Dems Raise Rainbow Flags

Gov't could create civil unions, while marriage would be religious

(NEWSER) - Confirmations, bar mitzvahs—religious institutions mark a number of rites of passage, but marriage is the only one the government has mucked with. As the heated debate over gay marriage continues, two professors ask: Why not take the government out of the equation? Officially, any couple could have a civil union, and "marriage" would be left up to one’s place of worship, Time reports in a look at the idea. More»

(NEWSER) - Five Nigerian lesbians are running for their love after a weekend wedding put them in direct violation of the local Islamic law. Police have issued arrest warrants against Aunty Maiduguri and her four wives, charging them with violating the Sharia law that governs much of northern Nigeria. More»

North Carolina preacher gives an, er, colorful sermon

(NEWSER) - North Carolina pastor Charles Worley has an, er, unorthodox suggestion for how to spread God's love to gay people. "Build a great, big, large fence—150 or 100 miles long—put all the lesbians in there. Do the same thing for the queers and the homosexuals, and have that fence electrified so they can't get out," he suggested in a sermon last week, which was posted to YouTube today and spotted by the Huffington Post and other blogs. More»

And younger generation is much more likely to support gay marriage: poll

(NEWSER) - Nearly two-thirds of Americans support same-sex unions, though not necessarily marriage, a new CBS News /New York Times poll finds. While 38% of respondents said gay couples should be allowed to marry, another 24% said they should be granted legal rights via civil unions, for a grand total of 62% who back same-sex unions. Some 33% said same-sex couples should not be legally recognized at all. More»

Nine gay couples turned away from registry office

(NEWSER) - A lesbian who refused to leave a North Carolina government office without a wedding license was taken away in handcuffs yesterday after what organizers say was the first of many protests against the state's newly passed gay marriage ban . After a march through downtown Winston-Salem, nine gay and lesbian couples—some of them with their children—presented completed forms and identification to the local Register of Deeds office but were refused a license, reports AP . More»