Gay Marriage Watch

The Associated Press is reporting that foes of a DC gay marriage law set to take effect Wednesday are asking the Supreme Court to halt its start. The challenge was filed with Chief Justice John Roberts on Monday. Opponents say the law should be put up for a vote.

The government of DC approved the law in December, but has been defending gay marriage since it approved a law last spring that recognizes the marriages of gay and lesbian couples from other states.

A last-minute appeal to the District of Columbia Appeals Court, which was rejected Friday, left opponents with few legal options to head off the law from going into effect.

Full Story from On Top Magazine
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D.C. Superior Court, where couples go to get marriage licenses, is preparing for big crowds as soon as same-sex marriage becomes legal Wednesday. “The one thing that we want people to keep in mind because they want to be part of the initial rush to get a license is that you bring with you your ability to be patient,” says D.C. Superior Court Chief Judge Lee F. Satterfield.

Expect long lines and lots of protesters.

On a typical day, the court gets about a dozen applications for marriage licenses. In addition to your patience, Satterfield asks that if you are coming down to be one of the first to apply for a license that you bring your identification and cash or a money order.

Full Story from WTOP.com
Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.
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With Washington, D.C.’s same-sex marriage law expected to take effect on March 3, marriage equality opponents have stepped up their efforts to try to halt the law’s implementation by forcing a public referendum. Today, opponents went to court seeking a preliminary injunction, which would have stayed the effective date of the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality Act of 2009.

After hearing from both sides, Judge Holeman tentatively denied the motion from the bench, ruling that the court lacked the power “to usurp the legislative process,” that opponents did not establish a substantial likelihood of success on the merits and that they would not suffer irreparable harm if the law were to take effect as scheduled.

Judge Holeman’s ruling is the latest in legal setbacks for opponents of marriage equality in D.C., where for decades the law has presciently prohibited initiatives and referenda that cause discrimination under the Human Rights Act. Three times now the Board of Elections & Ethics has rejected proposed initiatives and referenda that would invalidate legislation overwhelmingly passed by the Council and signed by the mayor recognizing same-sex marriages. The courts have uniformly rejected opponents’ claims that they are being denied a right to vote and have upheld D.C.’s strong anti-discrimination protections.

Full Story from Windy City Media Group
Click here for gay marriage resources.
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On Dec. 19, Washington, D.C. officially legalized same-sex marriage. Mayor Adrian Fenty supported the legislation from the beginning, and it received the overwhelming support of the D.C. Council in an 11-2 vote. Congressional Republicans, however, immediately began calling for a referendum on the issue, suggesting that the majority of D.C. residents were actually against same-sex marriage. However, D.C. LGBT blog GLAA Forum reports that all the money funding Rev. Harry Jackson, who led the anti-marriage equality efforts, came from outside of Washington, D.C.:

It turns out that the $199,530.00 funding for his efforts come from only four main sources, all from outside of D.C. according reports filed with the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance. … Jackson’s largest contributor is his own Maryland church based non-profit group, High Impact Leadership Coalition. [...]

The next largest contributor is the Colorado headquartered national group, Focus on the Family. … [T]hey were able to contribute $40,000 to harming gay families in D.C. … National Organization for Marriage (NOM), the national group dedicated to keeping gay people from marrying contributed $32,138.00. … Family Research Council, the D.C. based national gay bashing group, donated $25,000 through it’s 501(c)(4) lobbying organization, Family Research Council –Action.

Full Story from Think Progress
Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.
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Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, introduced a bill Wednesday that seeks to overturn a new District of Columbia ordinance allowing gay marriage, but he predicts Democratic leaders will not allow it to come to a vote. “I think they are afraid they will lose,” he told the Deseret News.

“I wish it would come up for a vote, because I think traditional marriage would win. But with the Democrats controlling the House, the Senate and the presidency, I can’t imagine that this would make it through the process.” So, he said, the bill is “more symbolic than it is realistic.”

The district council last month passed, and its mayor signed, an ordinance to allow gay marriage. But because the nation’s capital is a federal district and not a state, all district ordinances must go through a waiting period of 30 days in session by Congress, during which Congress may vote to reject that ordinance.

Full Story from Deseret News
Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.
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Many have been counting down 30 days from the day that Mayor Fenty signed the DC gay marriage bill until Congress could no longer invalidate it Guess what? The countdown really started yesterday, January 11, 2009.

According to the Washington Post, Del. Eleanor Norton announced yesterday that the countdown to legalized same-sex marriage in the District of Columbia began the same day. With everyone paying attention to the Prop 8 trials, I am wondering how many will pick this up.

The good news is that Del. Norton said that she has done her homework, and that the “initial work to close the gates on overturning” the bill has been done. Regarding the bill itself, she said “this bill should not be on the Hill at all. Home rule is all or it is nothing. We can’t pick and choose when it intervene.”

Full Story from GayVantage: http://www.gayvantage.com/gay-agenda/gay-marriage/real-countdown-to-dc-gay-marriage-really-started-yesterday-8573201113/

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Morning all. Hill Republicans have entered the D.C. gay-marriage fray, filing an amicus brief in a Superior Court case seeking a voter referendum of the issue. Thirty-nine have signed on to the brief, including House leaders John Boehner and Eric Cantor and Senators James Inhofe and Roger Wicker.

‘The filing asserts that the D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics exceeded its authority by ruling twice that a public vote would discriminate against gay men and lesbians,’ Tim Craig reports in WaPo. Also an occasion for a great Kris Baumann quote: ‘The Republican Party I am a member of is dedicated to allowing local rule and respecting the thoughts of individuals….I find it ironic they would come out squarely against the wishes of the local party.’ Also WRC-TV, WTOP, which has the full brief.

FROM THE BRIEF—’As members of the District’s ultimate legislative body, amici are concerned about the extent of the District’s delegated legislative authority, the preservation of Congress’s constitutional authority, and the interpretation of home rule.’

Full Story from the Washington City Paper: http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/01/07/the-ultimate-legislative-body-speaks-loose-lips-daily/

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Bob King is a longtime Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner (ANC) from Ward 5 in Washington, DC. He is also a proponent of letting the DC gay marriage issue go to popular vote. Upset that the DC Board of Elections and Ethics ruled twice that the majority cannot vote on the rights of the minority, Bob King sent a letter earlier this month to all 535 members of Congress asking that they force the DC gay marriage issue to popular vote.

With the letter he attached a one-page list of bullet points outlining why DC residents should be allowed to vote on gay marriage. His basic argument was that with 416,657 registered voters in Washington, DC, the issue of gay marriage should not be left up to 13 city council members. He feels as though DC (which is not a state and has no voting power in Congress) should have the same rights as the 31 states that have voted to define marriage.

Mr. King also feels that many residents are not be fairly represented. ”Three Advisory Neighborhood Commissions have adopted joint resolutions, and over 50 individual ANC Commissioners have already signed on to the People’s Resolution calling for a citizens’ initiative on the definition of marriage in D.C. This represents over 100,000 District residents.”

Full Story from Gay Vantage: http://www.gayvantage.com/uncategorized/will-bob-king-kill-gay-marriage-in-dc-48472011/

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

First we learned that the newly passed DC gay marriage law is under attack by Congressman Jason Caffetz. Earlier today we learned about Bob King, who petitioned Congress to allow the issue to go to popular vote.

Now we’re hearing that Stand for Marriage DC, a group that opposes same-sex marriage in the nation’s capital has bought ads from the DC metro system.

In response, another group, Full Equality Now DC, has demanded the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) remove the ads from metro buses. The group feels that it disrespects and discriminates against the LGBT community, an issue of indecency and in direct violation of WMATA’s own policy against discrimination.

Full Story from Gay Vantage: http://www.gayvantage.com/gay-news/anti-gay-marriage-ads-pop-up-on-dc-metro-7562617100/

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Robin Sutliff’s flower shop is redolent with the ingredients of a perfect wedding place setting: tall stands of white amaryllis, cala lilies imported from South America, summery clusters of yellow-orange orchids. When she imagines the many same-sex couples likely to tie the knot in the District this spring, though, her mind settles on the humble hyacinth. “It’s a pretty flower,” said Sutliff, owner of Ultra Violet florist in Georgetown. “It smells good, and it’s strong. It represents spring and new birth.”

On Friday, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) signed legislation to legalize same-sex marriage in the District, a move that is expected to be a financial boon for the city and for vendors such as Sutliff, who make much of their money on weddings but who have struggled during the recession. District officials surmise that the regional economy could reap up to $22 million over the next three years as couples from Washington and elsewhere take advantage of the new law, and the Williams Institute, a think tank at the University of California at Los Angeles, estimates that the infusion could be $52 million.

But the betrothed are not lining up quite yet. The law is subject to a 30-day review period by Congress, and opponents have taken their objections to court. Although many expect the bill to pass unhindered this spring, couples say the memory of California’s Proposition 8 remains fresh in their minds. The 2008 voter-approved initiative banned same-sex marriage in the state after it had been legalized, a setback to many hopeful couples and a stunning reversal to those who thought gay marriage was on the path to mainstream acceptance.

Full Story from the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/19/AR2009121902234.html?wprss=rss_metro

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.