marriage equality

links for 2008-06-19

Continue Readinglinks for 2008-06-19

Same-Sex Marriage in California

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  • Post category:GLBT Issues

As of yesterday at 5:01 p.m., same-sex couples can get legally married in the state of California. (Yay!) One of the first in San Francisco city hall was the Marriage of Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin.

Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin
Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin

Phyllis and Del are pioneers of the feminist and gay rights movements and have been a couple since 1952. They are in essence, the spiritual grandmothers of all gay people.

Four years ago, when they were married in San Francisco by renegade mayor Gavin Newsom, who just decided to issue licenses because he got tired of saying no when he really wanted to say yes, I blogged about how happy it made me.

I couldn’t imagine being happier than then, but I have to say, I was on May 31st, and it’s quite awesome to see photos from California now. The San Francisco Gate has more great pictures of the events, and The Bilerico Project has a flickr photo pool of creative commons images of the California marriages going on; – check it out.

George Takei and Brad Altman
George Takei and Brad Altman
Cute Couple California Wedding
Cute Couple
Lines to get married
Lines to get married
George Takei and Brad Altman with wedding certificate
George Takei and Brad Altman with wedding certificate

That’s an interesting thing you never see in most wedding photos — people showing off their marriage certificate (except at Quaker weddings, where it’s a work of art that everyone attending the ceremony signs). But you see that in every same-sex marriage photo album.

Continue ReadingSame-Sex Marriage in California

Just Married

Stephanie and I got married on Saturday. I would have blogged about it at the time, but for some reason, I had big bundle of gladiolas in my arms and no access to a keyboard. (How’d that happen?) I picked gladiolas for my bouquet because they’re what my Grandma Mineart carried in her wedding, and I always adored the wedding photo of her carrying them that hung on the stairs at her home.

And when considering ways to make your stag do stand out, the right activity can set the tone for an unforgettable day. Bring together your mates for an experience filled with laughter, challenges, and camaraderie. Whether you’re a fan of group games or something entirely unique, this amazing option is sure to create memories to cherish for years to come.

Our Wedding

We got married in Great Oak Commons Park, which is a beautiful little neighborhood park a block away from our house in Old Northside neighborhood. The weather was beautiful. All of our family and friends were there. Dan was my best man, and Kathy was my bridesmaid. Stephanie’s friend Michelle was her maid of honor and her friend Veronica was her brides maid. Stephanie’s niece Raven was a junior Bridesmaid, and she looked after our ringbearer, Spike, who was in the wedding party with us. Our friends Joe and Douglas were ushers, and Jonathan twittered our vows as we said them. And we had tons of other help from our family and friends; we are very blessed.

Our Wedding

I couldn’t have been happier about how the day went. Stephanie was absolutely gorgeous, but I knew that already.

Our Wedding
Stephanie with her mom

I can’t begin to tell you how exciting it all was to be holding Stephanie’s hands and saying to her all kinds of crazy things about how wonderful she is, and how lucky I am to share her life.

These were our vows:
I, Steph, take you, Stephanie,
to be no other than yourself,
loving what I know of you,
trusting what I don’t yet know,
with respect for your integrity
and faith in your abiding love for me,
through all our years
and in all that life shall bring us.
I will honor your goals and dreams
and help you to fulfill them.
From my heart I will seek to be open and honest with you.
I say these things to you with the whole of my being.

If you follow us on Twitter, you probably saw those come across, with the help of our dear friend Jonathan.

Our Wedding
Steph and Stephanie with Steph's Brothers, Sisters-in-law and nieces

[ My Flickr Photoset of our Wedding ]

[ My Brother Scott’s photo album of the wedding. ]

Tonight we’re in Toronto, Canada, for our honeymoon. We’ll get married again in City Hall on June 4th to get our marriage license. Watch my Flickr Photo Stream for pictures of some of the fun we’re having. Well, not ALL of the fun. But some. 🙂
Photo Collection: Wedding and Honeymoon Photos

Continue ReadingJust Married

links for 2008-03-18

Continue Readinglinks for 2008-03-18

Election 2008

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  • Post category:Politics

Two things I discovered via bilerico.com…

This stirring music video of Obama’s post New Hampshire primary speech. I’m still not sure whether I’m voting for him or for Hillary, but either way, I’m going to be getting a more intelligent candidate than the utter imbecile in office now, so I’m happy either way.

On the other hand, long-time AIDS and GLBT activist Larry Kramer points out that there is no candidate today that truly supports GLBT people in America the way they should.

I cannot support any of the candidates thus far running for president because none of them supports me and my people in the ways we need to be supported. This is not just about gay marriage, which has become a nonspecific red herring for non-specific maybes. (Why do you hate us so that you will not permit us to legally love?) Of course we want gay marriage, but that is not all we want. We want safety. (We are the only people in America that it is socially and legally acceptable to hate and discriminate against.) We want no more taxation without representation. (When I die, our government gobbles such an unconscionable amount of my estate that my partner will no longer be able to afford the house we both have put so much of our money and energy into.) We want the approximately 2,000 benefits our government provides to heterosexual married couples. (Why don’t we get them? We pay the same taxes they do.) In other words, we want equality. We want everything straight people have and get and are entitled to. And there is not one candidate who has come anywhere near offering anywhere near any of this. In fact, I am afraid that there is not a one of them who, when push comes to shove, would not continue to sell us down the river. In fact, I have come to believe that forbidding us all of these things we are entitled to is based on hate, pure and simple. There are, by some estimates, 20 million of us. But we don’t make as much noise as our enemies do. In fact, we don’t make any noise at all. More fools we.

Continue ReadingElection 2008

marriage discrimination attached to Gov’s Property Tax Bill

Indiana Republican Foul play at work – because looked like SJR-7 the marriage discrimination bill that has failed to pass the Indiana House the last two years, might again fail, Representative Eric Turner, ranking Republican on the House Rules and Legislative Policy Committee, filed a amendment to House Joint Resolution No. 1 (HJR1) a proposed constitutional amendment concerning property taxes.

It’s expected that the Governor’s proposed property tax reform bill, a high-profile piece of legislation, will receive attention and scrutiny. Any threat to it or opposition from Democrats will surely make headlines. However, it’s worth noting that the amendment being discussed is unrelated to property taxes, but it’s being attached to the bill since it’s expected to be approved. This is relevant to homeowners looking for south dallas homes for sale, who may want to keep an eye on any developments in property tax reform.

Don Sherfick of Indiana Equality seems to think that the bill with get a full reading by the House as a result, where Gary Welsh thinks that it will effectively kill the property tax bill, laying the blame for it at the door of House Democrats.

Indiana Equality has a handy lookup form to look up your representatives to give them a call to protest this issue.

Continue Readingmarriage discrimination attached to Gov’s Property Tax Bill

The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette on the Marriage Discrimination Amendment

Courtesy of blueindiana.net, I enjoyed this editorial from the The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette on the plans to re-introduce SJR-7 – the marriage discrimination amendment – into the short legislative session this year (when, of course, there are much more pressing issues like property tax reform that need to be addressed.)

There is no reason for it to pass this year or any year. Indiana has a law that prohibits same-sex marriage. The language of the proposed amendment is murky at best and would create more legal questions than it would answer.

Meanwhile, other states are quietly going the opposite direction from Indiana. Instead of adopting measures that take rights away from citizens, they are expanding rights. In 2007, New Hampshire joined Vermont, Connecticut and New Jersey in offering civil unions. And Washington State and Oregon approved domestic-partnership laws to ensure legal rights for same-sex couples. Maine, California and Hawaii already have such laws.

Colorado, Iowa, Oregon and Vermont all banned workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, bringing to 12 the number of states with such anti-discrimination laws on the books. Nearly half of the U.S. population now resides in states that ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, according to Stateline.org, an authoritative Web site that reports involving issues with state governments across the nation.

It is foolish for Indiana, still lagging other states in economic recovery, to consider a measure that would alienate any potential investor. It’s even more foolish to consider such a measure when elected officials should be focused on tax restructuring.

Continue ReadingThe Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette on the Marriage Discrimination Amendment