Important Victories for Gay Rights in the U.S.A.

Two important cases were decided today by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS).

The first case concerned the constitutionality of the Defence of Marriage Act (DOMA), which was an American federal law, enacted in 1996, that required that the federal state should only give recognition to opposite-sex marriages in the United States and also restricted federal marriage benefits to opposite-sex marriages.

The second case concerned the constitutionality of California's Proposition 8, a California ballot proposition and a state constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections. The measure added a new provision, to the California Constitution, which provides that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." The United States District Court Judge Vaughn Walker overturned Proposition 8 on August 4, 2010, ruling that it violated both the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the United States Constitution. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel later affirmed the decision that Proposition 8 was unconstitutional.

Through the decisions delivered by SCOTUS today
1, the Defence Of Marriage Act (DOMA) was struck down as being unconstitutional by a 5-4 majority and
2. in the the Proposition 8 case the ruling was, by a 5-4 majority, that supporters of the measure did not have legal standing (did not have the right) to appeal the lower court's ruling, thereby leaving the earlier decision that the measure was unconstitutional standing and clearing the way for same-sex marriages to resume in California.

HALLELUJA!!! 

Say his name: MARK CARSON!

Mark Carson (32) did not hide that he was gay, and when he went out on the town he would often head to Greenwich Village, where years before he was born, much of the struggle for gay liberation unfolded. Yet late Friday night, just blocks from the Stonewall Inn, among the most important landmarks of that struggle, he was confronted with a man screaming anti-gay slurs, who then stalked him before pulling out a silver revolver and fatally shooting him, the police said.

“This clearly looks to be a hate crime,” Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said at a news conference on Saturday. A suspect, later identified as Elliot Morales, 33, was arrested.

Mr. Kelly described a chaotic scene that involved a man seemingly out looking for trouble when he crossed paths with Mr. Carson and ended up shooting him in the face. (The New York Times) 

Repost: Remember Stonewall

This is essentially a repost of a post I did last year, with a minor correction and an addition.

 

Let us always be proud and thankful to the trannies who finally had had enough of the harassment and fought back 43 years ago on June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn. We owe you, guys and girls!

Read more on Wikipedia Stonewall riots.
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Before Stonewall

• a person with homosexual inclinations was considered to be mentally ill, 
• a person taking part in homosexual sexual activity was considered to be a criminal, 
• a person suspected of being homosexual could be abused or harassed without risk of penalty - except in the most extreme cases, 
• a homosexual parent was considered unfit to take care of his/her own children, 
• Civil unions or same-sex marriages were unthinkable. 
• etc., etc. 

All of us should always remember the gratitude we owe the trannies.

This important historical event and the birth of the movement for gay liberation and gay rights will be commemorated at the Second Pride Festival this evening with a special party. Please come back for information about this later today, meanwhile check out this post for some info about it Bock in SecondLife; Advance Notice - Second Pride Remembers Stonewall (url).

We should also remember that many of our brothers and sisters worldwide still live with the very real risk of

• being murdered, incarcerated or hospitalized, abused & harassed
• losing custody of their children 
• losing their employment 

simply for being homosexual.