Jerry's updates on the fight for Equal Rights

Jerry's email update on the fight for Equal Rights (January 27, 2005)

FEDERAL MARRIAGE AMENDMENT PROPOSAL IS BACK
WITH EVEN MORE SUPPORT!

Friends,

YOUR ACTION IS NEEDED , NOW! Please revisit my HRC Action Page and click on the big red checkmark at the bottom of the page to send a pre-written email to legislators from your state, telling the to oppose writing discrimination into the US Constitution!

CLICK HERE NOW to go right to the pre-written letter.

This week U.S. Senator Wayne Allard (R-Colorado) resubmitted the proposal to write discrimination into the Constitution with the just-introduced "Marriage Protection Amendment". Senator Allard is convinced that the November elections have resulted in enough support to pass this amendment.

We need to SHOUT AS LOUD AS WE CAN... NOW, to our US Senators and Representatives.

Notable item(s) this week:

Anti-Gay Marriage Amendment Reintroduced to Senate with Major Support
Washington D.C. — The proposed constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between a man and a woman was reintroduced to the Senate yesterday, supported by Majority Leader Bill Frist and 21 other U.S. Senators.

"Amendment backers say a marriage amendment to the U.S. Constitution is the only permanent remedy. And since the 2004 election, support for the amendment has made gains. Four new senators are co-sponsors and Democrats lost five seats last election day..
FULL STORY

Senators to Press for Gay Marriage Ban
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate supporters of a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage said Monday they intend to press for passage in the new Congress, brushing aside mixed signals from the White House on the issue's importance at the start of President Bush's second term.

"Who's to say whether we have enough votes or not," said Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., noting that the new two-year Congress has just begun.

He said he expects GOP leaders to call for a vote before the 2006 elections and added, "I think it would be foolhardy to back off when we've got a good head of steam coming out of the election."
FULL STORY

TAKE ACTION HERE

Please revisit my HRC, take action page.

There is a new prewritten letter to send to your representatives in DC!

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEND!

Submit an editorial to your local paper every 35 days. Helpful suggestions

Please e-mail MA legislators Remind them that we are as determined as ever to defend equal marriage rights.

Boycott FedEx!
They refuse to provide health benefits to married gay couples in Ma!
e-mail fedex.com to tell them what you think of their policy of predjudice.

call CBS today at:
(212) 975-4321
or e-mail them at:
audsvcs@cbs.com
Urge them to publicly clarify their position on the network's recent refusal to air the United Church of Christ's inclusionary ad.

Visit Dontamend.com

Volunteering at GLAD:
GLAD welcomes volunteers of all ages & backgrounds. Volunteers contribute invaluably to work toward Equal Justice Under Law.
Please consider getting involved

News Articles of Interest

Previous updates:

Allard to Revive Marriage Measure, Proposed Ban on Same-Sex Unions to Be Reintroduced
WASHINGTON - The fight over same-sex marriage is about to vault to the top of the congressional agenda today, when U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard plans to reintroduce a measure that would define marriage nationally as being between one man and one woman.
FULL STORY

Ilinois Governor Signs Gay Rights Law.
CHICAGO - Illinois on Friday became the 14th state with a law barring discrimination based on sexual orientation..
FULL STORY

Same-Sex Couples in Mass. Tackle Taxes
As if tax season isn't stressful enough, gay newlyweds in Massachusetts this year are pondering a new thorny question: Do they check "married" or "single" on federal tax forms?
FULL STORY

Cabinet member berates PBS over cartoon
LGBT organizations strongly criticized the nation's new secretary of education for her handling of a cartoon on the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) that features four lesbians in one episode.
FULL STORY

'Ex-gay' therapist cited for ethics breeches
Richard Cohen, an influential figure in the "ex-gay" movement, has been permanently expelled from the American Counseling Association (ACA) because of ethics violations, according to an ACA document..
FULL STORY

'Ex-gay' billboards in Texas stir anger
The LGBT community in Houston and Galveston is reacting angrily after 15 billboards appeared with the message "I questioned homosexuality. Change is possible. Discover how."
FULL STORY

HRC DENOUNCES INTOLERANCE DEMONSTRATED BY SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
‘The secretary’s first act in office denies children an education about the diversity of American families,’ said HRC Political Director Winnie Stachelberg..
FULL STORY


MA Legislators Back Gay Rights ... and Survive
When Carl Sciortino's phone calls and letters went unanswered, he decided to visit his state representative to find out where the lawmaker stood on same-sex marriage.
That day in late 2003 turned out to be quite fateful for both the young gay constituent and for longtime Massachusetts state Rep. Vincent Ciampa. During an hour-long conversation, Sciortino (pronounced Shore-TEE-no) finally got his answer: Ciampa favored amending the state constitution to outlaw gay marriage.
FULL STORY

PLEASE DONATE TO OUR SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS! Our Opposition has gained significant ground!

Join/Donate to the Human Rights Campaign

Donate to MassEquality

In a few months, a state Constitutional Convention will again vote on an Amendment to strip away equal marriage rights. This is our last chance to stop it in the Legislature and keep it off the ballot. If the vote were held today, we would lose!

Many people don’t realize that, but it’s true. We’ll have to fight hard to win... but MassEquality, our leading supporter,
is broke! They bet the farm on last November’s elections — they simply had to — but now we have nothing left against opponents with deep, deep pockets.

Please act quickly to help us.
Visit: www.MassEquality.org/gift

If we lose, discrimination will be embedded into the world’s oldest written Constitution — and thousands of families would have their marriages taken away by the state.

Your contribution will help to mobilize supporters of equality across the state... reach out to voters to influence the Legislature... build field operations... staff phone banks... send advocacy mail ... ramp up our online efforts... and hire professional lobbyists. In short, you’ll help us do everything it takes to win.

1/20/2005: White House Again Backs Amendment on Marriage

1/13/2005: Gay Marriage Tops Vatican’s 2005 Agenda

1/6/2005: 2005 kicks off civil rights granted & refused

12/23/2004: "equal" rights in CA begins January 1st

12/16/2004: Marriage reversal case begins in OR

12/9/2004: Canada & New Zealand grant marriage & union rights

12/2/2004: Supreme Court Declines Ma Gay Marriage Case

11/26/2004: ACLU Drops Marriage Case

11/18/2004: SS Marriage Ruling 1yr Later

11/11/2004: No marriage Backlash in Ma

11/4/2004: Dealing with the bad news!

10/28/2004: Last chance to spread the word...VOTE!

10/21/2004: Ohio's anti-gay "Issue 1" campaign gets ugly.

10//142004: La. marriage ban goes to state high court.

10//72004: LA Amendment is THROWN OUT.

9/30/2004: BUB-BYE Bigoted MA House Speaker.

9/23/2004: L.A. VOTES TOTAL DISCRIMINATION

9/16/2004: Primary elections victories for pro- equality candidates, but not for Jerry's.

9/9/2004: House is back in session, to debate marriage again!

9/2/2004: Tell Bush "YOU'RE FIRED"

8/26/2004: JERRY IS MARRIED!!!

8/19/2004: MA Supreme Court Judge rules in favor of discriminatory law!

8/12/2004: California High Court Voids Same-Sex Marriages!

8/05/2004: ANOTHER MAJOR SETBACK & ANOTHER SMALL WIN.

7/29/2004: MAJOR SETBACK!
Discriminatory Marriage Protection Act Passed by a Vote of 233 to 194

7/21/2004: GOP HAS MOVED THE MARRIAGE DEBATE TO THE HOUSE AND EXPECTS TO WIN

7/15/2004: The US SENATE SHOOTS DOWN THE FEDERAL MARRIAGE AMENDMENT! But,..

7/08/2004: Court Date Set In Mass. Out-Of-State Weddings Case

6/30/2004: Federal appeals court denies attempt to block same-sex weddings

6/24/2004: Romney urges federal ban on gay-marriage 'experiment'

6/17/2004: Gay marriage opponents gear up for fall.

6/9/2004: Tell Mitt Romney To Stop His Anti-Gay Crusade.

5/27/2004: Governor Romney is BOOed at Suffolk Commencement Ceremony!

5/20/2004: WE CAN MARRY!!!

5/13/2004: Judge refuses to stop gay marriages!!!

5/7/2004: Boston may ignore governor's directive on gay marriage

4/30/2004: Governor Aims to Limit Marriage to Mass. Residents, GLAD Offers Perspective

4/22/2004: I'm featured in today's paper :-) HORRIBLE PICTURE!

4/13/2004: LETTER FROM QUINCY'S HERO: REP RONALD MARIANO

4/8/2004: Quincy's Rep Mariano Changes Vote to Support Civil Rights!

4/1/2004: CIVIL RIGHTS SETBACK IN MA


	Jerry Ringuette

	RENEW ONLINE
	BECOME A PARTNER
(WITH A MONTHLY MEMBERSHIP GIFT)

Despite the political challenges of the last year, our cause, our fight for justice, is every bit as vibrant today as it has ever been. In fact, it's even stronger - because it's a bigger part of the national conversation than ever before.

HRC has much to do and achieve in continuing the national conversation in 2005 - our 25th Anniversary year - and we need the strength of our active membership to succeed. Click here to renew your membership to the Human Rights Campaign today.

With your renewed support, here are several of the key strategies that HRC will move forward with this year:

We remain fully committed to marriage equality. It is the optimal protection for our families and our support is unwavering. In fact, our battle now begins in earnest as the Federal Marriage Amendment (now called the "Marriage Protection Amendment") has been reintroduced into the Senate as one of its first orders of business this year. President Bush and right-wing members of the Senate have vowed to fight for this discriminatory measure -- no doubt due to pressure from extremists who threatened to pull their support of this administration if they did not aggressively pursue a Constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. With your support and activism, we will again defeat any cynical attempts to use the Constitution against our families, and at the same time find ways to advance equality legislatively for same-sex couples.
We will engage in a thoughtful new dialogue with communities of faith. For too long, a vocal minority of far-right religions have portrayed their narrowly crafted views as the true beliefs of all Americans of faith. We know that there are GLBT people of faith, and many allies who sit next to us in houses of worship and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with us in our struggle for equality. We must ensure that those voices are heard too, and seek their help in changing hearts and minds.
We will keep reminding Corporate America that equality works. HRC will expand and re-launch its workplace organizing project, and maintain the momentum in GLBT workplace equality.
We will remain a steadfast voice for GLBT Americans in the Capitol. Our allies on the Hill, dedicated leaders who have stood by us for years, are still looking to HRC to be smart and strategic in finding new ways to move the nation toward full equality. We will continue to lead, to provide a thoughtful GLBT voice to the discourse in Washington, and to help elect fair minded leaders through our PAC.

Today, as we prepare for one of the most challenging years in our 25-year history, HRC is counting on your renewed membership support to succeed. Please send it today, as generously as you can, so that we can meet the challenges of the year ahead with strength, unity, and an unwavering belief in the rightness of our cause.

Gratefully,

Hilary Rosen
Interim Director

P.S. Now is the time to reaffirm your connection to the spirit, vision and work of the Human Rights Campaign. It sends a critical signal that you intend to keep fighting for GLBT equality in our country - and that you won't surrender to the ignorance, fear and bigotry of those who oppose it. As HRC enters its 25th year of advancing equality, please let us know that you stand with us as we step up to the challenges - and opportunities - that lie ahead in 2005. Click here. Thank you.