Ten GOP Senators File Brief in Support of DOMA

On Monday, 10 GOP senators filed an amicus curiae brief in support of the law, including Senators Orrin Hatch of Utah, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, Dan Coasts of Indiana, Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker of Mississippi, Mike Crapo of Idaho, Charles Grassley of Iowa, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Richard Shelby of Alabama. ...

Care2 • Jun 14, 2012

Gay Marriage Bill 'Most Strongly Supported in Australian History'

The legal and constitutional affairs committee is scheduled to report its recommendations to parliament on 6 June. After that will come an MP vote on the proposed marriage equality law. ...

Care2 • Apr 4, 2012

Gay Marriage in Germany and France?

Marriage equality could come sooner as the city state of Hamburg has introduced it into the German Senate and the SPD has introduced a bill into the Bundestag. ...

Care2 • Dec 20, 2011

Record Number of Legislators Support DOMA Repeal Bill

A record 122 House legislators are supporting legislation to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, two more than the total number of sponsors during the entirety of the previous congressional session. ...

Care2 • Sep 15, 2011

HHS: DOMA Not an Excuse for Denial of Equality in LGBT Elder Medicaid Care

The Department of Health and Human Services issued new guidelines last week highlighting that there is no reason under the Defense of Marriage Act why states, through their Medicaid programs, cannot provide same-sex couples with equal access to the monetary protections heterosexual couples receive when a partner enters a nursing home or an elder care facility. The guidelines, spelled out in a le...

Care2 • Jun 15, 2011

Nepal's Gay Community Faces Recriminalization Under Proposed Laws

Nepal's much praised acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans citizens looks set to face a huge challenge in the coming weeks as a newly proposed criminal code is reported to contain provisions barring same-sex couples from marriage and, even more troubling, to once again criminalize "unnatural sexual offences." In November 2008, Nepal's Supreme Court affirmed the rights of Nepal's gay comm...

Care2 • Jun 15, 2011

Human Rights Watch Appeals to Latvian Leaders to Recognize Same-Sex Partnerships

International rights group Human Rights Watch this week sent a letter to Latvia's legislators and president urging them to support legislation that would grant formal recognition for same-sex partners. In the letter, Boris O. Dittrich, advocacy director of the Human Rights Watch, also praises President Valdis Zalter's recent comments reported by the media in which Zalter said "it is a duty of the...

Care2 • May 28, 2011

Poland to Allow Citizens Abroad to Enter Same-Sex Marriages & Partnerships

In what will be welcomed as a baby step toward equality, Poland's officials announced this week that the nation's registry offices will begin issuing new certificates that will allow Poles abroad to marry or engage in a civil union/partnership with same-sex partners. Previous to this there had been a section calling for the disclosure of the identity of the future spouse meaning that the registra...

Care2 • Apr 29, 2011

Equal Access to COBRA Act Introduced in Congress

Legislation that would in many cases allow same-sex domestic partners access to COBRA insurance benefits should their partner leave or lose their job was introduced in Congress this week. Known as the Equal Access to COBRA Act, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) reintroduced the bill in the Senate after it failed to move last year, while Anthony Weiner (D-NY) introduced a companion bill in the Hous...

Care2 • Mar 15, 2011