(CNN) — February 26, 2012. That was the day two strangers — Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teenager walking back with Skittles and an iced tea he’d picked up at 7-Eleven, and George Zimmerman, a white Hispanic neighborhood watch volunteer in Sanford, Florida — met for the first and only time. It’s been nearly a…
WASHINGTON (CNN) — In a preview of a major constitutional showdown at the Supreme Court over same-sex marriage, the Obama administration said on Friday that a federal law denying financial benefits to legally wed gay and lesbian couples is unconstitutional. The Justice Department filed the first of a series of briefs in a pair of…
WASHINGTON –More than 50 civil rights, religious, professional, labor, civic and education organizations have sent a letter to President Obama calling for an executive order barring federal contractors from discriminating in employment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Because of a lack of federal protections, it remains legal in 29 states to…
WASHINGTON – Thirty-seven United States senators, led by Sen. Jeff Merkley, have today sent a letter to President Obama urging him to issue an executive order barring federal contractors from discriminating in hiring on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Because of a lack of federal protections, it remains legal to fire or…
WASHINGTON – Today Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta has announced that the Department of Defense will be extending additional benefits to same-sex partners of servicemembers. Panetta also stated that while the Defense of Marriage Act still remains law the Department faced legal limitations in regard to extending full benefits. Panetta’s statement follows: “Seventeen months ago, the…
Feb. 6 2003, I went to my place of employment as Autumn for the first time. As many already know, I served in the U.S. Navy from 1980 through 2000. I’m a retired, disabled, Persian Gulf War veteran; my disabilities are service connected and my Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability rating is 100 percent….
(CNN) — Republican Sen. Marco Rubio said Tuesday he hopes immigration rights for same-sex couples “doesn’t become a central issue” in the ongoing debate, referring to it as a “landmine” that could thwart attempts to pass a comprehensive immigration reform package. In a wide-ranging interview with BuzzFeed that streamed live online, the junior senator from…
Hawaii resident Jim Nabors, known for his starring role in the 1960s television sitcom Gomer Pyle, USMC, has married his longtime male partner, Hawaii News Now reports Nabors, 82, told Hawaii News Now that he married his companion of 38 years, Stan Cadwallader, who’s 64, in Seattle Jan. 15. Nabors, speaking to Hawaii News Now…
The White House released today a fact sheet outlining the key principles President Obama believes should be included in commonsense immigration reform. From the fact sheet: FACT SHEET: Fixing our Broken Immigration System so Everyone Plays by the Rules America’s immigration system is broken. Too many employers game the system by hiring undocumented workers and there…
WASHINGTON (CNN) — Undocumented immigrants would be able to seek legal status without first going home under a compromise framework floated Monday by a bipartisan group of senators, according to a source familiar with the plan. The outline for a possible immigration reform bill reflects a mainstream Republican willingness to compromise on what President Barack…
