Freedom To Marry: Celebrating Victory

Via press release:

Today, as it begins the promised campaign wind-down having achieved its goal of winning marriage nationwide, Freedom to Marry released a video celebrating the victory and featuring some of the many people, milestones, and hard work that paved the way. The video premiered at Freedom to Marry's Victory Celebration event last Thursday, July 9, where Vice President Joe Biden joined Wolfson and offered remarks that were a personal and powerful tribute to the Freedom to Marry campaign and the movement it spearheaded. Over 1,000 movement leaders and supporters attended, and the event included performances by Carly Rae Jepsen and Lena Hall. Freedom to Marry will be closing down many of its operations by September 30 and will shut its doors completely in the following months.

NEW YORK: Biden Celebrates At Freedom To Marry's "Going Out Of Business" Gala

Via the New York Daily News:

Vice President Joe Biden led a raucous reception for marriage equality Thursday night at Cipriani Wall Street in lower Manhattan. The gala, celebrating the June 26 Supreme Court decision that made same-sex marriage legal in all 50 states, was thrown by Freedom to Marry, an advocacy group that has fought for same-sex marriage since 2003. “This has been a heroic battle,” Biden told the crowd of elected officials, community leaders, advocates and celebrities. A spokesman described the event as “the biggest celebratory event honoring the freedom to marry nationwide” and “a ‘going out of business’ party” for the organization.

Evan Wolfson, the founder of Freedom to Marry, worked for Biden in the 1970s when Biden was a senator. The vice president has long been a supporter of gay rights and attributed his stance on the issue to his father. Biden recalled a moment when he was 17 and he and his father saw two men kissing. “He said ‘Joey, they love each other. It’s simple,’” he said, quoting his father. “That’s what it’s been about from the beginning. It’s never been that complicated for me.” But Biden also cautioned that although same-sex couples are eligible for federal marriage benefits nationwide, 32 states don’t have anti-discrimination employment laws protecting sexual orientation.

Biden departed the stage to a thunderous ovation and then spent a few minutes shaking hands and posing for photos. (I couldn't get near him.) Musical entertainment followed with Hedwig Tony winner Lena Hall and pop star Carly Rae Jepson. It was quite the celebration but all were especially appreciative that Biden repeatedly stressed the work that still needs to be done. Related to that, I cornered Freedom To Marry leaders Evan Wolfson and Marc Solomon to ask what is next for them personally. Both said they didn't know, but I suspect we'll soon see them take roles in the still-forming battle for federal anti-discrimination protections.

RELATED: There was some buzz in the crowd that Biden might surprise us with a presidential announcement last night, but he made no mention of the 2016 election.

Freedom To Marry Celebrates

Lovely. Who's the vocalist?

Quote Of The Day - Evan Wolfson

"I always believed we would win, but what a joy and relief it was when our victory came. As I read the Supreme Court opinion, as I followed the stories across the country of couples getting married, and as so many people wrote me with wonder, attaching pictures of their families, their kids, their weddings ... well, I cried and cried again.

"We won. We did it. The freedom to marry is now the law of the land throughout our whole country. At long last, loving and committed same-sex couples are able to share in the joy, the protections, the vocabulary, and the institution of marriage.

"We've been fighting this campaign for decades, and not a single step has come easily. To overcome the obstacles and to seize the opportunities, with stumbles and then successes, we built a machine that could guide and leverage a movement, driving a strategy — and machines take fuel. Without your support, this transformation and triumph would not have happened.

"And our win is America's win. Love won. We all did.

"Now — as Freedom to Marry prepares to wind down — we must remember that there's still much work to do in our own LGBT movement and in the broader movements we are part of.

"I am grateful to my incomparable Freedom to Marry team, our close movement colleagues, the entire family of supporters and partners in the work, our allies, and our country. How lucky we are to see our work rewarded with the change and victory we sought and deserved.

"All that's left is to say, with all my heart, is congratulations — mazel tov! — and thank you." - Freedom To Marry founder Evan Wolfson, via email.

Matt Baume: Marriage News Watch

Clip recap: "An NBC station in Tennessee is refusing to broadcast footage of a gay soldier who wants to get married. The governor of North Carolina vetoed a bill that would let state officials turn gay couples away from marriage counters -- but the bill's not dead yet. And Alabama is actually going through with a threat to stop issuing marriage licenses state-wide -- but that might not have the effect they want."

TENNESSEE: Chattanooga NBC Affiiliate Refuses To Air Freedom To Marry Ad

Dominic Holden reports at Buzzfeed:

“It’s just a very controversial and personal issue, and we just choose to not air a commercial on either side of that debate,” Tom Tolar, the president and general manager of Chatanooga-based WRCB, told BuzzFeed News in a phone interview. The ad crossed the station’s lines, he explained, because “people probably have really strong opinions on one side or other of the debate. It’s just an emotional debate for many people.” The station, an NBC affiliate that also broadcasts in parts of Georgia and North Carolina, didn’t have a position on ads about same-sex marriage until executives reviewed the commercial featuring Ehrenfeld on Wednesday, said Tolar. “We had not had a request before to run an issue-ad like that.”

Freedom To Marry says that no other station in the country has ever refused their ads, which have also appeared in Memphis and Nashville.

Quote Of The Day - Evan Wolfson

"With a nationwide landslide in favor, Ireland now becomes the first country in the world to pass the freedom to marry by popular referendum, as well as the 21st nation and the 10th predominantly Catholic country in which same-sex couples can marry. Our Irish colleagues at Yes Equality ran a magnificent campaign and Freedom to Marry is proud to have shared what we’ve learned in our own campaign here in the US. The global momentum for the freedom to marry reflects and reinforces the progress we are making here in the United States – and we look now to the Supreme Court to bring our country to national resolution, following Ireland’s good example." - Evan Wolfson, head of Freedom To Marry, via press release.

Marriage Plaintiffs Meet In DC

On the eve of yesterday's SCOTUS hearings, same-sex marriage plaintiffs from more than 30 states met each other, mostly for the first time, in a Washington DC reception hosted by Freedom To Marry. Tony Adams reports at South Florida Gay News:

Freedom To Marry’s Executive Director, Evan Wolfson, said, “This is such an amazing gathering, where Freedom To Marry is so happy to host all of the plaintiffs we could track down from 40 years in 33 states and 55 cases of fighting and working and telling our stories, and they are all gathered in one room tonight with huge hope for tomorrow and the win we have all worked for. I want to thank The Key West plaintiffs for having the idea for this gathering. We are honored to make it happen.”

At the reception, the earliest case involving marriage equality plaintiffs involved two Hawaiians who, during the seven years it took to bring the suit to completion, had ended their relationship and moved into relationships with other women. Genora Dancel and Ninia Baehr say the case lasted seven years as did their relationship. They are still good friends, and Dancel says, “We still have a lifelong relationship. It’s just not the one we anticipated when we applied for a marriage license.”

Mark Phariss and Vic Holmes were plaintiffs in the Texas case. “Our case is before the fifth circuit – almost four months now - and it is still pending a decision,” Pharris said. “Mark and I love each other very much and would love to get married in our home state,” Holmes said. “We’ve been together eighteen years and he’s still so cute.” Phariss added, “We are so confident in the results of the Supreme Court hearing that we have already hired a florist, booked a venue and made all the reservations we need for the date we have chosen to get married in Texas.”

Senior White House advisor Valerie Jarrett told the group, "I am a recovering lawyer, so I know that you advocates and plaintiffs have to basically put your lives on hold to do what you do."

Freedom To Marry: Our Closing Argument

Via press release:

Ahead of Tuesday's oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court, Freedom to Marry released a national TV ad showing that America, all of it, is ready for same-sex couples to marry. The spot begins airing on three Sunday morning political shows and 60 Minutes, in addition to national cable programs throughout next week.

“With this latest ad, Freedom to Marry is summing up our closing argument, in hopes of closing our doors after getting the national win,” said Evan Wolfson, president of Freedom to Marry. “After 30-plus years of doing marriage work, I am gratified that we're in such a strong place as we head into court on Tuesday. The American people have resoundingly and unequivocally embraced the side of love and fairness. We hope the Supreme Court does the right thing and agrees with more than 60 federal and state courts that have held marriage discrimination unconstitutional. America is ready for the freedom to marry. It's time.”

60% of Americans support the freedom to marry, according to a Washington Post/ABC poll released last week. In the event that the Supreme Court rules in favor of marriage nationwide this summer, Freedom to Marry, which was founded in 2003 and is the sole national organization dedicated to winning marriage for same-sex couples, will shut its doors, its mission having been completed.

Tweetstorm: #LoveMustWin

In the final days before the SCOTUS hearing, Freedom To Marry has launched the #LoveMustWin hashtag across social media, earning the tweeted support of politicians like Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and many others. Above on the left is Broadway's Andrew Keenan-Bolger, who notes on Instagram that he remains unable to marry in his home state of Michigan.

General Mills Puts Freedom To Marry Head Evan Wolfson On The Wheaties Box

Freedom To Marry: "Wheaties is 'the breakfast of champions' and General Mills, its parent company, is a supporter of the freedom to marry. So, it's pretty cool that they created a commemorative box featuring Freedom to Marry's President Evan Wolfson." Uh oh, time for double boycott!

Freedom To Marry Celebrates Alabama

Get a tissue, my tender kittens.

Evan Wolfson: Opposition To The Freedom To Marry Is The Dog That Didn't Bark

"America’s history tells us there will always be pockets of resistance to any civil rights advance. That is why your article about a few state officials proposing license to discriminate measures to limit existing civil rights laws they never liked anyway was not surprising. But despite a handful of apocalyptic pronouncements that marriage will be destroyed, as will America, all is pretty quiet amid much joy. No widespread resistance. No riots in the streets. The reality is that opposition to the freedom to marry is the dog that didn’t bark.

"In fact, as states issue marriage licenses to loving and committed gay couples, public support increases. In Wyoming, polls show that a majority now supports the freedom to marry, while even in ruby-red Utah, there is plurality support and the law has been followed. Fifty-nine percent of the American people and over 60 state and federal courts have embraced the freedom to marry, and we’ve ended marriage discrimination in 37 states. That is more support and more states than we had when the Supreme Court struck down bans on interracial marriage in the best-named case ever, Loving v. Virginia.

"What followed Loving in 1967 is precisely what we are seeing now, even in red states where we have won: The overwhelming majority moves on. Notwithstanding isolated grandstanding and sideshows, the majority of the country has again moved to the right side of history. As in 1967, America is ready for the freedom to marry." - Freedom To Marry founder Evan Wolfson, in a letter published today by the New York Times.

Obama's Budget Gives Social Security Benefits to Gay Couples Nationwide

Via Talking Points Memo:

In his fiscal 2016 budget, released Monday, President Barack Obama proposed allowing married same-sex couples to receive spousal Social Security benefits, regardless of which state they live in. Currently, married same-sex couples lose their benefits it they move to a state that does not recognize their unions. "The budget proposes to amend the Social Security Act to ensure all lawfully married same-sex couples will be eligible to receive Social Security spousal benefits, regardless of where they live," Obama's proposal states. "Under this proposal, such married couples would have access to these benefits," the budget says. Same-sex marriages are currently recognized in 36 states, as Bloomberg noted. The proposal would have to be approved by the Republican-led Congress to take effect.

Freedom To Marry reacts via press release:

Once again, President Obama has demonstrated his commitment to fairness and freedom for all Americans, including same-sex couples and their families. His proposal to ensure equal Social Security benefits would fix a crucial gap in federal protections for same-sex couples.President Obama's leadership in helping bring the freedom to marry to all Americans will be a shining part of this president's legacy. Of course, the only way to ensure same-sex couples nationwide have all the protections of marriage is for the Supreme Court to put the country on the right side of history by ending marriage discrimination throughout the United States, leaving no family and no state behind.

ALABAMA: New Marriage Ad Launches

Freedom To Marry has launched a new marriage equality ad in Alabama:

Images of two women and their daughter - at a pizza joint, at church - flash across the screen as one of the women talks about the Alabama's refusal to consider them married. "Alabama does not recognize our marriage," she says in a TV ad that begins airing in the Birmingham and Montgomery TV markets today. "Everyone wants to believe that if you do what you're supposed to do, you will be taken care of. But we don't have that safeguard." That could change on Feb. 9, when a federal court order striking down Alabama's ban on same-sex marriage is set to take effect. Or sooner, if the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals lifts the "stay" that U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. "Ginny" Granade imposed to give the state a chance to appeal.

(Tipped by JMG reader Matthew)

LGBT Rights Groups React To SCOTUS

Freedom To Marry

"The Supreme Court's decision today begins what we hope will be the last chapter in our campaign to win marriage nationwide - and it's time," said Evan Wolfson, president of Freedom to Marry. "Freedom to Marry's national strategy has been to build a critical mass of marriage states and critical mass of support for ending marriage discrimination, and after a long journey and much debate, America is ready for the freedom to marry. But couples are still discriminated against in 14 states, and the patchwork of discrimination harms families and businesses throughout the country. We will keep working hard to underscore the urgency of the Supreme Court's bringing the country to national resolution, so that by June, all Americans share in the freedom to marry and our country stands on the right side of history."

People For The American Way

“This is unquestionably an important step towards marriage equality for all Americans,” said Michael Keegan, President of People For the American Way Foundation. “Since the Sixth Circuit got this wrong and denied people in four states their basic rights, the Supreme Court did the right thing by taking these cases. Now the Court needs to do the right thing by making a clear statement about the Constitution’s guarantee of fundamental equality for all people. The time is long overdue for every American to have the right to marry the person they love.” “That said, this is likely to be yet another five-four decision from the Court that gave us Citizens United and Hobby Lobby and gutted the Voting Rights Act. That should be a reminder that our fundamental rights are in jeopardy in our nation’s highest court— and the future of the Court and these rights will be in the next President's hands. Americans should be able to depend on the Supreme Court to defend the rights of ordinary Americans—whether that’s the right to marry, or to vote, or to be treated fairly on the job, or to control their own reproductive health.

National Center For Lesbian Rights

The Tennessee plaintiff couples are Dr. Valeria Tanco and Dr. Sophy Jesty of Knoxville; Army Reserve Sergeant First Class Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura of Memphis; and Matthew Mansell and Johno Espejo of Franklin. They are represented by Shannon Minter, Christopher F. Stoll, and David C. Codell of the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Tennessee attorneys Abby Rubenfeld, Maureen Holland, and Regina Lambert, and the law firms of Sherrard & Roe PLC and Ropes & Gray LLP. Today’s decision follows the couples’ request that the Supreme Court hear the case to ensure that the marriages of same-sex couples are treated equally across the country. “This is an important day because it means that our family will finally have an opportunity to share our story with the Court and explain how this discriminatory law hurts us each day,” said Tanco, who has a young daughter with Jesty. “We live in fear for ourselves and our little girl because we don’t have the same legal protections in Tennessee as other families. We are hopeful the Supreme Court will resolve this issue so we no longer need to live in fear.”

Lambda Legal

The U.S. Supreme Court today announced it has granted review of all six marriage equality cases decided by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, including two Ohio cases litigated by Lambda Legal, the ACLU and Gerhardstein & Branch. The two cases are Henry v. Hodges, where Lambda Legal joined Gerhardstein & Branch, and Obergefell v. Hodges, where the ACLU joined Gerhardstein & Branch. Oral argument is expected to take place later this year. “After years of struggle and the dedicated work of thousands across the movement, we are finally within sight of the day when same-sex couples across the country will be able to share equally in the joys, protections and responsibilities of marriage,” said Jon W. Davidson, Legal Director and Eden/Rushing Chair at Lambda Legal. “While these cases will carry the marriage standard before the Supreme Court, they represent literally dozens of cases in state and federal courts nationwide and the collective effort of Lambda Legal, NCLR, the ACLU, GLAD, and other sister LGBT groups and private (often pro-bono) counsel dating back years.”

ACLU

The American Civil Liberties Union and Stanford Law School Supreme Court Litigation Clinic are co-counsel in the two Kentucky cases, Bourke v. Beshear and Love v. Beshear, brought by lawyers at Clay Daniel Walton & Adams and the Fauver Law Office. These cases challenge Kentucky’s anti-marriage laws on the ground that they violate due process and equal protection provisions of the U.S. Constitution. The ACLU along with Lambda Legal and Gerhardstein & Branch are also co-counsel in the Ohio case, Obergefell, et al v. Hodges. “We are thrilled the court will finally decide this issue,” said James Esseks, director of the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender & HIV Project. “The country is ready for a national solution that treats lesbian and gay couples fairly. Every single day we wait means more people die before they have a chance to marry, more children are born without proper protections, more people face medical emergencies without being able to count on recognition of their spouses. It is time for the American values of freedom and equality to apply to all couples.”

TEXAS: Freedom To Marriage Launches Ad

Via press release:

Freedom to Marry began airing a statewide television ad this week in Texas featuring Fort Worth police officers who speak out in support of their gay colleague’s freedom to marry. The thirty-second ad began running yesterday in multiple Texas markets during news and public affairs programs and comes days before the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals hears oral argument in the Texas marriage case DeLeon v. Perry. “Our ad shows Ft. Worth police officers standing up for their gay colleague‘s freedoms,” said Marc Solomon, national campaign director of Freedom to Marry. “With poignancy, they remind Texans that anyone who puts their life on the line to protect other Americans should not be treated unequally or be denied the ability to protect their own family by being barred from marrying.” The ad is part of Texas for Marriage, a joint campaign by Freedom to Marry and Equality Texas to amplify bipartisan support for marriage across the state. George W. Bush media advisor Mark McKinnon serves as a chair of the campaign.

Quote Of The Day - Marc Solomon

"We’ve always been set up as a campaign, and we are a campaign, and when we’ve won nationwide, we’re finished. I want to see some of the really good people stick around in LGBT stuff, or in other progressive causes, but Freedom To Marry’s done."- Marc Solomon, national campaign director of Freedom To Marry, telling the Washington Blade that it's a great thing to "put yourself out of business."

BREAKING: Fourth Circuit Court DENIES Marriage Stay For South Carolina

UPDATE: Lambda Legal reacts via press release:

Today, the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit denied the State of South Carolina’s motion to stay last week’s U.S. District Court ruling striking down the state’s discriminatory marriage ban, setting the stage for marriages to begin for same-sex couples at Noon on Thursday, November 20. South Carolina’s Attorney General filed a motion for an emergency stay to delay marriages following a ruling by the U. S. District Court for the District of South Carolina striking down the state’s discriminatory marriage ban in accordance with the Fourth Circuit’s earlier decision striking down a similar ban in Virginia.

"The end game is clear - marriage will soon be available for same-sex couples in South Carolina. This is a great victory for same-sex couples and their families because it removes one more hurdle to finally walking down the aisle," said Beth Littrell, Senior Attorney in Lambda Legal’s Southern Regional Office based in Atlanta. “We urge the Attorney General to stop trying to delay the inevitable - their actions are damaging to families they were elected to protect,” said South Carolina Equality lawyer Malissa Burnette, partner at Callison Tighe & Robinson. “We are ecstatic as we get ready to go pick up our license at Noon on Thursday,” said Lambda Legal client Colleen Condon.

Launched: New Texas Marriage Campaign

Via press release from Freedom To Marry:

Freedom to Marry, in partnership with Equality Texas, today launched a public education campaign to amplify the bipartisan momentum for the freedom to marry in the Lone Star State. The campaign, called Texas for Marriage, will highlight that support as well as the continued harms that committed gay couples face everyday until the state’s marriage case, DeLeon v Perry, is decided by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals early next year. “Nearly every state and federal court from last year on, more than 50 -- with judges appointed by Republican and Democratic presidents and governors -- has ruled in favor of the freedom to marry and moving the country forward,” said Evan Wolfson, president of Freedom to Marry. “Texas families should not be left behind. Government has no business interfering in important freedoms like who Texans marry, and no business putting obstacles in the path of families and employers trying to do the right thing. Our new campaign will show that Texans are ready for the freedom to marry, and so is America.”

See the new site.