Family News Feed

The Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals has upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit that sought a “divorce” between two women who claimed to have obtained a marriage license in Canada

Lebanon Daily News: "The senators didn't utter a word of debate before or after gay-rights proponent Sen. Daylin Leach proposed to table the measure. The vote was 8-6." The Senate Judiciary Committee

Religion Clause Blog: "Under Israeli law, marriage is handled by religious authorities of each recognized religious community-- Jewish, Christian, Muslim and Druze. Israel has had no civil marriage, though civil marriages performed in other countries are recognized."

Andrew Sullivan writing at The Daily Dish: "Wendy Kaminer, who supports marriage equality, chides the ACLU: 'Not surprisingly, the right wing, anti-gay Alliance Defense Fund is perhaps the primary defender of First Amendment rights in cases involving the anti-gay speech and belief of conservative Christians. ADF receives (and perhaps desires) little assistance from the ACLU, an increasingly unreliable defender of speech and belief that conflict with its gay rights agenda.'"

Baptist Press: "Opponents of the law, though, hope to take advantage of a section in the D.C. Charter that allows citizens to gather signatures to place the issue on the ballot . . . they were heartened March 2 when Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts -- while turning back their long-shot emergency appeal to prevent the law from taking effect -- said in a three-page opinion that their 'argument has some force' . . . The lawsuit was filed by the Alliance Defense Fund and Stand for Marriage D.C."

". . . the fact that Ashburn – as a homosexual – voted against the legalization of same-sex marriage does not suggest bigotry or homophobia. The issue is whether man-woman marriage serves the common good of children and society, and virtually all research affirms that it does . . . "

WJLA.com: "Now that same-sex couples can legally marry in the District, a new issue is popping up: gay divorce."

Contra Costa Times: "Education budget cuts have prompted school districts across the state to send out more than 23,000 pink slips, notifying teachers and other certificated employees they may not have jobs next year."

NJ.com, The Auditor: "The Auditor is told Lambda Legal on Thursday will file a petition with the Supreme Court to establish the right to gay marriage. 'We’ve lived the agony of defeat,' said Steve Goldstein, head of Garden State Equality. 'Now it’s time for the thrill of victory.' The defeat came in January when the Senate rejected a bill to establish same-sex marriage. Gay rights advocates contend the state’s civil union law falls short of the court’s 2006 order for lawmakers to provide equal rights for gays seeking to marry."

"The disturbing result of the activists' tactics, says one anonymous CAMFT intern, is that pro-family therapists in California are becoming increasingly afraid to speak up in favor of natural marriage and the family."

California Family Council: "For instance, Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) has introduced Senate Bill 906, which continues his effort to incrementally change the definition of marriage. SB 906 would create a new class of “civil” marriages in California, undermining the traditional definition of marriage. This measure will be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee next week."

Minneapolis Star-Tribune: "The first online private high school for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered youths has opened for business, but so far has found limited interest."

Christian Newswire: "A national coalition of organizations committed to preserving parental rights in public education, restoring academic integrity to public education, and removing partisan political protests from the classroom is urging parents to call their children out of school on the Day of Silence if their school is permitting students to refuse to speak in class . . . "

Baltimore Business Journal: "A bill introduced in the General Assembly would expand the federal Family and Medical Leave Act to include workers who need unpaid time off to care for ailing domestic partners and the children of their domestic partners."

Mercury News: "While both states prohibit same-sex marriage, officials in California said the two qualified for the license because Severson's birth certificate lists her as a man. But officials in Nevada nixed the request, saying they consider Severson a woman because that's what her driver's license says."

LA Times: "About 50 schools in the U.S., including a few Ivy League campuses and several in California, are allowing men and women to room together. Participation is still relatively low."

Washington Post: "In the District, it's not illegal for a public school teacher to have sex with a student who is older than 16, the age of consent in the city . . . The bill, sponsored by D.C. Council member Kwame R. Brown (D-At Large), stems from concerns by Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee that no charges could be brought against a teacher she believes impregnated an 18-year-old special needs student."

Alan C. Lazerow, Give and “Get”? Applying the Restatement of Contracts to Determine the Enforceability of “Get Se Visit Site »

OneNewsNow: "Fort Wayne City Council members rejected a proposed ordinance which would have granted special behavior-based protections to people with gender identity disorders. The city already has non-discrimination ordinances for sexual orientation on the books, but the proposal would have expanded that protection."

Michael Gerson writing in The Washington Post: "Just 20 years ago, opposition to abortion and opposition to homosexual rights seemed to overlap entirely. They appeared to be expressions of the same traditionalist moral framework, destined to succeed or fail together as twin pillars of the culture war. But in the years since, the fortunes of these two social stands have dramatically diverged. A May 2009 Gallup poll found that more Americans, for the first time, describe themselves as 'pro-life' than 'pro-choice.' A February CNN-Time poll found that half of Americans, for the first time, believe that homosexuality is 'not a moral issue.' This divergence says something about successful social movements in America."