“As many LGBT individuals know, for a time, the most closely held secret we have is our sexuality. Several nights ago, I texted a close and dear friend for advice on revealing such sensitive personal information. The next morning, I woke up to a ‘sponsored story’ on my Facebook page that asked ‘Coming Out? Need help?’ How did Facebook know such a specific ad would apply to my profile?”
You can say, ‘I believe my principles so much, I’m kicking you out.’ You can say, ‘I still believe in my principles, but I love you.’ Or you can say, ‘Gee, I love you so much, I am changing my principles.’ Rob picked the third path. That’s his prerogative.Newt Gingrich • Discussing Sen. Rob Portman’s decision to come out in support of gay marriage as a result of his relationship with his son, Will. Portman’s decision drew strong support from younger conservatives, but among older ones, it might be a tougher sell — just 30 percent of Republicans between 18 and 29 oppose gay marriage, while 68 percent of Republicans between 50 to 64 remain opposed. (In both cases, the total has gone down significantly in the past nine years.)
In what could be a huge step for NYC, current City Council speaker Christine Quinn has officially dropped her hat into the ring to become the potential successor to Michael Bloomberg. This is a big deal—if she wins, she would be both the first female mayor of the city, along with the first openly-gay NYC mayor. Here’s her introductory video.
See our full slideshow on changing attitudes towards gay marriage.
In 2001, Americans opposed same-sex marriage by a 57% to 35% margin.
Today, there is slightly more support for same-sex marriage than opposition to it, with 48% in favor and 43% opposed.
Pretty straightforward.
Interesting to see the opposition spike temporarily in 2004 and 2009, the two times over the last decade that same-sex marriage was most politicized, foremost as a wedge issue in the Bush re-election campaign, and subsequently in the aftermath of California’s approval of Proposition 8.
MSNBC’s Chris Hayes received an odd and very notable distinction last week, as announced on the air by his colleague Rachel Maddow — he was invited to attend this year’s CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference), and appear on a panel called “Washington CSI,” a retrospective analysis of the bygone 2012 election season. This is, needless to say, not the kind of invite liberal TV hosts get too often, and Hayes’ views are in more radical discord with modern conservatism than most. He could have shared the stage with such luminaries as Michael Barone and Ralph Reed, and by his account was enthused to attend, until he remembered a crucial fact about the conference — they barred GOPROUD from sponsorship last year, as social conservatives took a dim view of the intersection of conservative politics and gay rights. So, he told them he’d only attend if GOPROUD was brought into the fold as well. That CPAC wholly excised Hayes’ invitation from their updated schedule today is suggestive of how they felt about his bargain. (We’re having some troubles with the video embed at present, sincerest apologies. You can view Hayes’ full explanation here.)
obitoftheday asks: I consider myself pretty up on politics, social issues, and pop culture...but for the love of all that is holy, who is that woman in the DOMA post? (I know you reblogged but you all seem like smart folks who have all the answers.)
» SFB says: Why, that’s Edith Windsor, the woman who brought the case on DOMA—the one that could see DOMA overturned for good. As it turns out, Chris Geidner, the guy I reblogged (and one of the best journalists in the country on LGBT issues), wrote a really great profile of her a while back. It’s a must-read. — Ernie @ SFB
Obama Administration Urges Supreme Court To Strike Down DOMA
The Obama administration urged the Supreme Court to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act’s prohibition on recognition of same-sex couples’ marriages in a Friday filing, arguing that laws that target gay people should face additional scrutiny by courts reviewing them.
Under such heightened scrutiny, as it is called, Solicitor General Donald Verrilli says that Section 3 of DOMA, which defines “spouse” and “marriage” under federal law as only those marriages between one man and one woman, is unconstitutional.
This paragraph in the brief is a part of history:
“BLAG makes an appeal to this Court to allow the democratic process to run its course. That approach would be very well taken in most circumstances. This is, however, the rare case in which deference to the democratic process must give way to the fundamental constitutional command of equal treatment under law. Section 3 of DOMA targets the many gay and lesbian people legally married under state law for a harsh form of discrimination that bears no relation to their ability to contribute to society. It is abundantly clear that this discrimination does not substantially advance an interest in protecting marriage, or any other important interest. The statute simply cannot be reconciled with the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection. The Constitution therefore requires that Section 3 be invalidated.”
There you go, guys. Obama’s White House has called out DOMA and wants to see it struck down. Huge story.
Obama Weighs Stepping In On Gay Marriage Case
Facing heightened expectations from gay rights supporters, the Obama administration is considering urging the Supreme Court to overturn California’s ban on gay marriage - a move that could have a far-reaching impact on same-sex couples across the country.
The administration has one week to file a friend-of-the-court brief with the justices outlining its opinion on the California ban, known as Proposition 8. While an administration brief alone is unlikely to sway the high court, the government’s opinion does carry weight with the justices.
Opponents of the Proposition 8 ban believe the president signaled his intention to file a brief when he declared in last month’s inaugural address that gays and lesbians must be “treated like anyone else under the law.” An administration official said Obama - a former constitutional law professor - was not foreshadowing any legal action in his remarks and was simply restating his personal belief in the right of gays and lesbians to marry, though the official said the administration was considering filing a brief.
The Proposition 8 ballot initiative was approved by California voters in 2008 in response to a state Supreme Court decision that had allowed gay marriage. Twenty-nine other states have constitutional amendments banning gay marriage, while nine states and Washington, D.C., recognize same-sex marriage.
Photo Credit: (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)
If he were to step in on this, would it help or harm the case in front of the Supreme Court?
AP: In a pre-Super Bowl interview on CBS, US President Barack Obama said the Boy Scouts of America should open its membership to gays and lesbians when its national executive board discusses the issue this week.
During the interview, Obama praised the scouts as a ‘great institution’ that provides young people with lifelong leadership training and opportunities. He said “no one should be barred from that.”
What direction do you think the Scouts will ultimately go?
The 4 B’s Of The Super Bowl: Brendon Ayanbadejo is just one of the many reasons to watch on Sunday.
Yahoo wants to buy Hulu now too. They’re going on an “I...
I’m moving back to New York in a few days. Unlike past...
OMG. I got so...
In this week’s Newsweek, a little...
Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
#@#$%!.tumblr.com
Here’s a hidden feature that shipped in...
I don’t do the gay guys man. I don’t do that. No, we don’t got no gay people on the team, they gotta get up out of here if they do. Can’t be with that sweet stuff. Nah…can’t be…in the locker room man. Nah.San Francisco 49ers cornerback Chris Culliver • Fanning the flames of controversy by saying gay players would not be welcome on the team. Culliver made the comments to comic and radio host Artie Lange. The 49ers released a statement denouncing the player’s comments: ”The San Francisco 49ers reject the comments that were made [Tuesday], and have addressed the matter with Chris,” they said. “There is no place for discrimination within our organization at any level. We have and always will proudly support the LGBT community.”
Left this for my parents.
This is making the rounds online today, and it’s awesome. We’re glad to hear Laurel’s family was completely accepting of her announcement too.
The Boy Scouts of America, one of the nation’s largest private youth organizations, is actively considering an end to its decades-long policy of banning gay scouts or scout leaders, according to scouting officials and outsiders familiar with internal discussions.
If adopted by the organization’s board of directors, it would represent a profound change on an issue that has been highly controversial — one that even went to the US Supreme Court. The new policy, now under discussion, would eliminate the ban from the national organization’s rules, leaving local sponsoring organizations free to decide for themselves whether to admit gay scouts.
The policy has been officially recognized since 1980, though we suspect it was quietly enforced for a much longer period in some areas. Thoughts?
The lower house of the Russian Parliament on Friday overwhelmingly approved a measure to ban “gay propaganda” in the country. The bill must be approved two more times and signed by the president before it becomes law, but it has been widely endorsed and its momentum is discouraging.
“We are deeply concerned by this draft legislation,” said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, according to the AFP. “You know how strongly we feel about LGBT rights around the world, how strongly the secretary of state personally feels that nobody should be discriminated against for who they love.”
The so-called gay propaganda bill is a national version of one that has already been adopted by the city of St. Petersburg. Members of the State Duma voted 388 to 1 in favor of the bill, with one abstention, the Associated Press reports. The legislation must go through two more approvals and be signed by President Vladimir Putin in order to become law. Language in the bill denounces “mass media and public events that propagate homosexuality as normal behavior” and says minors cannot think critically and objectively about such information.
Oh boy. We’re in for a fight with this one.
Bad news. Read up on this, all.
Copyright 2009-2013 Ernie Smith • Ask us stuff! • E-mail us • Follow us on Twitter • Follow us on Facebook
