Har har har. 

The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that DOMA is unconstitutional because it discriminates against married same-sex couples by denying them federal benefits. From the LA Times:

The appeals court agreed with a lower court judge who ruled in 2010 that the law is unconstitutional because it interferes with the right of a state to define marriage and denies married gay couples federal benefits given to heterosexual married couples, including the ability to file joint tax returns.

The court didn’t rule on the law’s other provision, which said states without same-sex marriage cannot be forced to recognize gay unions performed in other states.

During arguments before the court last month, a lawyer for gay married couples said the law amounts to “across-the-board disrespect.” The couples argued that the power to define and regulate marriage had been left to the states for more than 200 years before Congress passed DOMA.

BRING IT DOWN. BRING IT DOWN. 

“Plaintiffs challenge their exclusion from civil marriage, and seek to end the stigmatization and disrespect the State imposes upon them and their children by relegating them solely to the inferior status of civil union.” 

I’m so fired up for marriage rights in my state.

Today, May 30, Lambda Legal and the ACLU will file separate lawsuits seeking marriage rights for same-sex couples in Illinois. The organizations will hold press conferences on Illinois marriage equality later today. 

“Tomorrow same-sex couples from across the state will be on hand to share their stories about why it’s just time for Illinois to allow them to marry,” said Lambda Legal Marriage Project Director, Camilla Taylor.

“We look forward to introducing tomorrow our clients, the committed and courageous couples who will take the first step to marriage,” said John Knight, LGBT project director for the ACLU of Illinois. “It is time for Illinois to recognize the love and commitment of these couples and thousands of others by allowing them the freedom to marry.”

YES YES YES YES. Let’s do this. Come on, Illinois. 

The web site Dictionary.com defines marriage asa “social institution under which man and woman establish their decision to live together as husband and wife by legal commitments, religious ceremonies, etc.” But the organizer of an online petition is trying to correct it. 

Mike Raven organized a petition asking Dictionary.com to correct its definition of marriage to include same-sex couples, and more than 90,000 people have already signed on. The definition is currently incorrect, he says, because there are states where legal marriages are between two people of the same sex. 

More from Raven on the definition:

They then brush same-sex marriage off as “a similar institution involving partners of the same sex.” Because why should same-sex marriage get the detail and care that “traditional” marriage gets? They got a blurb right? Isn’t that enough? No. With [its] separate but “equal” styled wording and placement, it is time they hear our voices and correct their definition.

Never would have thought about this in a million years - what a cool way to get our message across. If you feel so inclined, sign the petition! 

A federal judge ruled yesterday that a provision of the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional because it limits same-sex spouses of state workers in getting insurance. 

DOMA recognizes marriage as between one man and one woman, keeping legally married same-sex spouses from obtaining some federal benefits. U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken ruled that benefits like insurance must be made equally available to same-sex and opposite-sex spouses. Wilken is the second trial judge in the U.S. District Court for Northern California to strike down that section of DOMA. 

Wilken issued her ruling in a lawsuit filed against the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, known as CalPERS, by same-sex couples. The system has refused to let gay spouses enroll in its federally approved insurance program on the ground that they were excluded by DOMA.

Wilken said the DOMA ban violated the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal treatment. She wrote that there was no proof the DOMA provision was “rationally related to a legitimate government interest.”

It’s only a matter of time before it’s gone for good. 

A new Public Policy Poll shows that 57 percent of voters in Maryland would vote to uphold the state’s current marriage equality law if it came to a referendum.

The poll also showed a “major shift” in the opinions of African-American voters, who comprise about a third of Maryland’s population and would support voting for marriage equality at a rate of 55 percent. 

“Things are moving in Maryland,” said Josh Levin, campaign manager for Marylanders for Marriage Equality, in a news release. “We’re approaching a supermajority who want to uphold the state’s new marriage law. The message of stronger families and greater fairness is resonating, and we’re confident Maryland will be the first state to win a ballot measure on marriage equality and religious freedom.” 

Every time marriage equality has been put to a ballot in a state, it lost, which terrifies me. But the numbers seem to be in our favor in this one - we can only hope for the best. 

More Americans than ever before support marriage equality, according to a new ABC News/Washington Post poll.

The poll shows 53 percent of Americans support same-sex couples’ right to marry, higher than that number has ever been. Likewise, fewer people than ever oppose marriage equality - only 39 percent. 

Of course, this does not mean we should expect sweeping changes in marriage equality laws:

In all 30 states where voters have been asked to approve or reject same-sex marriage, they have rejected it. In places where it is legal — six states and the District — it was made so by an act of the state legislature or the courts.

Americans divide about evenly — 49 to 46 percent — on whether gay-marriage laws should be made at the state or federal level. Most backers of same-sex marriage support a federal approach, while opponents prefer letting states decide. That is a stark shift from 2004, when a CBS News-New York Times poll found widespread support for federal authority over gay marriage among its opponents, not its supporters.

After the news leaked last month that Marvel Comics would have its first same-sex wedding, Marvel has officially announced that X-Men member Northstar will propose to his boyfriend, and Marvel has released images from the comic as a sneak peek. More.