By Justin Snow on September 27, 2014 @JustinCSnow
Attorney General Eric Holder reiterated Friday that the Justice Department will file a brief in support of same-sex couples’ right to marry should the U.S. Supreme Court again consider the issue.
In an interview with NBC News one day after Holder announced he would step down, the nation’s first African-American attorney general said a brief filed by the Justice Department would be consistent with positions they have taken in the past on same-sex marriage.
“I expect that the Justice Department will file a brief and the brief will be consistent with the positions that we have taken in the past in support of same-sex marriage,” Holder told Pete Williams of NBC News. “I can’t imagine that we would take any other position while this president is in office and certainly as long as I am attorney general or anybody who is my successor.”
According to the nation’s top lawyer, who will stay on until President Barack Obama names his successor, the country is ready for such a move.
“I think al the polls certainly show that, the reactions to the continuing number of court cases that have found same-sex marriage to be constitutionality mandated. The polls have shown that the American people are prepared to accept that,” Holder said. “Now this has been a sea change. This is something that has happened relatively quickly, part of it is generational. I talk to my kids who see no problems with this, no issues with this at all. But I think it is more than a generational change. I think that people who know folks who are gay, who are lesbian and who are their friends, their coworkers — they see the moral side to this. It’s a civil rights issue. From my perspective it is the civil rights issue of our day, gay and lesbian equality.”
Holder has been a champion of LGBT-rights during his nearly six year as attorney general. In February 2011, Holder announced the Obama administration and the Justice Department would no longer defend the constitutionality of Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defined marriage as between a man and a woman for federal purposes. In June 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Section 3 of DOMA in a sweeping decision that has led federal and state courts to overturn state bans on same-sex marriage across the country. Holder himself has given state attorneys general the green light to stop defending bans on same-sex marriage.
When the Supreme Court did throw out the federal government’s definition of marriage as between a man and a woman, Obama was quick to act. On June 26, 2013, the same day the Windsor decision was issued, Obama instructed the Justice Department to work with members of his cabinet to ensure the decision was implemented swiftly and broadly across the federal government. Nearly one year later, Holder announced the decision had been implemented across the federal government “to the greatest extent possible under the law” in a memo to Obama.
During an interview with ABC News in July, Holder first indicated that when the issue of marriage equality once again comes before the nation’s highest court, the Obama administration will file a brief advocating for same-sex couples’ right to marry.
On Monday, Sept. 29, the Supreme Court justices will meet behind closed doors to consider seven petitions asking the high court to hear cases challenging same-sex marriage bans in five states: Utah, Oklahoma, Virginia, Indiana and Wisconsin. The Supreme Court has no obligation to take any of the cases, nor are they restricted to a specific timeframe for announcing their decisions, but the speed at which the issue has returned back to the nation’s highest court is noteworthy.
“Once again, Attorney General Eric Holder and the Obama Administration have stood up for marriage equality at a critical moment,” said Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, in a statement. “As the nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court gather on Monday to evaluate several marriage equality cases for full hearing, I hope they consider two facts—that the nation is ready for marriage equality, and that there are painful consequences to inaction. Committed and loving gay and lesbian couples can’t afford to wait any longer. It’s time to settle this constitutional question, once and for all.”
Asked to name his proudest accomplishments as attorney general, Holder noted civil rights, efforts by the Justice Department to ensure the “most fundamental of rights,” the right to vote, and criminal justice reform. Moreover, he added, “What we’ve done for LGBT equality, same-sex marriage — I’m very proud of that.”
Watch the full interview:
By John Riley on February 25, 2025 @JRileyMW
Two college students in Indonesia have been sentenced to be publicly caned for engaging in same-sex relations.
The couple, aged 24 and 18, were arrested on November 7, 2024, after neighborhood vigilantes in the city of Banda Aceh, who suspected them of being gay, broke into their rented room to find them naked and hugging each other.
The lead judge, Sakwanah, said that the two students were "legally and convincingly" proven to have had gay sex -- which is forbidden under Sharia law -- and would thus be caned, receiving 85 and 80 lashes, respectively.
"During the trial it was proven that the defendants committed illicit acts, including kissing and having sex," she said. "As Muslims, the defendants should uphold the Sharia law that prevails in Aceh."
By Randy Shulman on February 22, 2025 @RandyShulman
I am apologizing to Margaret Cho.
Not for anything I've said over the course of our lively hour-long phone interview one recent Saturday, but for this magazine's past transgressions.
This issue, you see, marks Cho's fourth appearance on a Metro Weekly cover in three decades, and I'm sheepishly begging forgiveness for how we handled the previous headlines, bastardizing her last name for the sake of a pun.
"Cho-Zen."
"On With the Cho."
"Cho Girl."
"It's all good," she laughs, taking it in stride. One thing about Margaret Cho is that she doesn't offend easily, if at all.
By John Riley on January 23, 2025 @JRileyMW
Just as it did four years ago, the Trump administration has removed nearly all mentions of LGBTQ identity and HIV from the White House website.
Moreover, searches for "lesbian," "gay," and "bisexual" result in an executive order from President Donald Trump reversing various executive orders issued by former President Joe Biden.
A search for "transgender" brings up the same order, as well as a separate order effectively erasing gender identity from law and requiring the federal government to only recognize a person's assigned sex at birth on identity documents, government surveys, and to receive any government benefits.
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
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