North America

Conservatives / North America / Religion / Statistics / Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters — 1 Comment
30
Aug 11

RELIGIOUS YOUTH SUPPORT EQUALITY

PRRI Views on Selected Gay & Lesbian Issues by age

Views on Selected Gay & Lesbian Issues by age. Source: PRRI

Well, well, this is a positive development. The United States’ Public Religion Research Institute today released “Generations at Odds: The Millennial Generation and the Future of Gay and Lesbian Rights,” a report into what todays teens and 20-somethings in the US think about us.

62% of American youth favor marriage equality, including 49% of those identifying as Republican and 44% of those who think of themselves as Evangelical.  In the last category that means the youth are four times more to support equality than senior Evangelicals.

This is what they call a snowball effect, ladies and gentlemen.

(Interestingly more Catholics think the Church’s approach to gays is too extreme than think it is “about right.”)

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Conservatives / Miscellaneous / Myths / North America / Religion — No Comments
22
Aug 11

ANIMAL MARRIAGE IN NEW YORK

Rose Marie Belforti

Rose Marie Belforti

Which bit of that headline doesn’t look right? None or all, according to New York Town clerk Rose Marie Belforti who has decided she can’t issue same sex marriage licences because the wording “spouse” could lead to animals marrying their owners / gay lovers.

Interesting article here in which Ms / Mrs Belforti seems to confuse her job as a town clerk with her Christian beliefs. No, Mrs Belforti, God isn’t the final word unless you happen to live in an isolated convent. For everyone else, there is the law and daily courtesies for fellow human beings.

 

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Lesbian / Miscellaneous / North America / Personal Stories / Wedding — No Comments
18
Aug 11

BRIDE TURNED AWAY FROM STORE FOR HER “ILLEGAL ACTION”

alix_genter

Oh dear, what sort of awful person does this?

I sincerely hope that the Here Comes the Bride store in Philadelphia, USA, suffers major economic retaliation for this act.

Here is a sample of the nonense Alix Genter was forced to deal with:

“She said she wouldn’t work with me because I’m gay,” you recalled. “She also said that I came from a nice Jewish family, and that it was a shame I was gay. She said, ‘There’s right, and there’s wrong. And this is wrong.’ “

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Civil Union / North America — No Comments
16
Aug 11

RHODE ISLAND CIVIL UNION FLOP

Much Ado About Nothing Much

Much Ado About Nothing Much

This shouldn’t really come as a surprise … one month after Rhode Island introduced civil unions rather than full marriage (trailing New York on both the time and equality clocks), no-one is much interested.

And why would they be, when you can potter up the road north or south and get the real deal?

I am glad the nine couples in their new unions have some enhanced protections, but I think the numbers speak for themselves. A halfway house is often a nowhere house, and people are obviously voting with their feet.

(And, by the way, you can now get marriage in more US jurisdictions than those left to settle for a civil union.)

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Heroes / North America / Personal Stories / Republican — 2 Comments
26
Jul 11

NEW ANDREW SULLIVAN ESSAY

 

Andrew Sullivan with Husband

Andrew Sullivan with Husband

I am always challenged and/or inspired by what Andrew Sullivan writes. One of the most consistent centre-right advocates of equality in the world – Western world or otherwise. A new essay from him in Newsweek.

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Marriage / North America / Personal Stories / Photos / Wedding — No Comments
25
Jul 11

I HEART NEW YORK

New York couples getting married

These pictures from The Guardian are just great, from the first day of marriage equality in New York. Who the hell could fail to be moved by this joy? Another gallery from LIFE is here.  Video here: Gay Marriage arrives in New York. Nearly 700 couples were married on the first day – an all-time record for New York.

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Civil Union / Divorce / Europe / Lesbian / North America — No Comments
14
Jul 11

LESBIANS IN THE LEAD

 Lesbian Wedding Pictures, Images and Photos

First up – the overall queer community is marrying at the same rate as opposite sex couples in Massachusetts, thanks to same sex female couples outnumbering the men two to one.

Secondly, in terms of UK divorces lesbians were also in the lead in 2010 (maybe not in a good way)  about 3.3% dissolving their partnership compared to 1.6% of the men. These rates are still lower than that of opposite sex couples.

So, we are not marrying less or divorcing more it seems.  That’s  both no news and good news all round the push for equality I would say.

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Global / Jokes / Miscellaneous / North America — No Comments
13
Jul 11

GAY MARRIAGE CARTOON SLIDESHOW

DaveGrunlandcartoon_SameSexstatuesofliberty

Cartoon credit: Dave Grunland

Found this nifty cartoon slideshow that you might be interested in.

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Australia / North America / Politicians / Uncategorized — No Comments
11
Jul 11

PETTY IN PINK

Julia Gillard in a 2010 pink makeover

Julia Gillard in a 2010 pink makeover

The Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, is mind-boggling.  The very week she tackles a long-sighted politically difficult subject: pricing carbon in order to reduce climate change, she engages in base pettiness against gays: again.

This time, it is re-stating that the Australian government will not only stop gay marriage on its territory, it will continue to try to stop its citizens getting married elsewhere. The reaction was prompted by Australians, including one of her own party’s Members of Parliament, considering travelling to New York to marry.

This issue has arisen before. But it’s astonishing that they continue to enforce this arbitrary view when every single section of the governing party has the opposite approach: they have all endorsed equality.  And on the specific issue of Certificates of No Impediment to marriage, a broad Parliamentary Committee clearly said in 2009 there is no justification for continuing the policy.

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Democrat / Heroes / North America / Politicians / Religion / Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters — 1 Comment
29
Jun 11

HERO: ANDREW CUOMO

Andrew Cuomo with his daughters at New York Pride this weekend

Andrew Cuomo with his daughters at New York Pride this weekend

It’s been a long while since I listed a “hero” on these pages, but New York Governor Andrew Cuomo definitely deserves the title. Like Tony Blair, he’s realised the magic feeling and feedback that comes with granting civil rights. A cynic who found his heart, a straight guy who went to the wall for us, someone who never gave up on bringing two sides of politics together. And a Catholic who stood up to his Church hierarchy … it’s the sort of thing they make movies and Presidential bids out of.

So here it is, my favourite columnist’s (Maureen Dowd) profile of the guy who steps up to join Gavin Newsom as the United State’s leading political advocate for equality…. Now we just need one other guy with an inspiration story to find his guts again.

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