Tag: Same-sex marriage

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Politics Politics Beat Blog

Bartlett’s Coley was Lone Vote for Anti-Gay Marriage Bill

State Rep. Jim Coley

The morning after a key vote in a subcommittee of the Tennessee General Assembly, there is something of a buzz, both within Legislative Plaza and in Shelby County, regarding the identity of the lone voter for a bill to enable flouting of last year’s decision of the U.S. Supreme Court legalizing same-sex marriage.

That voter was Jim Coley, a longtime Republican state representative from District 97, which takes in Bartlett and other parts of eastern Shelby County. Coley chairs the Civil Justice subcommittee which on Wednesday rejected HB 1412, the “Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act,” sponsored by state Rep. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) and state Senator Mae Beavers (R-t. Juliet).

The buzz is based on the fact that Coley, a teacher at Bolton High School, is widely regarded as one of the Republican super-majority’s few bona fide moderates.

As reported earlier by Bianca Phillips, the Pody-Beavers bill would have provided legal shelter by the state to county court clerks in Tennessee who declined to acknowledge and certify same-sex marriage. The subcommittee’s two Democrats — Bill Beck and Sherry Jones, both of Nashville, voted no on a voice vote, as did the two other Republicans — Mike Carter of Ooltewah, a suburb of Chattanooga, and Jon Lundberg of Bristol, in northeast Tennessee.

Carter and Lundberg expressed themselves as seeing the bill as endorsing nullification, a doctrine that from pre-Civil War times on, has been resoundingly rejected. Carter equated nullification with “anarchy,” and even former legislator David Fowler, now president of the Tennessee Family Action Council, which vehemently opposes same-sex marriage, testified that the Pody-Beavers bill was unenforceable.

Coley, a teacher at Bolton High School who acknowledges that he is probably rightly considered “moderate to conservative,” says that his vote, while expressing his own point of view, was primarily meant to convey the attitude of his constituents.

“One of the largest and most active churches in Tennessee, Bellevue Baptist, is in my district,” he pointed out. He said there had been numerous communications from his district, “both pro and con,” but that he concurred with proponents of the bill that some statement needed to be made in defense of the traditional one man-one woman view of marriage.

“When you think about it, for a 5-4 decision by a court to strike down an institution that had existed for thousands of years in that form and, without doubt, is still supported by a vast majority of people in this culture is highly undemocratic,” Coley said. He noted that a constitutional amendment against gay marriage, authored by then Rep. Fowler, had received 81 percent approval from the state’s voters in 2006.

Coley says that he will likely stick to his guns in the event of new legislation against same-sex marriage. A new bill to accomplish that end is supposedly forthcoming from state Rep. Susan Lynn, and Pody and Beavers have another one coming that would prohibit state and local officials from enforcing any federal order that is inconsistent with the “the public policy of the state.” 

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Memphis Gaydar News

Anti-Same-Sex Marriage Bill Dies in Subcommittee

Mark Pody was one of the bill’s sponsors

A state bill that would have attempted to ban same-sex marriage died in the House of Representatives Civil Justice subcommittee on Wednesday after it failed to gain enough votes.

The Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act stated that “any court decision purporting to strike down natural marriage, including Obergefell v. Hodges, is unauthoritative, void, and of no effect.” Obergefell v. Hodges is the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision last summer that made same-sex marriage legal across the country, including in Tennessee. The bill was filed by Rep. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) and Sen. Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet).

The bill would have given protection to any county court clerks who refused to acknowledge same-sex marriage. The act could cost the state $8.5 billion since going against a Supreme Court order could cause the federal government to pull $6.5 billion in TennCare funding and $2 billion in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (i.e. food stamps) funding.

The anti-gay group Family Action Council of Tennessee is expected to announce a lawsuit on Thursday against the state over the application of the Supreme Court ruling in a state that passed a gay marriage ban in 2006.

  

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Memphis Gaydar News

City Council Committee Approves Extending MLGW Pension Benefits to Same-Sex Spouses

CREDIT: MLGW

The Memphis City Council’s Memphis Light, Gas & Water (MLGW) committee voted Tuesday morning to extend the utility’s spousal pension benefits to same-sex spouses of employees.

The change to MLGW’s pension plan is required under federal law following last summer’s U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage across the country.

The measure passed without much question, but new District 2 councilmember Frank Colvett actually said, “So same-sex couples can’t marry in Tennessee though.” To which an MLGW representative responded, “Absolutely they can.” To that, Colvett followed with “You mean if a couple marries in Alaska, we have to recognize it in Tennessee.” Sounds like Colvett is apparently clueless about the nationwide legalization of same-sex marriage.

The resolution to amend MLGW’s pension plan to include updated language and remove “man and woman” from their definition of marriage will go to the full council meeting this evening. Since MLGW is required by federal law to make this change, it will likely pass.

MLGW

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News The Fly-By

Fly on the Wall 1375

Verbatim

“They hijacked the civil rights movement and say it’s the same thing, but it’s not the same thing.” — Memphis pastor Bill Owens, founding president of the Coalition of African-American Pastors, explaining why he opposes same-sex marriage. Owens is encouraging religious leaders to engage in civil disobedience to protest the Supreme Court’s marriage equality ruling. “When we sat at the counters at restaurants, we knew we were going to be arrested. You do things to get arrested, to call attention to it,” Owens said.

In related news, Charles Lee was released on probation after sending a slur-filled bomb threat to the Memphis Gay and Lesbian Community Center and decorating his delightful missive with a German swastika. Authorities had hoped to charged Lee with a hate crime, but charges were reduced because Tennessee’s anti-intimidation laws cover race and religion but don’t include sexual orientation.

Hair Loss

We’ve all seen them. The flipped wig. The tumbling tumbleweave. Memphis is a city of feral hairpieces separated from their owners and left to rot in the street like roadkill. Fly on the Wall is reaching out to readers and asking them not to ignore all this senseless hair loss. If you see a lost wig or some lonely extensions, take a picture and email it to the Fly on the Wall blog. We’ll post it in the hopes that we can reunite some good people with their good hair. Send your photos to davis@memphisflyer.com.

Also, if you know whom this hair belongs to, contact Fly on the Wall. We’ll tell you where it was last seen but can’t guarantee a successful reunion, because we’re not touching that.

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Memphis Gaydar News

Couples Tie the Knot at Tennessee Equality Project Marriage Celebration

“It’s my pleasure to introduce you to Mrs. and Mrs. Wallheimer,” said attorney (and former Shelby County Commissioner) Steve Mulroy, as a couple hundred people gathered on the lawn of the Memphis Gay & Lesbian Community Center (MGLCC) Friday afternoon cheered and clapped. Mulroy was referring to Jennifer and Alisha Wallheimer (formerly Jennifer Ballheimer and Alisha Wall), who married today on the front porch of the MGLCC.

Steve Mulroy performs a marriage for Jennifer and Alisha Wallheimer.

Mulroy was one of several volunteers with marriage-ordaining powers at the MGLCC’s celebration of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision in favor of same-sex marriage in all 50 states. He and others married two other couples on-site in front of the gathered crowd. Before the ceremony, ministers roamed the crowd looking for anyone ready to marry.

“We actually had more ministers come out to perform weddings than we had people looking to get married,” said Tennessee Equality Project (TEP) Shelby County Committee Chair Justin Smith.

Shelby County Commissioner Reginald Milton spoke at the event. He told a story about having to go to a segregated medical clinic when he was a kid followed by the words “An injustice to anyone is an injustice to all.”

“I was too young to know the Civil Rights Movement, but I am honored to be here today as we stand for justice for every human being in this country,” Milton said.

While the event was celebratory, TEP President and Chair Ginger Leonard cautioned that, once the celebrations were over, the community still had lots of work ahead.

“Just because we can get married doesn’t mean we are no longer going to be discriminated against in housing, jobs, getting loans from banks, or in other areas,” Leonard said.

She said TEP will begin to shift its focus on non-discrimination ordinances with specific language addressing sexual orientation and gender identity, anti-bullying legislation, housing for LGBT homeless youth, and LGBT senior care.

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Memphis Gaydar News

Tennessee Attorney General Statement on Supreme Court Ruling

Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery

Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III is not in favor of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision in favor of legal same-sex marriage across the country.

Slatery issued the following statement today: “Today’s United States Supreme Court decision not only changes the definition of marriage, but takes from the states and their citizens the longstanding authority to vote and decide what marriage means. To the Tennessee citizen who asks ‘Don’t we get a chance to vote on this in some way?’ the answer from the Supreme Court is a resounding, ‘No, you do not.’ For the Court to tell all Tennesseans that they have no voice, no right to vote, on these issues is disappointing. The Court, nevertheless, has spoken and we respect its decision. Our office is prepared to work with the Governor and the General Assembly, as needed, to take the necessary steps to implement the decision.”

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Memphis Gaydar News

State Bill Would Allow Religious Clergy To Deny Same-Sex Marriages

Bryan Terry

The anti-gay bills are already coming in Tennessee, just hours after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that all 50 states must allow same-sex marriage.

Tennessee State Representative Bryan Terry (R-Murfreesboro) has said that he’s drafting the “Tennessee Pastor Protection Act,” which would allow religious clergy to deny performing same-sex marriage and provide legal protection from being  “forced to perform same sex marriages on church property,” according to a press release issued this morning from State Representative Andy Holt’s (R-Dresden) office. Holt has said he’d be the co-sponsor of this bill.

“It comes as no surprise that the Supreme Court ruled in favor of same sex marriage. I have had multiple constituents concerned with how the ruling may impact their church and their religious beliefs. If the issue is truly about equality of civil liberties and benefits, then this ruling should have minimal legal impact on churches,” said Terry. “However, if the issue and the cause is about redefining marriage to require others to change their deeply held religious beliefs, then the concerns of many will be valid.”

In the release, Holt said that he would not recognize the court’s ruling as valid. According to Holt, “God is the ultimate Supreme Court and he has spoken. Marriage is between one man, and one woman.”

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Memphis Gaydar News

Q&A with Memphis Couple in Supreme Court Same-Sex Marriage Case

Maureen Holland, Ijpe DeKoe, Thom Kostura

When they married in New York in 2011, Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura probably never imagined their marriage would make U.S. history. But after returning from a tour of duty in Afghanistan in May 2012, DeKoe, full-time sergeant in the Army Reserves, was transferred to the base in Millington. And suddenly, the couple found that their marriage wasn’t recognized by the state of Tennessee.

Fast forward to 2013, when DeKoe and Kostura signed on as one of three Tennessee couples challenging the state’s same-sex marriage ban. That lawsuit made its way to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, along with similar suits from Kentucky, Ohio, and Michigan. But the Sixth Circuit ruled to uphold marriage bans in those states, a split from other appellate courts’ rulings on same-sex marriage. That ruling was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and today, justices heard oral arguments in the case. Marriage equality advocates believe the Supreme Court’s decision in this case will decide the fate of marriage in the country once and for all. A decision is expected by June.

DeKoe, Kostura, and Holland were in the courtroom today, and they took a few minutes to share their experiences with the Flyer.

Give us a rundown of your morning at the Supreme Court.
DeKoe: We were up by 6 a.m. And we met down in the [hotel] lobby as a group. We were at the Supreme Court by about 7 a.m. They parked us in the back and had us walk around the building, which was pretty amazing. There were about 200 to 300 people lined up on the sidewalk, supporters. We did some interviews, and then the six plaintiffs from Tennessee walked into the Supreme Court at about 8:30 a.m., where we got to wait for about three hours. Sixteen of the plaintiffs went in for Question One, and then we swapped out for Question Two with us. We were in the courtroom for about an hour.

Did any of you speak before the court?
Holland: No. We had two oralists, Doug Hallward-Driemeier and Mary Bonauto. Mary went first, and she addressed Question One, as to whether or not the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution requires states to marry same-sex couples. And Doug did Question Two, which was if a same-sex couple is married someplace else, in a state like New York that recognizes their marriage, and they move to Tennessee, is Tennessee required under the Constitution to recognize that marriage? 

During the last few minutes of Doug’s argument, during his rebuttal, he mentioned Thom and Ijpe and their situation as a personal explanation to the court about how this actually affects the lives of individuals and how it’s not just a philosophy. He mentioned all of the plaintiffs, including Thom and Ijpe.

We had 16 tickets to allot to plaintiffs for Question One, and we were allowed, in a very nice concession by the court, to swap out individuals, so we could allow a different set of 16 individuals into Question Two. So all of the plaintiffs could hear some of the arguments. All three couples on the Tennessee team were able to hear all of the presentation from both sides regarding Question Two. 

From the analysis I’ve read today, I was a little surprised at some of the questions from the more conservative justices, like when Chief Justice Antonin Scalia asked why there was no gay marriage in ancient Greece. Did any of their questions catch you off-guard or strike you as weird?
Holland: We certainly prepare as best we can for a series of questions that might come to mind. Ancient Greece, I don’t know if that was exactly on our radar, but the arguments by respondents that same-sex marriage has been between a man and a woman throughout history is the same type of concept that we were prepared to address. 

What were your impressions of how the case went today? Do you think the justices will rule in your favor?
Kostura: Ijpe and I do not have law backgrounds, and our oralist [Doug Hallward-Driemeier] went first for Question Two, the one that we actually witnessed. And [when we heard] the questions that were coming back from the justices, we were like, “Oh no, they’re going to go really conservative on this.” But then, the other side went, and it went from us thinking it was going to go unanimously against us to thinking it would go unanimously for us. So I think that my impression is that the justices were really rigorous to both sides. Ijpe and I walked away from it optimistically. We don’t know enough law to weigh in, but we know we have a very strong team. And that they argued the strongest case for us that they could.

DeKoe: It was very clear that the justices were asking the peoples’ questions, whatever side they took. The other part of it that struck me was that Doug got the opportunity to close [in Question Two], which was incredibly powerful, and it completely changed the tone of the room. He was able to incorporate each of the three stories of the Tennessee plaintiffs into his closing arguments, so it took this big theoretical problem down to a really human level. It was remarkable how that happened, and it was chilling to be mentioned in front of the justices.

Many seem to think Justices Anthony Kennedy and John Roberts will be the deciding factor. Is that the impression you got?
Holland: There was a feeling that the numbers might be better [than expected]. Obviously, you’re hoping for a 5-4, but you start to get the feeling that it could be more. But you’re not sure. There was a very positive feeling after Question Two. The Question One questions were harder to read, and there were definitely more questions on both sides. And it does feel like a narrower sense, from our perspective, that we would prevail. But I can tell you that the lawyers are hopeful that it’s at least 5-4, but we can see that some of the questions might tip some of the justices slightly up. But that wasn’t clear from Question One as much as from Question Two.

Much has been made of the anti-marriage equality protester who was ejected from the courtroom after he yelled something homophobic. Did any of you get to see that go down?
Holland: I did. That happened in Question One, just as the solicitor general is about to walk to the podium. The screaming and yelling begins with a protest or an outburst about God. And there was continual yelling while they got this person out of the courtroom. And it was quite loud. The justices asked the solicitor general if he’d like to take a moment because it was so disruptive. He started to walk away from the podium, and then he just turned right around and said, “Well, you know actually, I’m ready to go.” And he launched right in to his advocacy, which was wonderful to see and hear.

Kostura: From our perspective, because we were not in the courtroom at the time … as you can imagine, at the Supreme Court, there are a lot of logistics, and you get put into a lot of very specific places. Ijpe and I were in the lower level, and as [the protester] was being brought into the main gallery in front of the courtroom, the screaming was echoing down to our level. We weren’t allowed up to the gallery to see what happened. And of course, Ijpe and I, since it was such a controversial thing, when we hear all this screaming, we don’t want to run toward it. But that’s when Ijpe and I realized that there is this strong opposition, and there are these people who will try to break into the courtroom in order to protest.

Speaking of protesters, did you see many outside the courthouse? And did you feel like supporters of marriage equality outnumbered protesters?
DeKoe: There were definitely a lot more people for us. But I will give the protesters [against us] credit. They were very well organized. They came walking in and set up and had their PA going, and they got their message out. But they were a vocal minority and a very loud minority.

However, the friendly group far outweighed them. When we were inside the courtroom, we didn’t have any communications with the outside because we’d already turned off our cell phones. So we had no idea the crowd [outside] was growing. So it went from 200 to 300 people when we walked in to more than 1,000 when we left. As we walked through the main gallery and we stepped through those doors, we realized that the roar [of support] we could hear inside was even louder outside on the steps. It was a wall of sound in support. I could see the signs [from protestors], but I couldn’t hear anything negative because everyone was championing and yelling so loudly in our favor. These are people who took time out of their day and work week to come out and say “Your marriage has value. And we respect your marriage, and we want to be there for you while you’re inside fighting that fight.”

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Memphis Gaydar News

Scenes From the Memphis Marriage Equality Rally

About 50 people gathered on the front lawn of the Memphis Gay & Lesbian Community Center Monday night to celebrate the upcoming oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court same-sex marriage case that involves a couple from Memphis.

Memphians Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura are plantiffs in the case, and they’re represented by local attorney Maureen Holland. They flew to Washington D.C. last week to prepare for oral arguments, which begin on Tuesday, April 28th. The Tennessee case is lumped with same-sex marriage cases from Ohio, Kentucky, and Michigan, all of which are on appeal after the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld marriage bans in the four states last year.

The Sixth Circuit’s decision was a split from other appellate courts, the rest of which have ruled to overturn marriage bans. Marriage equality advocates believe the Supreme Court’s decision in this case will decide the fate of marriage in the country. A decision is expected by June.

“This is history,” MGLCC executive director Will Batts told the crowd. “I’m not going to quote the vice-president, but this is a big effin’ deal.”

Same-sex marriage is legal now in about three-fourths of country, and only 13 states — including Tennessee — continue to ban it. So far, 65 courts have ruled in support of same-sex marriage, and only one court — the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals — has ruled to uphold a gay marriage ban. That’s the decision that involved Tennessee, Ohio, Michigan, and Kentucky that is being appealed to the Supreme Court.

“Now is the time for the Supreme Court to finish the job on marriage,” said the Tennessee Equality Project’s Jonathan Cole.

Gwendolyn Clemons, co-founder of Relationships Unleashed (an LGBT radio program on KWAM 990), told the crowd that, in order to win equal rights, they must make their voices heard.

“We have to be visible. We can’t hide anymore,” Clemons said. “The only thing that belongs in a closet is clothes.”

“And shoes,” added her wife Shawn. 

“We’re in our civil rights movement. If you’re ready to march, we need soldiers,” Clemons added.

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Memphis Gaydar News

Memphis Couple Will Travel to D.C. for Supreme Court Same-sex Marriage Case

The Memphis couple and their attorney involved in the same-sex marriage case that will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court were honored in a ceremony hosted by Freedom to Marry on Tuesday afternoon at the Memphis Gay & Lesbian Community Center.

MGLCC Director Will Batts, Southerners for Freedom to Marry Campaign Manager Amanda Snipes, attorney Maureen Holland, plaintiffs Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura, and Tennessee Equality Project’s Anne Brownlee Gullick and Skip Ledbetter

Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura, plantiffs in the Tennessee same-sex marriage case, and attorney Maureen Holland are flying to Washington D.C. this week. The high court will hear oral arguments in the case on April 28th. The Tennessee case is lumped with same-sex marriage cases from Ohio, Kentucky, and Michigan, all of which are on appeal after the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld marriage bans in the four states last year.

The Sixth Circuit’s decision was a split from other appellate courts, the rest of which have ruled to overturn marriage bans. Marriage equality advocates believe the Supreme Court’s decision in this case will decide the fate of marriage in the country.

“We come together today as hopeful that soon the harmful marriage ban and all of the marriage bans across the country are struck down, and the days of married couples being treated like strangers will be relegated to the history books,” said Amanda Snipes, campaign manager for Southerners for Freedom to Marry, which hosted the ceremony Tuesday afternoon.

Holland said there are 48 lawyers working on this case, and she expects the Supreme Court to issue a decision by the end of June.


“My greatest wish for you is that by June, you are as married in this building as you are on the base,” said Tennessee Equality Project’s Anne Brownlee Gullick, addressing DeKoe and Kostura. DeKoe is on active duty in the Army Reserves, and since the federal government recognizes same-sex marriages, the couple is considered to be married when they visit a military base. DeKoe and Kostura married in New York in 2011.


DeKoe said they realize that they’re at the center of what could be a ground-breaking case that has potential to end marriage discrimination across the country once and for all. 


“We’re at the center of this giant hurricane,” DeKoe said. “We realize how big it is. It’s going to be a crazy day in Tennessee and across the country when this decision comes down in our favor. And I’m excited for it.”

Although the high court is expected to rule in favor of marriage equality, Holland said that, in the case that it does not, there is a back-up plan.

“The lawyers don’t stop. We’ll continue to bring cases,” Holland said. “We’ll continue our fight, but we’re hopeful that we will join the 36 other states that recognize same-sex marriage, so Thomas and Ijpe won’t have to continue to engage in ‘Are we married? Are we not?’ when they cross a state boundary.”