same-sex

Justices to Hear Woman’s DOMA Challenge (The National Law Journal)

by Viviane on 12/11/2024

in legal

WASHINGTON – Opening the door to a potentially historic step in the nation’s gay rights movement, the U.S. Supreme Court on Dec. 10 agreed to decide two constitutional challenges involving same-sex ?marriage.

The justices will review a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit holding unconstitutional a section of the Defense of Marriage Act that defines marriage, for federal government purposes, as exclusively a union between one man and one woman (NYLJ, Oct. 19).

The challenge to DOMA was brought by Edith Windsor, an 83-year-old New Yorker who was forced to pay more than $363,000 in federal estate taxes after the death of Thea Seyer, whom she had married in Canada.

Windsor would not have had to pay any estate taxes if their marriage had been treated the same way as heterosexual couples.

The news was welcomed by lawyers for Windsor who successfully argued her case, first before Southern District Judge Barbara Jones (See Profile) and then before the Second Circuit: Roberta Kaplan of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison and James Esseks of the American Civil Liberties Union.

Kaplan, who will argue Windsor’s case at the Supreme Court in March—her first argument before the high court—said her client was “clearly thrilled.”

“She’s had a long fight,” said Kaplan. “She’s been fighting for this for over half a lifetime” of “living with discrimination.”

Read full story: http://bit.ly/T53Vrc

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Federal judge strikes down California’s ban on same-sex marriage (MercuryNews.com)

by Viviane on 08/04/2024

in gay marriage

By Howard Mintz

Posted: 08/04/2010 01:51:23 PM PDT
Updated: 08/04/2010 02:03:12 PM PDT

A San Francisco federal judge today struck down California’s ban on same-sex marriage, concluding that it tramples on the equal rights of gay and lesbian couples and setting the stage for an appeal that appears destined for the U.S. Supreme Court.

In a 136-page ruling, Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker sided with two same-sex couples who challenged voter-approved Proposition 8, which embedded a ban on gay marriage in the California constitution and wiped out a prior California Supreme Court ruling that briefly legalized same-sex nuptials across the state. Walker ordered that Proposition 8 should be immediately voided, and same-sex couples be given the chance marry across California.

“Moral disapproval alone is an improper basis on which to deny rights to gay men and lesbians,” the judge wrote. “The evidence shows conclusively that Proposition 8 enacts, without reason, a private moral view that same-sex couples are inferior to opposite sex couples.

Prop. 8 defenders have already vowed to ask an appeals court to immediately stay Walker’s order.

Link

  • Perry v. Schwarzenegger – C09-2292 VRW (Challenge to Proposition 8) (U.S. Dist. Ct, Northern Dist.)
  • PDF of decision (Good as You)

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Bookmarks

by Viviane on 05/04/2024

in del.icio.us, sex

  • Newark archbishop questions plan for Seton Hall University gay marriage class | – NJ.com – The course is scheduled to begin next fall for upperclassmen in any major on the South Orange campus, university officials said. It is designed to explore the controversial issue without advocating for either side.
  • Chimpanzees Use Tools to Help Their Sex Lives – NYTimes.com – Leaf-clipping, meanwhile, has remained a local fetish among chimpanzees. The sexual strategy has been spotted at a colony in Tanzania but not in most other groups. There has been nothing comparable to the evolution observed in distributors of human sex tools: from XXX stores to chains of cutely named boutiques (Pleasure Chest, Good Vibrations) to mass merchants like CVS and Wal-Mart.
  • State’s Highest Court Unanimously Recognizes that Non-Biological Mother in Lesbian Couple is Parent | New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) – American Civil Liberties Union of New York State – In its ruling today, the court unanimously held that because Debra would be considered a parent under Vermont law, where the couple entered into a civil union, she should be considered a parent under New York Law as well.
  • Matchmaking Site Brings Romance to British University Libraries – Wired Campus – The Chronicle of Higher Education – The site, Fitfinder, allows students to post messages broadcasting their attraction to others they've spotted in the stacks.
  • Duncan Charles Designs to Back Chilldils « Chilldil – Chilldils Sex Toy Sleeves are pleased to announce that they have been approached with an offer from Duncan Charles Designs, which they have happily accepted.
  • Facebook Users Like Sex | Mashable – As the chart below depicts, Facebook users are extremely fascinated with sex, as sex links are 90% more likely to be shared than other types of content. Links that are positive in nature and/or related to learning rank second and third in terms of shares, respectively.
  • Amy Jo Goddard | CarnalNation – Abby Ehmann's profile of Amy Jo Goddard and her Women's Sexuality Empowerment Apprenticeship workshop.

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Bookmarks for January 28th

by Viviane on 01/28/2024

in del.icio.us, sex

  • China’s latest scandal is counterfeit condoms – latimes.com – Health officials warn that inferior contraceptives can spread the diseases they are supposed to protect against. Some of the brand-name knockoffs have reached the U.S.
  • La Figa » Trans Speaker Receives Threat Over Appearance at Yale “Sex Week” – The threat, received through Angel’s Facebook account via a sock puppet, was relayed to Yale, and organizers have arranged 24 hour security for the transman porn actor.
  • Courting Attention: Covering Calif.’s Marriage Trial : NPR – In California, lawyers are two weeks into a landmark federal court case challenging California’s Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage in that state.Margaret Talbot has been blogging about the trial for The New Yorker’s Web site, and she has written about it in this week’s issue of the magazine.
  • The 4 Big Myths of Profile Pictures « OkTrends – In looking closely at the astonishingly wide variety of ways our users have chosen to represent themselves, we discovered much of the collective wisdom about profile pictures was wrong.

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California high court upholds gay marriage ban (AP)

by Viviane on 05/26/2024

in marriage

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The California Supreme Court upheld a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage Tuesday, but it also decided that the estimated 18,000 gay couples who tied the knot before the law took effect will stay wed.

Demonstrators outside the court yelled “shame on you!” Gay rights activists immediately promised to resume their fight, saying they would go back to voters as early as next year in a bid to repeal the ban.

The 6-1 decision written by Chief Justice Ron George rejected an argument by gay rights activists that the ban revised the California Constitution’s equal protection clause to such a dramatic degree that it first needed the Legislature’s approval.

The court said the Californians have a right, through the ballot box, to change their constitution.

“In a sense, petitioners’ and the attorney general’s complaint is that it is just too easy to amend the California Constitution through the initiative process. But it is not a proper function of this court to curtail that process; we are constitutionally bound to uphold it,” the ruling said.

The justices said the 136-page majority ruling does not speak to whether they agree with the voter-approved Proposition 8 or “believe it should be a part of the California Constitution.”

They said they were “limited to interpreting and applying the principles and rules embodied in the California Constitution, setting aside our own personal beliefs and values.”

Link

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