Raleigh Archbishop Has The Marriage Sadz

"While saddened to learn of today’s ruling overturning the marriage amendment, the occasion provides an opportunity to convey two important teachings of our Church. First, the Church has always taught, and will always teach, that every person is created in the image and likeness of God and, thus, has a dignity which must always be respected and upheld. There are no exceptions.

"Second, the Church has always taught, and will always teach, God’s law revealed to us in Sacred Scripture and in our Tradition: that marriage is the permanent and faithful union of one man and one woman. This unique bond is open to the procreation of children for the good of all society. This firmly held belief from throughout history does not in any way negate the teaching regarding the dignity owed to each and every human person.

"Thus, as I said on the day the NC Marriage Amendment was passed in 2012, this is not a day for one side to claim victory. Instead, this is a day for all of us to renew our commitment to live in harmony as God’s family. For Catholics, while we are called to never compromise the beliefs we treasure and celebrate, we must always respect and love all people as God’s sons and daughters." - Raleigh Archbishop Michael Burbidge, who campaigned vigorously in support of Amendment One.

VIDEO: In the 2012 clip below, Burbidge urges all North Carolina Catholics to vote for Amendment One. Burbidge: "It can never be acceptable for those who stand up for the traditional definition of marriage to be judged, slandered, or forced to compromise the beliefs which they embrace without reservation or apology. No form of discrimination can be tolerated."

Celebrations In North Carolina

Finally Married After 41 Years!

Betty Mack and Carol Taylor of #asheville, partners of 41 years, show off their marriage certificate. #DayOneNC pic.twitter.com/Xgnfw21ku7
— Casey Blake (@CaseyBlakeACT) October 10, 2014

And Now...A Moment Of Silence

Actually, FUCK that. Party on Tarheels!

First North Carolina Couple Gets License!

First marriage license granted to #LGBT couple in NC! Congrats Amy and Lauren. #DayOneNC #MarriageEquality pic.twitter.com/rmYpqr3H20
— CSE (@CSElive) October 10, 2014

UPDATE: And they're married!

NORTH CAROLINA: Federal Court Issues Limited Strikedown Of Marriage Ban

Matt Comer reports at Q Notes:

A federal judge in North Carolina’s Western District has issued an order permanently prohibiting defendants in a United Church of Christ lawsuit against North Carolina’s anti-LGBT amendment from enforcing the ban. Additionally, the judge denied Republican state leaders’ motion to intervene in the case. U.S. District Court Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr., issued his two orders shortly after 5 p.m.  “Defendants are PERMANENTLY ENJOINED from enforcing such laws to the extent these laws prohibit a person from marrying another person of the same gender, prohibit recognition of same-sex marriages lawfully solemnized in other States, Territories, or a District of the United States, or seek to punish in any way clergy or other officiants who solemnize the union of same-sex couples,” Cogburn wrote. It appears Cogburn’s order applies only to those defendants named in the case — including registers of deeds in Mecklenburg and Buncombe counties.

This is NOT the same court hearing the GOP attempt.

Read the full ruling.  Story developing...

NORTH CAROLINA: Stay On Marriage Cases Lifted, Pro-Gay Ruling Expected

UPDATE: The stay HAS been lifted. See the ruling.

UPDATE II: From the Greensboro NBC affiliate.

A federal judge has lifted stays on two American Civil Liberties Union lawsuits that could clear the way for same-sex marriages in North Carolina. Judge William Osteen of the federal Middle District in Greensboro on Wednesday lifted a stay in two cases involving same-sex couples who wish to marry. Mike Meno, a spokesman for the ACLU of North Carolina, told WNCN that Osteen asked for a motion from the ACLU on the gay marriage issue. Meno said the ACLU expects Osteen to rule that gay North Carolinians may marry as soon as late Wednesday afternoon or Thursday. Federal courts generally close at 5 p.m., so Meno said the ACLU lawyers were working urgently to get a motion to the court in Greensboro.

NORTH CAROLINA: State AG Roy Cooper Says Amendment One Is Now Surely Doomed, Will Drop His Defense

Via Equality North Carolina:

Following a ruling today from the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of marriage equality, North Carolina's Attorney General Roy Cooper held a press conference in response, saying that as a result of the ruling, North Carolina's own ban on the freedom to marry, "will almost surely be overturned." He added that the North Carolina's ban, known as Amendment One is now indefensible, saying "It's time to stop making arguments we know will lose." The 4th Circuit has jurisdiction over federal courts in North Carolina. Cooper added, "The ruling does predict our law will be struck down." The 4th Circuit ruling will become law in 21 days. During that period of time, motions for stay can be made. "Our attorneys have vigorously argued this case every step of the way, but the 4th Circuit ruling is clear...There are really no arguments left to be made," said Cooper.

Cooper, who is a Democrat, endorsed marriage equality in October 2013 but simultaneously vowed to defend the state against the suit brought by the ACLU.  Not incidentally, Cooper is pegged as a frontrunner in the 2016 North Carolina gubernatorial race. (Tipped by JMG reader Sean)

UPDATE: Here's Cooper's full statement.

After reviewing the 4th Circuit decision and consulting with attorneys here, I have concluded that the State of North Carolina will not oppose the cases moving forward. In addition, the State of North Carolina will acknowledge the 4th Circuit opinion that marriage is a fundamental right and that our office believes that the judges are bound by this 4th Circuit decision. In all these cases challenging state marriage laws, our office along with other attorneys general and state attorneys across the country have made about every legal argument imaginable. Since the US Supreme Court ruled in the Windsor case, all the federal courts have rejected these arguments each and every time. So it’s time for the State of North Carolina to stop making them.

NORTH CAROLINA: Gay Couples Mark Ban Anniversary By Demanding Licenses

Two years ago today North Carolina's Amendment One enshrined anti-LGBT bigotry into the state constitution. This morning gay couples are marking the anniversary by demanding marriage licenses in the state capital. Via Freedom To Marry:

A lot has happened in North Carolina in the past two years: New relationships have formed. Children have been welcomed into the world. Families have continued leading their lives. But every day in the state, loving, committed couples are building their families without the fundamental protections of marriage, enduring the discriminatory Amendment One and looking toward a future where no one in North Carolina - or in any state - is denied the freedom to marry the person they love.

That's why today, couples in Raleigh, NC are taking a stand with the Campaign for Southern Equality, friends, family members, and clergy, through the WE DO campaign. These couples will request marriage licenses and provoke denials from the Wake County Register of Deeds, and married couples will pay $26 to record their commitment in the county as a way of demonstrating that laws like Amendment One are hurting real people and real families in this community.

Freedom To Marry is live-tweeting photos from today's event.

Anti-Gay Activists Gets HGTV Show

Right Wing Watch reports that HGTV has green-lighted a reality show that will star North Carolina anti-gay activists David and Jason Benham.

David Benham led a prayer rally — Charlotte 7:14 — outside of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina in 2012, which he told conservative radio host Janet Mefferd was needed to stop “homosexuality and its agenda that is attacking the nation” and “demonic ideologies tak[ing] our universities and our public school systems.” He told Mefferd that his brother Jason joined him in organizing the DNC prayer protest. David also leads protests outside of abortion clinics where he praises demonstrators for taking a stand at “the gates of hell” and confronting the “altars of Moloch.” He also protested at a 2009 LGBT event [PDF] in Charlotte. He serves on the board of the Coalition of Conscience [PDF], a group led by far-right anti-gay activist Michael Brown.

From HGTV's description of the show, Flip It Forward:

After a decade of flipping houses for profit, brothers David Benham and Jason Benham now help families buy the homes they never thought they could afford. In each episode, the guys help a deserving family find a fixer-upper and transform it into their forever home - with a healthy dose of sibling rivalry between the brothers along the way.

The show debuts in October. Here's just one sample of David Benham's opinions. Much more is at the first link.


UPDATE: HGBT is already reacting to the RWW post.

NORTH CAROLINA: Christian Group To Celebrate Marriage Ban Anniversary

From the Christianist group Return America:

This Thursday, May 8, 2014, North Carolina will celebrate the second anniversary of the North Carolina Marriage Amendment. Sixty-one percent of North Carolinians went on record supporting the Marriage Amendment. Most importantly, sixty-one percent of North Carolinians went on record supporting Biblical Marriage.

On Thursday, the homosexual community is planning a protest against this momentous anniversary event. They will appear before five different Register of Deeds offices in North Carolina asking for marriage licenses. They are also planning a group meeting demanding that North Carolina accept same-sex “marriages” from other states. In Raleigh, a same-sex couple will appear before the Wake County Register of Deeds Office to ask for a marriage license.

To celebrate the second anniversary of the North Carolina Marriage Amendment, Return America is joining with other like-minded groups on the South Lawn of our State Capitol Building for a celebration of our Marriage Amendment. The celebration will be held from 12:00 Noon until 1:00 PM. We are asking pastors from across North Carolina to join us and bring as many people as possible with you. This is a prime opportunity for us to take a Biblical stand on what we proclaim from behind our pulpits.

Jeremy Hooper points out that Thursday is also the second anniversary of President Obama's "evolution."

Headline Of The Day

The ACLU is on a ROLL today!

Today the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NCLF) announced plans to challenge North Carolina’s ban on marriage for same-sex couples by amending a federal lawsuit filed against the state last year on behalf of six same-sex couples and their children that challenges North Carolina’s ban on second parent adoptions. The announcement comes on the same day that the ACLU has filed a federal challenge to Pennsylvania’s marriage ban and the ACLU and Lambda Legal have announced a challenge to Virginia’s marriage ban.

The ACLU is asking North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper to agree to allow an additional claim challenging the state’s ban on marriage for same-sex couples to be added to Fisher-Borne v. Smith, a lawsuit filed last year in Greensboro in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina that challenges the state’s ban on second parent adoption, a process by which one partner in an unmarried gay or straight couple adopts the other partner’s biological or adoptive child. If the Attorney General’s office does not agree to the addition of the new claim, the ACLU will petition the court to allow the claim to be added.

(Tipped by JMG reader Jon)

Billboard Of The Day

The above message is about to go up outside of Charlotte. On the Billy Graham Highway, no less. (Tipped by JMG reader Rob)

North Carolina Activists Battle On

Perkins On Amendment One

NOM Posts NC Celebration Video

Pastor Sean Harris: JMG Is Making Money By Taking My Words Out Of Context

Pastor Sean Harris says I deliberately mischaracterized his words in order to "sensationalize" his message and generate hits to this blog.

When you look at my blog you are not bombarded with advertisements. There aren’t any. I don’t make any money from my blog. That is not the purpose of the blog. But that obviously is the purpose of a blog that has advertisements on the left and right sides and on the top of the blog. “Joe. My God.” is one of these bloggers that busted this story wide open by taking me out of context and then telling the world about this pastor who said “beat the gay out of children” (which I never said). What he needs to make money on his blog is hits or views.

And the way you get views is to have a sensational story. The more sensational the story is the more views one receives. The more views a blogger has on his website the more money he can potentially make. But there is no cry from anyone about the profiteering from the destruction of a man’s reputation and character. There is no outcry from the masses or media about the profiteering from the slander and malice intend by those in the LGBT community. I can’t tell you the number of stories I have seen where words that I never said appeared in quotation marks.

Actually it was my colleague Jeremy Hooper who "busted this story wide open" by posting the video of Harris' rant. I reposted Jeremy's clip and included the verbatim transcript. It was the entire world who watched that video and got his "beat the gay out of children" message. Sadly, it needed no "sensationalizing."

Silver Lining

Tipped by JMG reader Robert.

NOM Spikes The Ball

NORTH CAROLINA: Move Already Underway To Revoke Insurance

The passage of Amendment One is less than a day old and already North Carolina Republicans are moving to revoke domestic partners insurance. From an email issued by Mecklenbug County Commissioner Bill James to legal staffers:

Since Amendment One has passed when will we get a memo or something that outlines what changes we need to make to our health plan to be in compliance? I recall when the Democrats on the Commission forced the issue and added these benefits for homosexuals that a number of legal experts said it was illegal then – including the City attorney. Now that Amendment one has passed it obviously is illegal to offer this benefit as there is now only one ‘domestic legal union’ recognized in the state. Prior to the vote most scholars (left and right) said that Amendment One would eliminate local faux ‘marriage’ benefits for homosexual employees. I would cite them but you know them all too well.