News
Snyder suspends benefits for Michigan same-sex marriages
Governor acknowledges couples legally married, but withholds benefits until stay lifted

Gov. Rick Snyder (R-Mich.) won’t recognize same-sex marriages performed in Michigan (Photo by Major.guy2012; courtesy Wikimedia Commons)
Still, Snyder acknowledged the more than 300 same-sex weddings that took place on Saturday were legally valid.
āAfter comprehensive legal review of state law and all recent court rulings, we have concluded that same-sex couples were legally married at county clerk offices in the time period between U.S. District Judge [Friedmanās] ruling and the Sixth U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals temporary stay of that ruling,” Snyder said in a statement.
But Snyder continued the state will suspend benefits afforded to the couples “in accordance with the law” until the stay on the weddings from the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals is lifted.
“Because the stay brings Michigan law on this issue back into effect, the rights tied to these marriages are suspended until the stay is lifted or Judge Friedmanās decision is upheld on appeal,” Snyder said.
Same-sex couples obtained marriage licenses over the weekend in Ingham, Washtenaw, Muskegon and Oakland counties after a district court ruled the state’s ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. Snyder and Michigan Attorney Bill Schuette appealed the ruling to Sixth Circuit and asked judges to halt the weddings with a stay, which was granted Tuesday.
A spokesperson for the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, which reportedly had threatened to sue if the Michigan doesn’t recognize the same-sex marriages, said Wednesday the organization is looking at options.
“As a matter of law and fundamental fairness, the state is obligated to extend all the rights and responsibilities that flow from marriage to the more than 300 couples married this weekend,” Rana Elmir said. “Doing anything less violates our laws, treats legally married gay and lesbian couples like second-class citizens, and adds to the confusion and instability these loving families have had to endure. We will continue to explore legal options on behalf of these couples and encourage those who have been denied the benefits of marriage to contact us.”
But Elmir said her organization is pleased that Snyder said the unions are legally valid because that “opens the door” for federal recognition of the marriages. She said the Obama adminstration should “absolutely” recognize the unions because “there is no doubt that these marriages are valid.”
The question still lingers over whether the federal government will recognize the same-sex marriages performed in Michigan. In Utah, when a district court ruling enabled 1,300 same-sex couples to wed before a stay was instituted by the U.S. Supreme Court, Gov. Gary Herbert said his state won’t recognize the unions, but U.S. Attorney General Eric Attorney said they’re valid in the eyes of the Obama administration.
Allison Price, a Justice Department spokesperson, said her earlier comment that the Obama administration is “closely monitoring the situation” still stands as of Wednesday afternoon.
Speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Snyder refused to articulate his position on same-sex marriage, saying he’s focused on jobs and the economy.
“I’m not going to go back and rehash a sentence in one debate from four years ago,” Snyder said. “I’ve been focused on jobs, it’s my main message, and I’m staying consistent with that.”
According to Crain’s Detroit Business, Snyder told reporters on Wednesday that his office had to make legal decision on whether the marriages were valid on his own because Schuette didn’t respond to a request to meet.
āWe did our own research,ā Snyder was quoted as saying. āWe believe this is the appropriate position to take.ā
Joy Yearout, a Schuette spokesperson, responded to the report to the Washington Blade by saying the governor and the attorney general often speak, but those discussions are kept under wraps.
āThe Department of Attorney General and the Governorās office talk all the time,” Yearout said. “Those conversations are confidential. The Governorās written statement speaks for itself, and as the Attorney General has said all along, these issues will ultimately be sorted out by the courts, just as they have in other states. The sooner these questions are answered, the better.ā
Yearout didn’t respond to a follow-up question on whether she denies Snyder’s comments that Schuette never followed up on a request to meet about the same-sex marriages.
Snyder makes his announcement as his pursues re-election in a 2014 gubernatorial election where Democrat Mark Schauer will be his likely challenger in the general election.
Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Mich.) was among the Democrats criticizing Snyder for his decision not to recognize the unions in the aftermath of the announcement.
āToday Governor Rick Snyder double downed on ambivalence,” Kildee said. “As a leader, you either support equality for all loving couples or you donāt. Itās that simple. This is not a complicated question. Governor, do you support equality for all Michiganders? Or is that not on your agenda?ā
Emily Dievendorf, executive director of the statewide LGBT group, Equality Michigan, also took aims at Snyder, saying she finds his actions “despicable.”
“Equality Michigan finds it despicable that a Governor claiming to stand for families, children, and the economy would side with his out-of-touch Attorney General and continue this wasteful crusade to harm Michigan families,” Dievendorf said. “The DeBoer-Rowse family and their legal team will continue to defend our families in court, and the efforts by people like East Lansing Mayor Nathan Triplett and Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum to get the government to recognize these marriages will not be forgotten. Equality Michigan calls on the Governor to end the second-class treatment of LGBT families in Michigan and the executive branch’s attack on marriage equality.”
CORRECTION: An initial version of this article misspelled Rep. Dan Kildee’s name and said he was criticizing Mark Schauer. The Blade regrets the error.
Kenya
Kenyan president defends Trump executive order on two genders
Advocacy groups criticized William Ruto’s Jan. 26 comments

Kenyan President William Ruto is facing backlash for backing U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order that recognizes only two genders: Male and female.
Rutoās support for Trumpās decision to ban transgender people from serving in the U.S. military and competing on women’s sports teams has drawn criticism from human rights defenders, lawmakers, lawyers, and intersex activists.
Rutoās critics cite Kenyaās 2022 landmark decision to officially recognize intersex people as the third gender with an “I” gender marker after years of court battles for recognition and their inclusion in a national Census for the first time in 2019.
āWe are very proud that contrary to what has been happening in the past, this year we got some very welcoming developments in the United States that as a leading democracy, we have gotten to understand that the policy direction of the U.S. supports what we believe in,ā Ruto stated during a Jan. 26 speech at the Global Cathedral Church’s annual convention in Nairobi. “Boys must remain boys, men must remain men, women must remain women and girls must remain girls.ā
Rutoās position to side with Trump on sex and gender identity contradicts his previous stance during the Biden-Harris administration when he was cautious about speaking about transgender and queer rights in order not to jeopardize his relationship with Washington.
Trump on Jan. 21 signed an executive order that directed the U.S. federal government to only recognize male and female genders. This directive revoked the Biden-era policy that recognized trans rights and allowed trans servicemembers.
Trump on Feb. 6 signed another executive order that bans trans athletes from competing on female sports teams
āThe war on womenās sports is over,ā he said.
āWe’re putting every school receiving taxpayer dollars on notice that if you let men take over women’s sports teams or invade your locker rooms, you will be investigated for violations of Title IX and risk your federal funding,ā Trump warned. “From now on, women’s sports will be only for women.”
His executive order relies partly on the U.S. Justice Department’s authority to bring enforcement actions under Title IX, which bars sex discrimination in education and requires schools to offer girls an equal opportunity to play sports. The law, under Trump’s interpretation, forbids trans girls from playing in girls’ sports.
Trump in 2017 banned trans people from serving openly in the U.S. military.
āWe thank God that this year the first very news from the U.S. in the new administration is to confirm what the Bible says, what our faith believes in, and what our tradition firmly is grounded on,ā Ruto said in his speech.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), a government-funded body, described Ruto’s comments as “embarrassing and unfortunate.”
āIn Kenya, the law is very clear and the Childrenās Act recognizes the intersex because they are unique persons as they have no issues based on sex identity or gender orientation,ā said an intersex rights activist who asked the Washington Blade to remain anonymous. āHis sentiments are likely to increase stigma against the intersex persons and if they are discriminated against, anyone will just go to court because they are also protected by the law.ā
Esther Passaris, an opposition MP who represents Nairobi County, maintained there are not two sexes in Kenya.
āLetās face it, we have intersex children with two or incomplete sexes. These children require our love as a society,” she said. “Let God deal with the genders.”
Since the recognition of intersex people, several policy measures to tackle discrimination have been implemented to ensure their protection and equal treatment.
Kenya last week officially recognized intersex people at birth, allowing them to receive birth certificates with an “I” gender marker. The KNCHR described this decision as āa historic milestoneā that aligns with the Kenyan constitution and other existing policy measures that include the Children Act and the proposed Intersex Persons Bill, 2024.
āThis is a major step towards securing rights, dignity, and equal opportunities for all intersex persons in Kenya,ā KNCHR stated.
KNCHR asked Kenyans, state, and non-state institutions to support awareness, policy reforms, and the inclusion of intersex people for the latest reform to be implemented successfully.
District of Columbia
Protests against Trump executive orders to take place in D.C. on Thursday
Demonstrations will happen outside attorney general’s office, Kennedy Center

The Trump-Vance administration has taken an aggressive stance against the LGBTQ community by passing executive order after executive order that restricts the ability of transgender people to exist. In response, LGBTQ activists in Washington will take to the streets on Thursday to protest the slew of actions the White House has undertaken.
In back-to-back protests, demonstrators will rally against a federal ban on gender-affirming care for minors, followed by a protest at the Kennedy Center condemning a newly imposed ban on drag performances at the venue.
The first protest of the day will take place outside the D.C. Attorney General’s Office (400 6th St., N.W.) to oppose Trump’s executive order banning gender-affirming care for minors. Originally scheduled for the previous day but postponed due to snow, the protest will run from 12-2 p.m. Organizers aim to pressure D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb and Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Wayne Turnage to join 15 other states in issuing official public guidance against the order and declaring it unlawful.
Under the D.C. Human Rights Act, passed by the D.C. City Council in 1977, discrimination based on gender identity and expression is explicitly prohibited. The law defines gender identity and expression as āa gender-related identity, appearance, expression, or behavior of an individual, regardless of the individualās assigned sex at birth.ā Trumpās executive order, officially titled the āProtecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilationā order, directly violates this act by banning all forms of gender-affirming healthcare for trans youth, effectively preventing them from accessing medical care necessary for their transition.
The 15 other statesā that objected to the order include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
This protest was organized by the Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America Bodily Autonomy Working Group, which focuses on āthe fight for queer, trans, and feminist liberation and against systems of patriarchal capitalist oppression that devalue women and LGBTQIA+ people, under the guidance of reproductive justice.ā
Organizers encourage protesters to bring friends and signs to get their voices heard.
The second protest of the day will take place in Washington Circle in between the Foggy Bottom and West End neighborhoods to protest Trumpās takeover of the Kennedy Center. Trump removed all 18 members that former President Joe Biden appointed to the Kennedy Center board and has started installing Trump loyalists into their roles.
The sudden board shake-up was first announced on Truth Social, Trumpās social media platform, as a response to what he called the boardās lack of āvision for a Golden Age in arts and culture.ā Many found this statement puzzling, given that Trump has openly admitted he has never attended a performance at the nonpartisan arts center.
The āTrans & Queer Dance Party and Protest,ā which will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the circle only a few blocks from the Kennedy Center, is an attempt by six DC based organizations to show the Trump administration that āas D.C. residents, we say the Kennedy Center is our house, and weāre not going to let fascists tell us what to do or censor our artists.ā The collaborating organizations encourage supporters of art, drag, the Kennedy Center, and the LGBTQ community to show up in āour best (warm) looksā to let the administration know that D.C. will not be silenced.
Richard Grenell, a gay man who served as Trumpās ambassador to Germany in his first term, was given the title of āinterim executive directorā of the Kennedy Center, tasked with realigning the arts center to better fit Trumpās agenda. The announcement initially caused confusion because before this announcement, there had never been an acting director, but a president elected by the board.Ā Ā
His agenda so far includes banning any performances in the famous performing arts center, including “Dancing Queens Drag Brunch,” “A Drag Salute to Divas,” and āDixie’s Tupperware Party,ā which were put on at the Kennedy Center and aimed at adults.
This protest was organized through a collaboration of six local left-leaning organizations. They include the DC Dyke March, Harrietās Wildest Dreams, Occupation Free DC, Good Trouble Cooperative, and Claudia Jones School.
For more information on the trans gender-affirming care protest, visit https://actionnetwork.org/events/schwalb-trans-rally or https://mdcdsa.org/. For more information on the Kennedy Center dance party protest, visit any of the organizers’ Instagram pages.
World
Suspension of US aid is ‘catastrophe’ for global LGBTQ rights movement
Washington funds third of international advocacy

The Trump-Vance administration’s decision to freeze nearly all U.S. foreign aid spending for at least 90 days has had a devastating impact on the global LGBTQ rights movement.
The Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights, a Washington-based group that championed LGBTQ and intersex rights in Brazil and elsewhere in Latin America, on Feb. 1 announced it has suspended programming because it lost nearly 80 percent of its funding.
“Despite some limitations we are facing at the moment, we want to share that our commitment is unwavering,” said the organization in an email it sent to supporters on Wednesday. The message also asked them to make a donation.
Outright International, a global LGBTQ and intersex advocacy group, in a statement to the Washington Blade said it has “had to halt direct funding and capacity-building support to LGBTIQ groups in more than 32 countries” in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Latin America.
“The community-based groups we support with USAID (the U.S. Agency for International Development) funding carry out critical human rights, humanitarian and development work,” said Outright International. “This includes protecting community members from violence, providing skills training that allows LGBTIQ people to access employment and entrepreneurial opportunities, and essential services, including healthcare services.”
The LGBTQ+ Victory Institute works with Caribe Afirmativo in Colombia, Promsex in Peru, VoteLGBT in Brazil, and a number of other advocacy groups outside the U.S. LGBTQ+ Victory Institute President Elliot Imse told the Blade his organization has lost around $600,000, which is two-thirds of its entire global program budget.
“We’re scrambling to secure new funding to restore half of the amount we lost, which would allow us to make a similar impact on LGBTQ inclusion worldwide,” he said.
Equal Namibia and Namibia Pride received a $30,000 grant from USAID. Omar van Reenen, co-founder of Equal Namibia, told the Washington Blade it “was the largest grant and biggest grant on such a scale we have received.
“When we received this grant it was the first time we had substantial funding for our organization,” they said.
Van Reenen said the organizations have lost $10,000 of the original $30,000 they received from USAID.
“This means we do are back to zero funds for the organization and will need to continue our campaigns on a voluntary basis,” they told the Blade. “This comes at the worst time as we will need to challenge the new anti-same-sex marriage act passed by the president in October and the upcoming decriminalization case which the Supreme Court will hear soon.”
The Center for Integrated Training and Research, a group known by the Spanish acronym COIN that fights the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Dominican Republic and in other countries in the Caribbean, on Feb. 6 said the funding freeze “directly affects the continuity of the free services that COIN provides to more than 2,300 patients who receive antiretroviral treatment” in the Dominican Republic.
COIN said its patients will continue to receive free antiretroviral drugs because the Dominican government provides them; but the funding freeze has forced it to suspend urology, internal medicine, and pediatric services. COIN said it will continue to provide vaccines and general medicine, gynecological, and family planning services, but “with limitations.” COIN also noted its PrEP service will continue, “but with reduced capacity.”
“In light of this situation, we urgently call upon the national and international community, strategic allies, and sectors sensitive to our cause to find solutions that allow us to continue offering these vital services,” said COIN. “The health and well-being of thousands of people depends on the solidarity and commitment of everyone.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Jan. 24 directed State Department personnel to stop nearly all U.S. foreign aid spending for 90 days in response to an executive order that President Donald Trump signed after his inauguration. Rubio later issued a waiver that allows the Presidentās Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and other ālife-saving humanitarian assistanceā programs to continue to operate during the freeze. (The Blade last week reported PEPFAR-funded programs in Kenya and other African countries have been forced to suspend services and even shut down because of a lack of U.S. funding. Dozens of HIV/AIDS activists on Feb. 6 protested outside the State Department and demanded U.S. officials fully restore PEPFAR funding.)
The Trump-Vance administration is also trying to dismantle USAID.
A statement the White House issued on Feb. 3 said the organization “has been unaccountable to taxpayers as it funnels massive sums of money to the ridiculous ā and, in many cases, malicious ā pet projects of entrenched bureaucrats, with next-to-no oversight.” The statement also contains examples of what it described as “the waste and abuse” that include:
ā¢ $1.5 million to “advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities”
ā¢ $47,000 for a “transgender opera” in Colombia
ā¢ $32,000 for a “transgender comic book” in Peru
ā¢ $2 million for sex changes and “LGBT activism” in Guatemala
The statement links to an article the Daily Mail published on Jan. 31 that President Donald Trump “strips millions from DEI foreign aid programs funding Irish musicals, LGBTQ programs in Serbia and more.” The claim that USAID paid for “sex changes and ‘LGBT activism’ in Guatemala” appears to come from an article the Daily Caller published on Sept. 19, 2024.
Sources with whom the Blade has spoken say the White House’s claims are incorrect.
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on Feb. 2 welcomed efforts to dismantle USAID.
“Most governments donāt want USAID funds flowing into their countries because they understand where much of that money actually ends up,” he wrote on X. “While marketed as support for development, democracy, and human rights, the majority of these funds are funneled into opposition groups, NGOs with political agendas, and destabilizing movements.”
Most governments donāt want USAID funds flowing into their countries because they understand where much of that money actually ends up.
While marketed as support for development, democracy, and human rights, the majority of these funds are funneled into opposition groups, NGOsā¦ pic.twitter.com/bXpdK29zH5
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) February 2, 2025
MĆ³nica HernĆ”ndez, executive director of ASPIDH ArcoĆris Trans, a transgender rights group in El Salvador, spoke with the Blade last week in San Salvador, the country’s capital. Posters with USAID’s logo were on the wall inside the organization’s office.
HernĆ”ndez said she learned on Jan. 27 the U.S. had suspended funding that ASPIDH ArcoĆris Trans received through Freedom House and other groups that partnered with the State Department. She told the Blade that Washington cancelled the grants the following day.
“The (challenge) is to look for other funds from another institution that is not USAID, or that is not from the United States that has to go through the State Department,” she said.

Outright International told the Blade that USAID is not it’s “only source of funding,” but noted “USAID, and the U.S. government more broadly, have in recent years become an extremely important source of funding for LGBTIQ rights around the world, allowing us and our partners to expand our efforts to promote inclusive development and combat pervasive human rights violations.”
Council for Global Equality Chair Mark Bromley told the Blade the U.S. funds roughly a third of the global LGBTQ rights movement. Imse said the global LGBTQ rights movement is set to lose more than $50 million.
“It is a catastrophe,” he told the Blade.
Bromley added it will be “challenging, if not impossible” to fill the funding gap.
“There isn’t a short term way to fill the current funding gap,” he said. “It sets the movement back at least 10 years.”
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