GLAD Launches DOMA Storybook

Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) has launched DOMA Storybook, a series of real stories about gay families who are being hurt by the Defense of Marriage Act. An excerpt from today's story:

“We’re a very ordinary family,” says Rebecca, who runs the public education program at a genetics center at Partners HealthCare. “Boring, actually. And we like that.” But ordinary doesn’t mean that life is easy or even that the federal government treats them like other married couples. They have worries, and they are often reminded of their second-class status as a married couple. Because the federal government does not consider them married Rebecca had to pay federal taxes on the value of the health insurance Judi received through Partners. Judi switched back to her own employer’s plan—now she pays thousands more each year for less comprehensive coverage. The family loses thousands more dollars each year because the federal government denies Judi and Rebecca the right to file their federal taxes jointly as a married couple. “Every year we lose money that we could be using for family expenses or setting aside for Beau’s college fund,” says Rebecca. “It’s a yearly penalty and a reminder that in the eyes of the federal government we are not equal to other married couples.”