Scott Lively Sued by Ugandan Gay Rights Group

Scott Lively

In 2009, Pastor Scott Lively was one of three American evangelists who traveled to Kampala and delivered a series of lectures about homosexuality to Ugandan audiences--which included police officers, teachers and politicians. As part of his lecture, Pastor Lively promoted the myth that the Holocaust was actually orchestrated by homosexuals. Shortly thereafter, a Ugandan politician introduced the Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009 which would, among other things, make homosexuality a capital offense. Although the bill was temporarily shelved (having finally been revived once more last month), persecution of gay men and lesbians in Uganda reached new heights, as Rolling Stone, an Ugandan newspaper, ran a piece outing homosexuals and calling for them to be lynched. In 2011, David Kato--a prominent Ugandan gay rights activist whose photo was shown in Rolling Stone--was brutally murdered. In response to the increasingly hostile, anti-gay climate, the  gay rights group Sexual Minorities Uganda has filed a lawsuit against Pastor Lively under the alien tort statute. The lawsuit alleges that Lively's actions have led to the "persecution, arrest, torture and murder of gay men and lesbians in Uganda."

The full complaint can be read here.

OUTlaw Meeting This Thursday at Noon!

Image courtesy of Flickr

The next OUTlaw meeting will be held this Thursday, March 1st, at noon in room 1. Hope to see you all there!

Maryland Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage

Image courtesy of LezGetReal

In yet another victory for marriage equality, Maryland is now the 8th state to have made same-sex marriage legal. The same-sex marriage bill was approved by the Maryland Senate on Thursday evening, and has now been signed by MD Gov. Martin O'Malley. It should also be noted that former Vice President Dick Cheney was among a handful of influential Republicans who lobbied Maryland legislators in favor of the bill. In 2009, Cheney, whose daughter is openly lesbian, told the National Press Club, "I think people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish."

DOMA Ruled Unconstitutional by Federal Judge

Image courtesy of Daily Kos

A second federal judge ruled Wednesday that the Defense of Marriage Act ("DOMA"), a law which denies hundreds of federal marital benefits to same-sex married couples, is unconstitutional. According to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White, the law "treats gay men and lesbians differently on the basis of their sexual orientation" and the "imposition of subjective moral beliefs of a majority on a minority cannot provide a justification" for it. Although defenders of the law, appointed by House Republican leaders, claimed that DOMA was justified by "tradition", Judge White noted that the same reasoning was used to defend bans on interracial marriages decades ago. Furthermore, he wrote, excluding same-sex couples from the federal definition of marriage "does nothing to encourage or strengthen opposite-sex marriage." The Republican-dominated House of Representatives announced today that they will appeal the decision.

OUTlaw presents: Intersectional Identities

Please join OUTlaw at Western New England School of Law as we present Intersectional Identities, a two-day event focused on the legal landscape surrounding the intersection of gender and other identity categories such as race, religion, and sexual orientation.

Monday, February 20:
-10-11am: Exhibition Viewing, Law School Commons
 Bagels & Cream Cheese breakfast

-12-1pm: Panel #1, Law School Commons
 Lunch provided

-4-6pm: Meet & Greet with panelists
 Hors D'oeuvres

Tuesday, February 21:
-12-1pm: Panel #2, Law School Commons

Gov. Christie Vetoes Same-Sex Marriage Bill

NJ Gov. Chris Christie, courtesy of NYTimes.com

While marriage equality supporters have had recent victories in California and Washington, recent news from New Jersey is not as optimistic. On Monday the New Jersey state senate approved a bill which would legalize same-sex marriage in the state, and on Thursday this bill was approved by the state assembly. Today, however, Gov. Chris Christie vetoed the bill as promised, saying that "an issue of this magnitude and importance, which requires a constitutional amendment, should be left to the people of New Jersey to decide." New Jersey lawmakers have until January 2014 to override the veto.

Trans People Suffer Abuses at the Hands of the NYPD

Image courtesy of thetakeaway.org

 

A recent article from Jezebel.com details the harsh, humiliating way trans persons are treated by the New York Police Department while in custody. In one particularly egregious example, a trans woman named Temmie Breslauer was painfully chained to a fence for 28 hours by police officers who referred to her as a "faggot" and "he-she" (among other epithets). As the article notes, this treatment is not unheard of, and transgender advocates have been working for years in an attempt to end this abuse.

Thanks to OUTlaw President Erika Scibelli for the link.

Washington Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage

WA Gov. Christine Gregoire, photo courtesy of Reuters

On Feb. 1st, 2012, the Washington State Senate voted 28-21 in favor of a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage in their state. On Feb. 8th, the bill made its way to the House and was approved 55-43. And today, Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire signed the bill into law, officially making Washington the seventh state which supports marriage equality. The law officially takes effect on June 7th.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals: Proposition 8 Unconstitutional

Same-sex couple kisses as they celebrate the ruling. Photo from SFGate.com.

In a historic ruling, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled that Proposition 8, a voter-approved statewide ban on same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional. As stated in the majority opinion by Judge Stephen Reinhardt, "Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples." The full text of the court decision may be read here, courtesy of Lambda Legal.

LA Times: Implications of Prop 8 Decision

Maura Dolan of the LA Times explains the "far-reaching implications" of the Prop 8 decision set to come down from the 9th Circuit around 1p.m. EST today.
"Court ruling on Prop 8 has far-reaching implications"

Please stop by the Law School Commons at 1p.m. to watch the decision live.