Vice President Joe Biden is throwing his unequivocal support behind letting transgender people serve openly in the U.S. military, as the Obama administration considers whether and when to lift the longstanding ban. "No longer is there any question transgender people are able to serve in the United States military," Biden said. He later remarked, "It's simple. All Americans are qualified to serve, should be able to serve."
The State agency that ordered an Oregon Christian couple to pay two lesbians $135,000 for refusing to take part in their homosexual "wedding" has begun legal proceedings to seize the couple’s assets. "Our agency has docketed the judgment and is exploring collection options," said Charlie Burr, communications director for The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries.
Lawyers who persuaded a judge nearly a year ago to "overturn" Arizona's same-sex "marriage" ban will receive $200,000 from the state to cover attorney fees and other costs in bringing the legal challenge. Federal law lets those who prevail in civil rights cases seek compensation for the costs of bringing such lawsuits to court.
Jim Obergefell, the named plaintiff in the landmark Supreme Court case that purported to redefine marriage, is publicly calling out Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk who’s been resisting that opinion. In an open letter, Obergefell told Davis that "Love transcends gender," and "No one is above the law, Kim, not even you." Although this article by MSNBC is grossly incorrect about the legal implications of the Obergefell opinion, it nevertheless provides some helpful information.
Aaron and Melissa Klein, the owners of a Portland-area bakery who refused on religious grounds to bake a "wedding" cake for a lesbian couple, are fighting a court order to pay the offended couple $135,000 in damages; Oregon officials said on Wednesday. Oregon's Bureau of Labor and Industries spokesman Charlie Burr said the agency is exploring options for collecting the money.
MARICOPA, Ariz. — A member of the Ak-Chin Indian Community in a same-sex relationship is suing the tribe to recognize the union. Cleo Pablo filed her lawsuit Wednesday in the Ak-Chin Indian Community Court, alleging violations of equal protection, the Indian Civil Rights Act and due process. She says she's been denied rights and benefits granted to heterosexual couples.
Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear's lawyers are using the words "absurd," ''forlorn" and "obtuse" to describe the legal arguments Rowan County Clerk Kim Davi has used to avoid issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. "Simply stated, Davis' role is a legal one — not a moral or religious one," Beshear's attorneys wrote in the court document.
In 2013, Russia passed an amendment prohibiting "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations to minors." Western governments, led by the United States, condemned the law as out of step with modern societies. On Sunday, the Russian President defended the law. “I believe we should leave kids in peace,” Putin said. “We should give them a chance to grow, help them to realize who they are and decide for themselves.”
A dozen corporations are joining a new coalition to push for "LGBT rights" globally. The coalition members include the consulting firm Accenture, AT&T Inc., CA Technologies, Coca-Cola, Destination Weddings Travel Group, Google, IBM, Microsoft, home furnishings maker Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams, consumer products giant Procter & Gamble Co., china and glassware company Replacements Ltd., and Symantec Corp.
On Sunday, President Obama attacked GOP candidates who oppose homosexual behavior and same-sex "marriage." He said, "America has left the leaders of the Republican Party behind. We need to reject politicians who are supporting new forms of discrimination as a way to scare up votes. That's not how we move America forward."
After Pope Francis failed to emphasize important issues such as marriage and human life in his recent visit to the U.S., Conservative Evangelicals such as Al Mohler and Russell Moore are concerned that Francis is moving the Catholic Church to the left. Al Mohler sees Francis as "an example of leadership that does not define the issues, an example of leadership that moves from theology to piety, an example of leadership that doesn’t bring up the awkward questions and doesn’t lean into the hard issues where the truth has to be defined and defended."
The 72-year-old florist who is being persecuted by pro-homosexual activists and the state of Washington has said that the institutional campaign against her "isn’t real to me." In March, Barronelle Stutzman was fined $1,001 for not providing flowers for a same-sex "wedding." However, the financial penalties could go much further, even to the point of consuming her personal assets. Stutzman’s attorney, Kellie Fiedorek, said that "right now, we’re appealing her case to the Washington Supreme Court."
NEW YORK — President Obama spoke on same-sex "marriage" and religious freedom to a crowd of supporters Sunday. He indicated that religious freedom is no excuse to oppose same-sex "marriage," which is now a "constitutional right" in his opinion. He said, "We affirm that we cherish our religious freedom and are profoundly respectful of religious traditions. But we also have to say clearly that our religious freedom doesn't grant us the freedom to deny our fellow Americans their constitutional rights."
On Friday, South Dakota agreed to pay $242,000 to attorneys for same-sex couples who challenged the state’s marriage law. Sara Rabern, the spokeswoman for Attorney General Marty Jackley, said that the money won’t come from Jackley’s office because the attorney general’s office isn’t responsible for paying for challenges to the state constitution or state laws. She said the money would likely come from the state’s extraordinary litigation fund.
Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis filed a 40-page court document Thursday, claiming that Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear is to blame for the persecution she has endured for refusing to redefine marriage. On June 26, Beshear sent a letter to the commonwealth's 120 county clerks, directing them to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Davis said that in doing so, Beshear "commandeered" county clerk's offices and "usurped control of Kentucky marriage law."
PORTLAND, Oregon — In 2012, Chris Penner, owner of the Twilight Room Annex, told 11 people – including 10 men who identify as "women" – to stop coming into his place of business, saying that they were driving away customers. When notified, the Oregon Bureau of Labor & Industry (BOLI) found Penner guilty of discrimination and ordered him to pay $400,000 in damages. Penner then appealed the decision. This week, an appeals court upheld the fine.
Presbyterian churches in Brazil and Peru have ended their partnerships with the Presbyterian Church (USA) after the U.S. denomination changed its constitution in March to allow clergy to celebrate same-sex "marriages."
Kentucky clerk Kim Davis, who was jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, joined Megyn Kelly for a Fox News exclusive interview on "The Kelly File" yesterday evening. When asked what religious belief compelled her to refuse to issue the licenses, Davis replied, "Well, the Christian faith, you know, God's Word states that marriage is between one man and one woman."
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia on Tuesday criticized judges who believe the Constitution is a "living" document, saying they amount to policy makers who are rewriting it and making moral decisions for the entire country. He called the same-sex "marriage" ruling "the furthest imaginable extension of the Supreme Court doing whatever it wants."
The county clerk from Kentucky who went to jail rather than issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples said the licenses being granted by her staff are invalid, according to an interview that aired on Tuesday. "They're not valid in God's eyes, for one," she said of licenses her staff has begun issuing. "I have given no authority to write a marriage license. They did not have my permission, they did not have my authorization."
Earlier this month, a panel at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston upheld the decision to remove Dr. Paul Church from the hospital staff for speaking out about the dangers of homosexual behavior. Dr. Church has now exercised his last option: An appeal to the BIDMC Board of Directors.
Proposed legislation before the Pennsylvania General Assembly puts religious freedom at risk, says the PA Family Council. Under the claim of increasing tolerance and limiting discrimination, supporters of the "Fairness Act" are pushing for the creation of a special status in Pennsylvania law based on a person’s "sexual orientation" or "gender identity."
Hundreds of U.S. companies are adding sex reassignment as a health insurance benefit, according to a new survey. More than 415 out of about 780 firms surveyed say they cover related procedures that include hormone therapy and sex-reassignment surgeries, according to the Human Rights Campaign. In 2009, only 49 of the companies surveyed included such "benefits."
DURHAM, North Carolina — An endocrinologist by the name of Deanna Adkins has founded a new center which purports to address gender-related disorders at Duke Children’s Hospital and Health Center. The Center for Child and Adolescent Gender Care, which opened in July, is the first of its kind in North Carolina and one of only a handful in the Southeast.
On Monday, lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union wrote that the validity of the marriage licenses being issued by Deputy Clerk Brian Mason is "questionable at best," and the new licenses bring "humiliation and stigma" to the same-sex couples who receive them. They asked Judge Bunning to order Davis' office to reissue the licenses. If Davis interferes, the lawyers say Bunning should place her office in a receivership for the purposes of issuing marriage licenses.