AU Warns Texas Judge That Marriage Roadblocks Are Unconstitutional
Anti-LGBT Activists Ramp Up Rhetoric at Future Conference
Lawmaker Calls for Impeachment of TN Governor for Following the Law
Texas Religious Group Wastes Precious Oxygen on Vile Anti-LGBT Statements
In a news conference on Tuesday, July 14, Texas religious leaders launched a coalition called REAL MARRIAGE: One Man/One Woman for Life, which will target businesses and and politicians who support the Supreme Court's marriage equality decision. While the group refused to elaborate on their targets, they did waste oxygen on some incredibly vile statements.
Ford Employee Fired For Insulting LGBT Community on Company Website, Claims Religious Liberty Was Violated
Casey at the Bat: Anti-LGBT Kentucky Clerk Will Not Go Away
Thought Casey Davis, the county clerk who has refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, would go away after being ordered by the Kentucky governor to do his job?
In the words of The Princess Bride: get used to disappointment.
Texas County Clerk Resigns Rather Than Issue Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples
Majority of Christian Small Business Owners Oppose Denying Goods or Services Based on Religious Beliefs
Congressman Steve King Proposes Resolution to Condemn Marriage Equality Ruling
Religious Right Looks to Recast Itself in Sympathetic Light
Since the Supreme Court's landmark Obergefell v. Hodges decision earlier this summer, the Religious Right has been desperately scrambling for any talking point that would allow them to stay relevant in the national conversation. According to Politico, it looks like they've hit on one:
"A number of religious conservatives told POLITICO that the key to winning...upcoming legislative and legal battles will be employing tactics refined by the same-sex marriage movement that recently defeated them...
Defending Discrimination: The Religious Right Is Unhappy About Americans United’s New Project To End Religious-Based Refusals
From Americans United's Wall of Separation blog:
"This week, Americans United launched a new initiative, Protect Thy Neighbor (PTN), which is intended to stop religious zealots from using “religious freedom” as an excuse to discriminate against others. Unsurprisingly, those who are intent on discriminating against LGBT persons and others were none too happy about AU’s announcement.
Family Research Council (FRC) President Tony Perkins took to one of FRC’s many publications to denounce AU’s work as evidence of Christian “persecution.”
Wanted: An Anti-Gay Rosa Parks. Send Applications to Pat Buchanan.
The New York Times: Marriage License Refusals an "Illegal Defiance"
From The New York Times:
"Not so long ago, of course, government officials invoked religious beliefs to justify all manner of racial segregation and discrimination, including laws banning interracial marriage. The Supreme Court struck down that marriage ban in 1967 in Loving v. Virginia.
It is impossible to imagine any county clerk or judge now claiming a right not to marry an interracial couple based on religious beliefs. And yet, that would be analogous to what these public employees are doing in refusing to serve same-sex couples. The Constitution’s protection of religious freedom simply does not include the right to discriminate against others in the public sphere."
Kentucky Governor Lays Down the Law to County Clerk Who Refuses to Issue Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples
Milwaukee County Sheriff Wants "Revolution" in Face of Marriage Equality Ruling
From Right Wing Watch:
"'The next time in your state the federal government tries to put a church or a bakery or a pizza place out of business because they want to live by their religious conviction,” [David Clarke] said, “when I talk about pitchforks and torches, you need to get down there, surround that business and dare the federal government to come in and close it. That’s the revolution I’m talking about, it has to start in the states.'"
Dizzying About-Face on Marriage Equality From Arkansas County Clerk
From The Arkansas Times Arkansas Blog:
"Channel 4's Greg Yarbrough tells me at 5 p.m. that reporter Marci Manley has talked with Van Buren Clerk Pam Bradford, who has not returned my calls. She tells Manley that she's spoken with an Arkansas attorney, Mike Rainwater, who provides legal advice to county governments through the Association of Arkansas Counties, and is now saying she will issue marriage licenses — and treat customers "with respect." This followed by about an hour a phone message to me from Mathew Staver, head of the Liberty Counsel in Texas, which said it had agreed to represent Bradford to defend her in resisting issuance of licenses."
Government Employees Have No ‘Religious Freedom’ Right To Refuse Service To Same-Sex Couples, Says Americans United
Clerks Must Issue Marriage Licenses To All Qualified Couples, Church-State Watchdog Says
Government employees who oppose marriage equality because of their religious beliefs are not entitled to refuse service to same-sex couples, Americans United for Separation of Church and State has informed officials in all 50 states today.
Virginia Republicans Preparing to Pursue Discriminatory Legislation Against Same-Sex Couples
From The Washington Post:
"Gay rights advocates in Virginia and across the country have said repeatedly that they have no interest in forcing religious leaders to marry gay couples if they don’t want to. Gilbert said if that’s the case, “no one will mind if we put that in writing.”
“Religious people are right to be wary of where this agenda is headed,” he said. “It remains my position that the far left does not simply want to protect the rights of gay individuals. Their ultimate goal is to tear down religious institutions and belief systems.”...
Video Shows Gay Kentucky Couple Abused by County Officials While Seeking a Marriage License
From Raw Story:
"Ermold tells the employee that he has a letter from Gov. Steve Beshear ordering all county clerks to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and he says he also brought the Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges.
“We know what it reads, sir, and we’re not issuing any licenses,” the woman says. “You need to talk to her. You can go to any other county and get your marriage license. We’re just not doing it at this time – not even for other people.”