Dallas DA Craig Watkins Backs Marriage Equality

by: Edward Garris

Thu May 23, 2013 at 10:00 PM CDT

According to the article, Watkins supports a domestic partner registry. In an interview with the Voice, Watkins made this argument for equality:

"This is America, and we shouldn't discriminate against anyone for whatever reason, and so I think it's a disservice for us as Americans to say that just because you are a certain lifestyle, that you can't have the same rights as someone else," Watkins told the Voice. "I think it goes towards, you know, when we were going through the civil rights movement, issues that we dealt with back then, which, basically, I can understand very clearly because of who I am. ..."

"It goes back to quality of life issues, and as a DA, I'm responsible for improving the quality of the lives of all of the citizens I represent," Watkins said. "I'm the lawyer for everybody in Dallas County, and so I can't be against something that will make your life better. So I'm for whatever we need to do in Dallas County to make the quality of life better, and in my opinion to have that - marriage equality and the registry - it makes lives better for citizens of Dallas County."

While gay marriage is as yet not recognized in Texas, currently, several jurisdictions in Texas recognize domestic partnership benefits.  They include Austin, San Antonio, El Paso, Dallas, and Fort Worth, as well as El Paso County, Travis County, and the Pflugerville ISD.  The issue was brought to the fore nearly a month ago when Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott issued a non-binding, advisory opinion that political subdivisions in Texas could not recognize domestic partnerships and notably, Austin City Manager Marc Ott volleyed with a perfunctory: "[W]e do not intend to change domestic partner eligibility for our benefits program at this time."

Politicians Should Stop Meddling in Texans' Private Lives

by: Texas Freedom Network

Mon Apr 29, 2013 at 11:07 AM CDT

Politicians are way too interested in the private sex lives of ordinary Texans. Just who elected them to play Cupid, anyway?

Go to cupidorstupid.org to join a new Texas Freedom Network Education Fund campaign that respects the private and personal decisions of Texans.

With one month to go in the legislative session, there's still time to put a stop to several bills that fail to show all Texans the respect they deserve. Worse yet, there's little indication lawmakers will stop interfering when session ends. You see, there's a well-documented history.

Texas legislators have openly declared war on birth control. Some politicians even want to let employers impose their religious beliefs on workers by denying them insurance coverage for contraception.

Meanwhile, Gov. Perry says gays and lesbians should simply move to another state while he and other politicians attack and demean their relationships. And Texas State Board of Education members think the solution to soaring teen birth rates is to keep young people ignorant about birth control and disease prevention.

Had enough yet? Add your name at cupidorstupid.org to the growing number of people who agree that politicians need to get out of the business of telling Texans who and how they can love.

Cross-posted from TFN Insider.

Coffee Party Radio: Politics Done Right- VA Benefit Shame, Marriage Equality Sat 12-2PM CST

by: egberto

Sat Mar 30, 2013 at 11:02 AM CDT

Friday Wrap: Marriage Equality, More Ted Cruz, The Economy, Water, and Not the Onion

by: Burnt Orange Report

Fri Mar 29, 2013 at 04:45 PM CDT

But first, Facebook did some nifty analysis about users changing their profile pictures in support of marriage equality. Look at the map below, and note the deep red dot Deep in the Heart of Texas, Travis County!

Below the jump: Marriage Equality, More Ted Cruz, The Economy, Water, and Not the Onion!

Rallies For And Against Marriage Equality Draw Hundreds To Texas Capitol

by: Joe Deshotel

Wed Mar 27, 2013 at 02:00 PM CDT

Part of an over-enthusiastic crowd led by GetEQUAL TX was removed from the Capitol after they dropped fliers down the rotunda from the 4th floor. The leaflets were in support of the  Texas marriage equality bill HB 1300 by Lon Burnam (D-Fort Worth). Later the group would convene into a mass of about 300 demanding equal treatment under the law. Many of the signs and rallying calls were based on economics, "I'm queer and my money is buy curious" one speaker said after telling the crowd that the LGBT community had a $300 million dollar impact just at bars and restaurants, and $3 billion dollar impact across Texas. Businesses are listening, including Corporate America, but apparently Texas is only open for the business of freedom, if your business stays in the closet.

Texas Values, a project of the Conservative nonprofit Liberty Institute, says its mission is to preserve "faith, family and freedom", yet it was the sponsor that invited our top elected officials to diminish all three for Texas' LGBT community. When Freshmen Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Plano) said, "In this building behind me, your faith and your families and your freedom are under attack," you might have sworn he was at the wrong rally. Attendants held up signs that read "Protect Religious Freedom" seemed to be confused. Protecting religious freedom means allowing people to worship as they chose, and even express their beliefs on the steps of their state Capitol, but It doesn't not extend to actively denying rights to another segment of the population.

If you think same-sex marriage is immoral, then don't marry someone of the same-sex. That's how freedom works, because without choice you have no freedom.

The government should not deny consenting adults the right to enter into an agreement with each other, but thats exactly what Perry and Dewhurst want to do. Gov. Perry said, "Marriage is between one man and one woman." That's true, but in Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden as well as Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, Maine, Maryland, Washington and the District of Columbia, so is a man and a man, and, a woman and a woman. The point being giving equal rights to all doesn't take it from any other.  

Perry has been know to read the Texas tea leaves well, but he can kiss any shot of being President (of the United States, not Texas [for clarity]) goodbye if marriage equality is a campaign issue in 2016.

Learn more about those poll numbers from Katherine's post yesterday, and see below the jump to watch the video of GetEQUAL TX making it "rain" in the rotunda...

Elected Republicans' Anti-Gay Stance Out Of Touch With Actual Texans

by: Katherine Haenschen

Tue Mar 26, 2013 at 06:04 PM CDT

According to polling by The University of Texas and Texas Tribune, a majority of Texans support either civil unions or full marriage equality. In February 2013, 37% of Texans surveyed supported marriage equality and another 28% supported civil unions. Only 28% of Texans surveyed oppose both. Heck, a majority of Republicans support one or the other --  41% of Republicans support civil unions and another 13% support marriage equality, making for 54% on the side of some form of progress.

Today, the Vice President of the College Republicans (yes, the College Republicans) at the University of Texas published an op-ed yesterday in The Horn entitled A Conservative Case for Marriage Equality:

It is important for conservatives to get this right: allowing same sex civil marriage does not necessarily undermine the foundation of heterosexual marriage. Marriage in the public sphere is an institution that encourages social stability. ... If we desire a stable and prosperous nation, shouldn't we encourage responsible pursuit of stable, nuclear families, regardless of their gender makeup?

Unfortunately we don't see this movement towards LGBT acceptance in our elected Republicans here in Texas, who remain all too eager to use issues such as marriage equality as a political football with which to score cheap points from a far-right GOP primary electorate.  

Attorney General Greg Abbott, who has turned his job as the "people's lawyer" into the litigation arm of the Republican Party of Texas, had this to say on the matter Monday night:

Some people forget that marriage is not man-made law. Marriage is God's law that man applied and adopted here in Texas and the United States, and man cannot rewrite God's law. Well Texas has stood firm on this issue, because we don't care how they define marriage on the East Coast or the West Coast because in Texas marriage remains a union between one man and one woman. But now, as we speak, marriage of course itself is being challenged. In the United States Supreme Court this week the definition of marriage will come under assault. I wish I could predict for you how the case will turn out but I turned out to be wrong in my prediction about Obamacare. But here is what I can predict for you. Regardless of how that case turns out, Texans will respond the way they always do. We will fight to ensure that traditional values of faith and family will be preserved, protected and defended in the state of Texas.

Abbott's cheap bigotry is out of touch with the people of Texas and increasingly out of touch with members of his own party. It's deeply unfortunate that he errantly assumes that a majority of Texans share his intolerance -- evidently folks like Abbott think hate is a Texas value.

Abbott's stance is also out of touch with the growing reality here in Texas: San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, and Fort Worth all have significant concentrations of same-sex couples who are raising children under 18.

The arc of justice is bending towards full marriage equality for all Americans, despite the efforts of folks like Greg Abbott. I don't expect our elected Republicans to change their tune any time soon -- but I do expect their views to become further marginalized, even within their own party.

Yet for the Americans who remain denied the special rights of heterosexual couples to have their love affirmed in the eyes of the state, the change can't come soon enough.  

Friday Wrap: The Voting Rights Act, Sotomayor, Marriage Equality, and the Houston Area Asian Survey

by: Burnt Orange Report

Fri Mar 01, 2013 at 01:49 PM CST

Leading off, here's a video that went viral this week and reminded America that sometimes good stuff does come from Texas. Ladies and gents, the heartwarming tale of Mitchell in El Paso:

Below the jump, get caught up on marriage equality, Austin's African-American influence, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the Voting Rights Act, border security, and the Houston Area Asian Survey.  

Rep. Lon Burnam Files HB 1300 Providing for the Freedom to Marry in Texas

by: Karl-Thomas Musselman

Thu Feb 14, 2013 at 01:23 PM CST

Today, on Valentine's Day, when the Illinois State Senate is voting on extending marriage equality to its gay & lesbian citizens, Rep. Lon Burnam filed HB 1300 repealing the "statutory prohibition against the recognition of a civil union or similar relationship entered into in another state between two persons of the same sex." If enacted, HB 1300 would provide important legal protections for same-gender couples, including property rights, homestead rights, child custody and support, adoption, intestate succession, probate transfers, group insurance for state employees, and workers' compensation benefits.

"Marriage has been the greatest and most rewarding experience of my life," said Burnam. "Continuing to deny all Texans the freedom to marry robs them of that experience and is detrimental to their families. Texans want a state where anyone can work hard and provide for their families. Our Texas values mandate defending the right of all Texans to have their rights and responsibilities as couples recognized by the state."

The legislation would take effect only if the constitutional amendment proposed by Senator Jose Rodriguez, Rep. Rafael Anchia, or Rep. Garnet Coleman passes the state legislature and is approved by voters. SJR 29, HJR 77 or HJR 78 would repeal the 2005 Texas Constitutional Amendment which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman and prohibits recognition of anything similar to marriage.

"The increasing public support for the freedom to marry in Texas is yet another sign that equal recognition of loving, committed couples is a mainstream Texas value," Equality Texas Executive Director Chuck Smith said. "Rep. Burnam has long been an outspoken advocate for the LGBT community and the freedom to marry. HB 1300, together with the Joint Resolutions filed in the House and Senate, are the legislative steps necessary to enact into law what we already know to be true: that LGBT Texans are equal and deserve equal recognition of their familial relationships."

Equality Roundup from Texas and the Nation

by: Nick Hudson

Sat Jul 21, 2012 at 02:00 PM CDT

Source: Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, Changing Attitudes on Gay Marriage

Equality Texas met with Kerrville religious leaders last week.

A family delivered 300,000 signatures to the Boy Scouts of America headquarters petitioning the organization to admit openly gay members. The Boy Scouts of America reaffirmed its discriminatory policy in response.

Homophobe and former Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee suggested on his radio show last week that the Boy Scouts of America policy of discriminating against gay scouts and leaders is "right" because it protects boys from abuse.

A homophobic Colorado cakeshop owner refused to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple yesterday. The cake shop's once-stellar five-star yelp rating has been downgraded to one and one half stars.

A school district in Ohio has agreed to pay up to $35,000 and improve its anti-bullying policies in a settlement with a gay high school student whose videotaped beating went viral on the internet.

Equality Roundup from Texas and the Nation

by: Nick Hudson

Sat Jul 07, 2012 at 07:03 PM CDT

The U.S. Presbyterian Church nearly approved marriage equality on Friday. A proposal by marriage equality proponents to redefine marriage in the Church's constitution as between "two people," rather than between a woman and a man, was defeated by a vote of 338-308 at the Church's General Assembly in Pittsburgh.

As Joe Deshotel reported on Wednesday, the Obama administration has asked the Supreme Court to examine the Constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in its next term. The Federal Government will ask the Supreme Court to apply a heightened standard of scrutiny to the Defense of Marriage Act and rule it unconstitutional.

The former president of Exodus International, a network of ministries that holds gays can be "cured" through reparative therapy and Christian prayer, last week declared ex-gay therapies ineffective and potentially harmful. He also said he believed that gays can be saved by Christ and go to heaven.

As Edward Garris reported yesterday, Police released a sketch of the suspected shooter of Mollie Olgin and Mary Kristene Chapa (see below). The two women, who were romantically involved, were found shot in the head on June 23 in Portland, Texas.

A New York state appeals court dismissed an anti-equality lawsuit filed by a conservative group last week, refusing to nullify marriages between gay couples in the state. That suit challenged the process by which New York's same-sex marriage law was passed.

Anderson Cooper came out publicly last week on Andrew Sullivan's blog at the Daily Beast. Cooper's email to Sullivan is worth reading in its entirety, but here's an excerpt:

"...I've begun to consider whether the unintended outcomes of maintaining my privacy outweigh personal and professional principle. It's become clear to me that by remaining silent on certain aspects of my personal life for so long, I have given some the mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something - something that makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid. This is distressing because it is simply not true.

I've also been reminded recently that while as a society we are moving toward greater inclusion and equality for all people, the tide of history only advances when people make themselves fully visible. There continue to be far too many incidences of bullying of young people, as well as discrimination and violence against people of all ages, based on their sexual orientation, and I believe there is value in making clear where I stand.

The fact is, I'm gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn't be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud."