Justices reject B&B owner who denied room to gay couple
The Supreme Court is rejecting an appeal from a Hawaii bed and breakfast that wouldn’t rent a room to a lesbian couple, The Washington Post reported.
The justices on March 18 decided to leave in place state-court rulings that found the Aloha Bed & Breakfast in Honolulu violated Hawaii’s anti-discrimination law by turning the couple away.
Owner Phyllis Young had argued she should be allowed to turn away gay couples because of her religious beliefs.
Event to highlight LGBTQ history in American South
An event will highlight the history of LGBTQ people in the American South, according to the Tuscaloosa News.
What organizers are calling the inaugural Queer History South Conference is scheduled to open March 28 in Birmingham, Ala. More than 115 people are expected to attend from the South and elsewhere.
The two-day conference will focus on collecting, researching, preserving and sharing items to document the stories of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people and queer people in the South.
It’s being staged by Invisible Histories Project, a nonprofit organization which began in 2016 in Birmingham.
Organizers from five states are involved, and the program includes presentations from speakers including universities and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.
Sponsors of the event include the city of Birmingham and the University of Alabama’s College of Arts and Sciences.
Michigan settles adoption suit to stop LGBT discrimination
The Michigan attorney general’s office has settled a lawsuit by same-sex couples who say their rights have been violated by faith-based adoption agencies that don’t want to work with gays and lesbians, Fox 2 Detroit reported.
Under the settlement announced March 22, the state says it will enforce non-discrimination provisions in its foster care and adoption agency contracts.
Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel initiated settlement talks upon taking office. She said discrimination in foster care and adoption services is “illegal, no matter the rationale.”
Groups such as Catholic Charities and Bethany Christian Services are paid by the state to place children from troubled families with new families.
The suit filed by two lesbian couples doesn’t directly challenge a 2015 Republican-backed law that says child-placement agencies aren’t required to provide services that conflict with their beliefs.
Assistant principal accused of harassing trans boy loses job
An assistant principal accused of harassing a transgender student will be out of his job at the end of the current school year, according to The Charleston Gazette-Mail.
The board of education in Harrison County, W.Va., voted to not renew a probationary contract for Lee Livengood, who allegedly followed a teenager into the boys’ bathroom at Liberty High School and said, “You freak me out.”
Superintendent Mark Manchin initially tried to extend Livengood’s contract. Manchin said the March 19 board vote to end his employment on June 30 was unanimous.
A 15-year-old student said Livengood also ordered him in November to prove his gender by using a urinal. Livengood was suspended without pay before returning to Liberty High.
The American Civil Liberties Union said 1,100 people signed a petition demanding the board take action.
Alabama Senate approves bill to change marriage licenses
The Alabama Senate has approved a bill to abolish judge-signed marriage licenses as some conservative probate judges continue to object to giving marriage licenses to same-sex couples, the Tuscaloosa News reported.
Senators unanimously approved the bill March 21 by a 26-0 vote. It now moves to the Alabama House of Representatives.
Under the bill, couples would still get a form at the local courthouse to get married, but it would not be called a license.
A few Alabama probate judges for years have refused to issue marriage licenses to anyone so they do not have to give them to gay couples.
Republican Sen. Greg Albritton of Range, who has worked on the bill for several years, said he is trying to reach a compromise so marriage licenses can be issued in all counties.
— compiled by Larry Nichols