National
Obama to file brief against Prop 8: report
News breaks as White House stays mum on filing
NBC News is reporting President Obama will file a brief in the Prop 8 case. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
The Obama administration will take part in the lawsuit challenging California’s Proposition 8 by filing a friend-of-the-court brief before the Supreme Court, according to a report on Thursday by NBC News’ Pete Williams,
The report comes on the deadline day for submitting friend-of-the-court briefs in favor of the same-sex couples challenging Prop 8 in the lawsuit filed by the American Foundation for Equal Rights.
LGBT advocates have been pushing for the Obama administration to take part in the Prop 8 lawsuit amid uncertainty over whether the court will decide to uphold the same-sex marriage ban or strike it down.
Rick Jacobs, co-founder of the Courage Campaign, issued a statement commending President Obama for “standing-up for millions of Californians who simply want to marry the person they love.”
“The two Supreme Court cases this summer will be a watershed moment for equality and President Obama has put his Administration squarely on the right side of history,” Jacobs said. “Discrimination and hatred have no place in a country founded on the principles of liberty, justice and equality.”
The Justice Department has already taken part in the case against the Defense of Marriage Act before the Supreme Court. Just last week, the Obama administration filed a brief contesting DOMA on the basis that laws related to sexual orientation should be subjected to heightened scrutiny.
But it remains unclear what the scope of the Prop 8 brief will be. The most sweeping argument the Justice Department could make is that state bans on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional and marriage equality should be instituted across the nation.
That argument would be consistent with the administration’s position on DOMA that laws related to sexual orientation should be subject to heightened scrutiny.
The Obama administration could also ask for a narrow ruling along the lines of the ruling in the case from the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. That argument — which would only affect California — would be that Prop 8 is unconstitutional on the basis that the right to marry can’t be taken away once it’s granted to same-sex couples.
Another option for the brief is to argue that proponents of Prop 8, such as ProtectMarriage.com, don’t have standing to defend the measure before the Supreme Court. That would be the most narrow argument because it wouldn’t broach the issue of Prop 8’s constitutionality.
Despite calls from LGBT advocates, the White House has been tight-lipped about whether it would file a friend-of-the-court brief for months and had no comment on the deadline day for filing the brief.
On Thursday during the White House news briefing, press secretary Jay Carney deferred all questions related to Prop 8 to the Justice Department.
Asked at the top of the briefing by the Associated Press whether the administration will file a brief, Carney said he won’t talk legal issues from the podium.
“As I’ve said in the past, decisions about filing briefs are legal and constitutional matters, so it’s best to address those questions to the Department of Justice,” Carney said.
Later in the briefing, the Chicago Tribune’s Christi Parsons asked Carney to talk about the deliberative process by which Obama was considering participating in the Prop 8 case. Again, Carney had nothing to say.
“I really don’t have anything for you on it, the president obviously has expressed an opinion in the past on this issue as a matter of policy, but when it comes to a legal and constitutional issues around it, that’s a jurisdiction that resides with the Department of Justice, so I dont have anything for you on it,” Carney said.
In response to the Washington Blade’s request for comment, Nanda Chitre, a Justice Department spokesperson, said Thursday said she had “no update” on whether Obama would file a brief. The White House also had no comment.
National
Queen Jean is Tony’s first transgender winner
Designer/activist wins for work on ‘Cats: The Jellicle Ball’
It was a historic night at the 79th annual Tony Awards on Sunday as Queen Jean won the award for Best Costume Design of a Musical, making her the first out transgender person to win a Tony.
“This experience has been monumental. We are here for the legacy of queer people, trans people,” she said. “We are taking up space in ways we have to take up space. We have to shift the paradigm. So I just want to say, thank you all so much for this incredible honor. The world right now is deeply, deeply combating so many ailments, and we know as a society that when we come together, we can make real, permanent change.”
She won the award for her work on “Cats: The Jellicle Ball” and was also nominated for best costume design of a play for “Liberation.”
In addition to her stage work, Queen Jean is the founder of Black Trans Liberation, an organization that supports trans and gender-nonconforming people in New York City.
National
Madonna turns Times Square into massive dance floor
Pop icon celebrates Pride month with surprise performance
Pop icon Madonna celebrated Pride month with a pop-up performance in New York City’s Times Square on Thursday to the delight of 50,000 fans.
She performed for about 15 minutes high above street level, including several songs from her new album “Confessions II” due on July 3, along with a trio of songs from the first “Confessions on a Dance Floor.”
In addition to the brand new “Love Sensation,” she performed “I Feel So Free” and “Bring Your Love,” plus “Hung Up,” “Get Together” and “I Love New York.” She wished the crowd a happy Pride season; the event was shared with audiences through Grindr’s first-ever livestream.
National
Gallup finds LGBTQ support among Americans is dropping
Marriage equality support lowest since 2016
Gallup, one of the leading organizations in public opinion polling, has found that LGBTQ support among Americans is dropping.
The poll, whose data was collected using Gallup’s annual Values and Beliefs survey, was conducted in May and was published on Wednesday. The data was collected through telephone interviews from a sample of more than 1,000 adults living in all 50 states and D.C. using random digit dialing.
It highlights declining attitudes surrounding LGBTQ issues in multiple areas — from support for same-sex marriage to views on gender identity and the morality of one’s sexuality.
One of the most striking findings was that support for marriage equality fell six points from its 2022-2023 high.
The survey also found that 62 percent of Americans view gay and lesbian relations as morally acceptable, the lowest level since 2016 just after same-sex marriage was legalized nationwide by the U.S. Supreme Court.
One newer question on the poll found that the perceived morality of changing one’s gender has dropped eight points since 2021, indicating the American public is less supportive of transgender people.
The data attributes much of the decline to shifting Republican views alongside the party itself. Conservative leaders have pushed back against diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that were intended to foster greater acceptance of LGBTQ people and other historically disadvantaged groups.
President Donald Trump has been a guiding force behind waves of anti-LGBTQ sentiment, particularly when it comes to trans rights. The president has enacted multiple executive orders, including Executive Order 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” which mandates that gender be defined by one’s sex assigned at birth. He also signed Executive Order 14183, “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” which barred qualified trans applicants from joining the military and led to the removal of trans service members already serving in the armed forces.
Additionally, he signed Executive Order 14201, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which prohibits trans female athletes from participating on women’s and girls’ sports teams.
In February, Gallup found that an estimated 9 percent of Americans identified as part of the LGBTQ community in some form.
The organization also found that 23 percent of adults under age 30 identify as LGBTQ, compared with 10 percent of those ages 30 to 49 and 3 percent or less among those ages 50 and older.
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