Respect for Marriage Act — An Announcement Whose Time Has Come

There’s very exciting news on the marriage equality front! Yesterday, a group of Congressmen and Congresswomen announced the launch of the Respect for Marriage Act — a piece of legislation that would overturn the Defense of Marriage Act, and take a significant step in acheiving marriage equality.

In a press release issued by Freedom to Marry, bill co-sponsor Jerry Nadler (D-NY) is quoted as saying, “When DOMA was passed in 1996, its full harm may not have been apparent to all Members of Congress because same-sex couples were not yet able to marry. It was a so-called ‘defense’ against a hypothetical harm. This made it easy for our opponents to demonize gay and lesbian families.

By repealing the outmoded Defense of Marriage Act, and replacing it with the Respect for Marriage Act, we’ll begin to honor and support all couples who pledge to honor and support one another as they work to raise families, hold jobs, and contribute to their communities.

The proposed legislation is an opportunity to re-engage in the fight for marriage equality, as it opens the door to public discourse on marriage equality, and builds upon the momentum we’ve been gaining with same-sex marriage triumphs throughout the year.

If you’d like more info on the bill, the Freedom to Marry site has an excellent page, including a link to the HRC’s Repeal DOMA page, which will allow you to send a message to President Obama and your Congressional representatives.

Please spread the word: We have a great opportunity to make progress toward equality in marriage.

Domestic Partner Benefits: A Critical Part of Our Fight

You may have run across yesterday’s news accounts, such as this one in the Washington Post, about President Obama’s decision to award some domestic partner benefits to federal employees. You also may have read accounts, such as this Reuters release of a Politico story, that detail continued criticisms of Obama for not doing more to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act.

Here in Texas, we’ve been working on this issue with a coalition of state university workers who want to secure domestic partner benefits for university employees. The term accurately describing what we’re seeking is “competitive insurance benefits.” In other words, if we don’t secure the same sorts of insurance benefits that more progressive university systems have arrived at, we risk losing talented LGBT members of university faculties and staffs to schools in other states.

President Obama, to be fair, is attempting to address the concerns that LGBT federal employees. Because health care is tied so closely to employment in our current system, LGBT workers with families to support must factor in employers’ views on health care for domestic partners when looking for work or deciding to stay with a particular employer. Married couples don’t have to take those same sort of factors into account, because federal law protects them. Under the current system — a system with includes the Defense of Marriage Act and its limitations on same-sex partners, even those who are legally married in the handful of states currently allowing and recognizing those marriages — there is a separate and unequal system in place that ultimately impacts many families. Certainly, that double standard is as unacceptable as any other form of discrimination — be it based on gender, race, or sexual orientation.

Supreme Court Challenge to Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Denied, and What it Means

You may have heard the news yesterday that the Supreme Court has turned down a challenge to the U.S. military’s troubling Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. This excellent Washington Post article analyzes the possible politics behind the move. While the article hints that President Obama may eventually replace the policy with a policy that would be more fair to our LGBT military personnel, that change now seems farther away than we’d like it to be.

Here are some talking points worth sharing, should you find yourself in a debate about Don’t Ask Don’t Tell:

* A July 2008 poll by The Washington Post/ABC News found that 75 percent of Americans favor allowing gays to serve openly in the military – up from just 44 percent in 1993.
* The poll found 64 percent of Republicans in favor of repeal. A 2006 Zogby poll found that 73 percent of military personnel are comfortable with lesbians and gays.
* The military has discharged almost 800 mission-critical troops — and at least 59 Arabic and nine Farsi linguists — under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell in the last five years.
* Most allied forces working alongside U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq allow individuals to serve openly regardless of sexual orientation. Studies of the militaries of Australia, Israel, Great Britain and Canada have shown open service to have no effect on enrollment or retention.
* The total number of countries allowing openly gay service is 26. The US and Turkey are the only two original NATO countries that still have bans in place.

In this critical moment in history, with the United States engaged in two wars, it’s imperative for the military to have the best and brightest personnel available. Sexual orientation shouldn’t figure into the equation, and yet our military maintains an antiquated set of standards to “deal with a problem” that a growing majority of military members don’t see as a problem.

We believe that LGBT military members should be allowed to be open about their sexual orientation without fear of being discharged. There’s currently proposed legislation — the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (MREA), proposed by Rep. Ellen Tauscher of California, and co-sponsored nearly 150 fellow members of Congress. We encourage you to write to your Representative, and Senators, as well as to President Obama, to urge passage of the MREA and a much-needed resolution to the inadequacy of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.

To echo the plea that Second Lieutenant Sandy Tsao, a member of our military who was dishonorably discharged after coming out to her superiors as gay, made to President Obama, “help us to win the war against prejudice so that future generations will continue to work together and fight for our freedoms regardless of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, or sexual orientation.”

A Victory in New Hampshire, and a Victory (Of Sorts) in Nevada

This just in! After a disappointing, recent hiccup in the conversation over same-sex marriage in New Hampshire, the state legislature has passed a bill that will legalize same-sex marriage and address the earlier concerns of Gov. John Lynch.

According to the article, Lynch “had promised a veto if the law didn’t clearly spell out that churches and religious groups would not be forced to officiate at gay marriages or provide other services.” The revised version of the bill has addressed those concerns, and once Lynch signs it later today, will make New Hampshire the sixth state allowing gay marriage.

There’s also mildly good news out of Nevada this week — you may have heard by now that Nevada has a new domestic partnership law, by a 2/3 majority, which was necessary in order to override the veto from Gov. Jim Gibbons.

According to the article, “The move makes Nevada the 17th state to recognize the relationships of gay men and lesbians, creating the registry with the secretary of state by which couples receive legal protections associated with marriage.”

While this is a step in the right direction, the new law doesn’t require employers to provide health benefits to domestic partners of employees — which, to us, is one of the most fundamental rights that comes with marriage.

However, as as this excellent Reno Gazette-Journal article details, this law clears the way for same-sex couples to legally adopt children, and even spells out child support requirements if the couple splits up.

Ultimately, though, even with its flaws, the Nevada law is a step in the right direction, and New Hampshire’s good news most certainly is.

Gay Marriage On Hold in New Hampshire

The latest news on same-sex marriage legalization in New Hampshire is disheartening — but as one supporter put it, merely a push of the pause button rather than the rewind button. As this news account details, a new version of the same-sex marriage bill — forwarded to satisfy concerns from Gov. John Lynch over protection for churches — failed by the slimmest of margins, 188-186. So while there’s hope that the House will reconvene on the issue and eventually deliver a bill that Lynch will sign into law, the issue is on hold for now.

Here, once again, is information on how to reach Gov. Lynch, to remind him of how many of us are invested in New Hampshire doing the right thing. And, since the decision is largely in the hands of the House, here’s how to reach out to Rep. Terie Norelli, the current New Hampshire Speaker of the House.

Let’s show them how many straight and LGBT alike want equality for all!

Gay Marriage: Progress In New York; New Setbacks In Maine

In case you missed it Tuesday night , the New York Assembly voted to approve same-sex marriage. Governor David Paterson has already endorsed the idea — the one stumbling block may be in the New York Senate, where Democrats hold a slight majority. In the meantime, this Newsday story describes a split in opinion on gay marriage, but the article also notes a swing toward same-sex marriage rights compared to last year, as well as a majority who favor civil unions.

Maine’s governor signed a bill on May 6 legalizing same-sex marriage,
but the law could be delayed or even voided by a possible statewide referendum if opponents to the bill gather enough support in coming weeks.

As more and more states approve gay marriage, we’re seeing a refreshing continuation in this year’s trend. We hope that this should embolden calls for similar measures across the nation. However, we must still be aware of the hurdles still existing on the path towards marriage equality. We must continue to show our support and work towards same-sex marriage!

And Now, We Have Five

A special shout out to Maine’s elected officials for recognizing marriage equality!

Maine now joins Iowa, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. Our favorite quote, thus far, is from Evan Wolfson, “Couples that have made a personal commitment in life deserve an equal commitment under the law—and in Maine, that’s called marriage.”
We do have to stay alert and keep our friends in Maine educated and mobilized. A November ballot, similar to that of Prop 8 (CA), will attempt to over turn today’s victory.

Next victory . . .New Hampshire!

Repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

Atticus Circle is proud to join Military Readiness Enhancement Act (MREA) Legislative Team (MLT) and SLDN in the fight to guarantee equality for all of our patriots and make our military more effective.

137 US Representatives are now cosponsors of MREA and that number continues to grow. That said, there is still much work to be done. We have a unique opportunity to get rid of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” once and for all. We must counter the voices of opposition that are beginning to publicly challenge us and continue to make our case that the time for repeal is now.

One of the most effective ways to do this is by scheduling in-district meetings with our members of Congress. That’s right, you don’t need to be in Washington, DC to meet face-to-face with your representatives and senators!

You can build a relationship with your members of Congress and explain to them why repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is so critical for their constituents.

Members of  Congress will be heading home for an extended Easter recess starting this weekend – so now is the perfect time to set up a meeting!

Never participated in an in-district meeting? Not to worry! We’ve prepared (and attached) all the materials you’ll need throughout the process.

. Scheduling an In-District Meeting – a how-to guide
. Meeting Request Letter – if the scheduler asks you to fax/e-mail a
meeting request
. A Guide to Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell – a short and sweet, yet
comprehensive, guide to DADT
. Lobbying Tips – tips to keep in mind during the meeting
. In-District Meeting Report 2009 – to provide us with feedback
after the meeting

We’ve also included a list of the current cosponsors of the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (H.R. 1283). If you see your representative on this list, you do not need to schedule a meeting with him/her – reach out to your senators instead!

We are particularly interested in the following states and members :

MAINE

Senators Collins and Snowe
ME-1 Chellie Pingree

MICHIGAN

MI-1 Bart Stupak
MI-4 Dave Camp
MI-5 Dale Kildee
MI-7 Mark Schauer
MI-9 Gary Peters

MISSOURI

Senator Bond
MO-8 Jo Ann Emerson
MO-9 Blaine Leutkemeyer

PENNSYLVANIA

Senator Specter
PA-3 Kathy Dahlkemper
PA-10 Chriis Carney
PA11 Paul Kanjorski
PA 12 John Murtha

VIRGINIA

VA-2 Glen Nye
VA-5 Tom Periello
VA11 Gerry Conolly

Progress is on the horizon, but it won’t come unless each and every one of us makes the case that the time for repeal is now.

HELPFUL DOWNLOADS:

A Guide to Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

Congressional Co-sponsors for HR 1283

Letter Template for Meeting Request

In-district Meeting Tips

In-District Meeting Report

Council approves Marriage in DC

More great news — this time from our nation’s capitol.

The District of Columbia Council voted unanimously in favor of legislation recognizing same-sex marriages from other states as marriage in the District.

“This is the march towards human rights and equality,” said Council member David A. Catania, at-large independent. “It is not the march toward special rights…and that march is coming here.”

Council members voted 12-0 in favor of an amendment to a bill introduced by Phil Mendelson, at-large Democrat. Members also approved separate legislation that recognizes relationships that are similar to domestic partnerships in the District and have all “the rights and responsibilities of marriage” in another jurisdiction.

Another provision in the legislation allows the mayor to certify relationships that fall short of marriage as domestic partnerships in the District.

(source Washington Times)

Victory in Vermont!

Vermont has become the fourth state in the Union to legalize gay marriage! This happened literally minutes ago, on the heels of Iowa’s decision last week to extend marriage rights to LGBT individuals.

It happened in somewhat dramatic fashion — as promised, Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas vetoed the bill after it passed both the Vermont House and Senate, and though the Senate easily overrode the veto by achieving a 2/3 majority, there was speculation the Vermont House could not reach that same 2/3 threshold. However, just moments ago, it did so with a 100-49 vote. If just one of those 100 House members hadn’t shown the courage to stand for LGBT rights, the veto would have carried, and LGBT individuals in Vermont would not have been granted the right to marry. Today, though, those 100 displayed courage and did the right thing, and we’ve doubled the number of states in the Union allowing gay marriage from this time last week.

Again, an incredible week, and a historic week. We’re obviously very, very happy for our friends in Iowa and now Vermont.