Proponents rally in support of Freedom to Marry bill for Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
February 9, 2010
Proponents of the freedom to marry gathered on the steps of the PA Capitol rotunda Monday and chanted, "Pennsylvania can't you see -- what equality means to me." They were supporters of Senate Bill 935, by Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery, which would honor the marriages of gay couples. Leach said laws outlawing marriage equality are "the last bastion of society-sanctioned discrimination." [Link]

Social issues dominate Pennsylvania gubernatorial debate

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
January 29, 2010
The Democratic candidates for governor Friday night were sharply divided on the issue of legalizing the freedom to marry. Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty and Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Hoeffel received applause from about 300 people gathered at the PA Progressive Summit when they said they support legislation to allow gays and lesbians to marry. [Link] See video below:

Pennsylvania courts to offer LGBT domestic-partner benefits

Philadelphia Gay News
January 28, 2010
Employees of Pennsylvania’s court system who are in same-sex relationships will now be entitled to the same benefits as their heterosexual married counterparts. The domestic-partner policy, announced Jan. 29 to all employees through a memo with their paystubs, will allow the partners of gay and lesbian staffers to be included on the medical, dental, vision and prescription-drug plans currently offered to married heterosexual couples. [Link]

Freedom to Marry Week events in PA

Freedom to Marry Pennsylvania
January 25, 2010
A listing of events going on in the state of Pennsylvania for Freedom to Marry Week. Cities listed include: Harrisburg, Allentown, Philadelphia and Pottsville. [Link]

Get involved and learn about Freedom to Marry Week here, and let us know about events planned in your area!

Community Engagement Campaign Visits Rural Communities to Establish Common Ground and Understanding

Out In The Silence
November 30, 2009
Following the story of a small American town confronting a firestorm of controversy ignited by a wedding announcement for a same-sex couple in the local newspaper, the documentary, Out in the Silence, illustrates the challenges of being an outsider in a conservative rural community and the change that is possible when courageous people break the silence and search for common ground.

The OITS Community Engagement Campaign reports:

For the past six weeks, we've been crisscrossing Pennsylvania, and traveling to places like Iowa, Massachusetts, and Texas, doing screenings on high school and college campuses as well as in churches and community theaters, with the help of an amazing array of state and local organizations. At each event, there has been a diverse and lively audience ready to engage in dialogue and in the search for common ground on issues that have divided our communities for far too long.

Upcoming screenings and discussion groups:
Charleston, SC - January 14, 2010
Lancaster, PA - January 17, 2010
Bloomington, IN - January 30, 2010
Harrisburg, PA - January 31, 2010

[Link]

Specter Sixth Senator To Change Thinking On Marriage Equality

ON TOP Magazine
October 28, 2009
While the five senators who changed their minds before Specter hail from states where marriage equality is legal or, in the case of New York, there is widespread support for it, polls indicate a majority of voters in Pennsylvania do not support the freedom to marry. [Link]

Views Evolving...Place by Place, Issue by Issue, Person by Person

Law Dork
October 27, 2009
Chris Geidner comments on Sen. Arlen Specter's (D-Pa.) new support of repealing the federal so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and praises Specter's and some other politicians' evolving views on LGBT equality. [Link]

PA Senator Arlen Specter: Time to Repeal DOMA

The Huffington Post
October 27, 2009
Senator Arlen Specter addresses the 13-year-old so-called Defense of Marriage Act, saying it's time for it to be repealed:

Enacted 13 years ago when the idea of same sex marriage was struggling for acceptance, the Act is a relic of a more tradition-bound time and culture. [Link]

Marriage Debate Continues in Pennsylvania

Edge Boston
July 29, 2009
Pennsylvania state Senator Daylin Leach [D-Montgomery/Delaware], who has introduced a bill that would honor the marriages of same-sex couples, says, "There is no reasonable alternative to the freedom to marry. Same-sex couples will always exist. Many are raising children. Attitudes are changing, and everyday I truly believe we get closer to equality." [Link]

Tipping Point for Freedom to Marry in Pennsylvania?

The Examiner.com
June 26, 2009
The most recent public-opinion survey, from Muhlenberg College and the Allentown Morning Call, published earlier this month, showed that backing for marriage equality in the Keystone State increased from 35 percent in 2004 to 42 percent. Jeff Lax and Justin Phillips of Columbia University place Pennsylvania well above average in its acceptance of the freedom to marry. Using polling, statistical analysis and ranking several factors Phillips and Lax rank Pa. seventeenth out of fifty states. [link]

Pennsylvania Marriage Equality Debate on WHYY Friday AM

Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents
June 18, 2009
Senator Daylin Leach, author of Pennsylvania's Marriage Equality legislation, will debate Senator John Eichelberger (R- Blair County), author of the so-called "Marriage Protection Amendment" this Friday on Philadelphia's WHYY at 10 AM. The debate will air on the program, Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane. Internet listeners can tune in here to listen live. Tune in to WHYY on Friday (or check out the podcast when it is archived) for insight into this intriguing dialogue. [Link]

The Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial: My Marriage Equality Bill

The Philadelphia Inquirer
June 4, 2009
Pennsylvania State Senator Daylin Leach discusses the freedom to marry legislation he plans to introduce to the state Legislature: "My hope is that by introducing this bill now, we'll start the discussion to bring the day of equality closer."[Link]

Pa. Senate to Mull Conflicting Measures on Freedom to Marry

Philadelphia Inquirer
June 3, 2009
Hoping to capture the pro-marriage momentum in other state legislatures, Sen. Daylin Leach (D., Montgomery) today introduced the state's first bill to legalize the freedom to marry for gay couples. "The timing is right for Pennsylvania to be part of the national discussion," Leach said. "I want to make sure the discussion is not lopsided, that gay people know someone is fighting for them." [link]

PA senator to introduce bill for equal marriage rights

Observer-Reporter
May 27, 2009
Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Delaware/Montgomery, announced Wednesday that he plans to introduce a bill that would offer ful and equal marriage rights to same-sex couples in the state. Under this new legislation, Pennsylvania would also recognize same-sex marriages conducted in other states. [Link]

Study says New York Latinos support marriage equality

Times Union
May 5, 2009
The University at Albany released a study on Tuesday polling the Hispanic population of New York and surrounding states. The New York Latino Research and Resources Network (NYLARNet) surveyed more than 1,200 Hispanics in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Jose Cruz, director of NYLARNet, said the study found half of Latinos in those states supported marriage equality or civil unions despite only 18 percent identifying themselves as liberal. (Link)

Filmmakers roll tape on small-town documentary

The Philadelphia Gay News
February 6, 2009
In their forthcoming documentary, “Out in the Silence,” D.C. filmmakers Joe Wilson and Dean Hamer chronicle the lives of several LGBT residents of Oil City, Wilson’s hometown, after the couple published their wedding announcement in the local paper -- and ignited a firestorm. [Link]

The Next Page: Marriage -- an informed conversation

Pittsburgh Post Gazette
September 21, 2008
On Saturday, citizens across the state will gather at four universities to address a question that has occupied legislatures and courts across America for much of the last decade: Who should be allowed to marry? (Link)

Anti-gay marriage ban likely dead in PA Senate

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
May 7, 2008
Faced with staunch opposition in the House, Pennsylvania Senators who sponsored anti-marriage legislation asked to table the bill indefinitely. (Link)

Gay marriage ban moves to full Senate

Patriot News
May 5, 2008
Pennsylvanians and lawmakers rally to protect marriage as an anti-marriage constitutional amendment is expected to be brought for a vote on Wednesday in the state Senate. (Link)

Seminary chief: Anti-marriage bill a 'step back'

Lancaster New Era
April 29, 2008
Riess W. Potterveld, president of Lancaster Theological Seminary, testified in front of the Pennsylvania legislature and said, "Clearly, what is proposed in Senate Bill 1250 is a step backward into language of denial, devaluing, delegitimizing and in its simple wording, in my opinion, conceals a wellspring of toxic and prejudicial feeling." (Link)