Marriage equality update

A summary of efforts toward marriage equality in the US and elsewhere, compiled from AP dispatches.

Arkansas

Hearing begins in case over Ark. gay marriage ban

Kelly P. Kissel, Associated Press

Little Rock, Ark. (AP) — Lawyers for the state and the Faulkner County clerk asked a judge Thursday to dismiss a lawsuit that seeks to allow gay marriages in Arkansas.

A number of same-sex couples sued in July, two weeks after the U.S Supreme Court issued two rulings supporting gay-marriage laws. They claim a 2004 constitutional amendment approved by Arkansas voters, which defines marriage as between one man and one woman, should be thrown out.

Some of the couples want Arkansas to recognize same-sex marriages from other states. Others want the opportunity to marry. They say the federal court decision supports them.

But Assistant Attorney General Colin Jorgenson said the voters' will — Amendment 83 passed by a 3-1 margin — could not be thrown out because the state's residents had a right to determine their own constitution.

"Domestic relations laws are the province of the states," he said, adding the U.S. Supreme Court rulings "did not say states must recognize same-sex marriage."

New Jersey

Trenton, N.J. (AP) — More than 700 same-sex couples have gotten married or renewed their vows in New Jersey since the state allowed gay nuptials.

Same-sex marriage became legal Oct. 21. As of Dec. 6 — about seven weeks later — town registrars had informed the state of 679 new marriages and 30 couples married legally out-of-state renewing their vows, the state Health Department said.

Of the new marriages, 461 of the couples already had civil unions or domestic partnerships in New Jersey.

Pennsylvania

Harrisburg, Pa. (AP) — Proponents of same-sex marriage launched a campaign Wednesday to build public support for legalizing gay marriage in Pennsylvania — the last holdout among the Northeast states.

News conferences trumpeting the Why Marriage Matters Pennsylvania campaign, sponsored by the national advocacy group Freedom to Marry and the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, were held in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

Evan Wolfson, who grew up in Pennsylvania and is the founder and president of Freedom to Marry, said the campaign's goal is to encourage "neighbor to neighbor" conversations about why marriage is important to same-sex couples and their families.

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and Pittsburgh Mayor-elect Bill Peduto spoke at the events in their cities.

Indiana

The GOP legislature is widely expected to attempt to amend the Indiana constitution to ban gay marriage when it meets next month. A wide range of opponents are lined up against amending the constitution. Here are some details.

Mary Cheney helps anti-amendment supporters

Indianapolis (AP) — Mary Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, on Wednesday rallied opponents of an effort to write Indiana's gay marriage ban into the state constitution.

The daughter of the former Republican vice president attended a fundraiser for Freedom Indiana, an umbrella group fighting against the marriage amendment. Mary Cheney, a lesbian married in Washington, D.C., spends much of her time travelling the nation advocating for gay marriage throughout the states.

Ind. bishops issue letter on proposed amendment

Indianapolis (AP) — Bishops representing Indiana's five Roman Catholic dioceses have issued a pastoral letter in response to a proposal to add a ban on gay marriage to the state constitution, but didn't take a side.

The letter says the church upholds the dignity and sanctity of marriage, an institution established by God as a permanent partnership between one man and one woman. But it also says the church upholds the dignity of every human, including people with same-sex attraction, who must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity.

Indianapolis Archbishop Joseph Tobin says the letter will help Catholics avoid the extremes of either seeing the public debate about the proposed amendment as a battle or as an issue in which they should simply be guided by polls.

Australia

Australian court rejects law allowing gay marriage

Kristen Gelineau, Associated Press

Sydney (AP) — Australia's highest court struck down a landmark law on Thursday that had begun allowing the country's first gay marriages, shattering the dreams of more than two dozen same-sex newlyweds whose marriages will now be annulled less than a week after their weddings.

The federal government had challenged the validity of the Australian Capital Territory's law that had allowed gay marriages in the nation's capital and its surrounding area starting last Saturday.

For Ivan Hinton, who married his partner Chris Teoh on Saturday, the result was heartbreaking. The couple just received their marriage certificate on Wednesday and immediately applied to change their surnames to Hinton-Teoh. Still, Hinton said he doesn't regret going through with the wedding, and will always consider Teoh his husband.

"This was an unprecedented and historic opportunity," he said. "I wouldn't have missed it for the world."

The federal government's lawyer had argued that having different marriage laws in various Australian states and territories would create confusion. The ACT, which passed the law in October, said it should stand because it governs couples outside the federal definition of marriage as being between members of the opposite sex.

The High Court unanimously ruled that the ACT's law could not operate concurrently with the federal Marriage Act, which was amended in 2004 to define marriage as between a man and a woman.

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The Gayly – December 13, 2013 @ 12:00pm