DC Same-Sex Marriage Bill Approved by Council Committee

A lot has happened in the last few days regarding the rights of the LGBTQ community. Here's some of the latest from the Feminist Newswire!

The DC Council's Committee on Public Safety and Judiciary approved a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage in the nation's Capital yesterday, advancing it to a full Council vote in December. The Religious Freedom & Civil Marriage Equality Amendment Act of 2009 (see PDF) passed by a vote of 4 to 1 with Council member Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7) opposed, reports the Washington Post.

The bill was originally written by Council member David Catania (I-At Large) and co-introduced by ten of the city's 13 Council members last month, according to the Washington Blade. The committee revised the bill to expand a provision allowing religious organizations to refuse to provide services for same-sex marriage ceremonies.

The new version alters a provision addressing domestic partnerships and removes language that originally stipulated that domestic partnerships would be phased out once same-sex marriage is allowed. If it passes, DC will be the only place in the country where same-sex couples can choose to marry or enter a domestic partnership, according to the Washington Post. The Council is expected to pass the bill in its final December vote and DC Mayor Adrian Fenty has stated he will sign it, reports the Washington Blade. Once signed by Fenty, the bill would undergo a thirty-day review by Congress.

Photo Credit: SFBart on flickr.com

DC Same-Sex Marriage Law, Just a Formality?

Currently being drafted in D.C Council's Committee on Public Safety is Bill 18-482. What is so special about that Bill (that causes me to jig in my seat) you might ask? It is a bill circulating that argues, "marriage equality already exists in the city, and a law legalizing it isn't much more than a formality" according to DCist.

The bill recognizes that NOWHERE in the constitution does it define marriage as a union only between a woman and man. It cites several other laws and initiatives that have been drafted and used in the DC area dating back from 1992 that worked to use gender neutral language, allowing more rights to same-sex couples. Having the right to marry is more than just a piece of paper binding two people together. Marriage constitutes federal benefits and protections, like estate taxes, hospital visitation, Medicaid and more. All of which are things civil unions and domestic partnerships cannot. The right to marry is simply granting people access to the same benefits and protections that other people already legally have.

The bill is expected to be marked up today and ready for a council vote on December 1st. Keep your fingers and toes crossed people, I know those of us at Feminist Majority Foundation sure are!

Picture Credit: o'holy sweet cakes on flickr.com

Obama Says "No" to DOMA

An issue that has taken a sort of back burner position in the wake of everything that is going on with health care reform is the issue of same-sex marriage.

Thankfully, things seem to be heating back up for this issue. Today, President Obama made it clear that he favors the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The Obama administration filed court papers this morning claiming that a federal marriage law discriminates against gays.

DOMA is a denies federal recognition of gay marriage and gives states the right to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. The bill was signed into law in 1996 under former President Clinton.

So what does this most recent action on the part of the Obama administration mean? I guess we won't know for a while, at least until Congress reconvenes on September 8.

Photo courtesy of pinguino on flikr.com

Newsday Tuesday, April 21st Edition

Here at FeministCampus we want to make sure that all our readers are staying in-the-know on recent feminist news, so we're going to kick off a weekly sampling of feminist news tidbits, the Cliff's Notes version, if you will! Here goes:

Good News!
We'll start off on a happy note - the Washington state legislature passed a bill expanding domestic partner rights. Although passage in the NY Senate is iffy, at the very least the New York governor announced a same sex marriage bill. I love it when public leaders take a stand! Along the same lines, let's hear it for the leaders in Sierra Leone who signed a female genital mutilation agreement. Finally, the Oregon House tips its hat to women's health by Oregon House passing an HPV vaccine bill requiring state-regulated insurance companies to cover the vaccine.

Bad News!
And the not-so-great news includes the ongoing tale of the brave Afghan Women that we wrote about last week - hundreds pelted the women in the clash between protestors and counter-protesters of a highly restrictive new Shia family law. On the home front, unfortunately the Indiana State House amended an anti-choice bill to include a fetal pain provision.

That's all for now - those of you who want a daily dose of feminist news should be sure to check out the Feminist Daily NewsWire, and @feministnews on Twitter!