Weekly Political Roundup

• Servicemembers Legal Defense Network released a legal guide for “LGBT service members, veterans, future recruits, and their families,” with an overview of laws and policies related to military service following the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. It includes quite a bit of information related to benefits for children of servicemembers, as well as benefits still unavailable to same-sex couples because of DOMA. (Interestingly, some benefits, like military family housing, may be available to servicemembers with children, but not to legally married same-sex couples without children. And let me quickly add that that’s not a reason to go have kids.)
• The Williams Institute of UCLA has released new findings from the 2008 General Social Survey (GSS), “a national probability survey representative of the U.S. population,’ showing that 42 percent of LGB respondents had experienced employment discrimination at some point in their lives, and 27 percent had experienced employment discrimination in the five-year period prior to the survey.
• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) outlined concrete steps toward review of the Food and Drug Administration’s ban on blood donation by men who have sex with men.
• The Supreme Court of California said it would hear the Proposition 8 case, Perry v. Brown, on September 6, the first day of the court’s fall calendar. It will hear oral arguments on whether proponents of Prop 8 have standing under state law to defend their initiatives in court.
• Marriage equality in New York made its mark in two lawsuits. Opponents filed a lawsuit against the marriage law, claiming the legislature did not follow proper procedure in enacting it. The state attorney general separately filed a brief in support of repealing the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), using New York’s new marriage law as a positive example.

Around the world:

• India’s first lesbian couple to be legally married have gotten police protection after death threats from family members and local villagers.
• Italy’s Chamber of Deputies voted against legislation to protect LGBT people from discrimination.

Son Tells of Growing Up with Lesbian Mom in 1980s and 90s

Forgive me one more story of same-sex couples in New York, but I like the perspective of this one from the New York Daily News, by a man who grew up in New York in the 1980s and 90s with a lesbian mother. Author Matt Borden writes, “Everyone knew that gay people didn’t have children. They couldn’t even adopt in New York State until 2002. So what did that make me? Legally, at least, I didn’t exist.”

Now, he says, “marriage equality will shape new attitudes and help move us toward becoming a society that prevents a new generation of children from having to face the same burdens that I faced. ”

Worth a read in full.

New York Moms Marry After 29 Years

One more nice story of same-sex parents getting married in New York: Jo-Ann Shain and Mary Jo Kennedy were among the plaintiffs in the 2004-5 marriage equality case Hernandez v. Robles. They won in a lower court before the ruling was overturned by the state Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court. They finally married last Sunday, the first day they could legally do so in their home state. The New York Daily News has the story.

Their daughter is now 22, only one of the many children of same-sex parents who saw their moms or dads wed last weekend. Congratulations to all the families!

United Church of Christ Supports LGBT Parents and their Children

The United Church of Christ approved two resolutions recently in support of LGBT equality, including the first-ever one by a major Christian denomination affirming the right of LGBT parents to adopt and raise children. A second resolution was in support of international human rights for all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. I wrote a fuller piece on this over at Keen News Service; I hope some of you will go have a read. Thanks to reader Mainecelt who left a comment about the resolutions a couple of weeks ago.

I’m not a UCC member myself, but notable people who have been members of a UCC church include President Obama, who attended Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago for 20 years.

Same-Sex Parents Among First to Marry in New York

Lesbian moms and grandmoms Kitty Lambert and Cheryle Rudd were among the first same-sex couples to marry in New York on Sunday, the first day they could legally do so. While there is some debate over which same-sex couple was actually the first to marry, it’s rather an irrelevant question destined for the trivia books. The important point is that hundreds of couples married, and more than a few of them have children, including gay dads Jonathan Mintz and John Feinblatt, who were married by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Below, a video of Gabriel and Dylan, another two gay dads who married yesterday (courtesy of the Family Equality Council, which has more videos on its Web site):

Congratulations to all the happy families!

Weekly Political Roundup

• The biggest news this week? Don’t ask. No, really. President Obama has certified that the requirements for repealing the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell ban on openly lesbian and gay servicemembers have been met. The ban will end September 20.
• The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee held the first-ever hearing on repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). If you missed it and need several hours of entertainment now that you’ve seen Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II, make some popcorn and fire up the archived Webcast.
• Same-sex couples in New York will start to marry on Sunday. Lambda Legal and the New York Civil Liberties Union each have FAQs for couples who want to tie the knot.
• The U.S. Senate confirmed J. Paul Oetken as a U.S. district court judge, making him the first openly gay man on the federal bench.

Around the world:

• Same-sex couples can’t marry in Australia—but even if they want to marry elsewhere (New York, say), their government won’t let them.
• The U.K. Border Agency has begun collecting data on the number of people claiming asylum because of their sexual orientation.

Family Equality vs. Focus on the Family

Here’s more from the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), showing how central arguments about children’s well being have been.

First, Senator Al Franken (D-Minn.) takes Focus on the Family’s Thomas Minnery to task for sloppy interpretation of research about children, then Jennifer Chrisler, executive director of the Family Equality Council and the lesbian mom of twins, speaks with MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell about the impact of DOMA repeal on children.

Conservative witness admits children of same-sex couples at disadvantage from DOMA

Here’s Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) getting Focus on the Family’s Thomas Minnery to admit, at the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), that children of same-sex couples are at a disadvantage because their parents don’t have the same financial benefits as children of married couples. (Thanks to Think Progress.)