Today, the marriage equality cause got another boost: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a February decision finding California’s Proposition 8 to be unconstitutional. Proponents of the same-sex marriage ban wanted the Ninth Circuit to invalidate the earlier ruling and to rehear the case en banc—that is, with an 11-judge panel (here‘s an explanation […]
Author: Audrey Bilger
Audrey Bilger is the current president of Reed College, and previously served as vice president and dean of Pomona College. She is also a former professor of literature at Claremont McKenna College and faculty director of the Center for Writing and Public Discourse. She also teaches gender studies, and occasionally yoga. Her latest book, which she co-edited with Michele Kort, is Here Come the Brides! Reflections on Lesbian Love and Marriage (Seal Press, 2012). She is also the author of Laughing Feminism, editor of an edition of Jane Collier’s 1753 satire "An Essay on the Art of Ingeniously Tormenting," and a frequent contributor to Bitch magazine. Her work has been featured in The Paris Review, Rockrgrl, the Huffington Post and the Women's Media Center.
Lizz Winstead Takes Brainy Satire Beyond The Daily Show
Lizz Winstead is a household name for millions who’ve never even heard of her. At the end of each episode of The Daily Show, right after the “Moment of Zen” and at the conclusion of the credits, her name flashes by, like a subliminal advertisement for women’s genius: Created by Madeleine Smithberg and Lizz Winstead. In […]
Obama Evolves!
It’s official. After a week of speculation about whether the White House was going to take a strong stand on marriage equality, President Obama has gone on record in support of same-sex marriage rights. After explaining how his views have changed over the years, the President said the words that many of his supporters have […]
Score One For Marriage Rights! Prop 8 is Unconstitutional
Back in the good old days of 2008, same-sex marriage was legal in the Golden State of California for 143 days, and during that time 18,000 same-sex couples legally tied the knot. The existence of those 18,000 is why Proposition 8–which made same-sex marriage illegal later that year–is unconstitutional, according to today’s ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court. By a 2-1 vote, a court panel upheld the historic 2010 decision by Judge Vaughn Walker to strike down Prop 8 as unconstitutional.
Top Three Lessons from the Prop 8 Trial
California’s gay marriage ban, Prop 8, was back in court this week for what is likely to be the last of the many appeals hearings. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals weighed two matters: First, whether the video tapes of the trial’s proceedings could be made public (Prop 8 supporters want them deep-sixed) and second, […]
BREAKING: Prop 8 Ruling Is Both Bad and Good News for Same-Sex Marriage
It’s been 470 days since Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that Proposition 8, the California constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional. But rather than immediately restore legal same-sex marriages, the decision has remained in legal limbo due to an appeal by the marriage ban’s proponents. And here’s the latest: Today the California Supreme Court ruled […]
One Step Closer to Repealing the Federal Gay Marriage Ban!
Yesterday, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 10-8 in support of the Respect for Marriage Act [PDF], a bill that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) banning gay marriage and end 15 years of discrimination against same-sex couples. The vote fell along party lines, with Democrats in favor. Senator Diane Feinstein, who introduced the […]
5 Questions To Ask Defenders of DOMA
Opponents of marriage equality have grown so accustomed to parroting the same arguments over and over again that they don’t seem to notice the ground shifting under their feet. Such is the point of a brief (PDF) filed at the end of last week by the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), a New […]
Complementary Loin? The Latest Argument (and Bill) Against Gay Marriage
At just the time that the national tide seems to be turning in favor of same-sex marriage, North Carolina wants to make doubly sure that it’s banned in the state. Yesterday, the North Carolina Senate voted by a margin of 30-16 in favor of a bill that, if approved by the state’s electorate, would amend […]
Who’s Behind the Mask of Feminist Hulk? Only Ms. Knows!
In comic books, superheroes always have secret identities, and only a handful of people ever get to know the person behind the mask. But readers are insiders, knowing all along that Batman is really Bruce Wayne and Superman is Clark Kent. (Less well-known, except to avid comic readers: Catwoman is Selina Kyle.) In the online […]