LGBTQ news and entertainment
Nearly two-thirds of registered voters in New Jersey approve of a decision by a Superior Court judge to legalize same-sex marriage in the state, according to a Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll released today.
The poll found that of the 702 registered voters questioned, 62 percent agreed with Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson’s Sept. 27 decision to allow same-sex couples to get married on the ground that the current state law was a violation of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
US Weekly is reporting that T.R. Knight is officially off the market!
The former Dr. O’Malley married his boyfriend of three years, Patrick, in a quiet ceremony in New York City over the weekend! And Katherine Heigl was there
The pair said “I do” on Friday, Oct. 4 in an intimate ceremony in front of family and friends.
“It [was] very small and quiet,” an insider revealed to US Weekly. Knight’s former ABC costars and friends Katherine Heigl and Kate Walsh flew in for the ceremony, the source says.
Congrats to the happy couple!
Anti-gay politicians are pushing back against recent high-profile victories for equality, but they’re just delaying the inevitable.
Lawsuits progress in some more conservative states.
Plus more good news in state and national surveys:
• 57% of Nevadans support repeal of same-sex marriage ban
• 55% of Americans support marriage equality
It’s been three and a half years since anti-marriage equality folks saw any poll with their side over 50%.
The trend is clear, kids.
Forward.
After “It Could Happen to You,” a YouTube video made by Shane Bitney Crone in response to the accidental death of his boyfriend Tom Bridegroom became a viral sensation (more than 4.1 million views), the story was turned into an award winning film.
On October 27, Bridegroom, a crowd-funded documentary directed by Linda Bloodworth Thomason which broke Kickstarter records , will have its TV premiere on Oprah’s OWN network. It showed earlier this year at the Tribeca Film Festival winning the Audience Award for Best Documentary.
Bridgeroom will be part of a special night of programming on OWN about being gay in America that will include an Oprah’s Next Chapter interview segment with Wanda Sykes, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Scandal’s Dan Bucatinsky.
(via Towleroad)
We all remember the above image of Marine Sgt. Brandon Morgan returning from Afghanistan to Hawaii and jumping into partner Dalan Wells’ arms for a kiss seen around the world.
Yesterday, Brandon and Dalan got married in a small ceremony in the western region of New York.
Congratulations to the happy couple!
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| State lawmakers Brian Sims and Steve McCarter introduce marriage equality legislation for Pennsylvania |
A new Franklin & Marshall College poll shows that 54 percent of Pennsylvania residents support marriage equality, up 2 points from a similar poll in February.
The results come the same day that state lawmakers Brian Sims and Steve McCarter introduced marriage equality legislation.
Looks like a winning situation for me, kids…
Forward.
Pennsylvania governor Tom Corbett said that marriage for gay and lesbian couples could be compared to marriages between brothers and sisters on Friday.
Corbett made the remark on Harrisburg’s CBS News affiliate, after the reporter brought up a statement made in August by one of his attorneys, who said allowing same-sex couples to marry was legally similar to allowing 12-year-olds get married.
“It was an inappropriate analogy, you know,” Corbett said. “I think a much better analogy would have been brother and sister, don’t you?” You can see the comment below. Note that the governor smiles and then laughs at his own comment. Note the reporter’s uncomfortable pause.
According to USA Today, the Republican has one of the lowest approval ratings for a sitting governor. He is up for re-election for 2014.
UPDATE: The governor, in backtrack mode, has issued an “apology” to anyone who might have been offended.
(via Advocate)
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| PA state Rep. Brian Sims introduces Pennsylvania Marriage Equality Act |
Out gay state representative Brian Sims and fellow representative Steve McCarter today announced the introduction of H.B. 1686, the Pennsylvania Marriage Equality Act. The announcement was made at Love Park in Philadelphia:
“The majority of Pennsylvanians now support marriage equality, and that support continues to grow,” Sims said. “Neighboring states, including New York, Maryland and Delaware, have all decided to be on the right side of history and have granted equal rights to their LGBT citizens. The time has come for Pennsylvania’s legislature to stand up and let our citizens know we see them as truly equal members of society and they have the right to choose whom they marry.
“With the Supreme Court ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act, it became apparent that Pennsylvania cannot continue to be stuck in the past. This is a civil rights issue facing our LGBT community. Furthermore, this issue is holding back Pennsylvania’s economy. People and businesses are seeing states that have true marriage equality as more attractive to them, and they’re spending their money in those states. This lack of equality is holding us back. Where are we at in our government where you lose rights by crossing a border?”
Read the full transcript of statements by McCarter and Sims at Towleroad .
And watch video coverage below:
Last year’s “New Jersey Mayor of the Year” – David DelVecchio of Lambertville – promised today to perform the state’s first same-sex marriage if the current ruling on marriage equality stands:
DelVecchio, a Democrat, said he will perform the state’s first legal gay marriage ceremony for Beth Asaro and Joanne Schailey at midnight three weeks from today, as long as a judge doesn’t grant a stay of the Sept. 27 ruling.
Lambertville, across the Delaware River from New Hope, Pennsylvania, has a large gay population. “This is just a continuation of the first civil union,” DelVecchio, 56, said today in an interview. “If a stay is not granted on the 21st, we’re going to move forward with this.”
Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson ruled last week in Trenton that she “will order the state to permit any and all same-sex marriages.” Unless the ruling is blocked, it would take effect Oct. 21, making New Jersey the 14th state to allow gay marriages along with the District of Columbia.