Battle Over Prop 8 Moves to Federal Court

Wedding spending, lower health costs help city, he says at trial

(NEWSER) - The Proposition 8 trial took a break from intangibles like constitutional rights and discrimination yesterday to focus on cold, hard economic facts: Gay marriage is a moneymaker, argued San Francisco’s top economist. Because married people are on average healthier and wealthier than singles, legalizing gay marriage would reduce health care expenditures and increase payroll taxes, said Edmund Egan. And the bump in weddings would line the city’s coffers. More»

'Being gay means I'm unequal' under marriage ban

(NEWSER) - The gay couples seeking to overturn the California ballot measure that prohibits them from marrying took to the witness stand on today’s first day in court, with one, Paul Katami, charging that “being gay means I’m unequal” as long as marriage is defined as being between a man and a woman—and thus Proposition 8 violates constitutional guarantees of equal protection. More»

Witnesses will be called for first time in federal case

(NEWSER) - Gay marriage will have its day in federal court today, in an unprecedented trial that’s expected to reach all the way to the Supreme Court. The case, Perry vs. Schwarzenegger, challenges Proposition 8 on the basis that it violates the US Constitution’s guarantees to equal protection. It’ll be the first time in any lawsuit that witnesses have taken the stand to claim a right to, and argue the merits of, same-sex marriage. More»

(NEWSER) - One of California's biggest and most influential gay rights groups says it will delay a ballot push to overcome the state's ban on same-sex marriage until 2012, the Los Angeles Times reports. Equality California, which led the failed effort to defeat Prop 8 in November, says there is too little time to raise the millions of dollars necessary for a 2010 offensive. More»

Campaigners hope to repeat success in changing Asian attitudes

(NEWSER) - Campaigners seeking to bring legalized gay marriage back to California believe their success in Chinatown points the way forward, Reuters reports. The state's Asian communities swung in favor of gay marriage faster than any other group over the last decade as advocates worked to bring taboos into the open and tailor their message towards different cultures. They hope similar tactics will help change attitudes in the black and Latino communities. More»