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Seattle Gay News SEATTLE’S LGBT NEWS & ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
Utah asks SCOTUS to take marriage case Court will take up marriage soon, Justice Ginsberg predicts Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes
Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes
by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes filed an appeal on August 5, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Kitchen v. Herbert, a suit challenging Utah’s ban on same-sex marriages. In June, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower federal court decision in that case striking down Utah’s marriage law.
Meanwhile, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg told The Associated Press that she believes the high court will take up the issues of state bans on same-sex marriage. In December last year, the Supreme Court struck down DOMA, the prohibition on federal recognition of Gay and Lesbian marriages, but their decision was narrowly written to avoid taking a position on state laws against same-sex marriage.
Since then, 17 federal district courts, and three appeals courts have ruled in favor of marriage equality, but Utah officials insist they will defend their state’s laws all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary. “My responsibility is to defend the State Constitution and its amendments as Utah citizens have enacted them,” Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes said in a statement. “We recognize this litigation has caused uncertainty and disruption and have accordingly tried to expedite its resolution as quickly as possible by filing our petition a full month-and-a-half before its September 23rd due date.” Utah’s 212-page appeal alleges that the Tenth Circuit decision deprives “Utah citizens of the ‘fundamental right’ to act through a lawful electoral process ... and ignores that the Constitution says nothing about how states must define marriage… “It comes down to this: thousands of couples are unconstitutionally being denied the right to marry, or millions of voters are being disenfranchised of their vote to define marriage,” the Utah appeal claims. Attorneys for the plaintiffs in the Utah case said that the state’s right to define marriage cannot trump same-sex couples’ rights to marry. “We respect the state’s right to seek review of its own law in the highest court in the land, but
we also respectfully, and vehemently, disagree with the notion that states can deny one of the most foundational rights to the millions of same-sex couples living across this great land,” attorney Peggy Tomsic said in a statement. “We will carefully review the State’s petition to determine the response that will best advance our goal of winning for all Utahans the freedom to marry the person they love, and to have their marriages treated the same as other couples’ marriages,” said plaintiff co-council Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Ginsberg: SCOTUS will hear a marriage case Freedom to Marry hoped that Utah’s appeal would lead to a quick Supreme Court decision that established marriage equality as the law of the land. “Today’s filing in the Utah case paves the way for the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a marriage case later this year and bring national resolution on marriage once and for all,” the group said in a statement. “Every day, hundreds of thousands of samesex couples and their children are suffering the tangible harms of not being free to marry. The see SCOTUS page 8
Chattanooga voters repeal civil Summary of same-sex marriage rights for LGBT city employees cases before appeals court as well as partner benefits NewYorker.com
WASHINGTON – Preliminary results from Chattanooga, Tennessee indicate that the city’s residents have voted to repeal a city ordinance that extended essential non-discrimination protections to the city’s LGBT employees, as well as partner benefits for those who have same-sex spouses. The deeply disappointing result comes after a hard-fought campaign by a coalition of local, state and national Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) organizations to defend the measure. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest LGBT civil rights organization, committed staff and financial support to the campaign to uphold the measure. That effort succeeded in building a broad and engaged pro-LGBT coalition in Tennessee, which will continue to push forward with efforts to expand equality across the state. In response to the news, HRC’s Deputy Field Director Jeremy Pittman released the following statement: “Despite this hurtful and disappointing result tonight, we know that fair-minded Chattanoogans
and people across Tennessee are ready to keep fighting until full equality reaches every corner of the state and every corner of this country. As LGBT equality moves forward across this country, this work isn’t over until every American can expect the same decent treatment under the law.” The Chattanooga City Council first passed the ordinance in November of 2013 by a 5-3 vote. HRC, our statewide ally the Tennessee Equality Project, and other LGBT groups stood with Mayor Andy Berke and others to support the measure. Unfortunately, opponents of the measure secured sufficient signatures to put it on the ballot earlier this year. The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.
Marriage Equality Rally in Washington DC
by Shaun Knittel SGN Associate Editor
On August 6, three Cincinnatibased 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judges heard arguments in six Gay marriage fights from Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and TennesCourtesy of the Human Rights see, setting the stage for one ruling. Campaign Each case deals with whether
statewide same-sex marriage bans In July, a federal judge agreed violate the Constitution. with three couples, striking down the state’s ban on recognizing outSeattle Gay News takes a look at of-state marriages. That ruling is each case: on hold pending appeal. Greg Bourke and Michael DeLeKENTUCKY on, one of the couples listed in the Kentucky has two cases by cou- lawsuit, said that if they win, their ples seeking to have their marriagsee Summary page 8 es recognized by the state.