Having technical problems? Visit our support page to report an issue!
Equality On Trial
SIGN UP FOR BREAKING NEWS
Equality Case Timeline
Equality on Trial's Case Timeline is the go-to place to find thorough, up-to-date information on the myriad of marriage equality lawsuits taking place across the US.
16 Comments
1.
VIRick | August 2, 2022 at 6:52 pm
Ukraine: President Backs Civil Partnerships for Same-Sex Couples
On 2 August 2022, the President of Ukraine said he supports a civil partnership law for same-sex couples. Kyiv Pride backed a marriage equality petition that was submitted to Volodymyr Zelenskyy on 12 July with 28,592 signatures, which is higher than the legal threshold of 25,000 that requires him to consider it.
Zelenskyy in his response to the petition notes his support for marriage equality, but acknowledges that the Ukrainian constitution defines marriage as between a man and a woman. It cannot be amended while the country is under martial law. Zelenskyy nevertheless directed his government to submit a report on whether same-sex couples can enter into civil partnerships through the country’s existing legal framework or via a bill that would go through Parliament.
“I appealed to the Prime Minister of Ukraine with a request to consider the issue raised in the electronic petition and to report about the relevant results,” said Zelenskyy.
https://www.washingtonblade.com/2022/08/02/ukrain…
Per LGBT Marriage News:
In part, this petition is being driven by recognition that a large number of soldiers fighting Russia are LGBT, and are worried that their partners will not be able to claim them if they were to die.
2.
ianbirmingham | August 3, 2022 at 10:55 am
Zelensky opens door to same-sex civil partnerships in Ukraine
In a written reply online, Zelensky said his government had "worked out solutions regarding the legalization of registered civil partnership in Ukraine as part of the work on establishing and ensuring human rights and freedoms."
The call to introduce same-sex marriage in the country has been accelerated by the war, due to the number of LGBTQ+ people serving in the military and the greater legal protections that married civilians have.
Zelensky said he would work with his ministers to "ensure the rights and freedoms" of all Ukrainians. "In the modern world, the level of democratic society is measured, among other things, through state policy aimed at ensuring equal rights for all citizens. Every citizen is an inseparable part of civil society, he is entitled to all the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine," Zelensky also said. "All people are free and equal in their dignity and rights."
In June, the UN identified LGBTQ+ people as a group specifically affected by the war and said LGBTQ+ refugees from the country "are often at heightened risk of exclusion, exploitation, violence and abuse, and encounter distinct protection risks."
Ukraine legalized homosexuality after the fall of the Soviet Union, but anti-LGBTQ attitudes and laws remain in place in the country. Workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation is banned, but no legal recognition of same-sex relationships exists, and same-sex couples are barred from adopting children and unprotected by hate crime laws, according to watchdog ILGA-Europe.
The organization ranks Ukraine 39th out of 49 European nations for LGBTQ+ rights.
A Pride parade typically takes place in Kyiv each year, but in June organizers joined forces with the equivalent event in neighboring Poland, celebrating in Warsaw amid the war at home.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/03/europe/ukraine-zel…
3.
Randolph_Finder | August 3, 2022 at 8:03 pm
Zelensky's opinion on SSM is going to be *completely* irrelevant as to whether he gets re-elected. His popularity makes FDR popularity in the US during WWII look lukewarm. My honest guess is that some form of somewhat unequal Civil Unions will come during the next year and Equal Marriage will get punted at least one presidency term down the road. (Which isn't that unusual for Europe).
4.
VIRick | August 3, 2022 at 2:57 pm
West Virginia: Court Rules for Transgender Medicaid Members Denied Health Care
Per Lambda Legal:
On 2 August 2022, federal District Court Judge Robert C. Chambers ruled that West Virginia’s Medicaid program could no longer discriminate by excluding coverage for gender-confirming surgical care for transgender West Virginia Medicaid participants.
The ruling came in a lawsuit, "Fain v. Crouch," filed by Lambda Legal, Nichols Kaster, PLLP, and the Employment Law Center, PLLC, challenging West Virginia’s exclusion of coverage for gender-confirming surgical care. The court also certified the lawsuit as a class action, covering all transgender West Virginians who participate in Medicaid.
Lambda Legal, Nichols Kaster, PLLP, and the Employment Law Center, PLLC filed the class action lawsuit, "Fain v. Crouch," in 2020 on behalf of Christopher Fain, a Medicaid participant; and Zachary Martell, the spouse of Brian McNemar, a state employee, challenging the exclusion of gender-confirming care in both the Medicaid and state employee health plans respectively. In 2021, counsel added two additional plaintiffs, Shauntae Anderson, a Medicaid participant, and Leanne James, a public employee and Public Employee Insurance Agency (PEIA) member.
https://www.lambdalegal.org/news/fain_wv_20220802…
The Memorandum Opinion and Order is here:
https://www.lambdalegal.org/in-court/legal-docs/f…
Further details of the case are here:
http://files.eqcf.org/cases/s-d-w-va-320-cv-00740…
5.
VIRick | August 4, 2022 at 11:42 am
Tennessee: Transgender Student Sues over School Bathroom Law
On 4 August 2022, a transgender child and her parents sued the Tennessee Department of Education over a law that prohibits transgender students and staff from using school bathrooms or locker rooms that match their gender identities.
The suit was filed in federal court in Nashville by a student identified only as D.H. The complaint states that D.H. was assigned male at birth but identifies as female. D.H., who is now 8 years old, began living as a girl at the age of 6, according to the lawsuit.
The school initially agreed to support D.H.'s social transition but by January of this year, the “administration could not provide D.H. with the support she needed to complete her social transition,” according to the complaint. That's because Tennessee law prevents her from using the girls' bathroom at school.
The school accommodates D.H. by letting her use one of four single-occupancy restrooms, which “reinforce the differential treatment” of D.H., according to the lawsuit. This violates her Constitutional rights under the Equal Protection Clause and also violates Title IX, the 1972 federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in education, the lawsuit claims.
The current suit is the second one challenging the grossly mis-named Tennessee Accommodations for All Children Act. A previous lawsuit was dropped after the child-plaintiff moved out-of-state.
https://www.advocate.com/transgender/2022/8/05/hu…
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/transgender-chi…
6.
ianbirmingham | August 5, 2022 at 10:54 am
New censorship checklist for Florida classrooms
https://i.redd.it/ilejrvwc3xf91.jpg
7.
VIRick | August 5, 2022 at 1:49 pm
Italy: Marriage Equality Petition
Per Dante di Roberto:
Vogliamo il Matrimonio Egualitario nei programmi elettorali del 25 settembre. Firma la petizione!
Oggi in Italia esistono ancora coppie di serie A e di serie B. Le Unioni Civili del 2016 non bastano. Vogliamo il Matrimonio Egualitario nei programmi elettorali del 25 settembre.
Siamo cittadin* di età, generi, orientamenti sessuali differenti e chiediamo ai partiti di eliminare questa distinzione assurda. Vogliamo che la legge sia uguale per tutte e che tutte le coppie siano uguali davanti allo Stato.
Alle elezioni del 25 settembre 2022 chiediamo alla coalizione di centrosinistra di avere il coraggio di lottare con noi e per noi, prendendo un impegno netto e chiaro: approvare una legge sul Matrimonio Egualitario in Parlamento.
https://twitter.com/DanteDiRoberto1
We want Marriage Equality in the electoral agenda of 25 September. Sign the petition!
Today in Italy there are still series A and series B couples. The Cvil Unions of 2016 are not enough. We want Marriage Equality in the electoral programs of 25 September.
We are citizens of different ages, genders, sexual orientations, and we ask the parties to eliminate this absurd distinction. We want the law to be equal for everyone and for all couples to be equal before the state.
In the elections of 25 September 2022, we ask the center-left coalition to have the courage to fight with us and for us, making a clear commitment: to approve a law on Marriage Equality in Parliament.
The petition is here:
https://www.change.org/p/vogliamo-il-matrimonio-e…
8.
ianbirmingham | August 6, 2022 at 12:25 am
The FBI Confirms Its Brett Kavanaugh Investigation Was a Total Sham
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/08/brett-kav…
9.
ianbirmingham | August 6, 2022 at 2:03 pm
'Backsliding on Democracy': Indiana Governor Signs Extreme Abortion Ban Bill
“We are backsliding on democracy,” said Democratic Sen. Jean Breaux of Indianapolis. “What other freedoms, what other liberties are on the chopping block, waiting to be stripped away?”
Outside the chambers, activists loudly chanted over lawmakers’ remarks, carrying signs like “Roe roe roe your vote” and “Build this wall” between church and state.
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/08/06/back…
10.
scream4ever | August 7, 2022 at 9:04 pm
My hometown is having an all-ages drag show on Labor Day. I kinda want to offer my services as a bodyguard just in case anyone tries something.
11.
VIRick | August 8, 2022 at 11:35 am
Kenya: New Law Recognizes Intersex Persons as Third Gender
In Kenya, a new law that took effect in late July 2022 has granted equal rights and recognition to intersex people. Intersex people are now recognized as Kenya’s third gender with an ‘I’ gender marker in response to the Children Act, 2022. Kenya is the first African country to have granted the intersex community this universal right.
The new law requires intersex children to be treated with dignity and have equal access to basic services like medical treatment and education, in addition to social protection services as a special need. It also requires the accommodation of intersex children in child protection centers and other facilities.
Most importantly, it protects intersex children from so-called sex normalization surgeries, and such procedures will only be done with a doctor’s recommendation. Those who violate the law will face at least three years in jail and a fine of at least $5,000. The Births and Deaths Registration Act under the new law’s Section 7 (3) “shall take measures to ensure correct documentation and registration of intersex children at birth.”
It defines an intersex child as “a child with a congenital condition in which the biological sex characteristics cannot be exclusively categorized in the common binary of female or male due to inherent and mixed anatomical, hormonal, gonadal, or chromosomal patterns which could be apparent before, at birth, in childhood, puberty, or adulthood.” The 2019 census survey showed that 1,524 Kenyans were intersex.
https://www.washingtonblade.com/2022/08/08/landma…
12.
VIRick | August 8, 2022 at 2:57 pm
Colombia: New Leftist, Pro-LGBT President Sworn In
On Sunday, 7 August 2022, the former mayor of Bogotá (2012-15), Gustavo Petro, took office as Colombia’s first leftist president.
In June, the former Colombian senator (2018-22), who was once a member of the M-19 guerrilla movement that disbanded in 1990, defeated former Bucaramanga Mayor Rodolfo Hernández in the second round of the country’s presidential election. On the same date, Petro’s running mate, Francia Márquez, also took office as Colombia’s first female Vice-President of African descent.
Before his inauguration, Petro named Néstor Osuna, an openly gay man, as Colombia’s new Justice Minister.
https://www.washingtonblade.com/2022/08/08/colomb…
Per Manuel Antonio Velandia Mora:
La emoción que produce ver imágenes de la marcha LGBTI de Bogotá en la posesión presidencial no tiene comparación.
https://twitter.com/manuelvelandiam
The emotion produced by seeing images of the LGBTI march in Bogotá during the presidential inauguration has no comparison.
Per Mauricio Arroyave:
(Estoy) orgulloso de mi esposo, el nuevo Ministro de Justicia de Colombia, el señor Néstor Osuna.
https://twitter.com/mauroarroyave/status/15563826…
I am proud of my spouse, the new Justice Minister of Colombia, mister Néstor Osuna.
13.
VIRick | August 8, 2022 at 8:26 pm
Nebraska: Special Legislative Session on Abortion Ban Dropped for Lack of Support
On 8 August 2022, Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) reversed his plan to call a special session of the state legislature to pass a 12-week abortion ban after an insufficient number of lawmakers indicated that they would be willing to support such a measure. He had received a letter from the state Speaker of the Legislature, Mike Hilgers, revealing that such a vote would not have the 33 state senators needed for passage.
https://apnews.com/article/abortion-legislature-n…
14.
VIRick | August 9, 2022 at 2:07 pm
Veracruz: First Same-Sex Marriage in Papantla
Per "Noreste," el 9 de agosto 2022:
Tal como fue anunciado, el oficial del Registro Civil de Papantla, licenciado Víctor Barragán Islas, realizó el primer matrimonio igualitario, el cual se realizó en el patio central del Palacio Municipal y formalizó el matrimonio de dos de mujeres.
https://noreste.net/primer-boda-igualitaria-en-pa…
Just as was announced, the Civil Registry official of Papantla, Lic. Víctor Barragán Islas, performed the first equal marriage, which took place in the central courtyard of the Municipal Palace, formalizing the marriage of two women.
15.
VIRick | August 9, 2022 at 2:31 pm
Vietnam: Health Ministry Declares to Doctors: "Being Gay Is Not a Disease or Affliction"
Per LGBT Marriage News:
In an official document released last week, the Health Ministry said that "homosexuality cannot be 'cured', does not need 'to be cured' and cannot be changed."
Being gay is not a disease, Vietnam has told its doctors, as it called on medical workers to end discrimination against the LGBTQ community. On 9 August 2022, campaigners told AFP that the statement was a major step forward for LGBTQ rights in the Southeast Asian nation, where gay, bisexual, and transgender people have long felt marginalized.
The official document urged medical professionals to be "respectful" of gender and sexual orientation after receiving reports of doctors claiming they could treat gender minorities as if they had a disease or affliction. Nguyen Thi Kim Dung, officer at Vietnam's Center for Supporting Community Development Initiatives, said some young LGBTQ people were being taken by their parents to doctors to try and "cure" them of whatever.
Vietnam lifted its ban on same-sex marriage in 2015, but it stopped short of full legal recognition for those unions, and a long-promised law to allow legal gender changes has not yet materialized.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/vietnam-being-gay-no…
16.
VIRick | August 9, 2022 at 3:31 pm
India: Parliamentary Panel on Adoption Raises Bigger Question: Same-Sex Unions
Per LGBT Marriage News:
The law does not prohibit adoption based on sexual orientation, but LGBTQ members will be able to adopt as a couple if same-sex unions were to be legalized in India, as live-in couples are not yet permitted to adopt a child in the country, experts have said.
They were reacting after a parliamentary standing committee on Law and Personnel said there was a need to harmonize the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act and the Juvenile Justice Act to bring out uniform and comprehensive legislation on adoption that should cover all religions and the LGBTQ community. While the recommendations are progressive, experts and activists have pointed out that the issue of recognizing LGBT marriages and civil unions, as well allowing live-in couples to adopt, have to be dealt with in a uniform law.
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/p…