gay rights

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Judge Orders Air Force to Reinstate Lesbian

Margaret Witt was discharged under 'don't ask, don't tell'

(Newser) - Another setback for "don't ask, don't tell": A federal judge says the Air Force violated the constitutional rights of a highly decorated flight nurse when it discharged her for being gay, and ordered that she be given her job back as soon as possible. US District Judge Ronald Leighton...

Florida Court Strikes Down Gay Adoption Ban

'Most draconian' ban falls; adoptions can begin immediately

(Newser) - A Florida court has struck down the state's 33-year-old ban on gay adoptions, ruling that the law is unconstitutional and there is "no rational basis" for it. Gov. Charlie Crist says the state will stop enforcing the ban immediately, although he hasn't commented on whether the state plans to...

GOP Blocks Bill to Lift Don't Ask, Don't Tell

Democrats can't get 60 votes to end filibuster

(Newser) - Senate Republicans have blocked an effort to repeal the law banning gays from serving openly in the military. Democrats fell short of the 60 votes needed to advance the legislation on Don't Ask, Don't Tell. The move likely will push consideration of the measure into next year, when prospects for...

Russian Gay Activist: Cops Kidnapped Me

'They pressured me to drop gay rights case for days,' he says

(Newser) - One of Russia's leading gay rights activists says he was kidnapped by security services as he tried to board a flight from Moscow to Geneva last week. Nikolai Alexeyev, who has repeatedly clashed with authorities in Moscow over his efforts to organize gay rights demonstrations, says he was taken from...

Two Guys Break Kissing Record
 Two Guys Break Kissing Record
World Records

Two Guys Break Kissing Record

Goal: To 'queer the Guinness World Records '

(Newser) - After smooching for 33 hours straight (ha!), two college guys yesterday broke the world record for "longest continuous kiss." Standing in a tent on the campus of New Jersey College, Matty Daley and Bobby Canciello smooched non-stop for more than a day, a feat that involved strategic...

Montana GOP Platform: It's Illegal to Be Gay

Party platform still has old plank against 'homosexual acts'

(Newser) - Homosexuals may be gaining more rights across the nation, but they can steer clear of Montana Republicans, thank you very much. The AP notes that the state party has adopted a platform that reiterates this statement of principle under the "crime" section: "We support the clear will of...

Gay Marriage Meets Immigration Reform
Gay Marriage Meets Immigration Reform

Gay Marriage Meets Immigration Reform

A foreign same-sex spouse can't apply for citizenship

(Newser) - Gay couples can marry in five states and Washington DC, but if one spouse is a foreigner, he or she still still can't apply for US citizenship—at least not through his or her spouse. Because the federal government doesn't recognize gay marriage, only foreign-born spouses of heterosexual citizens need...

Judge Strikes Down 'Don't Ask Don't Tell'

Federal judge declares ban on gays unconstitutional

(Newser) - A federal judge in California has declared the ban on gays serving openly in the military unconstitutional, and said she will issue an order overturning the "don't ask, don't tell" policy nationwide. Judge Virginia Phillips ruled that the policy violates the First and Fifth Amendment rights of gay service...

Mass. Catholic School Dean Loses Job After Gay Marriage

Diocese cans official after 12 years

(Newser) - The dean of students at a Massachusetts Catholic high school says she was forced out of her job after marrying her same-sex partner. “I was given a choice of termination or resignation,” Christine Judd tells the Republican . Judd, who worked for Cathedral High School since 1998 and also...

Gay Republicans Complain of Intolerance—on the Left

Political reaction to Ken Mehlman goes against stereotype

(Newser) - In assessing the fallout from former RNC chief Ken Mehlman's decision to come out of the closet, Jacob Bernstein points out in the Daily Beast that fellow conservatives seemed to shrug it off while "gay activists on the left pounced." Witness this diatribe from a PR strategist in...

Judge Keeps Gay Marriages on Hold in California

He gives opponents one week to appeal

(Newser) - A federal judge has ruled that gay marriages in California should remain on hold until at least Aug. 18. Judge Vaughn Walker today set the deadline to give gay marriage opponents time to appeal to the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals. If the appeals court fails to act by...

Gay Officer Sues to Block DADT Discharge

Air Force officer seeks to have 'don't ask' overturned

(Newser) - Lt. Col. Victor Fehrenbach would rather be fighting the enemy, but he's taking on the military instead over its "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. The decorated Air Force fighter pilot is suing to prevent his imminent discharge under the policy. He told Idaho law enforcement officials he had consensual...

Mexican Supreme Court Recognizes Gay Marriage

All the country's states must recognize Mexico City unions

(Newser) - Mexico's Supreme Court ruled yesterday that all 31 states must recognize same-sex marriages performed in the capital, though its decision does not force those states to begin marrying gay couples in their territory. In a 9-2 decision, the tribunal cited an article of the constitution requiring states to recognize legal...

Top West Point Cadet Quits Over 'Don't Ask'

Says she has 'compromised' her integrity long enough

(Newser) - A West Point junior ranked 9th in her class is leaving the military school in protest over Don't Ask, Don't Tell. In her letter to the school, Katherine Miller says she's transferring to Yale and will be happy to reapply to the academy—once DADT is repealed. "I have...

California Judge Says Gays Have Right to Marry

He declares Proposition 8 unconstitutional

(Newser) - In a big victory for gay rights, a federal judge in California has ruled that homosexuals have a constitutional right to marry. The judge struck down Proposition 8, a ballot measure that banned gay marriage in 2008. The decision is expected to be quickly appealed to the 9th Circuit Court...

Lesbian Teen Gets $35K Settlement Over Prom

School must pay up for violating her rights

(Newser) - A rural Mississippi school district that canceled its prom rather than allow a lesbian student to attend with her girlfriend has agreed to pay $35,000 to settle a discrimination lawsuit the ACLU filed on her behalf. The district also agreed to follow a non-discrimination policy as part of the...

250M People Now Live Where Gay Marriage Is OK
 250M People Now Live 
 Where Gay Marriage Is OK 
nate silver

250M People Now Live Where Gay Marriage Is OK

Same-sex unions continue slow and steady progress

(Newser) - When predicting the future of gay marriage around the world, it's tough to argue with the numbers: Nate Silver points out that Argentina's decision to sanction it means that 250 million people now live in places where it's legal. Click through to see his chart at FiveThirtyEight.com , which shows...

Argentina Legalizes Gay Marriage

Bill giving gay couples equal rights is a Latin American first

(Newser) - Argentina has become the first Latin American country to give same-sex couples all the rights of straight ones. A bill legalizing gay marriage has passed the country's Senate and President Cristina Kirchner has promised to sign it into law, CNN reports. Supporters and opponents of the law jostled outside during...

Gay Couples Get Crack at Today Show Wedding

NBC agrees to open application under activist pressure

(Newser) - The Today show will open its annual “Modern Day Wedding” contest to gay couples, NBC has announced, bowing to activist pressure. The gay rights group GLAAD launched a campaign to change the contest last week, the New York Times explains, after discovering the application had options only for “...

Judge: US Gay Marriage Ban Is Unconstitutional

Declares federal rule interferes with states

(Newser) - A US judge in Boston has ruled that a federal gay marriage ban is unconstitutional because it interferes with the right of a state to define marriage. US District Judge Joseph Tauro today ruled in favor of gay couples' rights in two separate challenges to the 1996 Defense of Marriage...

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