Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters « The Gay Marriage Blog

Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters

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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Asia / Lesbian / Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters / Wedding — No Comments
21
Aug 11

TAIWAN MASS GAY WEDDING

80 lesbian couples have tied the knot in an unofficial celebrations that was completed without police interference or protests, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation

I’ve seen reports of a fair few mass wedding in Asia – usually led by Moonies! – but this is first mass lesbian wedding party I’ve ever heard of in Asia. And apparently more than 1000 people PAID to watch it happen.

But it is not that surprising given that Taiwan has the largest gay pride celebrations in Asia. Taiwan has also had the tantalising prospect of a draft marriage equality bill since 2003. Unlike many countries it was not drafted by a lone liberal or left-wing politican / party, but by the advisers of the Cabinet. This bill is the first in Asia to promise marriage and adoption rights to gay couples.

Organisers say the event gives them hope that the island will soon legalise gay marriage, but the Taiwanese President Ma Ying-Jeou says there needs to be “consensus” before such legislation can move forward.

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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

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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Celebrities / Conservatives / North America / Republican / Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters — No Comments
28
Jun 11

LEADING U.S. CONSERVATIVE BACKFLIPS

David Frum

Very interesting and gratifying piece here on CNN by David Frum, a man more often associated with inventing Republican catch-cries like the “axis of evil.”

My favorite line, where he tells conservatives to go find another cause for family instability in the U.S.

“Whatever is driving this negative trend, it seems more than implausible to connect it to same-sex marriage. How would it even work that a 15-year-old girl in Van Nuys, California, becomes more likely to have a baby because two men in Des Moines, Iowa, can marry?”

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27
May 11

MIKE BLOOMBERG GUNS BLAZING

Photo credit: Janet Mayer

The Mayor of New York City did not hold back yesterday is his effort to get New York lawmakers to vote for equality. He gave personal testimony, used family examples and suggested that people voting no to equality would be remembered alongside those who supported slavery!

“The question for every New York state lawmaker is: Do you want to be remembered as a leader on civil rights? Or an obstructionist? On matters of freedom and equality, history has not remembered obstructionists kindly,”
Read more here.

Bloomberg cited New York as the birthplace of the gay rights movement. That’s not quite right – Denmark for one had an active gay rights group at least 10 years earlier, but he makes a good point. New York is the biggest, the best, the first, the most open … but not for gay marriage.

So buck up New Yorkers. Time to get equal

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Campaigns / Marriage / Miscellaneous / North America / Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters — No Comments
19
May 11

THE WRONG REASONS FOR SAME SEX MARRIAGE

While fully agreeing with this article from the New York Times, I have to say that Jaye Cee Whitehead leaves out the best examples of her own argument and analysis.

Basically, she says it is dehumanising to argue for equality on the basis of economic competitiveness or the revenue a booming wedding industry brings in. True.

But the biggest economic gains are not from weddings, they are actually from the better health that people have throughout their life when someone is there to care for them – they live longer, healthier etc and are therefore also not a big fat burden on the state.

And secondly the best reason for equality isn’t because we are citizens, even if that sounds the most idealistic reason (children are citizens too; fathers and daughters are citizens but not good marriage partners); it’s because we are as capable of fulfilling the obligations of marriage as any other adult.

Finally, after what the banks and their leaders just did to our economies, supporting marriage equality is the least they can do.

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Conservatives / Court cases / North America / Republican / Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters — No Comments
5
May 11

THANK YOU, NEW YORK TIMES

Thank heavens a really serious publication has had the guts to take this up.

The idea that Judge Vaughn Walker (republican, experienced etc) was not able to rule on the flimsy Prop 8 case (by that I mean the very strong appeal), on the basis of being gay and in a relationship is absurd. As the Times says, what next? Women can’t judge rape cases?

These people are fools who insult the notion of justice.

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18
Apr 11

FACEBOOK COLLAPSE FOR ANTI-GAY GROUP

One of the most amusing lessons for “astro-turf” anti-gay groups has to be that if you built up a mountain of hate based on not much, then you can lose your mountain pretty quickly too.

That’s what happened to the 290,000 strong contact list and community built up by Louis Marinelli over the last five years. He changed sides and took his 290,000 Facebook fans with him. Now they are all disconnected from each other, and may even be reflecting on their views just as Marinelli forced himself to do. NOM certainly has no way to contact them and whip up further fear and hate.

Looking at it from the other side: I’ve never met a person who changes their mind after they decideare for gay marriage and then changes their mind. I don’t think you’ll see us transferring any large Facebook groups, or any other groups, to the anti-equality side.

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Conservatives / North America / Personal Stories / Republican / Surprising Marriage Equality Supporters / Video — 1 Comment
11
Apr 11

BEST BACKFLIP EVER: N.O.M. STRATEGIST NOW SUPPORTS EQUALITY

I love this. Louis J Marinelli set up a Facebook page for the US “National Organisation for Marriage” (NOM) that generated so much anti-gay hate that it made him change his mind! That’s right, a key NOM strategist is so turned off by his own supporters that’s he’s joined our side (you may remember him from Facebook’s largest anti marriage equality page: “Marriage: one man, one woman”)

“I began to understand why the gay community was out there claiming opposition to same-sex civil marriage was all about hate. I soon realized that there I was surrounded by hateful people.”

Here’s a further expose from Marinelli about NOM’s faked levels of grassroots support.

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1
Apr 11

FRANCE LEGALISES GAY MARRIAGE

Brilliant video here, looking at developments in France. If you’re at all confused – check the channel description for the explanation.

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