| About this site |
| About us |
| Our beliefs |
| Your first visit? |
| Contact us |
| External links |
| Good books |
| Visitor essays |
| Our forum |
| New essays |
| Other features |
| Buy a CD |
| Vital notes |
| Non-theistic... |
| Atheism |
| Agnosticism |
| Humanism |
| Other |
| About all religions |
| Main topics |
| Basic info. |
| Gods/Goddesses |
| Handling change |
| Doubt/security |
| Quotes |
| Movies |
| Confusing terms |
| Glossary |
| World's end |
| True religion? |
| Seasonal events |
| Science/Religion |
| More info. |
| Spiritual/ethics |
| Spirituality |
| Morality/ethics |
| Absolute truth |
| Peace/conflict |
| Attaining peace |
| Relig. tolerance |
| Relig. freedom |
| Relig. hatred |
| Relig. conflict |
| Relig. violence |
| Laws and news |
| Religious laws |
| Religious news |
Sponsored links
Culture shift re: homosexuality, bisexuality, etc.
Events during 2009-APR illustrating
cultural shifts about sexual minorities
Sponsored link.
See additional events during
April concerning
homosexuals, bisexuals, transsexuals, etc.
There have been more events impacting the LGBT community in the first third of April than in any comparable interval in recent memory:
 | 2009-APR-02: Sweden legalizes same-sex marriage (SSM): Only one of
seven political parties in Sweden -- the Christian Democrats -- voted against
a bill
recognizing SSM. The bill passed 261 to 22. Same-sex couples will be able to
obtain marriage licenses on 2009-MAY-01. Sweden becomes the fifth country
in Europe to permit SSM, and the seventh in the world. 1 More
details. |
| 2009-APR-03: IA: Unanimous decision of the state supreme court
legalizes SSM: In the case of Varnum vs.
Brien, six
same-sex couples challenged the 1998 Iowa marriage law which limits marriage
to one man and one woman. The Iowa Supreme Court delivered a unanimous
verdict, ruling that the 1998 law limiting marriage to one man and one woman
conflicted with the equal protection clause in the state constitution that
requires people to be treated equally. Since the constitution trumps a piece
of legislation, they ruled that SSM is legal in the state.
More details prior to the ruling and
afterwards. |
|
2009-APR-04: USA: Hate crimes legislation introduced in
federal House: According to the Task Force Action Fund, a pro-gay advocacy
group, hate crimes legislation that has been before Congress many times, has
been reintroduced. It has consistently failed in the past. However, this time,
with the Democrats in control, it might succeed. More
information about past hate-crimes legislation. |
|
2009-APR-06: USA: Pastor Rick Warren apologized for his
support of Prop 8: Warren is one of best know evangelical leaders in the
U.S. Prop 8 passed with such a small margin that it might well have been
rejected if Warren had actively campaigned against it. On CNN's Larry King Live program, he
said the he had written "... to all my gay friends -- the leaders that I knew --
and actually apologized to them." More details. |
|
2009-APR-07: MD: Inheritance rights for same-sex couples:
As the laws now stand, when one spouse of a married couple dies,
the surviving spouse automatically inherits the house without paying an
inheritance tax. When one domestic partner of a same-sex couple dies, the
surviving partner is considered a roommate for the purpose of taxation; she or
he must pay inheritance tax. The Maryland Senate voted 28 to 19 today to pass
SB 785, a bill which would eliminate the inheritance tax on jointly owned
primary homes of same-sex domestic partners. Only one senator, Alex Mooney (R-
Frederick County) spoke in opposition to the legislation. The corresponding
House bill is HP 1215. 2 |
|
2009-APR-07: VT: Vermont becomes the fifth state to legalize SSM: The Vermont House and Senate comfortably passed a bill making SSM available. But Governor Jim Douglas, a Republican, vetoed the bill on APR-06. The Senate and House then voted to override the veto. There was no problem with a Senate override. However, the House vote on APR-07 was a squeaker: 100 to 49 in favor of a legislative override -- the absolute minimum required. Vermont thus became the fifth state in the U.S. to make same-sex
marriage available -- the others being California, Connecticut, Massachusetts
and Iowa. (SSM in California has since been at least temporarily eliminated by
Proposition 8). Vermont is the first state to do so by a legislative vote without pressure
from a state court. More details. |
| 2009-APR-16: NY: SSM bill: Governor David Paterson introduced a bill
to legalize same-sex marriage in New York. 6
More details. |
| 2009-APR-17: TX: San Antonio newspaper refuses "Love Won Out" ads:
The San Antonio News-Express refused to publish an advertisement for
Focus on the Family's "Love Won Out" conference. The ad was
rejected as being offensive. It describes the personal story of a employee of
Focus who "used to struggle with same-sex attractions." Presumably he was a
bisexual who simply decided to only pursue relationships with the opposite
sex, or a homosexual who decided to remain celibate. Focus spokesperson Gary
Schneeberger noted that they had scanned the ads over a three week interval in
the magazine and found several ads for strip clubs, and ads for lingerie
models in the classified. He did not explain the connection between strip
clubs, lingerie models and homosexual orientation.
5 |
| 2009-APR-26: Presbyteries of the Presbyterian Church (USA) vote on
clergy discrimination: During the summer of 2008, the General Assembly
of the Presbyterian Church (USA) voted to remove a constitutional
requirement that ministers, deacons and elders must live in "fidelity within
the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, or chastity in
singleness." This would allow gay, lesbian and bisexual candidates for these
positions to live in a loving committed same-sex relationship. As usual, the decision had to be ratified by a majority vote of the denomination's 173 presbyteries. By 2009-APR-26, a majority of 88 presbyteries had rejected the measure. This is not news; it has happened before. However, it appears that the margin is significantly smaller than in previous years. Both sides expect the issue to be addressed again in the near future. With the gradual increase in the acceptance of homosexuality and bisexuality nationwide, it appears inevitable that the constitutional requirement will eventually be dropped. More details. |
| 2009-APR-27: CA: Britney Spears supports
same-sex marriage: Spears wrote on her Twitter page: "Love is love! People
should be able to do whatever makes them happy. I have lots of gay andlesbian
friends and I want to see them get married. I'll do whatever it takes to make
their dreams come true. Discrimination has no place in America." 7 |
| 2009-APR-27: IA: Same-sex marriage licenses sold: Hundreds of
same-sex couples across the state of Iowa began obtaining marriage licenses in
their county recorder offices. Some obtained judicial waiver of the normal
three-day waiting period and were able to marry immediately. Iowa is now the
third state to allow SSM, along with Massachusetts and Connecticut. Vermont
will start issuing licenses in September. More info. |
| 2009-APR-28: CT: SSM protest flops: Three members of
the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, KS came to Hartford, CT to protest the
state Supreme Court's 2008 ruling that legalized SSM. The Church has been
included in the list of hate groups maintained by the Southern Poverty Law
Center. The Westboro Baptist church is well know for its God Hates Fags
web site, and its picketing and disruptions at funerals of service men and
women. At the demonstration were three protestors from the Baptist Church, about a half-dozen counter-protestors who objected to the Church's message of hate, at least ten law enforcement officials, but no supporters. 8 |
| 2009-APR-29: NH: SSM passes legislature:
The House approved a SSM bill in March. The Senate Judiciary Committee
voted to pass their version of the bill to the full Senate with the
recommendation that it be voted down. However, the senate approved the bill
with a vote of 13 to 11. Next, an attempt will be made to harmonize the two
bills so that it can be sent to the Governor for a signature or veto.
9 More info. |
| 2009-APR-30: ME: SSM passes house: The state Senate in Maine passed LD 1020, a bill to legalize SSM in the state by a vote of 21 to 14, essentially on strict party lines. An amendment to delay implementation of the bill until a state-wide referendum can be held was voted down 22 to 12. 10 |
Site navigation:
References used:
The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.
- "Sweden allows same-sex marriage." BBC News, 2009-APR-02, at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/
- "Urge Your State Delegates to Support Inheritance Rights for Same-Sex Couples," Equality Maryland news release, 2009-APR-07.
- Text of House bill 1215 is at: http://mlis.state.md.us/ This is a PDF file.
- Information on House bill 1215 is at: http://mlis.state.md.us/
- Charlie Butts, "Homosexual minority carries weight in Alamo City," One News Now, 2009-APR-17, at: http://www.onenewsnow.com/
- Laurie Segall, "New York governor to push same-sex marriage bill," CNN, 2009-APR-16, at: http://www.cnn.com/
- "Britney Spears Twitters support for gay marriage," AllHeadlineNews.com, 2009-APR-23, at: http://www.allheadlinenews.com/
- Daniela Altimari, "Phelps' Westboro Baptist Church Protests Gay Marriage Law," The Harford Courant, 2009-APR-28, at: http://www.chicagotribune.com/
- Kathleen Gilbert, "New Hampshire Senate approves same-sex marriage," lifeSiteNews, 2009-APR-29, at: http://www.lifesitenews.com/
- Kevin Miller, "State Senate backs gay-marriage bill," Bangor Daily News, 2009-MAY-01, at: http://www.bangordailynews.com/
Copyright © 2009 by Ontario
Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Initial posting: 2009-APR-03
Latest update: 2000-MAY-03
Author: B.A. Robinson
Sponsored link
|
|
Page Translator:Sponsored link: