DOMA repeal hearing held
Advocate. com reports that the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing July 20 to evaluate the effects of the Defense of Marriage Act, the law that prohibits even legally married same-sex couples from receiving federal benefits.
The hearing, entitled “The Respect for Marriage Act: Assessing the Impact of DOMA on American Families,” was comprised of two four-witness panels. Both opponents and advocates of DOMA were represented.
Among the witnesses supporting DOMA’s repeal were Joe Solmonese of the Human Rights Campaign and Evan Wolfson of Freedom to Marry. DOMA proponents included Austin Nimrocks of the Alliance Defense Fund and Edward Whelan, president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center.
Gay man appointed federal judge
The New York Times reports that the U.S. Senate confirmed the first openly gay man as federal judge on July 18. J. Paul Oetken, 45, was confirmed by a vote of 80-13.
He will take his seat in Manhattan, N.Y., as soon as the president signs his commission. That could be as early as this week, according to the office of New York Sen. Charles Schumer, who recommended Oetken’s appointment to President Obama last year.
“When there are so many qualified gay and lesbian people and none of them get on the bench, you scratch your head and wonder why,” Schumer said. “But the old barriers that existed in society are crumbling. That’s what this will say.”
Deborah A. Batts, a lesbian, has been a federal judge in Manhattan since 1994.
Ut. Democrats elect openly gay chairman
The Salt Lake Tribune reports that Utah Democrats elected Jim Dabakis, an openly gay man, as state party chairman on July 16. An art dealer and a founder of both the Utah Pride Center and Equality Utah, he is the first out person to hold the position in the state.
Dabakis won easily, defeating his opponent Robert Comstock 578 to 71. He said that his sexual orientation “ … did not surface as an issue. People are broad-minded in Utah, and they want to know if you can do the job or not.”
He hopes to welcome independents, Republicans and Latter-day Saints into the party in his efforts to win elections across the state.
Gay military march at San Diego Pride
Reuters reports that approximately 250 gay active-duty servicemembers, veterans and allies marched in San Diego’s Pride parade July 16. The participants wore T-shirts emblazoned with their respective divisions.
A Pentagon spokesperson said U.S. Department of Defense regulations do not prohibit marching in parades while wearing civilian clothes, and that participation “does not constitute a declaration of sexual orientation.”
The parade came less than a day after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit temporarily reinstated “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” with the caveat that the military still could not penalize or discharge any servicemember for being openly gay. The repeal of the ban is expected to be finalized within weeks.
— compiled by Chandlee Taylor