News
Jindal caves on same-sex marriage in Louisiana
GOP hopeful had sought to delay implementation of marriage ruling
Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.) is recognizing same-sex marriages in Louisiana. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
According to NOLA.com, Louisiana’s Department of Vital Records is now recognizing them after the federal district court that once upheld the marriage ban in the state reversed its decision and upon guidance from the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The Washington Blade confirmed with the agency the state will now recognize same-sex marriages.
“Today the Eastern District Court of Louisiana ordered the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples who complete a marriage application at the Department’s Office of Vital Records in Orleans Parish,” Olivia Hwang, spokesperson for the agency is quoted as saying.
Jindal, who’s running for the Republican nomination for president as a social conservative, has stalled on implementation of the Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage at every possible turn.
After the Supreme Court decision was handed down, he said his administration wouldn’t recognize same-sex marriages — including for tax purposes and other states benefits — until action from the Fifth Circuit, which was considering litigation directly challenging the state’s marriage ban.
But after the Fifth Circuit acted on Thursday, reversing the judgment of a district court that upheld Louisiana’s ban on same-sex marriage and remanding the litigation to the court, Jindal delayed implementation again, saying through a spokesperson the district court would have to issue judgment before the state would recognize same-sex marriage.
Only after U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman issued judgment in the litigation, Robicheaux v. Caldwell, did Jindal’s administration concede Louisiana was a marriage-equality state.
Kenneth Upton, senior counsel Lambda Legal and attorney for same-sex couples in the case, said Jindal dragged out implementation of the Supreme Court decision.
“While we wonder why Gov. Jindal insisted on dragging his feet in complying with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling and the subsequent very clear order from the Fifth Circuit, we are pleased for our clients and all same-sex couples in Louisiana that they will now be able to marry and have their marriages recognized by the state,” Upton said.
Jindal is facing litigation filed by American Civil Liberties Union over his religious freedom executive order allowing individuals to refuse to recognize same-sex marriage, including for the purposes of anti-LGBT discrimination. The governor signed the executive order after legislation along those lines failed in the legislature.
District of Columbia
JR.’s hosts meet & greet for mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George
Event organized by Capital Stonewall Democrats, Queers for Janeese
D.C. mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George spoke to a crowd of LGBTQ supporters on June 1 at a meet & greet event held at JR.’s on 17th Street in the Dupont Circle neighborhood.
The event, organized by Capital Stonewall Democrats, which has endorsed Lewis George for mayor, with support from a group called Queers for Janeese, was followed by a “get out the vote” canvassing endeavor in which several of those attending the meet & greet visited the homes of nearby residents known to be Lewis George supporters.
The purpose of the canvassing was to remind Lewis George supporters to return their mail-in ballots or go to the polls on June 16 to elect Lewis George as the city’s next mayor, according to Matthew Kavanagh, one of the leaders of Queers for Janeese who attended the meet & greet event at JR.’s.
Local political observers consider Lewis George, a Ward 4 D.C. Council member, and former At-Large D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie, to be the two leading candidates in this year’s race for mayor. The two are among seven mayoral candidates competing in the city’s June 16 Democratic primary.
Lewis George told those attending the meet & greet, which was held on the JR.’s outdoor patio, that she has a long record of advocating for and initiating city polices and laws in support of the LGBTQ community. She said large corporate donors were backing her opponents and urged her LGBTQ supporters to help raise funds for her in the remaining days of the campaign.
Among those attending the meet & greet was gay longtime Dupont Circle civic activist Randy Downs who last November opened a nearby eatery called Protest Pizza. “I am queer and I am a Janeese supporter,” Downs told the Blade.
Stevie McCarty, president of Capital Stonewall Democrats, who also spoke at the meet & greet event, said his group would organize events in support of Lewis George in the remaining days of the campaign. Among them, he said, was an LGBTQ bar crawl in which supporters of Lewis George, including the candidate herself, would visit LGBTQ bars to promote her candidacy.
Virginians for Marriage Equality on Monday launched a campaign in support of repealing Virginia’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman, former state Sen. Adam Ebbin, former state Del. Mark Sickles, and American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia Executive Director Mary Bauer are among those who spoke at the launch that took place in Richmond. State Del. Kirk McPike (D-Alexandria), who co-chairs the campaign, also participated.
“This amendment is about making clear that the government has no business deciding which marriages or which families are worthy of recognition,” said Bauer. “The ACLU of Virginia has been fighting for Virginians’ right to marry who they love since the landmark case, Loving v. Virginia, which struck down the ban on interracial marriage. Now we are proud to carry that legacy forward by standing with our coalition partners in the fight to pass this amendment and finally enshrine the right to marriage equality in the commonwealth’s constitution.”
Voters in 2006 approved the Marshall-Newman Amendment.
Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who is a Republican, in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.
Two successive legislatures must approve a proposed constitutional amendment before it can go to the ballot.
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger in February signed a bill that finalized the referendum’s language.
The referendum will take place on Nov. 3.
National
White House Correspondents’ Dinner rescheduled after shooting
‘We will not allow an act of violence to have the last word’
The White House Correspondents’ Association announced on Tuesday that it has rescheduled its annual dinner for July 24 after the April event was halted when gunshots rang out at the Washington Hilton.
Cole Allen, 31, is charged with the attempted assassination of President Trump, who was in the ballroom at the time of the incident. One Secret Service officer was wounded in the attack. Officers stopped Allen before he could enter the ballroom where 2,500 journalists and politicos were having dinner and waiting for Trump to speak. It was Trump’s first time attending as president.
“We will not allow an act of violence to have the last word, especially during a year when we are reflecting on the 250th anniversary of America and everything we stand for,” said WHCA President Weijia Jiang in a statement to members.
She did not announce further details, including venue and ticketing.
Washington Blade White House reporter Joe Reberkenny was in the audience when shots were fired and reported live on social media from the scene.
This post will be updated as more details are announced.
JR.’s hosts meet & greet for mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George
Campaign to support Va. marriage amendment repeal launched
Why Michelle Visage needs you to get ‘PrEP Wise’
White House Correspondents’ Dinner rescheduled after shooting
CAMP Rehoboth’s new director shares plans for busy summer
Nine Russian LGBTQ groups deemed ‘extremist’ banned
‘The Stranger’ queers an existentialist classic
Ghanaian lawmakers approve anti-LGBTQ bill
Time travelers from the AIDS era
