TOP6NEWS - Date 6.30.05

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1-NEWS: Spain legalizes ssm
2-NEWS: CA Supreme Court allows dp law to stand
3-NEWS: Federal judge in UT dismissed tg discrimination suit
4-NEWS: MTV launches gay channel today
5-NEWS: Canadian PM: ssm debate is over
6-NEWS: Southern Poverty Law Center on 'religious crusade'
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1-NEWS: Spain legalizes ssm

Spain Legalizes Same-Sex Marriages
Jun 30, 6:38 AM (ET)
By MAR ROMAN
MADRID, Spain (AP) - Parliament legalized gay marriage Thursday, defying conservatives and clergy who opposed making traditionally Roman Catholic Spain the third country to allow same-sex unions nationwide. Jubilant gay activists blew kisses to lawmakers after the vote.
The measure passed the 350-seat Congress of Deputies by a vote of 187 to 147. The bill, part of the ruling Socialists' aggressive agenda for social reform, also lets gay couples adopt children and inherit each others' property.
The bill is now law. The Senate, where conservatives hold the largest number of seats, rejected the bill last week. But it is an advisory body and final say on legislation rests with the Congress of Deputies.
After the final tally was announced, gay and lesbian activists watching from the spectator section of the ornate chamber cried, cheered, hugged, waved to lawmakers and blew them kisses.

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2-NEWS: CA Supreme Court allows dp law to stand

Chronicle Staff Writer Thursday, June 30, 2005
California's new domestic partner law, which gave thousands of gay and lesbian couples most of the rights of spouses under state law, survived a legal challenge Wednesday when the state Supreme Court denied a hearing to conservative religious groups seeking to overturn it.
The court action ends the legal case but may not resolve the issue. An initiative that would amend the state Constitution to prohibit both same-sex marriage and marital benefits for domestic partners could be on the state ballot next year.
"Thankfully, the voters of California don't need to accept this," said Randy Thomasson, president of the Campaign for Children and Families and a backer of one of three proposed initiatives on the issue. "They can override the judges and protect marriage once and for all in the state Constitution."

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3-NEWS:  Federal judge in UT dismissed tg discrimination suit

Judge: Transsexuals Have No Federal Human Rights Protections by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: June 29, 2005
(Salt Lake City, Utah) A federal judge has dismissed a suit by a transsexual woman who was fired from her job at the Utah Transit Authority for using the woman's washroom.
Krystal Etsitty, 42, is in the process of transitioning.  She is undergoing hormone therapy, wear's women's clothing and presents herself as female.
Etsitty sued under federal sexual discrimination laws.

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4-NEWS: MTV launches gay channel today

MTV launches digital gay network
By Suzanne C. Ryan, Globe Staff  |  June 30, 2005
Ellen DeGeneres paved the way for realistic depictions of gays and lesbians on TV. HBO's ''Six Feet Under" made even more strides.
Tonight, MTV Networks will quietly make TV history with the launch of Logo, the first 24-hour digital cable network devoted to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community.
Logo will air a range of gay-focused programming, including documentaries, reality shows, comedies, and even daily news updates from corporate cousin CBS News.
For a network that was years in the making, with the glamour of MTV behind it, this rollout has only been advertised in the gay press.
Yet representatives of the target audience say the network is overdue.

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5-NEWS: Canadian PM: ssm debate is over

Marriage debate is over, Martin says
Opposition groups are vowing to make same-sex legislation an election issue By BRIAN LAGHI AND GLORIA GALLOWAY Thursday, June 30, 2005 Page A4 With a report from Katherine Harding
OTTAWA -- Canadians want to put the rancorous debate on same-sex marriage behind them, despite Stephen Harper's pledge to make it an election issue, Prime Minister Paul Martin says.
Fresh off a House of Commons final vote on the matter, Mr. Martin also warned yesterday that anybody who tries to exploit the issue will be seen as an individual wanting to take away others' rights.

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6-NEWS: Southern Poverty Law Center on 'religious crusade'

Holy War
The religious crusade against gays has been building for 30 years. Now the movement is reaching truly biblical proportions By Bob Moser Southern Poverty Law Center
On June 26, 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the convictions of two Texas men arrested for having sex. Writing for the majority in Lawrence v. Texas, Justice Anthony Kennedy said that the two men were "entitled to respect for their private lives." The state, he declared, "cannot demean their existence or control their destiny by making their private sexual conduct a crime."
The decision was unusually popular. A national survey found that 75% of Republicans and 88% of Democrats wanted to see sodomy laws struck down. But not everyone cheered.
"Six lawyers robed in black have magically discovered a right of privacy that includes sexual perversion," said Jan LaRue, chief counsel for Concerned Women for America. "This opens the door to bigamy, adult incest, polygamy and prostitution," said Ken Connor, president of the Family Research Council.

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