Australian state bans schools from showing gay film during class hours

SYDNEY, Australia -- A film about children with same-sex parents has been barred from being shown in public schools throughout Australia's most populous state, despite the documentary makers Thursday insisting students will benefit.

"Gayby Baby," which chronicles four children growing up with gay parents, was due to be shown in high schools in New South Wales as part of the student-led Wear it Purple initiative on Friday, which promotes diversity and inclusiveness.

But after front-page coverage in the Sydney Daily Telegraph this week, state Education Minister Andrew Piccoli pulled the plug, at least in school hours.

"I have directed the Department of Education to ensure the film is not shown during school hours," he said, in a move backed by state Premier Mike Baird.

"I understand the intent of that is to provide an example of tolerance and that's something I absolutely support," Baird told reporters.

"Should it be in class time? No, I don't think so. Should it be optional? Yes, I do think so."

The Telegraph reported some parents were angry their daughters had to watch the film, rated PG, or not recommended for under 15 years, but the documentary's director Maya Newell, a former student at one of the schools due to screen it, said the reaction was overblown.

"We firmly believe our film has positive benefits for all students and we're committed to supporting the schools who are celebrating Wear it Purple Day," she said on Facebook.

"Creating inclusive classroom and valuing family diversity promotes student wellbeing and acceptance of difference.

"There is no place for bullying, homophobia or discrimination in Australian public schools."

The largely crowd-funded film, which had two sold-out screenings at the Sydney Film Festival this year, is due to open in cinemas next week.

Wear it Purple Day founder Katherine Hudson told the Sydney Morning Herald she could understand the film being banned if it showed "grotesque sex scenes or violence."

"But this is a film about families. Even for conservatives, this stuff would be easy to swallow," she said.

Earlier this month, a bill to legalize same-sex marriage was introduced into the Australian parliament.

But it is doomed to fail, with Prime Minister Tony Abbott's government opposed to any changes despite growing support for marriage equality.

Same-sex couples can have civil unions or register their relationships in most states across Australia, but the government does not consider them married under national law.

source: interaksyon.com

Landmark rulings see US Supreme Court move to the left

WASHINGTON DC - With four justices appointed by Democratic presidents and five by Republican leaders, the US Supreme Court is generally perceived as being weighted in favor of conservatives.

But after two historic rulings in a week supporting progressive causes -- legalizing gay marriage across America and upholding President Barack Obama's health care overhaul -- the conservatives are lashing out.

They are slamming what they see as a blatant disregard of the law in favor of a win in the court of public opinion.

Ultra-conservative justice Antonin Scalia called the 5-4 ruling in favor of legalizing gay marriage nationwide a "judicial putsch" that was "lacking even a thin veneer of law."

"Just who do we think we are?" asked Chief Justice John Roberts, who also opposed the gay marriage ruling.

He said the ruling had "nothing to do with" the Constitution and blasted the decision as "an act of will, not legal judgment."

Scalia also lambasted his colleagues for voting 6-3 to uphold "Obamacare," which has extended health insurance to millions of Americans.

Conservatives say Obamacare represents unconstitutional government intrusion into the lives of private citizens.

"Today's opinion changes the usual rules of statutory interpretation for the sake of the Affordable Care Act," Scalia wrote.

"We should start calling this law SCOTUScare," he added, using the acronym for the Supreme Court.

 'Judicial activism'

Aside from the health care and gay marriage rulings, the court also voted in the past week to uphold a key tool used to fight housing discrimination -- another big win for the Obama administration.

In the past, other landmark Supreme Court rulings have ushered in the legalization of abortion, the end of racial segregation in schools, and the authorization of mixed-race marriages.

But this week's decisions left some accusing the court of siding with public opinion -- and not the Constitution.

Ryan Anderson, a research fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation, called the gay marriage ruling "perhaps as clear of an example of judicial activism as any we have seen in recent years –- or are likely (hopefully) to see in the future."

"The majority of the Court simply replaced the people’s opinion about what marriage is with its own," he said.

In each of this week's three main big rulings, Justice Anthony Kennedy, who was appointed in the 1980s under the conservative Ronald Reagan but is considered moderate, sided with his progressive counterparts.

Roberts, the chief justice, also added his vote to the health care ruling, perhaps to protect the court from accusations it voted along political lines.

Constitution 'pliable, long-lasting guide'

"This is not about a 'conservative' or 'liberal' court," said Lisa Linsky, a partner at the McDermott Will & Emery law firm.

"This is about the highest court in the land being cognizant of the world around it and the fundamental principles and protections that are embedded in our constitution," Linsky said.

"The founding fathers of this country created the constitution to be a pliable, long-lasting guide for living life in a civilized society," she added.

These cases "impacted real people in profound and far-reaching ways," she told AFP, noting that "any other result would have caused chaos."

If the Obamacare ruling had gone the other way, millions of people could have been left without health insurance.

"Their attention in that case to the economic realities of the health insurance market was part of their statutory interpretation, not some free-floating analysis of what would be good policy," said David Cruz, an expert from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.

In the gay marriage ruling, Kennedy wrote that same-sex couples should not be denied the "constellation of benefits" afforded married partners, such as tax and inheritance rights.

Mary Margaret Penrose, a law professor at Texas A&M University, noted that "the receipt of these benefits traditionally are matters of policy and legislation, not constitutional mandate."

Steve Sanders, who teaches constitutional litigation at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law, said the court should be expected to show some flexibility.

"The point is not that we should make law by opinion poll," he said.

"The point is that, under our Constitution, we expect courts to step in and act when a minority group is being denied a fundamental right based on the transient passions and discredited motives of a political majority."

Statistics show that during the current Supreme Court session, which is set to end Monday, the justices have taken more left-leaning decisions.

According to a New York Times analysis, about 56 percent of rulings by the court were considered progressive.

source: interaksyon.com

Illinois becomes 16th US state to legalize gay marriage

CHICAGO - Illinois became the 16th US state to legalize gay marriage Wednesday, just days after Hawaii passed marriage equality legislation.

"What we're celebrating today is the triumph of democracy, the triumph of liberty," Governor Pat Quinn said as he prepared to sign the bill into law on a desk used by President Abraham Lincoln, who hailed from Illinois.

"Part of our unfinished business is to help the rest of America achieve marriage equality," Quinn said at an hour-long bill signing ceremony attended by around 3,000 cheering people.


Marriage laws are governed by individual US states, 29 of which have amended their constitutions to ban same-sex marriage.

Efforts to give same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexuals have gathered steam in recent years.

Perhaps one of the most important victories was when the US Supreme Court in June struck down the Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as between one man and one woman.

As a result, the federal government was allowed to recognize same-sex couples in all federal matters, such as sharing pension benefits.

Courts have also overturned state bans on gay marriage, most recently in New Jersey.

The 2012 elections were considered a sea change for the matter.

Voters in three states -- Maine, Maryland, and Washington -- endorsed ballot measures aimed at legalizing gay marriage while Minnesota voters rejected an effort to enshrine a gay marriage ban in the state constitution.

The Illinois bill is set to go in effect on June 1, 2014. The Midwestern state is the 5th largest state in the nation with a population of 13 million people.

source: interaksyon.com

Australian capital is first territory to allow gay marriage Down Under

SYDNEY -- Australia's national capital on Tuesday passed laws making it the first territory to allow gay marriage and said a legal challenge from the federal government would not stop same-sex weddings from going ahead.

Same-sex unions are available in a majority of Australian states but because marriage comes under federal legislation these couples are not formally recognized as married by the government.

The new law passed by the Australian Capital Territory's 17-member Legislative Assembly in Canberra means the first weddings could take place by the end of the year, Chief Minister Katy Gallagher said.

"I am sorry that the Commonwealth threat hangs over this law, but couples who marry will do so with their eyes open to the action that the Commonwealth is taking," Gallagher said in introducing the bill.

"We understand this creates some uncertainty ahead, but that should not deter us; it does not rattle us and it doesn't change our path."

Australia has six states and two mainland territories.

The Marriage Equality Act means that gay couples from outside the small Australian Capital Territory, home to the city of Canberra and the national parliament, could travel there to be wed by an authorized celebrant.

Gallagher said the national Attorney-General George Brandis had urged her not to go ahead with the legislation as it was inconsistent with federal laws that do not permit same-sex weddings.

Brandis has vowed to challenge the move in the High Court, with the outcome potentially affecting those who used the law to wed.

Gallagher said activists had fought for the right for too long to be put off by another legal hurdle, adding that the Australian Capital Territory was confident its law was strong.

"We are simply legislating to improve outdated, inhumane laws," she said.

Gallagher acknowledged opposition to the change, particularly from those of strong religious faith, but said the bill did not in her view challenge, diminish or undermine the religion or faith of any individual.

"If we are to be judged by a higher being on this law then let it be so," she said.

ACT opposition leader Jeremy Hanson opposed the bill, which was passed with the support of Greens member Shane Rattenbury.

"We do not see the ACT Assembly as a vehicle to drive national agendas on social agendas," he said. "We are Australia's smallest parliament in a small jurisdiction and we do not think that a majority of one person in the ACT should change the definition of marriage for a country of over 23 million people."

In April New Zealand became the first Asia-Pacific country to legalize gay marriage.

source: interaksyon.com

Divorce just as much a hurdle as marriage for US gays

WASHINGTON - It's hard enough for same-sex couples to marry in the United States, but divorce is a headache as well, and one that supporters of gay marriage hope the US Supreme Court can resolve.

"Divorce is the new frontier for gay couples," said Susan Sommer of Lambda Legal, a legal advice service for homosexuals. "They had to fight to be together, and they have to fight to get a divorce."

Like marriage, divorce laws are determined by each of the 50 states, only nine of which -- in addition to the federal capital Washington -- so far allow couples of the same sex to wed.

"If a couple is living in New York City... they can get a divorce in New York City," said Sommer, who is Lambda Legal's director of constitutional litigation and senior counsel.

But complications arise when couples relocate to a state where their marriage is not legally recognized, said Stuart Gaffney, media director of the lobbying group Marriage Equality USA.

Thus, a couple living in Utah, where gay marriage is not recognized, can marry in Massachusetts, where it is legal and where newlyweds are not obliged to live in the state.

If the couple returns to Utah and their marriage falls apart, however, they would have to go to another state to petition for a divorce -- which requires a period of residence of six months to two years, depending on the state.

There are also local particularities. In Wyoming, for instance, same-sex couples cannot marry but they can seek a divorce.

"It's a mess," Sommer told AFP.

A Marriage Equality USA activist who requested anonymity to speak freely said such a situation left her in a state of stress and uncertainty as to how to legally and financial separate from her partner, whom she married in Canada.

"It made for a very difficult, untenable situation," she said.

"Within less than a year, after several years of uncertainty, we made the decision to end the relationship and begin the process of a divorce. I was very fortunate to be able to get divorced.

"Unfortunately, other US citizens who get married in Canada, or in other locations where same-sex marriage is legalized, rarely have this right," she said. "They are left in perpetual legal limbo.

According to the Williams Institute, which conducts research on the gay community, one percent of same-sex marriages -- of which there were about 50,000 in 2011 -- end in divorce every year, half the proportion for heterosexuals.

But even happily married couples who live in a state that recognizes gay marriage have to face "nightmare" complications, with divorce being the ultimate problem, Gaffney said.

That's because, under the Defense of Marriage Act, the federal government recognizes only straight marriages -- with hundreds of repercussions involving such areas as income tax and retirement benefits.

LGBT activists are thus eagerly awaiting how the US Supreme Court will rule on DOMA after its justices hear both sides of the legal argument on March 26-27.

"Non-gay couples are treated as what they are -- married -- no matter where they are living, traveling, or divorcing," said Evan Wolfson of Freedom to Marry, another group that campaigns for marriage equality.

"But gay couples experience a patchwork of respect, uncertainty and discrimination, depending on where they are," he said.

"That's why all couples should have -- the freedom to marry and divorce no matter where they live or find themselves."

source: interaksyon.com

In a more accepting US, showbiz gays come out

WASHINGTON - Suddenly, it seems, more US entertainers are coming out publicly as gay, lesbian or bisexual -- a welcome sign of a more accepting America, activists say, amid a fierce debate over marriage equality.

Hip-hop artist Frank Ocean, 24, a member of the Odd Future collective, and talk-show host and CNN anchor Anderson Cooper both made headlines this week when they openly acknowledged their sexual orientations.

"4 summers ago, I met somebody. I was 19. He was too," wrote Ocean in a stream-of-consciousness entry on his Tumblr blog, ahead of the July 17 release of his new album "Channel Orange" and a national concert tour.

"We spent that summer, and the summer after, together. Everyday almost. And on the days we were together, time would glide.... I don't have any secrets I need to keep anymore.... I feel like a free man."

Cooper, one of the nation's best known TV journalists, who also hosts a syndicated talk show, confirmed his sexuality in an email exchange with fellow newsman Andrew Sullivan, who is also gay.

"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," wrote Cooper, the son of railway heiress and socialite Gloria Vanderbilt.

But they were hardly the first ones to come out in public.

Last month it was Jim Parsons, who plays the socially awkward Sheldon Cooper on the hit nerd sitcom "The Big Bang Theory," and before that it was Zachary Quinto from "American Horror Story" and Matt Bomer from "White Collar."

Preceding them were Latino superstar Ricky Martin, Jane Lynch from "Glee," who is raising two daughters with her female spouse, and "American Idol" winner Adam Lambert, the first openly gay singer with a number-one Billboard hit.

Not to mention Jesse Tyler Ferguson from "Modern Family," Sean Maher from "Firefly," a father of two with his male partner, bisexual Amber Heard from the short-lived "The Playboy Club," Cynthia Nixon from "Sex and the City," who married her girlfriend in May, and Jonathan Knight from boy band New Kids on the Block.

"It's not only a trend in the entertainment industry, but in American culture today," said Rich Ferraro of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), which monitors the images of gays in popular culture.

"I think it reflects how people are becoming more accepting of gay and lesbian people overall... It's clear today that you can be 'out' in Hollywood and not hurt your career. There's not a scandal anymore."

No major-league athlete has come out as gay, and country singer Chely Wright says her record sales have fallen and her show has been banned from some venues since she became the first woman in the genre to come forward as a lesbian.

It is a sharp contrast from 15 years ago, when the coming-out of actress and talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres -- married since 2008 to Australian-born thespian Portia de Rossi -- prompted a tabloid frenzy.

So strong was the backlash that department store chain JC Penney stopped sponsoring her popular sitcom "Ellen." Today, DeGeneres appears front-and-center in print and television ads for JC Penney.

The trend comes after Barack Obama, gunning for re-election in November, became the first US president to support marriage equality -- instantly winning kudos from LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) voters.

Major organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the League of United Latin American Citizens and the National Council of La Raza back the legalization of same-sex marriages.

Such unions are now legal in six states and the District of Columbia, but not recognized at the federal level, and referendums are set to be held in November in Maine, Maryland and Washington.

"It's an interesting time because a lot of things have happened in a short period of time. We're at a tipping point in many ways," Darlene Nipper, deputy executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, told AFP.

She cautioned, however, that much remains to be done, and not just on the marriage equality front: In a majority of US states today, workers have no legal protection against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

"The reality is, for many people who have taken that risk (to come out) or remain afraid to take that risk, there are implications that we cannot ignore," Nipper added.

"If there was a federal non-discrimination policy, you would see a further step towards people feeling (the same) level of comfort that some now feel in showing who they are." - AFP

source: gmanetwork.com