Supporters of marriage equality seeking to overturn Virginia's constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, along with the office of Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, filed appellate briefs April 11 in the case of Bostic v. Schaefer urging the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold a ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen finding the marriage ban unconstitutional.
Allen, a federal judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, ruled in February that the ban violates the due process and equal protection clauses guaranteed under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
On Friday, Herring explained why the court should apply the most demanding ''strict scrutiny'' standard to Virginia's same-sex marriage ban, why the ban fails the ''strict scrutiny'' and ''rational basis'' tests, and why the court should act now to protect the fundamental right to marriage that is denied to same-sex couples in the commonwealth.
''All Virginia families deserve to be treated fairly and equally, and that, our Constitution guarantees to each of us,'' Herring said in a statement released by his office. ''I remain committed to ensuring both sides of this argument are heard in court as this case advances so we can get a definitive ruling, but since I changed the Commonwealth's legal position in January, every federal court that has considered the question has agreed that marriage equality is constitutionally required, including the resounding opinion in our favor in Virginia.''
Herring's brief also refutes arguments made by the appellants, clerks George E. Schaefer of Norfolk and Michelle McQuigg of Prince William County, as well as 21 others who filed amicus briefs. Herring says the ban should be subject to strict scrutiny because of discrimination and animus against gay people and their lack of political power under Virginia's laws.
Among other arguments put forth by the opponents of same-sex marriage, Herring points out that while some Virginians may have voted for the Marshall-Newman Amendment banning same-sex marriage in 2006 to ensure that their ''strongly held values'' were ''reflected in the law,'' religion cannot justify state-sponsored discrimination.
Herring also took aim at arguments advanced by McQuigg labeling marriage as necessary for procreation, noting that ''it is irrational to think that banning same-sex marriage will make heterosexual couples more likely to marry and have children of their own,'' and that there is no evidence that same-sex marriage harms heterosexual marriage.
Herring also defended same-sex families who are harmed by the ban by attacking McQuigg's argument that banning same-sex marriage is necessary to protect children. Herring wrote that McQuigg ''fails to explain why [the state] has a compelling interest in excluding gay people from marriage, thereby making it harder for gay parents to raise their children. McQuigg does not even mention the legal and economic benefits of marriage that are locked away from same-sex couples – such as spousal privilege, tenant-by-entirety ownership, inheritance rights, statutory beneficiary status and medical decision-making authority, to name a few.''
Herring's brief also states that Virginia State Registrar of Vital Records Janet Rainey will continue to enforce the ban on same-sex marriage until a definitive judicial decision can be rendered. Herring asked that any injunction against the ban be stayed until the U.S. Supreme Court resolves the issue.
Besides Herring, the legal team of Ted Olson and David Boies, lead counsel in the Bostic v. Schaefer case, also filed a brief arguing that Virginia's marriage prohibition is unconstitutional and must be subject to heightened scrutiny.
''Virginia has singled out gay men and lesbians and enshrined in Virginia's Constitution and statutory code that they are different, that their loving and committed relationship are ineligible for the designation 'marriage,' and that they and the children they raise are unworthy of that 'most important relation in life,''' the legal team wrote in its brief.
''No less than Virginia's anti-miscegenation laws, Virginia's Marriage Prohibition flatly contradicts the 'cherished protections' that Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses provide for 'private choices of the individual citizen regarding love and family.'''
Adam Umhoefer, the executive director of the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), which is sponsoring the Bostic v. Schaefer case, said the foundation looked forward to presenting its case before the Fourth Circuit on behalf of thousands of gay and lesbian Virginians and their families.
''In the last five months, every federal judge to rule on the question of marriage for gay and lesbian Americans has decided in favor of equality,'' Umhoefer said, ''And we are confident the momentum will continue through this appeal at the Fourth Circuit.''
Lawyers for two other couples, in Harris v. Rainey – a case seeking to overturn the marriage ban from the Western District of Virginia that was previously certified as a class action lawsuit – also submitted briefs to the court arguing that the ban violates the 14th Amendment and should be subject to ''heightened scrutiny'' because of systematic discrimination against same-sex couples by the commonwealth of Virginia, which does not recognize any form of relationship or contract between same-sex couples, even if they are legally married elsewhere.
''Although heightened scrutiny is required, Virginia's marriage bans are unconstitutional under any standard of review,'' counsel for the Harris plaintiffs, which included lawyers from Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the ACLU of Virginia and the law firm Jenner and Block, wrote in their brief. ''Tradition is not a legitimate purpose that, standing alone, can justify disparate treatment.''
Like Herring and the Bostic lawyers, the Harris legal team also refuted arguments claiming there is a compelling state interest in preventing same-sex couples from marrying.
''The lack of any rational connection between Virginia's marriage bans and a legitimate state interest reinforces the inevitable conclusion that the primary purpose and practical effect of the bans is to impose a disadvantage, a separate status, and so a stigma upon same-sex couples in the eyes of the state and the broader community, rendering the bans unconstitutional.''
The appellants and opponents of same-sex marriage are required to submit briefs responding to the plaintiffs' and Herring's arguments by April 30. The Fourth Circuit, in Richmond, is scheduled to hear oral arguments in the case on May 13.
...moreEquality Maryland PAC, the political action committee for the Free State's most prominent LGBT-rights group, announced on Monday it was endorsing state Sen. Brian Frosh (D-Montgomery Co.) in the race to succeed Attorney General Doug Gansler, an LGBT ally who is pursuing a bid for governor.
Frosh, a longtime supporter of LGBT rights, chairs the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, which oversaw deliberations regarding both the marriage-equality bill during the 2011 and 2012 sessions and the recently passed bill to prohibit discrimination in employment, housing, credit and public accommodations based on gender identity or expression.
Maryland Sen. Brian Frosh
''Brian Frosh has been a firm ally and leader on LGBT issues in the General Assembly,'' Carrie Evans, the executive director of Equality Maryland, said in a statement announcing the endorsement. ''He has the maturity, experience and commitment to be an effective advocate for the LGBT communities of Maryland as our next Attorney General.''
Equality Maryland PAC's endorsement decision was based on Frosh's responses to a questionnaire and an in-person interview with staffers and board members from Equality Maryland, as well as some of the organization's regular members. Both Frosh and one of his two opponents in the Democratic primary, Del. Jon Cardin (D-Baltimore Co.), submitted questionnaires and were interviewed. Del. Aisha Braveboy (D-Prince George's Co.), Frosh's second Democratic opponent, was determined to be ineligible for Equality Maryland's endorsement because of her vote against the marriage-equality bill in 2012.
''Equality Maryland members were already aware of Brian Frosh's record of support on our issues,'' Timothy Williams, the chair of Equality Maryland PAC, said in a statement. ''During his interview with us he spoke convincingly about his commitment to fairness and how his own convictions were shaped by the example of his father, who supported civil rights for African Americans as a member of the Montgomery County Council more than 50 years ago.''
Frosh's endorsement marks Equality Maryland PAC's second endorsement for statewide office and its fifth endorsement of a non-incumbent. The PAC has endorsed Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown (D) and his running mate, Howard County Executive Ken Ulman, in the race for governor and lieutenant governor.
''Senator Frosh has more than 35 years of experience as a practicing attorney and has served in the General Assembly for 27 years,'' Stephanie Bernstein, Equality Maryland board chair, said in a statement. ''He understands the duties of the Attorney General and articulates a clear vision for how this office can continue to move Maryland forward on fairness or equality. We strongly urge the LGBT community and its allies to support Senator Frosh in his bid to be Maryland's next attorney general.''
...moreAbout 20 community activists and advocates rallied Friday outside the John A. Wilson Building, which houses the mayor's office and the D.C. Council chambers, to call for the repeal of ''prostitution-free zones'' (PFZs), which opponents say has led to profiling and harassment of transgender people, particularly transgender women of color.
The April 11 rally, organized by the local service organization HIPS (Helping Individual Prostitutes Survive) was held with the dual purpose of calling for a repeal of PFZs, as well as standing in solidarity with Monica Jones, a transgender woman and sex-worker advocate in Phoenix, who was arrested for ''manifestation of prostitution'' under a police sting operation and anti-prostitution diversion program known as Project ROSE (Reaching Out on Sexual Exploitation) one day after she spoke at a rally protesting the program. Jones, who has said she was not engaging in prostitution at the time of her arrest, was slated to appear in Phoenix Municipal Court Friday and plead not guilty to the charges against her. Simultaneously, demonstrations similar to the one in D.C. were scheduled to occur outside the courthouse in Phoenix and elsewhere.
HIPS rally against ''prostitution-free zones''
(Photo by John Riley)
Outside the Wilson Building, demonstrators, including representatives from some prominent LGBT groups, held signs calling attention to the Jones case and offered fliers arguing against programs such as Project ROSE and D.C.'s PFZs. The demonstrators also engaged passerby in conversation, urging D.C. residents to contact their councilmembers to ask them to repeal the PFZs.
''We're just trying to encourage D.C. voters to contact their councilmembers and let them know that they think prostitution-free zones are a bad law that needs to be removed from the books,'' said Emily Hammell, director of development at HIPS. ''It's used to profile trans women of color, and it's also probably unconstitutional.''
D.C.'s PFZ provision, introduced nine years ago, allows the chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) to declare a particular area a ''prostitution-free zone,'' which then grants police authority to order groups of two or more people in a PFZ to disperse. It also lowers the bar for probable cause leading to an arrest. Such zones can be labeled prostitution-free for any length of time, at the discretion of the chief of police.
At a January 2012 hearing regarding a failed bill, proposed by Councilmember Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7), that would have expanded and made permanent existing prostitution-free zones, MPD Assistant Police Chief Peter J. Newsham testified that the purpose of PFZs is not to make arrests for prostitution, but to act as a tool that MPD officers can use to disperse people whom they believe may be trying to engage in commercial sex work. Following that hearing, as a result of outcry from critics and the logistics of enforcing PFZs, MPD halted its implementation and said it was working internally to rescind its general PFZ order.
Both transgender-rights advocates, who decry what they see as police profiling of transgender women of color, and sex-worker advocates, who seek to provide support and assistance to those who put themselves at risk in the commercial sex trade, oppose PFZs, arguing that the creation of PFZs doesn't affect root causes of prostitution. Rather, they argue, PFZs push such activity further underground, increasing the risk of harm to sex workers.
Furthermore, opponents of PFZs also note that the provision's legal foundation is shaky. During the debate over the bill to make PFZs permanent, Ariel Levinson-Waldman, a spokesman for the office of D.C. Attorney General Irvin Nathan, testified before the Council that the attorney general believes PFZs may be unconstitutional.
Elizabeth Saracco, director of programs at HIPS, says repeal advocates are considering a court challenge if the D.C. Council fails to take the law off the books.
''Ultimately, we just need to work together to make a happier, healthier community for everyone to live in, rather than attack individuals in the community,'' says Saracco.
''MPD definitely wants to build a relationship with transgender individuals in Washington, D.C.,'' she says. ''I think they want the same thing HIPS wants, in a way: just a happy, healthy community where people can live peacefully. We've been in talks with them to repeal the prostitution-free zones, because in nine years it hasn't done anything useful. It hasn't put an end to prostitution, it hasn't bettered people's lives in any way.''
Councilmember David Grosso (I-At Large), a critic of PFZs who was skeptical of their practicality during his 2012 Council run, has co-introduced a bill with Councilmembers Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) and David Catania (I-At Large) to repeal PFZs. The bill has since been co-sponsored by Councilmembers Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), the chair of the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee that the bill must pass to receive a vote by the full Council, and Marion Barry (D-Ward 8). Grosso was the only Councilmember to appear in person at the rally.
''I think it was a bad idea to start with,'' Grosso said of the creation of PFZs. ''I think people recognize now that it's an easy way to violate someone's human rights, and it's time to get rid of them and get them off the books.''
Grosso told Metro Weekly he believes he'll get the seven votes necessary to repeal PFZs, noting that as more is learned about the practice, some Councilmembers, even those who supported making the zones permanent, have changed their minds.
''When I came into office, I said that I was going to have a human rights framework to establish all my policies with, and this is one more opportunity for me to do that,'' Grosso said. ''In fact, I think all of my colleagues are catching on to that now, recognizing that we can't legislate without recognizing that people are affected by the laws that we create in ways that sometimes discriminate.''
Grosso added that he expected some residents in certain areas of the city to oppose the repeal, but insisted it was the right thing to do.
''I've been in neighborhoods we're they've touted these as something that's effective and useful, and they're just wrong,'' he said. ''And so, what you do, as a leader in this city, in my opinion, is you stand up and you say to the community, 'Hey, this is not working right, it's really discriminatory, and they need to be repealed.' So there are going to be some neighborhoods who push back, but, in the end, it's our job to say to them that they're not right.''
Kayley Whalen, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's executive office board liaison at, also attended the rally, as did representatives from the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) and the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance (GLAA), a local nonpartisan LGBT political advocacy group.
''I came here today because I believe that trans women of color should feel safe walking down the streets of their neighborhoods, both in D.C. and in Phoenix, Arizona, where Monica Jones was arrested,'' Whalen said. ''I firmly believe that we need to stand up against police profiling and harassment and criminalization of trans women for sex work.''
Whalen said the Task Force found in its National Transgender Discrimination Survey that profiling is particularly hard on transgender women of color, with 41 percent of African-American transgender women and 25 percent of transgender Latinas reporting police harassment, or being arrested and detained due to gender-based profiling. Whalen said that PFZs simply give police ''extra leverage'' to profile or harass transgender women they suspect of engaging in sex work.
''What we need instead of programs like Project ROSE that 'save trans women from themselves,' is we need programs developed for and by trans women that help empower them,'' Whalen said. ''We need to support organizations like Casa Ruby DC; the TransLife Center, of Chicago House; or the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, that are working directly to empower trans women of color to take control of their destiny and their own advancement in society.''
GLAA members have testified before the D.C. Council that PFZs do not withstand constitutional scrutiny, an argument also backed by groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union. On April 3, GLAA sent letters to the five members of the Council's Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, as well as to Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) and Grosso, outlining the constitutional concerns with PFZs.
''Even though the Council is a legislature, and you would think legislators would be eager to legislate, there's often a hesitance to act unless there's no other alternative,'' GLAA President Richard Rosendall said of the Council's inaction. ''In this case, we and our allies, including the ACLU, made the case during the hearing on Yvette Alexander's permanent PFZ bill in 2012, we made the case that it was unconstitutional, it didn't work, and caused a lot more problems than it solved. And then police officials indicated that they would stop using them, apparently until this got resolved. But then there was an admission that they weren't using the PFZs to make arrests, but just to make people move on. One of the reasons they weren't doing arrests was it wouldn't hold up in court.''
Rosendall said profiling within PFZs happens ''routinely and egregiously'' to transgender women of color, even when they are not engaging in prostitution. He added that non-transgender people, both within the LGBT and straight ''ally'' communities, need to speak out in favor of repealing PFZs, rather than dismiss the issue because it doesn't directly affect them.
''Those of us who don't fit the profile need to step up for our trans sisters, and the Council needs to get this passed,'' Rosendall said. ''It's unconstitutional, and it's not solving any problem. I think our legislators have a responsibility to at least do no harm. In this case, the laws against prostitution are used to target a particular population, many of whom have been driven into sex work because of discrimination. Adding an arrest to their record solves nothing and only increases the burden on them, creating a vicious cycle.''
Rosendall urged the Council to act this year. Mayor Vincent Gray, who is supportive of repealing PFZs, was recently defeated in his re-election bid, fueling a sense of urgency.
Of the 13 members of the D.C. Council, five back the bill to repeal PFZs. Finding two more votes may be a challenge, as many of the remaining councilmembers have appeared supportive or sympathetic to keeping PFZs in place.
The 2012 permanent PFZ bill was co-introduced by Alexander, Barry, former Councilmember Harry Thomas Jr. (D-Ward 5), former Council Chairman Kwame Brown (D), Councilmember Vincent Orange (D-At Large) and Councilmember Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4), the Democratic nominee and presumptive favorite to become the District's next mayor. It was co-sponsored by Councilmembers Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) and Catania, although Catania later withdrew his support of the measure.
Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) helped defeat the 2012 bill in committee, largely over constitutional concerns, but told The Washington Post in 2012 that he thought PFZs were useful in disrupting the sex trade. Councilmember Jim Graham's position on repealing PFZs is unknown, although Graham did introduce a bill in 2009 aimed at creating ''no loitering zones,'' similar to PFZs and ''drug-free zones.'' Graham later withdrew the bill.
Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie (D-Ward 5) expressed concerns about profiling and the constitutionality of ''permanent'' PFZs during his 2012 special-election victory, saying that if the District is going to establish PFZs, they need to be able to withstand potential court challenges. Councilmember Anita Bonds (D-At Large) had not yet been elected to the Council at the time the permanent PFZ bill was considered.
...moreTolomelli's luscious stained-glass works stir the passions of the spirit as well as those of the flesh.
One has already compared the offering of LGBT materials to indoctrination in skinhead culture and radical Islam, and now another says 'all of America should be outraged' at the University of South Carolina Upstate.
A Church of England clergy member takes advantage of England's new marriage equality law, in defiance of his denomination's opposition to same-sex unions.
A federal judge has ruled that the state of Ohio must recognize gay marriages legally performed in states that have legalized same sex unions. According to the Associated Press: Judge Timothy Black rlack ruled that refusing to recognize gay marriage is a violation of constitutional rights and “unenforceable in all circumstances.” “The record before this court […]
The post Judge makes gay marriage ruling in Ohio appeared first on GaySocialites.com.
It’s spring, or so the calendar says. We’ve even moved the clocks forward to prove it, but apparently someone forgot to wake Mother Nature up and tell her. Â Many of us, even me, and I live in the south, are still getting snow and cold weather in the forecast. Some people suffer from seasonal effective […]
The post Tips to add some Spring to your life appeared first on GaySocialites.com.
Brian Epstein, the man who brought the Beatles to the world, was gay when it was a felony to be so in the U.K., Jewish in an anti-Semitic time, and from Liverpool when it was just a dingy port town. The Fifth Beatle (Vivek J. Tiwary, writer, Andrew C. Robinson and Kyle Baker, artists) is […]
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