According to the New Civil Rights Movement, the owner of an Oregon bakery that illegally denied service to a same-sex couple seems to think that anti-discrimination laws mark the end of Western civilization.
Texas Marriage Equality Opponents Warn Against "Queering" Of Country
Two days after the Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution requires states to license and recognize the marriages of same-sex couples, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a confusing memo suggesting that in some circumstances, county clerks or their employees with religious objections to marriage equality could withhold marriage licenses from same-sex couples.
Kentucky Legislators Prepare To Defy Supreme Court
Just days after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of marriage equality in Obergefell v. Hodges, Kentucky made national news when its county clerks defied the decision by refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. And less than a month after the decision, Kentucky lawmakers have made the news again by pre-filing legislation (BR 101, BR 102) for the 2016 session that would allow government officials to refuse to issue or record marriage licenses and refuse to solemnize marriages of same-sex couples
One Confusing Detail in Wheaton College's Student Insurance Cancellation Plan
Two weeks ago, we posted about Wheaton College, a Christian liberal arts college in Illinois, cancelling its student health insurance to avoid complying with the new ACA contraception accommodations. One new detail makes us wonder why Wheaton College caused so much fuss in the first place.
Christian Baker Says It Is His "Duty To Serve" All Of His Customers, Including Same-Sex Couples
Tennessee Lawmaker Sends Letter To 95 County Clerks Urging Them To Refuse Marriage Licenses To Same-Sex Couples
Just weeks after posting a rant on his Facebook page calling for the impeachment of Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, Rep. Rick Womick is back in the news again, this time for sending a letter to all 95 Tennessee county clerks urging them to refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
Forced Parenthood: Religious Right Groups Attack Pro-Choice Org With Aim Of Ending Abortion
Perhaps you’ve seen the headlines about Planned Parenthood.
Viral videos released by the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) purportedly show two PP doctors discussing the organization’s practice of “selling” fetal tissue to biomedical research firms. The Religious Right promptly whipped itself into a frenzy, claiming that the videos are evidence that the pro-choice non-profit is violating federal law. But that’s no surprise to us.
Kentucky Minister Threatens Legal Action After Being Prevented From Preaching Anti-Gay Speech to Jailed LGBT Youths
A Kentucky minister is threatening legal action against the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) after the department revoked his status as a volunteer with LGBTQI youth at the Warren County Regional Juvenile Detention Center. David Wells of the Pleasant View Baptist Church in McQuady, KY, refused to comply with a DJJ policy that requires that those who identify as LGBTQI be treated with respect for their individual identities.
Canned Clerk: Indiana County Employee Fired For Refusing To Process Same-Sex Couples’ Marriage Applications Files Lawsuit
From Americans United's Wall of Separation blog:
An employee at a county clerk’s office in Indiana who was fired because she refused to process marriage licenses for same-sex couples claims her “religious freedom” rights have been violated. So now she’s suing.
Legal Entanglements Ahead in a Post-Obergefell, Post-EEOC Decision America
In the aftermath of the Obergefell v. Hodges decision and last week's Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruling, there has been a hopeful feeling in the air for supporters of LGBT rights. Unfortunately, these monumental leaps forward in civil rights will come at the cost of knotty legal entanglements.
Court Reverses Decision in Washington Emergency Contraception Case
For the second time, The U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has rejected a challenge to a Washington state law requiring pharmacies to stock and provide all prescription medicines, including emergency contraception such as the Plan B pill. A trial judge had ruled that the law was an unconstitutional violation of the plaintiffs’ free exercise of religion. The Ninth Circuit reversed, concluding that the Free Exercise Clause does not require exemptions for pharmacies with religious exemptions, because the law is not targeted at religion and advances the state’s interest in promoting patient safety.
Oregon Couple Discriminated Against By Bakery Speaks Out
Oregon couple Rachel and Laurel Bowman-Cryer broke their silence on Tuesday about their legal battle with Sweet Cakes by Melissa and its owners Aaron and Melissa Klein. Their lawsuit was less about the cake the company refused to sell them for their wedding, the couple says, than the intense harassment and bullying they received once their complaints and personal information were made public
Equality Act: Equality The Right Way
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon) and U.S. Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) today introduced the Equality Act, which would protect LGBT people from discrimination. It builds on our nation’s tradition of expanding civil-rights protections to ensure that more of our neighbors are protected from discrimination based on who they are.
Supreme Court May Eventually Need to Weigh In On Same-Sex Discrimination Cases
Good News in Alabama: Two Counties Now Giving Marriage Licenses to All Couples
Faith Of The Fathers: Missouri State Sen. Attempts To Block Birth Control Coverage For His Daughters
A Missouri state representative who wants to stop his daughters from accessing birth control recently won a victory in his ongoing suit against the Affordable Care Act’s contraception regulations when the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed to hear arguments in his challenge to the regulations, thus reversing a lower court ruling that threw the case out on standing.
Battles Brewing Within the American Christian Community Over Marriage Equality
Christianity, like any religion, is far from a monolithic entity. With 217 known Christian denominations in the United States, there are bound to be some political and doctrinal differences. Still, few things have split American Christians like marriage equality
Ted Cruz Inspired By Business Owners Who Refused to Host Wedding for Same-Sex Couple
New EEOC LGBT Employment Protections Explained
Kentucky Clerk First to Be Sued For Refusing to Issue Marriage Licenses to LGBT Couples
Kim Davis, Rowan County clerk and one of recalcitrant Kentucky clerks who are refusing to issue marriage licenses to LGBT couples, is in the news again, this time as the first government employee to be sued for her (in)actions.