WHEN A BRIDE and groom exchange vows in a cathedral, chapel, or temple, they receive a marriage license blessed simultaneously by their clergy and their state. But why? Other religious ceremonies aren’t wedded to civil ones. The county clerk doesn’t issue a baptism license. A priest doesn’t deliver a funeral eulogy and then sign the death certificate. Could separating religious and civil marriages solve the gay-marriage standoff?
More… In the aftermath of an unexpected death, the surviving spouse faces a jumble of legal responsibilities, emotional reactions, and practical considerations. At 42, I never expected to find myself planning a memorial service for the 39-year-old love of my life. …
MoreON THURSDAY, by a 4-3 vote of the state Supreme Court, California followed Massachusetts and became the second state in which same-sex couples can tie the knot as tightly as straight couples can.
MoreOn May 1, 1991, three same-sex couples in Hawaii asked the court to strike down that state’s marriage licensing law on the grounds that it discriminated against them in violation of the state constitution. They prevailed in the courts but it became an empty victory when the people amended the Constitution to define marriage as the union of a man and a woman.
MoreConsidering how the marriage issue has been framed by the mainstream media, it’s no wonder most fair-minded straight people and even many gay people-notably those who’ve been colonized by news outlets that blindly uphold the status quo-think every gay person in the America is dying for the right to wed. That’s far from the case, and …
MoreLike most Americans, especially those of the gay persuasion, my husband David and I were debilitated by the shock and awfulness of the 2004 presidential election.
MoreEVEN BEFORE the morning paper was delivered to my door, I had a long string of e-mails from news groups and organizations announcing the decision in the New York same-sex marriage case. Once again, a major defeat. Over the next weeks, a few more piled up. In the last dozen years, in almost every one of the fifty states, overwhelming majorities in state legislatures or lopsided votes in ballot referenda have reaffirmed that marriage is the union of a man and a woman.
MoreThere’s another argument to be made when we fight state and federal marriage amendments. It has the potential to take back the debate because it’s about the Constitution and the First Amendment’s guarantee of religious freedom.
More… For those familiar with Mohr’s work in GLBT philosophy, much of this book’s philosophical machinery will be familiar, as it draws from many of his prior publications, including his often reprinted article, “Gay Basics,” his work on recent Supreme Court rulings, and especially his 1994 book, A More Perfect Union: Why Straight America Must Stand Up for Gay Rights. …
MoreAS THE WORLD reaches flash-point over same-sex marriage, the United States is galloping madly in one direction-to deny civil marriage to gays. Yet many countries in Europe are galloping in the opposite direction-towards giving civil status to same-sex relationships in some way. …
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