Freedom Democrats

By JIM ABRAMS
The Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- Just hours after the White House issued a veto threat Thursday, the House voted to add gender and sexual orientation to the categories covered by federal hate crimes law.

The House legislation, passed 237-180, also makes it easier for federal law enforcement to take part in or assist local prosecutions involving bias-motivated attacks. Similar legislation is also moving through the Senate, setting the stage for another veto showdown with President Bush.

"This is an important vote of conscience, of a statement of what America is, a society that understands that we accept differences," said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., the only openly gay man in the House, presided over the chamber as the final vote was taken.

The vote came after fierce lobbying from civil rights groups, who have been pushing for years for added protections against hate crimes, and social conservatives, who say the bill threatens the right to express moral opposition to homosexuality and singles out groups of citizens for special protection.

The White House, in a statement warning of a veto, said state and local criminal laws already cover the new crimes defined under the bill, and there was "no persuasive demonstration of any need to federalize such a potentially large range of violent crime enforcement."

It also noted that the bill leaves other classes, such as the elderly, the military and police officers, without similar special status.

"Our criminal justice system has been built on the ideal of equal justice for all," said Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, top Republican on the Judiciary Committee. "Under this bill justice will no longer be equal, but depend on the race, sex, sexual orientation, disability or status of the victim."

Republicans, in a parliamentary move that would have effectively killed the bill, tried to add seniors and the military to those qualifying for hate crimes protection. It was defeated on a mainly party-line vote.

Hate crimes under current federal law apply to acts of violence against individuals on the basis of race, religion, color, or national original. Federal prosecutors have jurisdiction only if the victim is engaged in a specific federally protected activity such as voting.

The House bill would extend the hate crimes category to include sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or disability and give federal authorities greater leeway to participate in hate crimes investigations. It approves $10 million over the next two years to help local law enforcement officials cover the cost of hate crimes prosecutions.

Federal investigators could step in if local authorities are unwilling or unable to act. The Human Rights Campaign, the country's largest gay rights group, said this federal intervention could have made a difference in the case of Brandon Teena, the young Nebraska transsexual depicted in the movie "Boys Don't Cry" who was raped after two friends discovered that he was biologically female and then murdered when local police did not arrest those responsible.

For all information related to this story please see:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/03/AR2007050300775.html

Posted by Freedom Democrats at 1:04 PM | Permalink

Domestic-Partners Bill Clears Senate, Goes to Governor

Statesman Journal

Oregon will become the seventh state to grant same-sex couples full marriage-style benefits allowed by state law, after the Oregon Senate approved a landmark "domestic partnerships" bill Wednesday.

Senators voted 21-9 to approve House Bill 2007-A, with two Republicans joining all of the chamber's Democrats and one independent in support. Gov. Ted Kulongoski vows to sign the bill into law.

Passage of HB 2007-A, coupled with earlier approval of a bill banning discrimination based on sexual orientation, marks a dramatic turnaround for gay rights in Oregon. It comes 2 1/2 years after Oregonians banned gay marriage at the ballot box when they passed Measure 36.

"It means that I'm no longer a second-class citizen in my own state," said Melanie Altaras, a senior at West Salem High School. "I have the opportunity to be recognized under the law with someone at some point in the future."

Gay-rights supporters still expect that conservative Christians will try to place one or both measures as a referendum on the November 2008 ballot. Opponents have three months after the 2007 legislative session closes to gather 55,179 signatures.

However, the Oregon Family Council, an evangelical Christian group that spearheaded the Measure 36 campaign, announced that it won't put either measure on the ballot.

"Right now, we're not planning on running a referendum," said Nick Graham, a spokesman for the Oregon Family Council.

Legislative leaders obliged the group by granting an exemption for religious organizations, so faith-based groups won't be forced to hire or serve gays and lesbians. The group also was pleased that the Legislature didn't tamper with marriage laws and instead added new legal language creating domestic partnerships, Graham said.

During the Ballot Measure 36 fight, Graham recalled, Oregon Family Council leaders said they would rather see the issue debated before the Legislature. That's what occurred this year, Graham said, although he said the group doesn't like the resulting bills.

After the 2004 upheaval in Oregon, when Multnomah and Benton counties briefly legalized gay marriage and voters banned the practice with the passage of Measure 36, Wednesday's debate seemed anticlimactic.

It was over in little more than a half-hour, and only one lawmaker spoke against the bill. Sen. Roger Beyer, R-Molalla, complained that the bill failed to list all the statutes that will be amended to give same-sex couples new benefits.

Senate Majority Leader Kate Brown, D-Portland, who is married but describes herself as bisexual, called the bill's passage a "giant step forward for gay and lesbian citizens in Oregon."
Sen. Frank Morse, R-Corvallis, who supported the bill, said Oregon must find a way to treat all citizens with dignity and respect, regardless of sexual orientation.

"Our task today is to find how big is Oregon's heart," Morse said.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2008, same-sex couples will be able to go to their county courthouse and enter into a legally binding contract that grants them rights and responsibilities. The benefits include nearly all those accorded to married couples under state law, covering the rights to jointly file state taxes, child custody, hospital visitation and inheritance rights, among others.

Oregon and other states with comparable statutes cannot offer marriage benefits to same-sex couples that derive from federal law, such as jointly filing federal taxes, Social Security and other benefits.

Some gay-rights advocates have complained about use of the term "domestic partnerships" rather than "civil unions." However, the bill grants same-sex couples a similar panoply of rights offered by other states, whether the term is gay marriage, civil unions or domestic partnerships.

At a celebration after Wednesday's vote, Rep. Tina Kotek, D-Portland, the lone openly homosexual member of the Oregon Legislature, welcomed the news that Oregon Family Council won't seek a referendum. "Now we can just get on with our lives," she said.

For all information related to this article please see:
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070503/LEGISLATURE/705030318/1042/STATE

and/or call slaw@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6615

Posted by Freedom Democrats at 12:57 PM | Permalink

As reported in the Miami Herald

BY ALEXANDRA ALTER AND BETH REINHARD

Bringing an end to ambitious goals that included raising $2 million to launch a Capitol Hill lobbying arm, opening a dozen regional offices and recruiting activists in all 435 congressional districts, the Fort Lauderdale-based Center for Reclaiming America has shut its doors.

The conservative organization, part of the Rev. James D. Kennedy's Coral Ridge Ministries, let its eight employees go last week. Coral Ridge also closed its Capitol Hill-based Center for Christian Statesmanship, founded in 1995 to convert lawmakers to evangelical Christianity.

Brian Fisher, executive vice president at Coral Ridge Ministries, said the closings are part of a larger effort to redefine the ministry's mission.

''We believe that by streamlining the operations we will be able to return to our core focus,'' he said.

Fisher said Coral Ridge officials plan to focus on television, radio and Internet, with plans to reach an audience of 30 million by 2012, up from 3 million today.

The closings mark a major shift for Coral Ridge Ministries, which runs the 10,000-member Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church at 5555 N. Federal Hwy. in Fort Lauderdale, television and radio ministries, a seminary and an evangelism training program and has an annual budget of $37 million.

Kennedy, 76, who suffered a heart attack in December, is recovering in a hospital in Michigan.

The change also comes at a pivotal moment for the religious right, which is casting about for a presidential candidate during the most wide-open campaign in more than half a century. The 2006 election delivered a major blow to Republican conservatives in Washington and in Florida, where their favored candidate for governor, Tom Gallagher, was soundly defeated. Earlier that year, a petition drive to put a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage on the ballot fell short, despite the center's efforts.

BACKING WANES

Kennedy, an internationally renowned evangelist, founded the center more than a decade ago to advance conservative Christian values in state and national politics. But in recent years, the center has struggled to gain broad backing for its efforts to outlaw abortion, ban gay marriage and promote prayer and creationism in schools.

Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle, who for years has welcomed activists from around the world to the center's annual conference, said politicians seeking to appeal to the center were no longer actively courting Christian conservatives.

''After an election like that, candidates are packaging themselves in the middle, rather than to the right,'' he said. About 1,100 evangelicals -- 300 more than last year -- participated in the center's conference in March.

Naugle said he ''can't help'' but think that the center's closing has something to do with Kennedy's health. ''Certainly he was a driving force and a national recognized leader and, hopefully, his health will allow him to come back strong,'' he said.

Corwin Smidt, executive director of the Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., said evangelical groups that are built around a single charismatic leader often struggle in the leader's absence.

NO REPLACEMENT

''For Kennedy, there's just no figure [to replace him] after he's gone,'' he said. ``These televangelists are able to generate a fair amount of money, but in terms of their institutional longevity, it's really at risk.''

He also sees the closings as part of a broader shift away from politics among Christian conservatives.

''There is a kind of retrenching, a regrouping, a rethinking among conservative Christians,'' Smidt said. ``Some people are saying for Christians to be involved in politics, we have to be much more aware of a variety of issues.''

Jennifer Hancock, associate director of the Humanists of Florida Association, said the closings offered evidence that Christian conservatives are losing some of their political clout.

''It's good news for us, and I think its good news for people who care about democracy,'' she said. ``These people were promoting theocracy in America.''

But Gary Cass, who had been the center's executive director for three years, said he plans to stay at the forefront of Christian activism.

''The fight continues because our cause has not changed and the stakes are so high,'' he said.

Posted by Freedom Democrats at 10:41 AM | Permalink

When Connecticut state Rep. Beth Bye's turn came to speak about the need for her legislature to approve gay marriage, she tearfully recalled her devout Catholic father's loving participation in her civil union ceremony, then described the pain of being excluded from actual marriage.

The freshman lawmaker recounted filling out a health care form: Her choices were "married," "divorced," "widowed," "single" or "other."

"Forgive me if I'm not patient," Bye told Connecticut's joint House-Senate Judiciary Committee. "I don't want to be 'other' anymore. I want to be married."

Bye's touching plea helped create a lopsided victory -- the 27-15 committee vote that endorsed opening marriage to gay couples. Gay marriage now goes to the full state House and Senate. (To watch Bye's moving testimonial, go to lmfct.org .)

Connecticut's breakthrough is one in a series of astonishing gay advances in the past three weeks. The headline-grabbing victories shared one thing in common: A gay lawmaker played a key role.

"We have seen in the last month at almost every major win, almost always there is an openly gay legislator behind that story," says Denis Dison of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, which helps elect openly gay or transgender officials, who now number 370.

Here's a quick tick tock:

· April 12: Connecticut's Judiciary Committee overwhelmingly approves same-sex marriage.

· April 19: Oregon Senate votes, 19-7, to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in housing, employment, public accommodations and public education. The House did as well, 35-25. Oregon's House also passed a domestic partner bill, 34-26, on April 17, which would grant gay couples the state-level rights of marriage. The Senate is expected to follow suit. Gov. Ted Kulongoski, a Democrat, promises to sign both bills.

· April 21: Washington state Gov. Chris Gregoire, a Democrat, signs a domestic partnership bill, giving gay couples important marriage-like rights.

· April 24: Out gay U.S. Reps. Barney Frank, D-Mass., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., help reintroduce legislation to ban job discrimination based on sexual orientation and for the first time include gender identity. The bill's prospects are encouraging.

· April 25: Iowa's House votes 59-37 to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity at work and many other places. Hours later, the Senate agrees, 34-16. Democratic Gov. Chet Culver says he'll sign the protections into law. (Iowa and Oregon will bring to 19 the states prohibiting anti-gay job discrimination and to 10 those banning anti-transgender discrimination.)

· April 26: New Hampshire's Senate follows its House by embracing civil unions, 14-10. Gov. John Lynch, a Democrat, says he'll sign it. So New Hampshire, which hosts the first 2008 presidential primary, will be the fourth civil union state. It is the first state to act without being prodded by a lawsuit.

· April 27: Five years after a gay state senator pushed for marriage equality, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, a Democrat, becomes the first governor to introduce gay marriage legislation.
If you ever wonder whether it's important for gay people to risk being out at work, just review this wonderful list. Gay lawmakers are rocketing our country forward.

Reach Deb Price at dprice@detnews.com or (202) 662-8736.

For all information related to this story please see:
http://detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070430/OPINION03/704300310

Posted by Freedom Democrats at 9:36 AM | Permalink

New Hampshire Governor John Lynch says he will sign a bill making civil unions legal in the Granite State.

Vermont was the first state to do so under then Governor Howard Dean. Last week Dean said he's proud of New Hampshire for following suit and says it's a debate that should happen at the state level. "You know I don't think marriage or civil unions are national issue. I think the defense of marriage act is unconstitutional. Clearly the states have the right to make these kinds of decisions about benefits and legal relationships and that's always been the way it is. I think there should be less federal regulation not more," Dean said.

Besides Vermont, two other states, New Jersey and Connecticut, offer civil unions. New Hampshire's law would take effect in January.

Massachusetts is the only state to allow gay marriage.

For all information related to this story please see:

http://www.wcax.com/Global/story.asp?S=6443886&nav=4QcS

Posted by Freedom Democrats at 8:22 AM | Permalink