Same-Sex Marriage Update

[MsTinkerbelly]

Originally Posted by MissItalianDiva

This is from 2010

Just saw this...lol

A lot of people see the old stuff and get excited...maybe soon, right?

[Nat]

Back to back prop 8 hearings to be broadcast starting at 230 pm pacific (430 central, 530 eastern) online

[MsTinkerbelly]

Originally Posted by Nat

Back to back prop 8 trials to be broadcast starting at 230 pm pacific (430 central, 530 eastern) online

If you check the date on the article, they were talking about the hearings that were going to happen yesterday. The courts heard arguments on both of the issues of releasing the Prop 8 Trial Tapes, and Judge Walker having heard the case (should his decision be thrown out?)while having a same-sex relationship himself.

The issue of whether or not Prop 8 should be thrown out as Judge Walker ruled; along with the other two issues from yesterday will be decided by the ninth circut court of appeals any time now.

Keep your fingers and toes crossed!

[MsTinkerbelly]

District court to hear oral arguments tomorrow in Golinski v. OPM
By Jacob Combs

Tomorrow, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California will hear oral arguments in a case brought by Lambda Legal on behalf of Karen Golinski, an employee of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals who attempted to have her wife, Amy Cunninghis, put on her government health insurance plan. Karen and Amy wed in California in August 2008, and when Golinski’s initial attempt to add her wife to the insurance plan was rejected, she filed an internal complaint with the 9th Circuit, which prohibits discrimination based on sex or sexual orientation.

9th Circuit Chief Justice Alex Kozinski held in 2009 that the court should reverse its earlier denial to Golinski, but the U.S. Office of Personnel Management instructed Blue Cross/Blue Shield to deny Golinski’s request. Kozinski ordered OPM to stop, but the office responded that under DOMA, it was prevented from extending health coverage to Golinski’s spouse.

Earlier this year, a district judge dismissed Golinski and Lamdba Legal’s claim ‘without prejudice’ (meaning it could be amended), saying the OPM’s obligations under DOMA trumped the 9th Circuit’s non-discrimination policy. The judge, however, did not address the merits of DOMA specifically, and noted that Golinski “ha[d] a clear right to relief.”

Golinski and Lambda then filed an amended suit challenging DOMA’s constitutionality. Since the U.S. Department of Justice is no longer defending DOMA in court, the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG) intervened in the lawsuit. Tomorrow’s hearing will address both BLAG’s request to dismiss the suit, and Golinski’s request for a summary judgment that DOMA is unconstitutional

[MsTinkerbelly]

Love Honor Cherish starts process for 2012 ballot repeal of Prop 8
By Jacob Combs

As the San Jose Mercury News reports, the Los Angeles-based marriage equality organization Love Honor Cherish received clearance yesterday to begin gathering signatures in an effort to place a repeal of Proposition 8, which banned gay marriage in California, on the 2012 ballot. The organization will have to collect 807,615 signatures by May 14 in order to qualify.

Earlier this fall, Equality California, another marriage equality organization, announced in an email to members that it would not be seeking to place Prop 8 back on the ballot in 2012. EQCA cited the fact that public support for marriage equality in California has not significantly increased since the 2008 election and the difficulty of mounting a repeal campaign in a tough economy. At $83 million, the Prop 8 battle was the most expensive political race regarding a social issue in the history of the U.S.

Love Honor Cherish’s decision underscores the disagreement in the California LGBT community (which many have spoken quite convincingly about in the comments here on P8TT) surrounding the best options for bringing marriage equality back to the state. While a win at the ballot would certainly be one of the quickest ways to repeal Prop 8, a loss could be costly both financially and emotionally. When EQCA decided not to seek Prop 8 repeal in 2012, it cited the ongoing Perry v. Brown trial as a slower but more definitive win for marriage equality in the Golden State that would set an important legal precedent protecting the rights of LGBT couples.


**Me** I will be back later to post where those in California can sign up to pass petitions...I personally hope that the courts make the decision to throw out Prop 8 before the people of California have a chance to vote on it again.

[iamkeri1]

I want it both ways!!!
Smooches
Keri

[MsTinkerbelly]

Michigan Bans Partner Benefits

Michigan's GOP Gov. Rick Snyder has signed a bill that bans all state agencies from offering domestic partner benefits.
"The decision to take healthcare benefits away from families just in time for the holidays is mean-spirited and cruel. Governor Snyder had an opportunity to show real leadership and put an end to the political games; instead he approved an extreme policy that sets our state back, jeopardizes our economy and puts our families at risk," said Kary Moss, executive director of the Michigan ACLU. "The bill serves no other purpose than to single out a small minority of people and deprive them of critical protections as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. We are prepared to challenge this law on behalf of Michigan families in the coming weeks."
Michigan now faces a mass exodus at its state universities, where educators and administrators had threatened to resign if the bill became law. Analysts are divided as to whether the new law applies to the education system