Same-sex marriage= not some “new” trend.
The National Center for Lesbian Rights is representing Jennifer Tobits, the widow of Sarah Ellyn Farley, whose parents are challenging the couple’s marriage and seeking control of Farley’s estate and death benefits provided by her employer.
This week, Tobits filed court documents seeking to be named the executor of her wife’s estate and defending her status as a surviving spouse. Tobits’s in-laws had sought to take control of their deceased daughter’s estate. They had also directed their daughter’s employer to pay them, not Tobits, her death benefits under the employer’s profit-sharing plan, arguing that the couple’s four-year Canadian marriage is invalid and their relationship should not be recognized.
“Ellyn was the love of my life,” said Tobits. “No one should have to experience the pain of losing the person who means the most to you, only to face a shocking and hostile challenge to your marriage—your commitment, your life together, and everything you built as a couple.”
"Why Marriage Equality Matters
http://nclrights.wordpress.com/2011/08/03/widow-defends-her-marriage-against-challenges-by-deceased-wife%e2%80%99s-parents/
(via zblogger)
Chris Barley and Marc Kushner, March 31, 2012
New York City, New York
The couple come from mixed religious backgrounds, as Chris was raised Mennonite and Marc’s family is Modern Orthodox Jewish.
(via freedomtomarry)
Kenneth Weishuhn, a gay 14-year-old high school freshman from Iowa, died by suicide this weekend, and bullying at school is suspected to have played a role.
Kenneth’s friends rejected him when he came out to them about a month ago. Bullies created an anti-gay hate group on Facebook and added Kenneth’s friends as members, and he eventually received death threats over the phone.
According to Kenneth’s mother Jeannie, those South O’Brien boys were given a warning, but she was never contacted by the school. She’s unsure whether she’ll press charges against the students she says drove her son to his death.
“I really don’t want to ruin somebody else’s life, or take someone else’s son or daughter from them. But, I don’t know what it’s going to take to get it to stop,” said Chambers.
His funeral will be held Thursday. Rest peacefully, Kenneth. I’m so sorry we couldn’t help you in time.
If you or someone you know needs help, please call The Trevor Project’s lifeline at 1-866-488-7386. Suicide is preventable and there are resources available to help you get through it.
The infamous Don’t Say Gay bill in Tennessee, once nearly long gone, is gaining momentum once again.
The bill made it out of a committee yesterday and now heads to the House for a full vote, though Republican governor Bill Haslam says he doesn’t believe it should be a priority at the moment. More from The Advocate:
He also seemed unhappy to have what was called “the monkey bill” land in his lap last month. Instead of signing the law, which extends legal protections to teachers who want to discuss the possibility that creationism is real or that global warming isn’t, Haslam waited and waited and eventually let the law go into effect without his signature.
Last time around, the House ran out of time to vote on the “don’t say gay” law while the Senate actually passed it. It would bar teachers and administrators from any talk of homosexuality before high school and violators would face fines and jail time. Backers of the bill don’t appear to be backing down.I will be so furious if this goes through. I’m shocked that Tennessee has nothing better to do than impose these harsh judgements and homophobic rules on students.
The government in Saudi Arabia has put forth efforts to ban gays and masculine-appearing women from schools to fight homosexuality, according to reports from Saudi Arabia. Details from the news source:
The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the most feared law enforcement authority in the oil-rich country, has been asked to enforce the new orders, Sharq Arabic language daily said.
“Instructions have been issued to all public schools and universities to ban the entry of gays and tom boys and to intensify their efforts to fight this phenomenon, which has been promoted by some websites,” it said.
The paper did not make clear who issued those instructions but said gay and tom boy students can go back to schools and universities if they prove they have been corrected and have stopped such practices.
I don’t even know where to start on how wrong this is. How can you possibly justify keeping kids out of school for something like sexuality, let alone appearance? We need someone to step in, and we need it now. This is inexcusable.
