Drive to stop gay partnership law is dividing conservatives

Reporting from Seattle — A campaign to roll back gay rights that kicked off in Washington state over the weekend has split the Christian conservative community, with some wondering whether it is the right time for a fight and others arguing that time may be running out.On the heels of the recent California Supreme Court ruling that upheld Proposition 8′s prohibition against same-sex marriage, conservative groups here began collecting signatures for a ballot referendum to block a new Washington state law that substantially expands rights for domestic partners.
The law that Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire signed in May has been dubbed the “everything but marriage” bill. When it takes effect in July, it will expand previous domestic partnership laws to include issues like adoption, child support, pensions and other public-employee benefits.Washington’s secretary of state approved the referendum petitions Friday and signature collections began over the weekend. If referendum backers collect 120,577 signatures by July 25, the law would be suspended pending a vote in November.But some conservatives fear that public support for domestic partnership rights and a preoccupation with the economy could doom the effort — and make it harder to battle same-sex marriage down the road. See Drive to stop gay partnership law is dividing conservatives
Los Angeles Times

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Jim Gibbons, In Midst Of Messy Divorce, Plans To Veto Gay Partners .Bill to Stand Tall For Traditional Marriage!

The Nevada legislature has successfully passed two gay rights bills, one that outlaws job discrimination based on sexual orientation, and another that establishes domestic partnerships for gay couples.

But Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons has said he will veto the domestic partnership bill, which would give same-sex couples equal rights to married partners in areas like estate planning, medical decisions, community property and child custody.

“The governor believes that government has no business in your medicine chest or your bedroom,” spokesperson Daniel Burns said. With good reason: Gibbons who filed for divorce in 2008, allegedly had having an affair with playboy model Leslie Durant, as well as sending more than 860 text messages to another woman, Kathy Karrasch, from his state-owned cell phone. When Gibbons was running for governor, he was accused of sexually assaulting a cocktail waitress.

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Church of Scotland magazine backs gay partnerships

A potential rift within the Church of Scotland over gay relationships emerged yesterday after the Church’s house magazine backed civil partnerships and openly gay ministers.

Accusing religious traditionalists of selectively quoting the Bible to support their attacks on homosexual relations, the editorial in Life And Work urged the Kirk to show strong leadership on an issue that has threatened to split the Church of England and could prove just as divisive in Scotland.

The article, which was written by the magazine’s editor, Muriel Armstrong, comes ahead of next month’s General Assembly in Edinburgh and has been timed to influence a key debate on whether openly homosexual ministers can be appointed to the Church.

Ms Armstrong rounds on the “selective literalists” who use parts of the Bible to bolster their own views but ignore other parts that undermine them. She says that these commentators “presumably no longer accept biblical teaching on sexual matters such as polygamy and sex with slaves” but are happy to quote Leviticus 18:22 on homosexuality: “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.”

The Church said yesterday that the magazine was editorially independent. “It is not the voice of the Church of Scotland, which is not trying to steer debate on this important issue,” the Rev Angus Morrison, convenor of the council of mission and discipleship said. He added that he had already received “a couple” of e-mails expressing concern that the magazine was interfering in the “due process” of the Church.

Senior figures within the Church fear that the issue of gay partnerships could prove as damaging for the Presbyterian ministry as the row that has split the Anglican Church.

A minority in the Presbytery of Aberdeen has already challenged the appointment of an openly gay minister, the Rev Scott Rennie, to Queen’s Cross Church in the city. They have appealed to the Commission of the General Assembly, with a final decision on the matter to be made next month.

In her editorial Ms Armstrong also champions the right of gay ministers to serve in the Church. She said said that two years ago the Church had effectively shelved its decision on the issue and that the moment had come to challenge those who use the “familiar arguments” of tradition, orthodoxy and the “plain meaning of scripture”.

“The question of the integrity of a relationship didn’t enter the \ argument. It has been suggested that if the Kirk stuck its neck out on this one it would upset other churches that are still in a reflective no man’s land on this issue. Isn’t it time for leadership?

“What is clear to the lay-person is that not everything Biblical is Christ-like. Every student of the Bible is a selective literalist. Those who swear by the anti-homosexual laws in the Book of Leviticus wouldn’t publicly advocate slavery or stoning women taken in adultery. They presumably no longer accept Biblical teaching on sexual matters such as polygamy and sex with slaves.

“And yet there are many who continue to be bound by a few Biblical verses — none of them in the Gospels — about homosexuality, nowadays understood as a matter of genetics rather than lifestyle.”

The debate on gays in the Church will involve members from every Presbytery, drawn from Scotland and overseas. It is likely to polarise opinion, just as it has in other Churches.

See Church of Scotland magazine backs gay partnerships Times Online

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British PM Gordon Brown On Attacking Prop 8: “Unacceptable”

Gordon Brown has condemned California’s ban on gay marriage as “unacceptable” and warned people to be vigilant against all forms of discrimination.

The prime minister said the ban, backed in a referendum in the US state in November, would “undo” much of recent progress made in tackling prejudice.

California became the 28th US state to prohibit gay marriage, overturning an earlier court ruling legalising it.

Same-sex civil partnerships became law in the UK in 2005.

‘Fighting homophobia’

Civil partnerships gave gay partners the same tax and inheritance rights as heterosexual married couples.

Mr Brown made the comments at a reception in Downing Street for leading figures from the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

Nearly 20,000 gay couples have married in California since same-sex unions were legalised in May and the state authorities have said these will remain valid.

The referendum, which gained 52% support, called for the state’s constitution to be amended to include the stipulation that “only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognised”.

Mr Brown said “this attempt to undo good that has been done is unacceptable”.

He added: “This shows why we have always got to be vigilant, always got to fight homophobic behaviour and any form of discrimination.”

He also praised equality campaigners in the UK for “changing opinion” about same-sex unions.

“You have shown how the legislative process, by your pressure, can respond,” he said.

See Gordon Brown On Attacking Prop 8: “Unacceptable”

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Bush Signs Bill Aiding Gay Partners

President George W. Bush, no friend to gays, nevertheless signed the Worker, Retiree and Employer Act on December 23, which will allow the roll-over of pensions from a deceased gay person to his or her partner without tax consequences as with heterosexual married partners. The Human Rights Campaign hailed the move, though it is not known whether Bush was going soft on gays or never saw a tax-cutting bill he did not like.
See Bush Signs Bill Aiding Gay Partners
Gay City News -

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A company expands its diversity effort

The1990s has been called the “decade of diversity,” and PricewaterhouseCoopers did its part.

The global accounting firm sponsored affinity groups for women, blacks and Hispanics to meet over common issues and, over time, it added a group for gays and lesbians.

Since those early days the diversity movement has become more sophisticated. At PricewaterhouseCoopers, that includes seeking out what the firm calls “straight allies.”

Those are the straight partners, associates and clients who can be depended upon to foster inclusiveness toward their colleagues who are gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered.

About five years ago, the firm created a board of openly gay partners to make sure the gay community feels comfortable and welcome, said Jennifer Allyn, managing director for the office of diversity at PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York.

The firm’s family leave benefits were expanded to include unmarried partners, plus it supports independent gay and lesbian events around the nation and beefed up recruiting and retention efforts in the gay community.

Now it’s focusing on straight professionals and what they can do, said Allyn.

See A company expands its diversity effort
Houston Chronicle, United State

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Ireland among 14 states that restrict rights of gay partners

BRUSSELS – The majority of EU states, including the Republic of Ireland, deny same-sex partners of EU citizens the full right to move to join them as they do not recognise homosexual unions, the European Commission said yesterday.

“If a union is recognised in one member state, then another member should in principle accept that union,” justice commissioner Jacques Barrot told a news conference. EU citizens have the right to live in any of the union’s 27 states with their family but that does not apply in all states to the registered partners of homosexual citizens.

See Ireland among 14 states that restrict rights of gay partners
Irish Times, Ireland