Home : Lesbian & Gay Rights

ACLU Hails Passage of Washington Domestic Partnership Bill (04/11/2007)
OLYMPIA, WA -- The Washington Legislature has approved a domestic partnership bill that extends property and family rights to couples of the same sex. The 63-35 House vote sends the measure to Governor Gregoire for signing and will make Washington the eighth state in the nation to recognize domestic partnerships.

ACLU Appoints Gay Rights Attorney to Work in the South (04/10/2007)
NASHVILLE - The American Civil Liberties Union has appointed noted gay rights attorney Christine Sun to lead the American Civil Liberties Union’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights work in the south. Sun, who has worked on LGBT and AIDS issues for the ACLU in California since 2004, will work out of the ACLU of Tennessee’s office in the Nashville.

Federal Judge Rules Okeechobee, FL Students Can Form Gay-Straight Alliance Club (04/06/2007)
OKEECHOBEE, FL - The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida today welcomed a district court decision ordering Okeechobee High School to officially recognize and allow equal access to the Okeechobee High School Gay Straight Alliance.

Same-Sex Couples Urge California Supreme Court to Strike Down Marriage Ban (04/02/2007)
SAN FRANCISCO -- In a brief filed today with the California Supreme Court, attorneys representing same-sex couples, Equality California and Our Family Coalition urged the court to strike down as unconstitutional a law that bars same-sex couples from marriage. The couples and organizations are represented by lead counsel the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Heller Ehrman LLP, and the Law Office of David C. Codell.

ACLU Applauds Defeat of Anti-Gay Adoption and Foster Care Bill; Calls Defeat a Tremendous Victory for Arkansas Children (03/27/2007)
LITTLE ROCK, AR - The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas cheered the decision of the Arkansas House Judiciary Committee today to reject SB 959, a bill that would have banned gay people and most unmarried heterosexual couples who live together from adopting or serving as foster parents.

National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights Organizations Condemn Ousting of Largo, FL, City Manager (03/23/2007)

ACLU Applauds Representative Conyers for Introducing Hate Crimes Bill (03/21/2007)
Washington - The American Civil Liberties Union cheered Representative John Conyers (D-MI) for introducing H.R.1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007. The bill would permit federal law enforcement to investigate and prosecute local crimes in which the victim was selected due to the person’s actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

ACLU Staff Attorney to Receive Human Rights Alliance Award (03/15/2007)
ALBUEQUERQUE – George Bach, a staff Attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, will receive the Human Rights Alliance "Treasure Award" at the 13th Annual Human Rights Alliance Gay-la in Santa Fe on Saturday, March 17 at the Hotel Eldorado. Bach’s legal efforts have advanced the cause of civil rights in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

ACLU and GSA Network Clear the Way for Gay-Straight Alliance Club in Madera, California (03/14/2007)
MADERA, CA – After students attempted for almost two years to gain recognition for a gay-straight alliance club (GSA) at Madera High School, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California and GSA Network announced today that they have secured an agreement with the school board to allow the club to exist. The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California and GSA Network negotiated on behalf of about 10 students who had been trying to gain recognition since the spring of 2005 for the club, which hopes to provide a safe haven for students to discuss lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues.