LGBT History Month: Prop 8 Heroes Talk Coming Out & Wedding Day Memories

This LGBT History Month, marriage equality champions Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo, the plaintiffs in the Supreme Court Case that struck down Prop. 8 in California, sat down with newlyweds Niki and Carole Nakayama, owners of n/naka and known for Chef’s Table, to discuss their relationship and how Paul and Jeff’s story paved the way for marriage equality nationwide.

The wide-ranging conversation includes the quartet's thoughts on coming out, what it feels like to get married, and sharing wedding news with friends, family, and co-workers.

"Getting married, it's personal but as a gay couple it's also universal because it gives us the language to go out into the world and affirm who we are in such a real way," says Katami. "Cause you have to come out every day if you're gay."

"For me, I feel that it defined a certain level of authenticity that we were trying to do through food but now here it was in a whole other realm," shared Ilda-Nakayama.

You can watch the full video below.

Barefoot Wine & Bubbly partnered with OUT on this new series of video shorts, entitled “One Stride, Many Journeys,” in celebration of National Coming Out Day (October 11).

Barefoot has been an ally to the LGBTQ community for the past 27 years and works with more 200 LGBTQ organizations worldwide.

Supreme Court Says California Anti-Gay Groups Can't Hide Donor Names

A California group, which fought to deny same-sex marriage in their state, has been rebuffed by the Supreme Court in their attempt to hide the names of donors to the anti-gay Prop 8 campaign of 2008.

The justices on Monday let stand a lower court ruling against ProtectMarriage.com, the National Organization for Marriage and other supporters of a 2008 ballot initiative that outlawed same-sex marriages in California until the ban was overturned five years later.

The groups sought to conceal their past and future campaign finance records because they feared harassment of donors. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against them in part because the names have been publicly available for five years.

State law requires political committees to identify those who contribute more than $100 during or after a campaign, along with the donor's address, occupation and employer.

Documentary: "The Case Against 8" debuts on HBO tonight

The new documentary - The Case Against 8 - details the lives of two couples in California who sued the state for the freedom to marry.  And won.

The television premiere of the documentary is at 9 p.m. tonight on HBO.

Prop 8 defense lawyer "evolves" regarding same-sex marriage

Eventually, when it touches your life, you evolve.

Protect Marriage attorney Charles Cooper, who vigorously argued against the overturn of Proposition 8 before the Supreme Court last year, says his opinion on gay marriage is "evolving" now that his own daughter is planning to marry a woman.

The revelation is an unexpected footnote in the years-long debate over Proposition 8, the California measure struck down by the Supreme Court last year. It is also offers a glimpse, through the eyes of one family, of the country's rapidly shifting opinions of gay marriage, with most public polls now showing majorities in favour of allowing the unions. Cooper learned that his stepdaughter Ashley was gay as the Proposition 8 case wound its way through appellate court, according to a forthcoming book about the lengthy legal battle.

And with the Supreme Court ruling now behind him, Cooper cast his personal opinion on gay marriage as an evolving process. "My views evolve on issues of this kind the same way as other people's do, and how I view this down the road may not be the way I view it now, or how I viewed it ten years ago," Cooper said in journalist Jo Becker's book "Forcing the Spring: Inside the Fight for Marriage Equality." Cooper's words are reminiscent of the language President Barack Obama used throughout his first term to describe his "evolving" views on gay marriage. In 2012, Obama announced publicly that he did, in fact, support the rights of same-sex couples to marry.

Cooper's daughter will marry in Massachusetts in June. He says, "My daughter Ashley's path in life has led her to happiness with a lovely young woman named Casey, and our family and Casey's family are looking forward to celebrating their marriage in just a few weeks."

HRC president Chad Griffin reacts: “I spent the better part of five years sitting across courtroom aisles from Mr. Cooper, disagreeing with just about every word that came out of his mouth, but I have profound respect for his decision to love and celebrate his daughter and her fiancée because his story reflects the experience of so many of the 90 percent of Americans who personally know someone who is LGBT."

Proposition 8 plaintiffs Kris Perry and Sandy Stier react: "We were so moved to hear of the Cooper family's constant love and support of their own daughter, even as the Perry case was in full swing and Mr. Cooper was spending his days planning Prop 8's defense. Some may find this contrast between public and private jarring, but in our opinion, loving an LGBT child unequivocally is the single most important thing any parent can do. We are overjoyed for Ashley and her fiancée, and we wish them the very best."

(via JoeMyGod)

Mozilla issues diversity statement in light of new CEO's past Prop 8 support

Yesterday, news broke that newly-appointed Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich had been a donor to California's anti-gay Prop 8 campaign.

In response, developers Hampton Catlin and his husband Michael announced their decision to boycott the Mozilla community entirely.

Now, Mozilla, maker of the popular Firefox web browser and the Thunderbird email client, has issued a statement in regard to the company's approach to diversity:

Mozilla has always been deeply committed to honoring diversity in sexual orientation and beliefs within our staff and community, across all the project’s activities.

One concrete example of this is in our health benefit policies. Mozilla provides the same level of benefits and advantages to domestic partners as we do to married couples across the United States, even in states where it is not mandated.

For those who choose life insurance, voluntary spouse coverage extends to domestic partners, including same-sex couples.

With thousands of people spanning many countries and cultures, diversity is core to who we are, and we’re united in our mission to keep the Web open and accessible for everyone.

(via Towleroad)

Brian Brown stokes out on the full-on death of Prop 8

"The way that activist judges have dealt with Proposition 8 is a travesty of justice and undermines the rule of law and the democratic process itself. The legitimate votes of 7 million Californians, and their fair-minded, reasonable position that marriage should be defined as the union of one man and one woman, have been trampled underfoot by derelict politicians and activist judges.

"However, this is not the end of the debate. No judge or politician can redefine what God has created. NOM and our allies will work to make sure the people of California, and other states where marriage has been redefined have a voice speaking for true marriage.

"So-called same-sex 'marriage' is a political creation; it doesn't exist in reality. Eventually it will fall, and we will restore natural marriage in California." - Hate group leader Brian Brown, in his tenth case of the super-sadz in the last twelve months.

Brian - I am happy to tell you that same-sex marriage is real.  It is here.  Get used to it.

The good guys won.

This is happy dance time.

This is about people being treated equally by the law.  Period.

God bless America.

Forward.

And Prop 8 is finally officially dead, dead, dead

The LA Times reports on the final, unsuccessful attempt by the haters to keep gays and lesbians from marrying in California:

The California Supreme Court refused Wednesday to revive Proposition 8, ending the last remaining legal challenge to same-sex marriage in the state.

Meeting in closed session, the state high court rejected arguments by ProtectMarriage, Proposition 8’s sponsors, that only an appellate court could overturn a statewide law.

A federal judge in San Francisco declared Proposition 8 unconstitutional in 2010, and state officials refused to appeal. ProtectMarriage did appeal, but the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that initiative sponsors have no right to defend their measures in federal court. The decision left in place the ruling by retired Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn R. Walker.

In its challenge before the state’s highest court, ProtectMarriage argued that a single judge lacked the authority to overturn a state constitutional amendment. The group also contended that Walker’s injunction applied to two counties at most and that state officials had overstepped their authority by ordering county clerks throughout California to issue same-sex marriage licenses.

State officials countered that the challenge was a veiled attempt to persuade a state court to interfere with a federal judge’s order in violation of the U.S. Constitution.

San Diego County Clerk withdraws challenge to Prop 8 repeal

San Diego County Clerk Ernest Dronenburg on Friday withdrew his petition asking the California Supreme Court to halt same-sex marriages and consider whether the Supreme Court's Prop 8 ruling applies only to the plaintiffs involved in the case.


From the Union Tribune:

In a news release sent out Friday afternoon, Dronenburg said he canceled the petition because it covered the same ground as another petition filed earlier to the court.

The first petition was filed July 12 by Dennis Hollingsworth and others. Hollingsworth, a former state senator, has worked with ProtectMarriage.com in support of Proposition 8, which amended the state Constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

Dronenburg said he was withdrawing his petition, which he filed July 19, to speed up the legal process that he hopes will clarify the current legal standing of Prop. 8.

Dronenburg has said he wanted county clerks to stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples because it would be “cruel” if such people tied the knot and then later learned that their marriages were invalid. However, it would seem strange that a man so concerned for the "well-being" of gays and lesbians would hire attorney Charles LiMandri, a vocal supporter of Prop. 8 and head of the Freedom of Conscience Defense Fund in Rancho Santa Fe.

Coincidence? I think not.

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera responds to attempt to reinstate Prop 8

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera

City Attorney for San Francisco Dennis Herrera responds to Protect Marriage's sad, last ditch effort to keep loving couples from marrying in the state of California:

"This motion is a desperate obstruction tactic used in the vain hope of pursuing an unconstitutional agenda.

"The opponents of the freedom to marry have chosen to ignore the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, and the well-settled California marriage case of Lockyer v. San Francisco, which they themselves celebrated at the time. Their motion has essentially no chance to succeed.

"The most basic concepts of American law tell us that a state court cannot and will not overrule the federal judiciary.

"The citizens of California are left wondering when these people will realize that, having lost the moral struggle years and years ago, they have now lost the legal struggle as well.

"Marriage equality is now the law in the State of California, and will remain so from this point onward.Together we will soon see the day when it is the law all across America."

California: Protect Marriage files petition for continued enforcement of Prop 8

The haters at Protect Marriage have filed a petition to continue enforcement of Prop 8 in California:

Moments ago, we filed a new petition in the California Supreme Court against all of California’s 58 county clerks, and state officials, seeking to restore the enforcement of Proposition 8, the state’s constitutional amendment limiting marriage to a man and a woman. The undeniable fact is, the man-woman definition of marriage, as passed by a majority the voters, is still a valid part of our state constitution.

Yet county clerks statewide are lawlessly defying that law by issuing gender-neutral marriage licenses. We are asking California’s Supreme Court to restore the rule of law and the public’s confidence in the integrity of the initiative process.

The action we filed today contends that at least 56 of the 58 county clerks must continue to follow Proposition 8 because they were not parties to the recent federal lawsuit against Prop 8, and that the state’s governor and attorney general have no legal authority to order local county clerks to disregard the state constitution.

Our petition also reminds the justices that our opponents, the attorneys for the plaintiffs who challenged Prop 8, have repeatedly admitted that the 56 county clerks not involved in their case “are not directly bound by the injunction” issued by a single San Francisco judge against Prop 8. In fact, "super-lawyer" David Boies told the courts that “the scope of the injunction is quite limited”, and at least the 56 county clerks would remain free to “refuse a marriage license to a same-sex couple…without violating the injunction.”

This will result in nothing. The kids at Protect Marriage are just out to cause further misery at this point.

You can read the whole petition from Protect Marriage by clicking here.

Cartoon: DOMA Repeal

By Nate Beeler of the Columbus Dispatch

New Mark Fiore - Prop 8 Personal Injury

TV commercial for the law firm of Keepam, Seprit & Klosit....

Funny animation from Mark Fiore.

Paula Deen's legal team attempting to use Prop 8 decision to have lawsuit dismissed

Well, here's a novel courtroom defense: Paula Deen's lawyers are attempting to use last weeks Prop 8 decision from SCOTUS to have the lawsuit against her and her brother dismissed.

From the Advocate:

A former employee is suing Deen and her brother Earl "Bubba" Hiers for reportedly racist and sexist behavior in the workplace, their restaurant, Uncle Bubba's Seafood and Oyster House in Savannah, Ga. However, Deen's lawyers claim that the complainant is a white woman, so she does not have standing in court to claim that she was affected by racism, Politico reports.

The lawyers are using the Supreme Court's decision to dismiss Perry v. Hollingsworth last week, declaring that the proponents of Proposition 8 did not have legal standing to appeal the case in court.

Brian Brown is rilly, rilly angry about gays getting married again in California

Brian Brown of NOM is super-duper mad that the gays can get married again in California:

In a case that has been marked by judicial arrogance and, frankly, lawlessness since the beginning, three judges of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals late Friday lifted their stay which had been in effect since a trial judge had ruled against Proposition 8.

Same-sex couples began being 'married' in California when state officials illegitimately declared Proposition 8 was no longer in force and ordered county clerks to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples immediately!

This, despite the fact that the US Supreme Court decision does not take effect for three more weeks.

It's another sad example of the utter disregard for the rule of law and judicial propriety by those who swear an oath to uphold the laws of California, and the nation.

It would appear that the desire to impose same-sex marriage by some public officials trumps integrity, fairness, propriety, and even the rule of law. All Americans should be outraged!

This is quickly followed up with a "counting on your $upport" request for more money....

Prop 8 plaintiffs get married in California

Proposition 8 plaintiffs Kris Perry and Sandy Stier were married in an ceremony officiated by Attorney General Kamala Harris on the mayor's balcony at City Hall in San Francisco at approximately 4:45 yesterday afternoon.

And at 6:15pm, Paul Katami and Jeff Zarillo were married at L.A. City Hall in an emotional ceremony officiated by L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

 

 

 

(all photos via AFER)

California moves fast - same-sex marriage can begin immediately

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has dissolved a stay on Judge Walker's injunction in California and gay and lesbian couples can begin marrying immediately.

From the AP:

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a brief order Friday saying it's lifting the stay it imposed while a lawsuit challenging California's gay marriage ban worked its way through the courts.

That means same-sex marriages can resume in the state for the first time since 2008.

Here's the celebration statement from the Human Rights Campaign:

"After four and a half long and painful years, justice for committed gay and lesbian couples has finally been delivered. In California, a time of struggle and indignity are over, and love, justice and freedom begin anew. And now, no election, no judge - no one - can take this basic right away. At long last, marriage has finally returned to the most populous state in the nation.

"Kris Perry and Sandy Stier's twin sons were just starting high school when their moms' right to marry was taken away, now, as they prepare to start college, they will finally see their family recognized in the eyes of their state and their country. Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo, now free to marry, can finally plan the family they've always wanted. Thousands upon thousands of lives are about to change for the better, for good. And young LGBT people across the Golden State will can today look forward to a future where they are truly and fully equal.

"Today is a day of profound celebration, but tomorrow - and every day from here on out - we will fight until joy, dignity, and full equality in all its forms reach each and every corner of this vast country."

Na Na Na Na, Hey Prop 8, Goodbye!

Sean Chapin takes a victory lap on the Prop 8 verdict with this little ditty :)

(h/t JMG)

California Gov. Brown says same-sex marriage should begin ASAP

California Governor Jerry Brown issued this statement today on the Supreme Court ruling on Proposition 8:

"After years of struggle, the U.S. Supreme Court today has made same-sex marriage a reality in California. In light of the decision, I have directed the California Department of Public Health to advise the state's counties that they must begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in California as soon as the Ninth Circuit confirms the stay is lifted."

The Governor's office adds:

The effect of today's U.S. Supreme Court ruling is that the 2010 federal district court's decision that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional is left intact and the law cannot be enforced.

In response, the Governor has directed the California Department of Public Health to advise county officials today that the district court's injunction against Proposition 8 applies statewide and that all county clerks and county registrar/recorders must comply with it. However, same-sex Californians will not be able to marry until the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals confirms the stay of the injunction, which has been in place throughout the appeals process, is lifted.

In preparation for this outcome, Governor Brown sought an opinion from California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris on whether the state, through the California Department of Public Health, can advise county clerks and registrar/recorders that they are bound by the federal district court's ruling that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional.

The Attorney General concluded that the California Department of Public Health "can and should" instruct county officials that they "must resume issuing marriage licenses to and recording the marriages of same-sex" couples. The Department will issue another letter to county officials as soon as the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals confirms the stay is lifted.

(via Towleroad)

President Obama reacts to SCOTUS decisions on marriage equality

President Barack Obama reacted Wednesday to the Supreme Court's decision striking down the Defense of Marriage Act and invalidating Proposition 8 by releasing the following statement:

I applaud the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act. This was discrimination enshrined in law. It treated loving, committed gay and lesbian couples as a separate and lesser class of people. The Supreme Court has righted that wrong, and our country is better off for it. We are a people who declared that we are all created equal – and the love we commit to one another must be equal as well.

This ruling is a victory for couples who have long fought for equal treatment under the law; for children whose parents’ marriages will now be recognized, rightly, as legitimate; for families that, at long last, will get the respect and protection they deserve; and for friends and supporters who have wanted nothing more than to see their loved ones treated fairly and have worked hard to persuade their nation to change for the better.

So we welcome today’s decision, and I’ve directed the Attorney General to work with other members of my Cabinet to review all relevant federal statutes to ensure this decision, including its implications for Federal benefits and obligations, is implemented swiftly and smoothly.

On an issue as sensitive as this, knowing that Americans hold a wide range of views based on deeply held beliefs, maintaining our nation’s commitment to religious freedom is also vital. How religious institutions define and consecrate marriage has always been up to those institutions. Nothing about this decision – which applies only to civil marriages – changes that.

The laws of our land are catching up to the fundamental truth that millions of Americans hold in our hearts: when all Americans are treated as equal, no matter who they are or whom they love, we are all more free.

President Obama calls Prop 8 plaintiffs with congratulations