associated press

Md. high court hears lesbian divorce case

Submitted by ONE Community on April 7, 2012 - 1:40pm

From The Associated Press:

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland routinely grants divorces for couples who married in other states, and divorces for same-sex couples should be no different, lawyers for a lesbian couple told the state's highest court Friday.

The case involves two women who were married in California and denied a divorce in 2010 by a Maryland judge who said their marriage was not valid in the state.

Maryland does not currently allow same-sex weddings, but lawyers for the women told the seven-member court that it would be unprecedented for the state not to recognize gay marriages performed elsewhere. Read more »

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Gay marriage within reach in Wash. Legislature BREAKING NEWS UPDATE

Submitted by ONE Community on January 13, 2012 - 4:49pm

From Associated Press via The Seattle Times:

OLYMPIA, Wash. —

Washington's Legislature is on the verge of having enough support to approve gay marriage, with votes continuing to realign in the state Senate.

In contacts with all 49 senators over the past week, The Associated Press found that more lawmakers are now firmly supporting gay marriage than opposing it. That margin currently stands at 22-18, and the measure needs 25 votes to pass the Senate.

Four other Democrats say they are considering whether to support it, including one who is leaning in favor. A pair of Republicans are among those supporting the proposal, and two first-term members of the GOP say they are still discussing the issue with constituents. Read more »

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UN official tells nations to end gay executions

Submitted by ONE Community on December 17, 2011 - 5:47pm

By FRANK JORDANS, Associated Press

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N.'s top human rights official urged countries Thursday to abolish legal discrimination against gays, including the death penalty for consensual sex, days after the U.S. government said it would use foreign aid and diplomacy to promote gay equal rights.
The U.N.'s High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, said governments should also outlaw all forms of abuse based on sexual orientation and set the same age of consent for heterosexual and homosexual activity.

Read more

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Administration supports lesbian employee's case

Submitted by ONE Community on July 7, 2011 - 8:08pm

From the Associated Press:

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — In a strongly worded legal brief, the Obama administration has said the federal act that defines marriage as being between a man and a woman was motivated by hostility toward gays and lesbians and is unconstitutional.

The brief was filed Friday in federal court in San Francisco in support of a lesbian federal employee's lawsuit claiming the government wrongly denied health insurance coverage to her same-sex spouse.

The Justice Department says Karen Golinski's suit should not be dismissed because the law under which her spouse was denied benefits — the Defense of Marriage Act — violates the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of equal protection. Read more »

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NH gay couples to start New Year with wedding vows

Submitted by ONE Community on December 31, 2009 - 1:26pm
NORMA LOVE,Associated Press Writer Thursday, December 31, 2009 FRANCONIA, N.H. (AP) — Jeffry Burr and Neil Blair are just hours from their wedding, but there are no typical prenuptial jitters. After all, this is the third time they've exchanged vows. They first committed to each other before scores of relatives and friends on June 24, 2006, in an emotional ceremony that didn't even count under New Hampshire law. Then, at 12:01 a.m. on Jan.
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