In the News

5/4/2010

"New York State’s highest court somewhat expanded the rights of gay and lesbian parents on Tuesday in a narrow ruling that said nonbiological parents in same-sex relationships should be treated the same as biological parents.

"...'In many ways this is a real breakthrough in New York,' said Susan L. Sommer, who argued the case before the Court of Appeals and is senior counsel and director of constitutional litigation for Lambda Legal, a gay-rights advocacy group.

5/4/2010

5/3/2010

"Supporters and opponents of the civil unions bill are eagerly awaiting Governor Lingle's decision on whether to sign it. House Bill 444 was passed three days ago, but people on both sides of the hot-button issue say the battle isn't over.

"...The measure provides gay couples the same rights and responsibilities as married couples in Hawaii.

4/20/2010

"After the joy of a wedding and the adoption of a baby came arguments that couldn't be resolved, leading Angelique Naylor to file for divorce. That left her fighting both the woman she married in Massachusetts and the state of Texas, which says a union granted in a state where same-sex marriage is legal can't be dissolved with a divorce in a state where it's not.

4/20/2010

"The Nashville-area high school that sent a student home earlier this month for wearing a t-shirt that said 'I (Heart) Lady Gay Gay' has agreed to stop censoring clothing with gay messages.

4/19/2009

"The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee and Lambda Legal announced today that they have received assurances from officials at Greenbrier High School that the school will stop censoring a student from wearing shirts expressing pro-gay messages.

4/16/2010

"In a nod to the rights of lesbian and gay couples, President Obama has ordered the nation's hospitals to allow patients to determine for themselves who has visitation rights and who can make medical decisions.

"...Kevin Cathcart, Lambda Legal's executive director, hailed Obama's directive as a 'great leap forward in addressing discrimination affecting LGBT patients and their families.'

4/17/2010

"University of Houston health law professor Seth Chandler said he's not aware of any Texas law that would currently prevent a hospital from denying a gay or lesbian from visiting a patient. If a hospital were so disposed, the only recourse in Texas would be for the patient to designate the person a legal guardian or agent.

4/16/2010

"President Obama handed same-sex couples a victory without picking a drawn-out fight with conservatives this week when he ordered hospitals around the country to honor patients' wishes about who may visit their sickbeds or risk losing Medicaid and Medicare money.

"...Many hospitals honor the advance directives or stated wishes of patients. But decisions often fall to nurses or doctors who don't know the rules, said Tara Borelli, a staff attorney at Lambda Legal, a New York group that represents patients in such cases.

4/17/2010

"President Obama's decision Thursday night to grant same-sex couples hospital visitation rights is the latest and most visible example of a strategy to make concrete steps toward equality for gays and lesbians without sparking a broad cultural debate or a fight with Congress.

"...Kevin Cathcart, the executive director of Lambda Legal, which had filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Florida couple, said he repeatedly raised the issue with White House officials in telephone calls, private conversations and group meetings.