage equality became a reality in Ontario in 2003. I was on tour with CHICAGO the Musical, and Michael had never been to Canada, so we planned that he would come visit during that time. With the new marriage law, I asked Michael to marry me thinking this might be the only time we would ever have a legal marriage ceremony and license. Even if it weren’t valid in the US, we would know we did “something” legal.

It was my job to get the marriage license forms from City Hall as Michael wasn’t in town yet. When I picked them up, no one blinked or acted in any way that seemed disrespectful. As a matter of fact, I was struck by – even at the early date in marriage equality’s existence in Canada – that no one even hinted at “you know, this is new for us.” The clerk at City Hall was warm and congratulated me on my upcoming ceremony.

We were married by Senior Justice Lauren Marshall in her chambers. The way things worked, you needed to find someone who could and would officiate the ceremony. Somehow I was led to Justice Marshall and I clearly remember how happy and supportive she was to be a part of our special day.

My second marriage in Palm Springs was just as wonderful. But I’ll always remember how people in another country treated Michael and I with such respect and support at a time when marriage equality was still so new.

And I’ll value how Canada was an early leader for the world in terms of marriage equality.