Yahoo! News: Gay & Lesbian Issues

Long-awaited ruling on CA gay marriage ban due (AP)

Assemblyman Timothy Eustace, right, D- Paramus, listens in Trenton, N.J., Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012, as son Kyle Eustace-Williams speaks fondly about his gay parents while addressing the Assembly Judiciary Committee in support of a bill legalizing gay marriage. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)AP - Supporters and opponents of California's ban on same-sex marriage were anxiously awaiting a federal appeals court decision Tuesday on whether the voter-approved measure violates the civil rights of gay men and lesbians.


Court to rule on California gay marriage ban (Reuters)

Reuters - A U.S. appeals court is set to rule on Tuesday whether California's ban on gay marriage is constitutional in a case that is likely to lead to a showdown on the issue in the U.S. Supreme Court.

New Jersey gay marriage votes set for later in February (Reuters)

Reuters - New Jersey's Democrat-controlled state legislature will vote next week on bills to legalize same-sex marriage, the Democratic leadership said on Monday, adding pressure to Governor Chris Christie who opposes the measure.

U.S. court to rule Tuesday on California gay marriage (Reuters)

Assemblyman Timothy Eustace, right, D- Paramus, listens in Trenton, N.J., Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012, as son Kyle Eustace-Williams speaks fondly about his gay parents while addressing the Assembly Judiciary Committee in support of a bill legalizing gay marriage. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)Reuters - A U.S. appeals court will rule on Tuesday on the constitutionality of California's Proposition 8 ban on same-sex marriage, the court said.


Goldman's Blankfein campaigns for gay marriage (Reuters)

Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs, listens during testimony before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Investigations Subcommittee hearing on Reuters - Goldman Sachs Group Inc Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein, one of Wall Street's most powerful figures, has become the first major business leader to join a national media campaign in support of same-sex marriage.


Chris Christie Proves His Cowardice on Same-Sex Marriage Decision (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | Don't let New Jersey's Republican governor fool you. Christ Christie isn't the tough, courageous leader, he purports himself to be. He's just a big, fat coward -- that or he has no clue about the purposes of a republic over a democracy.

Va. House approves anti-gay adoption rule (AP)

AP - Virginia legislators have passed a bill allowing private adoption agencies to deny placements that conflict with their religious or moral beliefs, including opposition to homosexuality.

Gay marriage foes to fight expected Washington state law (Reuters)

Reuters - As gay couples and their supporters cheered the Washington state Senate's unexpectedly swift and decisive passage of a same-sex marriage bill, opponents were already considering how to take down the anticipated law.

Judges bar viewing of gay marriage trial videos: what they’re protecting (The Christian Science Monitor)

The Christian Science Monitor - A federal appeals court on Thursday refused to allow the public release of video recordings of a landmark gay marriage trial conducted two years ago in San Francisco, citing the trial judge’s order to keep the recordings under wraps.

Applauding Washington State: The Next to Approve Gay Marriage (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | I'm proud to live in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, and not just because of the spectacular scenery. Washington state is likely to become the seventh state in the nation to allow same-sex marriage. According to the Huffington Post , on Wednesday the state senate passed a bill that would allow gay and lesbian couples to wed.

WA Senate approves bill to legalize gay marriage (AP)

Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, left, and his partner Michael Shiosaka smile as they answer a question about how they met decades earlier during a news conference Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012, in Olympia, Wash. The state Senate is set to vote Wednesday night on a proposal to legalize same-sex marriage in Washington state. If passed by the Senate, the measure moves to the House, which has enough votes to pass the bill. Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire supports the measure and said she will sign it into law. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)AP - The Washington state Senate has passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage, bringing the state a step closer to becoming the seventh to allow lesbian and gay couples to wed. But the threat of a ballot challenge looms.


Same-Sex Unions Debate Opens in Maryland Senate (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - The numbers are looking good for Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley's latest push to legalize same-sex marriage, with a majority in favor according to a poll. Meanwhile, activists for and against gay marriage spoke at a state Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee meeting on Tuesday to debate the merits and negatives surrounding the issue, the Washington Post reports.

Gay Ca. veteran sues over denial of benefits (AP)

Tracey Cooper-Harris, who served in the Army for 12 years, left, whispers to her spouse, Maggie Cooper-Harris during a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012. Tracey Cooper-Harris is suing the federal government because she and her wife are being denied military benefits granted to heterosexual couples. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)AP - A gay Army veteran and her wife sued the federal government on Wednesday after they were denied military benefits granted to straight spouses.


Maine law that could reveal anti-gay marriage donors upheld (Reuters)

Reuters - A federal appeals court upheld a Maine law that could reveal the donors who financed a $1.8 million movement that helped overturn the state's gay marriage law.

NJ GOP governor apologizes for civil rights remark (AP)

AP - Gov. Chris Christie has apologized for a remark he made about civil rights but says he's not sorry for using a slang term to describe a lawmaker who compared him to segregationist Southern governors.

Same-Sex Marriage Battle Heats Up in Maryland (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - Testimony will begin on Tuesday at the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee regarding proposed gay marriage legislation. On the eve of that testimony, the Washington Post is reporting foes intend to rally next to the State House in Annapolis tonight.

UN chief: Africa leaders should respect gay rights (AP)

AP - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says African nations should stop treating gays as "second-class citizens, or even criminals".

Maryland Bar Association Endorses Same-Sex Marriage (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - The Maryland State Bar Association announced on Thursday that it endorsed same-sex marriage, according to a report by the Washington Post .

Criticism of Chris Christie’s Gay Marriage Referendum Comments Misguided (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | Democratic leaders in New Jersey are criticizing Governor Chris Christie for comments he made Wednesday proposing a ballot referendum on gay marriage, according to an article on nj.com. But this criticism is highly misguided in light of the fact that it comes at the same time Christie has made the first nomination ever of an openly gay candidate for the New Jersey State Supreme Court.

Maine poised for 2nd public vote on gay marriage (AP)

Whitney Gifford, of Bucksport, Maine, leads a group of gay marriage supporters carrying signed petitions to the Secretary of State's office in Augusta, Maine on Thursday, Jan. 26, 2012. Gay marriage supporters say they collected more than 105,000 signatures to force a second referendum on the issue. Maine is the only New England state that doesn't allow gay marriage or civil unions. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)AP - Gay rights activists in Maine, the only New England state that doesn't allow gay marriage or civil unions, moved Thursday toward forcing a second statewide vote on the marriage question, and their opponents say they'll be ready for a fight.