Today, Utah U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby ruled that the state’s ban on marriage equality is unconstitutional. In a 53-page decision, the court found that Utah’s marriage ban denies loving, committed lesbian and gay couples their “fundamental right to marry,” and that the ban lacks any “rational basis.” “This has been a banner year for marriage…
WASHINGTON – The Human Rights Campaign and the NAACP, have sent a letter to A+E President and Chief Executive Officer Nancy Dubuc, calling on her to disavow the racist and homophobic comments made by Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson. In a recent GQ interview, Robertson said that African Americans were happier during the era of…
WASHINGTON – In a recent interview with GQ magazine, the star of A&E’s hit Duck Dynasty called homosexuality a sin, and equated it with promiscuity and bestiality. In the remarks, for the magazine’s January 2014 issue, Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson says sin “Start[s] with homosexual behavior and just morph[s] out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with…
WASHINGTON – In what was a historic year of progress for the equal rights of LGBT Americans, corporate America stood out as a true leader in the fight for basic fairness and dignity. Both inside the boardroom and in the halls of state legislatures and the U.S. Congress, American companies stood by their LGBT employees….
Nelson Mandela, who died yesterday was South Africa’s first post-Apartheid president, and an outspoken advocate for LGBT equality. He appointed an openly-gay judge to South Africa’s High Court of Appeal and during his presidency, South Africa became the first nation in the world to constitutionally prohibit sexual orientation-based discrimination. Mandela will be remembered for his…
WASHINGTON – Buzzfeed reports that House Speaker John Boehner today secured meeting space for the top American supporters of Russia’s anti-LGBT laws. The news comes after Sen. Mark Kirk withdrew their original meeting space with a spokesperson saying, “Senator Kirk will not host groups that advance a hateful agenda.” The World Congress of Families –…
WASHINGTON – House Speaker John Boehner has again offered a false and factually inaccurate explanation for why he won’t support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) – which passed the Senate one week ago with bipartisan support from 10 Republicans. Boehner re-iterated his opposition to the legislation that would simply protect hardworking lesbian, gay, bisexual and…
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Senate voted 64 to 32 to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) for the first time in the legislation’s two-decade history. All Senate Democrats joined 10 Senate Republicans to approve the bill. Following passage of the act President Barack Obama issued the following statement: “For more than two centuries, the…
With the news that pro-equality Democrat Terry McAuliffe defeated vehemently anti-LGBT Republican Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli in the Virginia governor’s race, Americans got yet another indication that anti-LGBT politics are in full retreat in 2013. Cuccinelli, who had been one of the most vocally anti-LGBT elected officials in the country and who was once widely…
Today LGBT equality advocates heralded the passage of marriage equality legislation in the Illinois House of Representatives. The legislation now heads back to the state Senate in order to accept minor House amendments before proceeding to the desk of Gov. Pat Quinn for signature. Illinois will become the 15th state, plus the District of Columbia, to…
