Welcome to a weekly roundup of news related to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, and otherwise “other” community.
- Civil Unions are not equal to Marriage. That’s the finding of a recent commission on New Jersey’s attempt to give same-sex couples full and equal partnership under the law while appeasing those who cringe at the expansion of the word “marriage”. From a New York Times editorial:
It is hardly a surprise that New Jersey’s civil union law is not working very well. During the past several weeks, dozens of same-sex couples have testified that the law has not provided the equal benefits that were promised when it passed.
Now, the special commission that heard the testimony has made it official: the civil union law has been a “failure.” Frank Vespa-Papaleo, who is chairman of the commission as well as the state’s director of civil rights, said the law is not as effective “as if the word ‘marriage’ were used.”
I don’t know if I’d call it a resounding “failure” if only a few private employers are dodging the law (most couples will still get benefits, and the state recognizes them as full and equal), but there’s no doubt that separate-but-equal status will always encourage dissenters to focus on the “separate” instead of the “equal”.
- Speaking of which, laws that specifically invoke “married couples” are often cynical ways of passing anti-gay legislation without having to wear one’s bigotry on one’s sleeve. Throw in an extra phrase like “for the good of the children”, and you have toxic legislation like the Arkansas ballot initiative to outlaw adoption and foster parenting … except for married couples. It’s for the good of the children, of course. (n/t Mombian) A nice touch: the Arkansas News Bureau calls it what it is: a gay adoption ban.
- Terrance at the Republic of T has dedicated this round of installments of his excellent Hate Crimes Project to anti-trans violence. Today’s focuses on the murder of Thalia Mosqueda, a trans woman whose murderer argued that he was disgusted by her alleged advances because “he wasn’t gay”:
Panic is a strange thing. We know all about “gay panic,” but what about “trans panic,” which seems to be at the root of so many anti-trans hate crimes like the murders of Bella Evangelista, Emonie Spaulding, Ukea Davis & Stephanie Thomas, and Nireah Johnson, just to name a few?
Well-worth reading the whole series.
