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News Archive: February 2010

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02/26/10: This Week in Prop 8: Week Ending Feburary 26
Excerpt: "The pins-and-needles of the Prop 8 trial continued this week with new signs that the closing arguments might be televised. Although the dates for the closing arguments still haven't been announced, that hasn't stopped court-watchers from speculating about cameras covering the event. That speculation heated up this week when the Chronicle noticed a rule change that just might open a minute window of possibility for televising the arguments. It's important to remember two things before you get your hopes up for an exciting video spectacle: first, this is only the tiniest sliver of a possibility that cameras will be allowed in the courtroom; and second, trials are actually pretty boring. It's the protests and rallies afterwards that are exciting. No word yet on when those might happen. Elsewhere, the grudge against Doug Manchester is still as strong as ever: the Prop-8 supporting hotelier just lost the business of the American Psychological Association, which decided not to meet at the Manchester Hyatt for its August conference. And the mayor of Manhattan Beach waded into the Sisyphean effort to repeat Prop 8 later this year: Mayor Mitch Ward endorsed the effort, despite the report last week that they were lagging far behind on their signature-gathering." [Stop8.org]

02/28/10: 2 sides file pile of paperwork in Prop. 8 case
Excerpt: "Opposing sides in the legal battle over same-sex marriage in California have laid out their cases in writing to a federal judge, disputing the status of gays and lesbians in society, the nature of marriage, and the motives behind the ballot measure that defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman." [SF Gate]

02/28/10: Prop. 8 trial closing arguments will not be televised
Excerpt: "On January 15, 2010, Chief Judge Walker withdrew his previous request to include Perry et. al. v. Schwarzenegger et. al . in the Ninth Circuit's pilot program permitting broadcasting of district court proceedings in limited circumstances. On the same date, Chief Judge Kozinski approved the request to withdraw the Perry case from the program. Broadcasting closing arguments would require Chief Judge Walker to request that these arguments be included in the Ninth Circuit's pilot program and approval of that request by Chief Judge Kozinski. No such request has been made." [LGBT POV]

02/26/10: Prop. 8 suit closing arguments may be televised
Excerpt: "Despite a rebuff from the U.S. Supreme Court, the Bay Area's federal judges are again proposing to allow cameras in their courtrooms, a plan that could lead to telecasting of closing arguments in a suit challenging California's ban on same-sex marriage. The U.S. District Court in San Francisco has posted a rule change on its Web site that would allow its judges to take part in a pilot program of airing selected nonjury civil trials. The public comment period began Feb. 4 and ends Thursday." [SF Gate]

02/26/10: Manchester Hyatt loses more business over owner's Prop. 8 donation
Excerpt: "The Council of Representatives, the major legislative body of the American Psychological Association (APA), will not meet at the Manchester Hyatt Hotel in San Diego during the association's August convention. In response to a sizable donation made to the Proposition 8 campaign by Doug Manchester, owner of the Manchester Hyatt, a number of APA divisions and members voiced concerns about APA's use of the hotel during its annual meeting." [San Diego Gay and Lesbian News]

02/23/10: Manhattan Beach mayor endorses the campaign to repeal Prop 8
Excerpt: "Mayor Mitch Ward of Manhattan Beach, California announced today that he officially endorses Restore Equality 2010's efforts to bring marriage equality back to the ballot in 2010. "I am fully committed to full civil rights for all California citizens," said Mayor Ward. This includes the right to marriage equality for those of us in the LGBT community." " [Examiner]

02/20/10: Signatures, money lacking for Prop 8 repeal effort
Excerpt: "Despite efforts to utilize volunteers to gather 1 million signatures to put a measure on the November ballot to repeal Proposition 8, one of the grassroots groups pushing the effort has acknowledged it is well under its goals and may have to use paid signature gatherers. However, the group, Love Honor Cherish, only reported raising a little over $19,000 during a portion of 2009, which is well under what a signature-gathering firm would charge. In a phone interview last week, John Henning, executive director of Love Honor Cherish, said the signature gathering is going "fine," but added, "we are not meeting our daily targets, and we're trying to work to get to the point where we are meeting our daily targets."" [Bay Area Reporter]

02/20/10: Prop. 8 judge encouraged to step down
Excerpt: ""Well, the judge has said, 'No comment' when asked about his sexual lifestyle," explains the Liberty Counsel attorney. "I think he needs to comment. If in fact he is engaged in the homosexual lifestyle, there is a clear conflict of interest here under federal law."" [One News Now]

02/17/10: Reality Valentines at last
Excerpt: "Here in San Francisco, everyone held their collective breath when The Chronicle outed Vaughn Walker, the federal judge hearing the same-sex marriage/Proposition 8 case. Walker is gay and has a partner, meaning that if the two of them wanted to get married, the judge would be ruling on an issue in which he would have not just a general, civil rights interest but also a direct stake." [SF Gate]

02/12/10: San Francisco Bloggers: Come Canvass for Equality!
Excerpt: "Bay Area bloggers are hitting the streets this weekend to build support for marriage equality. If you can make it out, please join us at 10:00 am this Saturday in San Francisco. The canvass is a great excuse to meet and mingle with a crowd of awesome online writers, and learn about some of the work being done to restore marriage for same-sex couples in California. Non-bloggers will also be there and are highly welcome." [LGBT POV]

02/12/10: WWII internment ruling will impact Prop. 8 judgment
Excerpt: "Lower courts in California have granted suspect class status to gays and lesbians, but it remains to be seen if the 9th District will uphold that decision. Pro-Proposition 8 witness Kenneth P. Miller, an associate professor of political science at Claremont McKenna College, testified that if political power meant the ability to get the attention of lawmakers, gays and lesbians could not be considered politically powerless." [The Guardsman]

02/11/10: NJ gay rights group closes its wallet
Excerpt: "Garden State Equality has decided to play hardball. New Jersey's largest gay rights organizations has suspended donating cash to political parties. "No political party has a record good enough on LGBT civil rights that it can rightfully claim to be entitled to our money on a party-wide basis," said Steven Goldstein, the group's chairman. "No longer will we let any political party take our money and volunteers with one hand, and slap us in the face with the other when we seek full equality."" [365Gay]

02/10/10: New website protesting LDS Church's involvement in Prop 8
Excerpt: "Church members are protesting what the LDS Church has done. ExcommunicateTheChurch.com is a new grass-roots protest against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Organizer, Jason Beckett, stated, "When we launched the campaign, I assumed we would see people from outside the church voicing their issues, but we've seen a very strong response from active members who feel the church over stepped the bounds."" [Examiner]

02/09/10: Countering NOM's missive on Prop 8 Judge Walker with the facts
Excerpt: "Brown is just plain wrong when it comes to Walker being one-side throughout the trial. Even before the trial began, Walker - who was randomly selected to preside - denied the attempt by LGBT groups such as Lambda Legal to intervene in the case. Walker did allow Charles Cooper and ProtectMarriage and their legal ally, the Alliance Defense Fund, to intervene because the named defendants were all state officials - including Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown who refused to mount a serious defense of Prop 8. That was a big "win" for the ProtectMarriage side - without which there might not have been much of a trial. As for Walker's supposed judicial "activism" - there's a difference between being engaged and being "activist or neutral calling balls and strikes. This is a bench trial. Walker had to be engaged for clarification." [LGBT POV]

02/09/10: The Prop 8 Judge Is Gay, and It Doesn't Matter
Excerpt: "It'd be cool if the relative quiet on Walker's orientation was because America recognized that Judge Walker's sex life doesn't affect his job. (Minimal MSM and right-wing pickup so far.) As SF Weekly points out, even calling the Chronicle's article an "outing" is misleading: Walker never tried to hide his orientation, and it's pretty common for judges to keep their personal lives away from the spotlight." [Gawker]

02/05/10: Gay rights: Oakland LDS Stake tries to heal post-Prop 8 rifts
Excerpt: " In June 2008, the LDS First Presidency asked all California Mormons to give their time and money to Proposition 8, a ballot measure striking down gay marriage. Many members did so with gusto, circulating petitions, raising money, sending e-mails to church lists and putting up lawn signs. That left other Bay Area Mormons, particularly those with gay friends and relatives, feeling embattled and alienated. Some stepped away temporarily from church; others left for good. Those who remained often felt at odds with fellow believers. Oakland Stake President Dean Criddle, a respected lawyer and gentle leader, sensed the ripples of collective pain and wanted to reunite his flock, says Matt Marostica, bishop of the Berkeley Ward. So Criddle and his counselors assembled quotes and speeches from LDS general authorities that stressed love and compassion for those with same-sex attraction. They then asked each of the 10 wards in the stake to hold a joint meeting of adult members during church services on either Aug. 30 or Sept. 6 to hand out the quotes and listen to personal stories from area members. " [Salt Lake Tribune]

02/04/10: Bill would divorce religion from marriage
Excerpt: "It is a breakup many LGBT activists say is long overdue, and now openly gay state Senator Mark Leno wants the state to intervene in the split. Leno is pushing a bill that would, in effect, divorce religion from marriage under California's statutes. Leno's bill, SB 906, is called the Civil Marriage Religious Freedom Act. It would emphatically state that faith leaders in California will not face penalties or be arrested if they refuse to marry same-sex couples. The legislation also clarifies that any church that does not sanction same-sex marriages would not lose its tax-exempt status." [Bay Area Reporter]

02/02/10: New study: gender of parents doesn't matter.
Excerpt: "In their analysis, the researchers found no evidence of gender-based parenting abilities, with the "exception of lactation," noting that very little about the gender of the parent has significance for children's psychological adjustment and social success. They found there are far more similarities than differences among children of lesbian and heterosexual parents. On average, two mothers tended to play with their children more, were less likely to use physical discipline, and were less likely to raise children with chauvinistic attitudes. Studies of gay male families are still limited." [Psychology Today]

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