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All Living Democratic Presidential Nominees Support Marriage Equality

Conservatives Object To AARP's Support For The 'Homosexual Agenda'

Anti-Gay Legal Group Works Against Its Own Cause

Catholics Far Removed From Catholic Leadership On LGBT Issues

By Zack Ford on Oct 25, 2011 at 5:30 pm

The Catholic Church has been one of the leading opponents of marriage equality across the country (including fights in California, Maine, New York, and now Minnesota), but a new survey shows that most American Catholics do not identify with the Church leadership’s anti-gay rhetoric. According to the study:

  • Only 35 percent of Catholics oppose same-sex marriage.
  • Only 16 percent of Catholics say church leaders have “the final say” on homosexuality, down from 32 percent over the past 25 years.
  • 57 percent of Catholics say individuals have “the final say” on homosexuality, up from 39 percent over the past 25 years.
  • 83 percent of Catholics say the clergy sexual abuse has hurt the bishops’ moral and political credibility.

Given that the Catholic League regularly blames homosexuality for the child abuse committed by Church leaders, it makes sense that Catholics are similarly distrusting of them on LGBT and other social issues. These results suggest that the Catholic Church’s political clout comes not from the authority of its vast membership, but perhaps merely from the large sums of money it wields in their campaigns.

Republican In Iowa’s Special Senate Election Speaks Out Against Injecting National Issues Into Local Race

By Igor Volsky on Oct 25, 2011 at 4:45 pm

A national anti-gay group has already committed more $15,000 to the Iowa special senate election between Republican Cindy Golding and Democrat Liz Mathis in an effort to shift the balance of power and undermine the state’s same-sex marriages. But Golding is speaking out against the outside meddling.

In an interview with The Gazette’s Todd Dorman on Sunday, Golding — who has yet to endorse the conservative effort to ban same-sex marriage through a constitutional amendment — argued that the race should focus on local concerns:

And she’s critical of the “help” she’s getting from the Republican Party of Iowa. Golding said she convinced the party to pull a TV ad comparing her Democratic opponent, Liz Mathis, to our “celebrity” president. She cringed when I mentioned it. Still, I noted this convincing came after the ad had run for quite a while.

“If it were me, we wouldn’t even be doing television. This is a local campaign,” Golding said.

Both Golding and Mathis have thus far avoided the marriage issue, with Golding arguing, “We have so many issues in this state that are much more important for our economy, for the families, for business.”

First Elected Republicans To Make ‘It Gets Better’ Video Have Anti-Gay Records

By Zack Ford on Oct 25, 2011 at 4:00 pm

Ten of the 15 members of the New Jersey congressional delegation are taking part in a new “It Gets Better” video, including three Republicans — the first elected members of the GOP to take part in the anti-bullying campaign. Watch it:

Though Republican Reps. Leonard Lance, Frank LoBiondo, and Jon Runyan should be commended for sending a positive message to LGBT youth, they should also be held accountable for their anti-LGBT records. Both Lance and LoBiondo voted against the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell last December. All three oppose the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, having supported the military-specific DOMA amendment to the Defense Appropriations Bill. And none of them have expressed any support for the Student Non-Discrimination Act or Safe Schools Improvement Act, bills that would address the very bullying they denounce in this video.

If these Republicans truly believe in a better life for LGBT young people, perhaps they should stop supporting legislation that undermines their equality.

NEWS FLASH

New Hampshire House Judiciary Committee Passes Bill To Repeal Marriage Equality | In a vote of 11-6, the New Hampshire House Judiciary Committee has voted to accept a sub-committee’s recommendation and approved a mesure to repeal the state’s 2009 marriage equality law. The full House is expected to take-up the issue in January. A WMUR Granite State Poll from October 14 found that voters want to keep marriage equality by a two to one margin.

NEWS FLASH

Michigan Cities Oppose State Ban On Non-Discrimination Protections | The Lansing and East Lansing City Councils have passed resolutions opposing HB 5039, a proposed bill in the Michigan legislature that would eliminate any municipal non-discrimination protections based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The bill, introduced by state Rep. Tom McMillin (R) is one of several anti-gay bills that have raised concerns among Michigan citizens.

NEWS FLASH

Uganda’s Parliament Advances ‘Kill Gays’ Bill | Uganda’s parliament has “voted to reopen a debate on a bill that seeks to outlaw homosexuality that may be expanded to include the death penalty for gay people,” Bloomberg is reporting. “The legislation will be sent to the relevant session committee for consideration, Speaker Rebecca Kadaga told lawmakers today in a televised debate from the capital, Kampala.” The bill was initially championed by the American religious far right — most prominently the secretive group The Family, also known as the Fellowship — but many conservatives backed away from publicly supporting the measure in the wake of the international controversy and congressional pressure to abandon the measure.

Related Posts

Report: 2 Million Children Living In LGBT Households Face Legal Obstacles, Inequality

By Guest Blogger on Oct 25, 2011 at 1:37 pm

Our guest blogger is Crosby Burns, special assistant for the LGBT Research and Communications Project at American Progress.

Today, a coalition of LGBT organizations in partnership with social welfare and child advocacy groups released the most comprehensive report to date analyzing how public policies impact children with LGBT parents. “All Children Matter: How Legal and Social Inequalities Hurt LGBT Families” profiles the experience of the 2 million children living with LGBT parents, documents the ways in which state and federal policy hurt those children, and offers common-sense policy recommendations to strengthen those families.

Roughly 2 million children are being raised by LGBT parents today in 96 percent of all U.S. counties. Same-sex couples in the South are more likely to be raising children than those in other regions of the country, and LGBT families as whole are more racially and ethnically diverse than married opposite-sex couples raising children, the report finds. “All Children Matter” explores the numerous ways in which government policy fails to adequate support children raised by same-sex couples. According to the report, current laws can:

What results are socioeconomic inequalities that hurt children with LGBT parents. For example, contrary to common stereotypes, children raised by same-sex couples are twice as likely to live in poverty as children being raised by married heterosexual households.

Lastly, the report identifies legal, policy and cultural solutions to address the numerous disparities facing these families. Recommendations include legally recognizing LGBT families; providing equal access to government-based economic protections; providing equal access to health care; protecting LGBT families with anti-discrimination laws, anti-bullying laws and outreach; and providing education and services support to help LGBT families.

“All Children Matter” was released by the Center for American Progress, the Family Equality Council, and the Movement Advancement Project, in partnership with COLAGE, The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, and the National Association of Social Workers (with a foreword by the Child Welfare League of America).

NEWS FLASH

Same-Sex Marriage Will Lead To Gay Kisses In High School Plays, Conservative Warns | The Family Institute of Connecticut’s Peter Wolfgang appeared on MSNBC with Thomas Roberts this afternoon to discuss the controversy surrounding a play featuring a same-sex kiss at Hartford Public High School. The school had informed students of the play’s content before its premiere, but some students — particularly football players — walked out after the kiss and several parents objected to it. “What people in the other 44states that don’t have same-sex marriage need to know is that if you get same-sex marriage, this is coming to your state,” Wolfgang warned. “You will not have the right to decide for yourself what your children will be taught about right or wrong.” Watch it:

NEWS FLASH

Perry On Why He Went Birther: ‘It’s A Good Issue To Keep Alive’ | Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) flirted with birtherism over the weekend, telling PARADE Magazine that he didn’t “have a definitive answer” on whether President Obama was born in the U.S., even though he believes he was. In an interview with CNBC’s John Harwood this morning, Perry admitted that the flirtation was pure political pandering. “It’s a good issue to keep alive,” Perry said, according to a tweet posted by Harwood.

Later, Perry said, “I’m really not worried about the president’s birth certificate. It’s fun to poke at him a little bit, and say, how about, ‘Let’s see your grades and your birth certificate.’” Watch it:

Santorum Touts Support For Criminalizing Sodomy

By Igor Volsky on Oct 25, 2011 at 11:23 am

Rick Santorum touted his support for outlawing sodomy during an appearance on Bradlee Dean’s radio show on Saturday, telling the rabidly anti-gay host that he still opposes the Supreme Court’s landmark 2003 Lawrence decision, which struck down such legislation. “[I] said this is wrong. We can’t do this, we can’t have a constitutional right to consensual sexual activity, no matter what it is,” Santorum explained:

SANTORUM: I believe that this country is a great country, because as you mentioned we are given rights by God. And that God is not any God — it’s the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and that God when he gave us rights, he also said, ‘here are the laws by which your society is to be governed’ … What we should do is orient our laws to make sure they’re in conformity with the natural law. In conformity with God’s law. And we don’t. And when we don’t, we end up in big trouble.

Listen:

Santorum went on to argue that marriage equality would “drive morality out of the laws of this country.” “When people actually focus on this issue, and they realize what their second graders are going to be taught…then they say, ‘oh wait a minute’…don’t try to fundamentally change the entire moral structure of this country,” he added.

NEWS FLASH

Nebraska’s Catholic Conference: Therapists Should Be Able To Refuse Service To Gays, Deny Referrals | Jim Cunningham, the executive director of the Nebraska Catholic Conference, is insisting that “psychologists, therapists and other licensed counselors should be able to refuse to treat clients because of religious or moral convictions and not have to refer them to another therapist.” According to the AP, the NCC’s concern “rose largely from an Iowa Supreme Court ruling that allowed same-sex marriage, raising the prospect that gay couples could come to Nebraska therapists for marriage counseling.” State social workers, psychologists and family therapists are responding to the demand by asking Nebraska to adopt rules “that would require certain mental health professionals to offer referrals to gay patients if they refuse to treat them because of religious beliefs.”

Leader Of New Hampshire Anti-Gay Group Admits Marriage Inequality Is Unequal

By Zack Ford on Oct 25, 2011 at 9:42 am

Cornerstone Action's Kevin Smith

Led by the group Cornerstone Action, an affiliate of the Family Research Council and Focus on the Family, conservatives in New Hampshire are trying to pass a bill that would roll back marriage equality. The proposal would have a similar effect as Proposition 8 in California, in that same-sex couples already married would stay married, but new couples could not get married. They could, however, access a form of civil union that has never existed in the state, open to any two persons. Jeremy Hooper noticed that the executive director of Cornerstone Action, Kevin Smith, admitted this week that the change would reintroduce separate classes of couples:

SMITH: Our opponents didn’t go for everything all in one bite, either. While some people may want a complete restoration of marriage, and also having no civil unions or anything like mutual beneficiaries, the political reality is I don’t think that’s possible at this time. The bill isn’t perfect — no bill is — but I still think this is a step in the right direction. There will be people on both sides who won’t be happy with it, which perhaps means we’ve struck the right balance.

Smith is admitting not only that they are advocating for inequality, but also that they have no compelling reason to do so other than animus. He and his followers won’t be “happy” until same-sex families are stripped of all protections, not just some.

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NEWS FLASH

Out Lesbian Alabama Legislator Hopes To Expand Anti-Bullying Provisions | Alabama Rep. Patricia Todd (D), the states first openly gay legislator, has filed a bill that will expand anti-bullying protections for LGBT youth. Though the same bill was never brought to a committee vote in the last session, Todd points to a recent poll found that 70 percent of Alabamans support the extension. The same study found that 50 percent of Alabamians support employment, housing, and public accommodation protections for LGBT citizens as well.

The Morning Pride: October 25, 2011

By Zack Ford on Oct 25, 2011 at 8:41 am

Welcome to The Morning Pride, ThinkProgress LGBT’s 8:45 AM round-up of the latest in LGBT policy, politics, and some culture too! Here’s what we’re reading this morning, but let us know what you’re checking out too. Follow us all day on Twitter at @TPEquality.

- Joe.My.God has a slideshow of pictures from last evening’s rally for LGBT homeless youth.

- Portland, Maine will get its first look at “Question One,” a documentary about the 2009 effort to ban same-sex marriage in Maine.

- Parents in Windermere, Florida are upset that their high school students have been invited to participate in “Switch-A-Roo” Day, a cross-dressing event as part of Olympia High School’s homecoming celebrations.

- How low will the National Organization for Marriage sink? Apparently, they’ll try to appeal to the 99 percent movement, steal an Obama campaign rally photo for their New Hampshire campaign, claim that children are learning too much about safe sex, and demand the President fund the proliferation of junk science in court cases.

- Randy Thomasson continues to rage against California’s FAIR Education Act, now claiming that college Queer Studies courses are a “very dangerous…infection.”

- Warren Throckmorton points out that only about a quarter of the members of NARTH (National Association for the Research and Therapy of Homosexuality) claim to be mental health professionals. The rest are all lay people, ministers, and activists who are merely interested in the ex-gay therapy NARTH promotes.

- Polls suggest New London, Connecticut may soon have an openly gay mayor.

- MSNBC takes a look at the experience of LGBT Muslims.

- A transgender woman is suing the state of Florida for her false arrest and gender discrimination.

- The Scotland man who was tortured to death for being gay may also have been sexually assaulted. Homophobic Twitter users have been mocking his death, suggesting he “got what he deserved” and his death “will teach people not to be gay.”

- Denmark might soon get marriage equality for same-sex couples!

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