Marriage Equality USA Press Release:
Oakland, California - “Today, Vermont legislators lived up to their state motto – freedom and unity – and their override of the Governor’s veto ensures that thousands of same-sex couples living in Vermont will have the freedom to marry the person they love,” said Molly McKay, Marriage Equality USA Media Director. “We know in our hearts, it is only a matter of time for America to turn its back on this history of discrimination against same-sex couples. To witness within a week the Iowa Supreme Court’s unanimous decision, followed by Vermont’s legislative stand, both in support of marriage equality gives us hope that we may be able to live our happily ever afters sooner than we think.”

“We hope the California Supreme Court recognizes how its leadership in last May’s marriage decision contributed to these changes in the heartland and across the country,” said Pamela Brown, Marriage Equality USA Policy Director. “The Court must continue to illustrate this leadership by overturning Prop 8 and ensure that equal protection and fundamental rights mean something…that they just can’t be plucked away in a willy-nilly fashion from minority groups by the majority.”

Marriage Equality USA Press Release:
Des Moines, IA- “Today is another historic day for Iowans in our long history of equality and fairness for individual liberties. The Iowa Court has declared that the promise of ‘liberty and justice for all’ includes marriage equality for Iowans like myself and Marla who have been together for twenty-five years,” said Phyllis Stevens, Chapter Leader of Marriage Equality USA-Central Iowa, who married her wife, Marla Stevens, in Canada in 2003, and whose marriage will now be legally recognized under today’s court ruling.

The Iowa State Supreme Court Opinion concludes, “We are firmly convinced that the exclusion of gay and lesbian people from the institution of civil marriage does not substantially further any important governmental objective. The legislature has excluded a historically disfavored class of persons from a supremely important civil institution without a constitutionally sufficient justification. There is no material fact, genuinely in dispute, that can affect this determination.”

Equal protection under the Iowa Constitution “is essentially a direction that all persons similarly situated should be treated alike.”

Across the United States, Marriage Equality USA chapters will be hosting local celebrations. “Marriage equality is popping up all over, so we will celebrate with an Iowa staple…. popcorn….which we will hand out in partnership with local movie houses across the state,” said Molly McKay Media Director of Marriage Equality USA. “We are so glad to see that the value of fairness and equality for all has resonated today in America’s Heartland. The tradition of extending civil rights to all minorities continues and that is a good thing.”

“Iowa joins the growing number of states that recognize that marriage discrimination is both un-American and unconstitutional. Our country is a nation which guarantees the rights of all of its citizens to be treated equally under the law,” said Stuart Gaffney Marriage Equality USA Asian Pacific Islander Outreach Director. “Just a generation ago, my parents were legally married in California, because the California Supreme Court overturned the state’s law prohibiting interracial couples from marrying, but faced government discrimination against their marriage when they moved to Missouri and waited until 1967 for the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down the bans on interracial marriage. My husband, John, and I married in California last year, and we believe that marriage discrimination against same-sex couples will end soon, too, and that our marriage will be recognized throughout the country.”

“While we celebrate history being made in Iowa today, we must remember that federal law continues to deny all same-sex couples access to the 1,138 federal rights, benefits, and protections that come with civil marriage recognition at the federal level. The federal government continues to maintain a second class citizenry in direct violation of the equal protection guarantees contained in the U.S. Constitution.” stated Davina Kotulski, Ph.D. Author of Why You Should Give A Damn About Gay Marriage, who spoke last week about marriage equality with students from Iowa State and Drake Universities hosted by Lynn Fallon and her husband, Former State Legislator and marriage equality pioneer Ed Fallon, and the Marriage Equality USA-Central Iowa chapter. “We will not rest until there is equal justice under law for all Gay Americans.”

San Francisco Gay Wedding Video in association with Mental-Rev Productions have a new video “Spouse and Spouse” from outside the March 5, CA Supreme Court hearing.

While the son of a Lesbian couple high fives an African American man raising signatures for the Repeal Prop 8 campaign, 7 California Supreme Court Justices sit in judgment on the constitutionality of Proposition 8 and ultimately the futures of California’s same-sex couples.

By Straight Talk

It’s great that the California courts will hear arguments about the recent law taking away the rights of all people in California to allow gay marriage, lesbian marriage and queer marriage. As a business owner if I want to recognize one of my employees as a married couple, so I can give them the benefits they deserve, I can not. I offer this benefit package to keep valuable employees with the company however, I am prevented from doing this with the one of employee my employees who just had a gay wedding.

However, the real fight for gay marriage is in the federal courts. in February, the federal 9th circuit held that you can not deny federal insurance to gay spouses just because you don’t like gay marriage. This is the main goal we should now all focus on. First, because the federal taxes are much higher then state taxes, and gay married couples can file jointly. Second, if you have had a gay marriage and you file taxes you have to file as a couple with the state and then start over and file as an individual with the federal government. This is crazy.

It took a federal law to end discrimination against women and racial minorities. John F. Kennedy wrote the legislation for the Civil Rights Act that Lyndon B. Johnson signed into legislation in 1964. Now it’s time for the federal government to do the same with equal rights with regard to gay marriage.

So, the good news is that as we keep exposing the current oppressive laws to the light of day they are crumbling away. Bit by bit the courts are proving that the current laws are unjust and unfair. I am hopeful that by the time Obama finishes his second term in office gay weddings will be common place, gay wedding cake topers will be sold in Walmart, school children will be taught the fact that they can love who they want is the law of the land. And that gay weddings and gay marriages will occur in Alabama and California on an equal basis.

Now more than ever, MyQueerWedding.com continues to be committed to providing resources to same-sex couples for their wedding celebration as the fight continues, to achieve marriage equality for all in the state of California and beyond!

We are deeply saddened by the passing of Proposition 8 in California, which takes away the right to marry for same-sex couples in our state. California has come a long way since 2000, when Proposition 22 passed with a 23% majority. Eight years later the gap has closed tremendously with Prop 8 passing with only a 5% majority.

The number of Californians who support same-sex marriage continues to grow and if Prop 8 is not overturned by the courts we expect it will be overturned by popular vote in the next 2 to 4 years. Same-sex couples we have spoken to have been having weddings to celebrate their loving and committed relationships for more than 25 years, regardless of marriage being legal for them. Love cannot be stopped by passing a law against it!

In a Special Comment on MSNBC, Countdown’s Keith Olbermann disagrees with the passing of Proposition 8 in California and urges people to accept love between people of the same sex.

Watch the video:

Virtually every major newspaper in California is against Prop 8. The L.A. Times says it is “a drastic step to strip people of rights.” La Opinión called Prop 8 “an unnecessary initiative”. The San Diego Union Tribune wrote that Prop 8 “offends many Californians’ sense of fairness.”

Watch this video to find out why voting NO on Prop. 8 is so important:

The Equality Campaign gathered a bunch of celebrities to star in this video, bringing much needed visibility to voting NO on Proposition 8.

Watch the video:

Two months after her marriage to Portia de Rossi on August 16, Ellen DeGeneres speaks out in this public service announcement against Proposition 8.

Watch the Ellen DeGeneres video:

As the No on Prop 8 campaigning continues, celebrities and comedians come out to spread the word about the importance of voting NO on Prop 8.

Watch this video featuring Margaret Cho & Selene Luna: