Gay Marriage in New York

Tonight, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a gay marriage bill that will bring Gay Marriage to the state of New York in 30 days. A crush of gay weddings are expected, reports MSNBC.

New York will be the sixth state where Gay Marriage will be legal. The other states are Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Washington, D.C. also allows Gay Marriages.

USA Today reports that a key vote, to pass the bill in the New York Senate, came from Catholic State Senator Mark Grisanti. The story quotes Grisanti as saying that although "he was raised to believe marriage is between a man and woman, he could not 'legally come up with an argument against same-sex marriage . . . .'"

To read the USA Today story, click here.

To read the MSNBC story, click here.

For additional coverage, click on the links below.

To read CNN's coverage, click here.
To read the Washington Post's coverage, click here.

Gay Dad's on Father's Day

On a day honoring fathers, CBS News had as a major item a story entitled "Two Dads' Top 10 Things learned from their child." The story lists 10 items a gay couple mentions they have learned by having an adopted daughter.

To read the full CBS News story, click here.

Bullying of Against Gay-Rights Opponents

Are individuals opposed to gay-rights being subjected to discrimination or bullying? This is the question addressed by a recent Fox News article. The article quotes Jim Campbell, attorney for the Alliance Defense fund as saying that gay-rights groups advocate "for a lot of changes in the name of tolerance . . . yet ironically the tolerance is not returned, for people of faith who don't agree with their agenda."

Conversely, Evan Wolfson, president of pro-same-sex marriage group Freedom to Marry says that arguments such as Campbell's are "diversions, scare tactics and . . . playing the victim."

Fox news reports several instances where individuals or firms have been targeted because of their disagreement with same-sex marriage: Peter Vidmar stepped down as chief of mission of the 2012 U.S. Olympic team, state Sen. Ruben Dias (D) has received death threats, and law firm King & Spalding terminated its service to U.S. House of Representatives Republicans seeking to defend the federal ban on same-sex marriage.

Read the complete Fox News story here.

1970s Therapy for 'Sissy' Boy Destroyed His Life

In the 1970s, Kirk Murphy was treated at UCLA because his parents were concerned his behavior was too feminine. The four-year-old underwent experimental treatment conducted largely by George A. Rekers who was a doctoral student at the time. Although Rekers concluded that after the treatment Kirk's feminine behavior was gone and he was like any normal boy, Kirk's siblings say that he was never a happy person again. Kirk's mother believes the treatment ruined his life. In 2003, Kirk committed suicide.

Read the full CNN story here.

Ad Campaign “Raise a Child” puts a Positive Spin on Gay Parenting

In January, the Pop Luck Club launched an ad campaign with the intent of reducing the stigma around gay parenting.

The ads ran in the San Fernando valley, San Gabriel Valley, East Los Angeles, Central Los Angeles, Long Beach, West Los Angeles, and Orange County.

Read the story here.

Visit the Pop Luck Club website here.

Elementary School Students are taught that Gender is a Spectrum

Children and teachers in all grades at Redwood Heights Elementary School in Oakland, California received instruction in anti-bullying from a group called Gender Spectrum. Fox News, reports that Joel Baum, director of education and training for Gender Spectrum, taught that "Gender identity is a spectrum where people can be girls, feel like girls, they feel like boys, they feel like both, or they can feel like neither."

To read the Fox News report, click here.
To read the Advocate.com report of the story, click here.

For the First Time, Most Americans Support Same-Sex Marriages

A new Gallup survey reports that 53% of respondents felt that same-sex marriages should be legally valid. This is a major shift from previous surveys.

...............Should be valid ...............Should not be valid

2011 ..................53%....................................45%
2010 .................44%....................................53%
2009..................40%....................................57%

The shift in opinion appears to be driven by a shift in opinion among those who identify themselves politically as Democrats or Independents.

Read the Gallup report by clicking here.

Intolerance Toward Christian Attitudes

ABC News ran a story today regarding Jennifer Keeton. Ms. Keeton is a graduate student in counseling at Augusta State University in Georgia.

As a Christian, she believes and has shared her belief that a homosexual lifestyle is not in keeping with Biblical teaching.

She has been told by school officials that she was not conforming to professional standards and that she needed to attend a “remediation” program to help her change her views, or she would be dropped from the graduate program.

As tolerance for Lesbians/Gays/Bi-sexuals/Tran-sexuals increases, tolerance for the traditional Christian viewpoint decreases.

To read the ABC News story, click here.

White House Support of Gays and Lesbians

Today, for the first time ever, the White House held a reception to commemorate the Stonewall riots, an event that is frequently cited as the beginning of the Gay rights movement in the United States.

Today's reception, in combination with other events, shows clear Presidential support for Gays and Lesbians. This support is coming not only in the form of rhetoric or pageantry, but through a very significant appointment in the area of education.

Kevin Jennings, the founder of the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network has been appointed Assistant Deputy Secretary of Education.

Read more about these events and their implication in our latest TwoMinuteBriefing, available by clicking here, or by visiting www.TwoMinuteBriefing.com.

LDS Church Urged to Reconcile with Gays and Lesbians

Describing themselves as "an organization of LDS Members, former members and others who believe in the equal value of every soul regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation or worldly condition," the Committee for Reconciliation has launched a website to petition the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to reconcile with gay and lesbians.

Although the site does indicate that individuals who have been hurt by "mistreatment, misunderstanding, or demonization as a consequence of the LDS church's official policies, actions, and teachings" must reject seeking redress through hostility against the Church, most of message is directed at what they feel Church leaders must do.

Essentially they call upon the Church to disavow its teachings of homosexuality as sin, acknowledge that scriptures have been used out of context to condemn homosexuality, and repudiating reparative practices.

The site, called LDSApology.org clearly seeks an effectual "apology" from the Church.

The website states that they are not anti-Mormon nor are they affiliated or sympathetic to anti-mormon groups or agends, but rather that they simply wish to affirm their "love and devotion to the Christian principles upon which [the] Church was founded."

This sentance implies, of course, that the Church in taking a position against homosexuality, is not abiding by or has strayed from Christin principles.

Whether intentional or not, the Committee for Reconciliation is using the technique known as "jamming" as described in the TwoMinuteBriefing Selling Homosexuality. In this case, the technique is being used to try to substitute feelings of religious conviction and commitment towards the LDS Church with feelings the the Church is bigoted, unreasonable, and hurtful. They do this by emphasizing their love of everyone, while pointing out how hurtful the Church's policies have been.

To access the Committee for Reconciliation website, click here.

To read the Salt Lake Tribune story on the Committee, click here.

To read the Deseret News story on the Committee, click here.

Presidential Memo Extends Benefits to Same-Sex Partners

Today, President Obama signed a presidential memorandum extending limited benefits to same-sex partners of federal workers.

President Obama acknowledged that under current law (referring to the Defense of Marriage Act) full benefits could not be given to same-sex partners of federal workers. The President then announced his support of a bill entitled the Domestic Partner's Benefits and Obligations Act which would "guarantee these rights for all federal employees".

The President pledged to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act, saying that he believed it to be discriminatory and that it interfered with state's rights.

In stating that the memorandum he signed today would pave the way for, "long overdue progress in our nation's pursuit of equality," the President was in a sense echoing the sentiment of the California Supreme Court in its same-sex marriage decision of 2008 (In Re Marriage) in which the Court essentially noted that because all other benefits had been granted to same-sex couples, the state demonstrated that it had no vested interest in not allowing same-sex couples to exist as families, and hence should be granted the right of marriage.

TwoMinuteBriefing believes that the President is correct in saying that the signing of this memorandum today begins the paving of the road that will move us in the direction of granting full rights, including marriage, to same-sex couples at the federal level.

To read the CNN coverage of this story, click here.
To read the ABC News coverage of this story, click here.

Why Transsexual/Transgender Rights Matter

On June 11th, various news sources announced that Chastity Bono, the only daughter of Sonny and Cher, had begun sex change procedures earlier this year.

Although the transsexual/transgender segment of the population is very small, their fight for rights, and the attention they are receiving in the media, are a significant assault both on the traditional family, and on those religious authorities and denominations that proclaim that gender is divinely assigned.

Read about this issue in the TwoMinuteBriefing - Why Transsexual/Transgender Rights Matter.

To access the PDF file, click here.

The (Mormon) Church and Gay Marriage

Time Magazine has published an article online entitled "The Church and Gay Marriage: Are Mormons Misunderstood?" Although already available online, the article is dated Monday, June 22, 2009.

The article describes the involvement of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the California Proposition 8 campaign in some detail, including the theological underpinnings for its opposition to same-sex marriage.

In commenting on this article, a posting on Examiner.com's Salt Lake City page agrees that religions should be allowed to "fight for what they view as right". However, the article immediately goes on to quote a talk by Mark E. Peterson given at BYU in 1954 in which he warns against the "Negro" desiring not only equal rights but "absorption with the white race" through intermarriage.

The Examiner article concludes by stating that just as the "morality", as defined by the Church in 1954, opposed civil rights, the Church's "morality" opposes civil rights today. "The arguments haven't changed, only the target of discrimination."

To access the Time Magazine article, click here.
To access the Examiner.com article, click here.

New Hampshire Legalizes Same-sex Marriage

Last week, Governor John Lynch signed into law a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in New Hampshire.

The bill signed by the Governor had been revised at his request to specify that religious organization would not be forced to participate in same-sex unions or be required to allow same-sex marriages to occur on their properties.

Still, some felt that the bill did not go far enough to protect those who object to same-sex marriages. For example, whereas religious organizations and their employees are protected from being forced to participate in same-sex marriages, florists, caterers, or photographers are not.

With regard to the signing of the bill, Neil G. Giuliano, president of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) is quoted in a New York Times articles as saying, "our culture is moving to equality."

To read the New York Times story, click here.

Summit County, Utah, Will Study Giving Health Benefits to Same-Sex Domestic Partners

The Salt Lake Tribune reported that Summit County in Utah is examining the possibility of giving health benefits to unmarried domestic partners of county employees, including same-sex partners.

Some may feel that the granting of health benefits to same-sex partners is relatively innocuous.

However, the Supreme Court of California in its 2008 decision in the In Re Marriage cases specifically sited the existence of same-sex domestic partnerships, and the privileges granted to those partnerships, as the rational for determining that same-sex couples should have the right to marry.

To view the Salt Lake Tribune story, click here.

Gay Marriage Supporters Sound the Warning - The Mormons are Coming!

Acting upon their sentiment that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) played a significant role in the passage of Prop. 8 in California, the Group Californians Against Hate have sought to place ads on newspaper web sites in the states of New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Delaware, Rhode Island and Maine warning readers that "The Mormons are coming!"

The ads were rejected by sites in three of the states, including Maine's Kennebec Journal which the Washington Post reported as feeling that the ad "borders on insulting and denigrating a whole set of people based on their religion."

Fred Karger, formerly a Republican campaign consultant and founder of Californians Against Hate, feels that Mormons are the "nicest people" and that "they do wonderful things." However, his goal "is to get them out of the same-sex marriage business and back to helping hurricane victims."

As a political strategist, he knows his numbers, and will seek to take advantage of the fact that almost 80% of Americans know or work with a gay person, while slightly less than 50% know a Mormon.

Whereas this could be viewed as a challenge to the LDS Church, it may actually be an opportunity for them to spur their members on to become overall more visible, more openly "Mormon" with their colleagues, their neighbors and their friends.

To read the Washington Post article, click here.
To read Fred Krager's comments on The Huffington Post, click here.

Cheney Favors State-by-State Decisions on Gay Marriage

The Washington Post reported this week that former vice president Richard Cheney has come out in favor of Gay Marriage as decided on a state-by-state basis.

Cheney is quoted as saying, "people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish, any kid of arrangement they wish."

Cheney has a personal interest in the matter, given that his youngest daughter is a lesbian and has a longtime partner.

That someone as prominent in the Republican party would make such a clear statement favoring Gay Marriage brings to mind the issues discussed by TwoMinuteBriefing in its analysis, Moral Right or Political Might which noted that some Republican party insiders were encouraging the party to acquiesce on Gay Marriage in order to stay politically viable.

To read the Washington Post article, click here.
To access the TwoMinuteBriefing analysis Moral Right or Political Might, click here, or visit: www.TwoMinuteBriefing.com.

Harvard to Have a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Studies Endowed Chair

A New York Times article reports that Harvard will endow a chair for visiting scholars who are studying sexuality or sexual minorities. It is currently assumed that visiting professors will be invited to teach on campus for one semester.

The position has been made possible by a donation of a reported $1.5 million from the Harvard Gay and Lesbian Caucus.

Gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender studies are relatively new in the U.S. The first university program in this area was started in 1986 at the City University of New York.

Harvard University believes, however, that theirs will be the first endowed, named chair in this subject.

This move by Harvard is another modest indicator of how the acceptability of Homosexuality in U.S. academic circles.

To read the New York Times story, click here.

Catholic Charities Must Allow Gay Adoption in England and Wales

On June 1st, a English Charity Tribunal (administrative court) ruled that Catholic Care must consider same-sex couples as potential foster or adoptive parents, or otherwise they could not continue to operate as an adoption agency.

Catholic Care is the social services agency of the Diocese of Leeds.

The ruling was based on an application of the Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007.

Most of the 11 other Catholic adoption agencies in England and Wales have chosen to become independent "secular" agencies in order to continue operations while not violating the Catholic Church's stand regarding same-sex unions.

In January of 2007, the Church of England had expressed its opinion that the Catholic Church should be exempt from the application of this Act. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, and the Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu, in a joint letter to Prime Minister Tony Blair stated that the, "rights of conscience cannot be made subject to legislation."

Links:

British court: Church adoption agency must include same-sex couples
Catholic charities breaking law on homosexual adotion
Church of England supports Catholic position on homosexual adoption

Fairfax High in Los Angeles Elects Gay Male Prom Queen

Sergio Garcia, a gay male Fairfax High student, was elected prom queen this month.

Prior to his election, he assured his classmates that if selected, he would not wear a dress. He is quoted as saying:

I will be wearing a suit, but don't be fooled, deep down inside, I am a queen!

Garcia indicated that this all started out as a stunt and challenge, but ended up being a serious effort which generated discussion at the school about gender roles. He told his senior class audience:

At one time, prom may have been a big popularity contest where the best-looking guy or girl were crowned king and queen. Things have changed and it's no longer just about who has the most friends or who wears the coolest clothes. Sure, I'm not your typical prom queen candidate. There's more to me than meets the eye.

Although not all Fairfax High students supported Garcia, some, including senior class president Vanessa Lo, felt Garcia's election showed the open-mindedness of the senior class.

Virginia Uribe, founder of Project 10 which is a district wide on-site support program for Gay, lesbian,bisexual and transgender youth, felt that Garcia's election is an indication of where society is now on gay rights. She is quoted in the Los Angeles Times as saying, "Gender-bending is just kind of in".

Garcia's success in being elected Prom Queen brings to Robin Byler's statement, posted to this blog on August 20, 2008, in which she declared that the Gay Marriage battle was already won, although perhaps for the next generation, because young people already believed in it.

A solid majority of young people under the age of 24 believe that same gender partners should have the right to marry. So the Supreme Court is just one more battle in a war we have already won, be it for the next generation.” (emphasis added) (Robin Byler, Lesbian News, March 2008, Vol. 33 Issue 8, p. 9)

To read the Los Angeles Times story, click here.
To read the KTLA story, click here.

Additional resource: California Safe Schools Coalition

- TwoMinuteBriefing thanks JP for recommending this story.