Sexual Orientation and the Law Blog

Obama lifts ban on entry based on HIV

President Obama on Friday announced the end of a 22-year ban on travel to the United States by people who had tested positive for the virus that causes AIDS, fulfilling a promise he made to gay advocates, reports the New York Times.  The ban was a legacy of the Ronald Reagan/Jesse Helms era.

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Argentina considers marriage equality

The Argentine Congress has opened debate on a measure to legalize same-sex marriage, reports the Associated Press.  Argentina's capital, Buenos Aires, established its gay-friendly reputation in 2002 by becoming the first Latin American city to legalize same-sex civil unions. In Latin America, only Uruguay has legalized civil unions nationwide. 

Some Catholic and other Christian groups have accused the Argentine government of trying to "subvert the natural order of life, promote perversions and destroy the family as an institution." "This should not be understood as the denial of anyone's rights," said Archbishop Jose Maria Arancedo.

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Williams Institute (UCLA) program on LGBT domestic violence 10/29

The Williams Institute at UCLA Law School will host a training (with CLE credit) this Thursday, Oct. 29, featuring national experts on LGBT domestic violence.  Registration and more information are available here.

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District of Columbia prepares for marathon hearings on marriage equality

The D.C. Council's hearing on gay marriage legislation will feature 269 (!) speakers over at least two days of marathon sessions, reports the Washington Examiner.

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Researcher maps geography of $ contributions to Prop 8 fight

In his paper "Show Me the Money! The Geography of Contributions to California's Proposition 8" in the California Journal of Politics and Policy, Michael Shinn "provides an overview of disclosure with regard to contributions in favor of and against California's Proposition 8 measure that banned same-sex marriage. Using publicly available data, out-of-state and in-state contributions are mapped, and the geography of California state politics and the consequences of disclosure are discussed."

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Senate approves hate crimes legislation, bill goes to Obama

In a defeat for social conservatives, the Senate passed legislation Thursday that for the first time would make it a federal crime to assault an individual because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.  The measure had already been passed by the House, and President Obama has pledged to sign it.  Advocates have attempted to pass such a measure for years.  More here from CNN.  A backgrounder on the legislation is available here.

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Maine girds for Nov. 3 ballot battle over marriage

The Boston Globe reports:

Just six months after Governor John Baldacci signed a law legalizing gay marriage in Maine, voters will decide whether to preserve it, making the state the latest battleground in the national fight over same-sex marriage.

For both sides, the Nov. 3 ballot initiative, Question One, is seen as a crucial juncture. Opponents want to show that momentum has shifted to their side, building on last year’s California vote to approve a ban on gay marriage. Supporters - with victories in Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Iowa - are eager to demonstrate that California was a temporary setback.

Continue reading.

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Taking on the bad arguments against federal hate crimes legislation

The House voted earlier this month to expand federal hate crimes laws, and the measure would include crimes motivated by sexual orientation.  (Here is a backgrounder on the legislation and what it would do.)  The Senate is expected to take up the measure soon. 

David Gibson, a columnist for the blog Politics Daily (which has attracted an impressive roster of editors and contributors) takes on the talking points being circulated by conservative opponents of hate crimes legislation:

Pastors would be hounded out of their pulpits or even rounded up because a hate crimes law would "criminalize" speech and particularly sermons that quote scripture saying homosexuality is a sin. The law would also "create" new rights for homosexuals and grant them "special protections" not accorded other Americans. And what the heck is a "hate crime," anyway? All crimes are hate crimes! ... The charges sound convincing, but they quickly collapse on closer inspection.

Read further here.

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Professor Geof Stone on what Obama should have told gathering of gay advocates

University of Chicago law professor Geoffrey Stone offered this script for what President Obama should have told his audience at the Human Rights Campaign's recent annual dinner in Washington.

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Justices decline to review case over state bar amicus brief in gay adoption case

The US Supreme Court denied certiorari this week in a case brought by religious conservatives who fought a decision by the Family Law Section of the Florida Bar Association to file an amicus brief in support of a trial court ruling that struck down the 1977 Florida law prohibiting gays and lesbians from adopting children. The case is Liberty Counsel v. Florida Bar Board of Governors. As the National Law Journal reports, Liberty Counsel

argued that under U.S. Supreme Court precedent, mandatory bar associations like the Florida Bar cannot use member dues to support ideological causes which are not germane to the goals of regulating the legal profession and improving the quality of legal service. The state Supreme Court in June, voting 5-2, rejected Liberty Counsel's First Amendment arguments and held that membership in the Family Law Section is voluntary and any such advocacy by a section is not funded with compulsory dues.

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Don't ask, don't tell, don't teach: Air Force Academy punishes instructor for discussion on sexual minorities in the military

From The Palm Center at UC-Santa Barbara:

The Palm Center has learned that a Lieutenant Colonel who taught at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO, was punished and barred from teaching after she invited three Academy alumni to campus to discuss sexual minorities in the military.  The professor, Lt. Col. Edith A. Disler, told Palm Center researchers that the classroom visit was approved by her course director, but Academy officials pulled her from the classroom anyway, launching an investigation that ended in a formal reprimand based on the subject matter discussed.

More details here.

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Is the current gay agenda the right agenda?

Our colleague Ruthann Robson at Con Law Prof has this review of a new article by Libby Adler, The Gay Agenda, 16 Mich. J. Gender & L. 147 (2009), available in draft form on SSRN here,

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October Lesbian/Gay Law Notes is available

The October edition of Professor Art Leonard's indispensable Lesbian/Gay Law Notes is available here.

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How exactly do you "teach gay marriage in the public schools"?

The Bangor Daily News reports on the latest sideshow of irrationality surrounding efforts to repeal marriage equality in Maine.

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Lavender Law sessions available for online CLE

At its 2009 Lavender Law Career Fair and Conference, the National LGBT Bar Association partnered with Celesq to record three general attendance sessions which focused on the Supreme Court, the LGBT agenda and the Obama administration, and battle for relationship recognition at the federal level. You can purchase online and CD recordings of the sessions from Celesq (for CLE credit) by using the following links:

Federal Courts, The Nine Supremes and LGBT Equality
 
Priorities for the LGBT Agenda in a New Administration

Relationship Recognition through a Federal Lens

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Summary judgment denied in federal challenge to Prop 8

Lawdork blogger Chris Geidner reports on the high-profile challenge to Prop 8 being led by Ted Olson and David Boies:

U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker denied the Intervenor-Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment in Perry v. Schwarzenegger, the federal court challenge to Proposition 8.  Judge Walker denied all of the grounds for summary judgment sought by the Intervenor-Defendants, which keeps the challenge on track toward its set January trial date.

Judge Walker ruled that a trial, or at least more evidence, is necessary before he can make a determination about what standard of review to apply when judging whether Proposition 8 violates the U.S. Constitution’s guarantees of due process or equal protection based on either sex or sexual orientation claims.

Read the rest of Chris' informative analysis here.

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Will Olson/Boies challenge to Prop 8 get tossed or proceed to trial?

The Wall Street Journal Law Blog and the San Jose Mercury-News report here and here on the latest developments in the high-profile federal challenge to California's Proposition 8. 

Backers of the anti-marriage amendment will argue in court Wednesday that a trial is unnecessary.  Among their arguments, they're hauling out the old chestnut that the 1972 case of Baker v. Nelson, which let stand (for lack of a "substantial federal question") a Minnesota Supreme Court ruling that rejected a legal challenge to a Minnesota law limiting marriage to a union between a man and a woman.

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New Pew data show more Americans support civil unions

A new study from the Pew Forum offers a rich collection of data on attitudes toward same-sex marriage and homosexuality more generally. The highlights:

A clear majority of Americans (57%) favors allowing gay and lesbian couples to enter into legal agreements with each other that would give them many of the same rights as married couples, a status commonly known as civil unions. This finding marks a slight uptick in support for civil unions and appears to continue a significant long-term trend since the question was first asked in Pew Research Center surveys in 2003, when support for civil unions stood at 45%.

Over the past year, support for civil unions has grown significantly among those who oppose same-sex marriage (24% in August 2008 to 30% in 2009) while remaining stable among those who favor same-sex marriage. At the same time, opponents of same-sex marriage continue to outnumber supporters overall. An August 2009 Pew Research Center survey finds that 53% oppose allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally, compared with 39% who support same-sex marriage, numbers that are virtually unchanged over the past year.

Supporters of same-sex marriage are divided over the best way to pursue its legalization; 45% favor pushing hard to legalize it as soon as possible, while 42% of same-sex marriage advocates say they should not push too hard to legalize same-sex marriages right away because this might risk creating a backlash against gays and lesbians.

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Nearly half of the public (49%) says homosexual behavior is morally wrong, while 9% say it is morally acceptable and 35% say it is not a moral issue. A similar number says abortion is morally wrong (52%), while far fewer see moral impropriety in divorce (29%) or drinking alcohol (15%).

Blacks are much more likely to think that homosexuality is morally wrong (64%) than whites (48%) or Hispanics (43%). At least half of those ages 30 and older say homosexuality is wrong, compared with fewer than four-in-ten (38%) among those under age 30. And a slim majority of Americans with a high school education or less see homosexual behavior as morally wrong (55%), compared with fewer than half among those with a college degree (40%) or some college education (46%).

The full report is available here.

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Transcript of Obama remarks to gay advocates at HRC dinner

Available here.

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Video of Obama's HRC speech

You can watch the 24-minute speech here. (Although the White House web site is up to date with coverage of Bo's birthday on Friday, I haven't yet been able to locate an official text of the speech.)

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