LGBT rights
Supreme Court to hear widow's challenge to Defense of Marriage Act
Because of DOMA, Edie Windsor had to pay over $363,000 in federal estate tax after her spouse died
Federal appeals court in Boston rules 3-0 against DOMA
Great news today, DOMA is unconstitutional says federal appeals court in Boston! Our friends at GLAD brought this challenge, and the ACLU joined with 30 civil rights and legal organizations in support.
ACLU of Massachusetts executive director Carol Rose blogged the hearing in April that led to today's decision, and here is more on ACLU work for marriage equality.
On Liberty: There's nothing rational about marriage discrimination
ACLU of Massachusetts Executive Director Carol Rose wrote this blog for Boston.com.
Watching court arguments for and against equal marriage in a federal appeals court in Boston today, I have to wonder how "equal protection under the law" can have any meaning if Congress is permitted to discriminate against an entire class of Americans.
At Liberty: Friday, March 16, 2012
Freedom is more fun!
And we aim to prove it, by highlighting ways that people are using their
freedom of expression and other liberties.
A good theme song for GOP presidential contender Rick Santorum's strait-laced views on topics such as contraception and premarital sex might be God Wants Us to Wait, the stern opening track on Love at the Bottom of the Sea. That's the latest album by The Magnetic Fields, who began their climb to alternative acclaim more than 20 years ago in Boston. They return to play the Berklee Performance Center on Saturday, April 7.
"All the cool girls are lesbians"
The following entry, written by ACLUm Online Communications Coordinator Danielle Riendeau, was also cross-posted at Boston.com's On Liberty blog.
True or false? If you are a public high school student in Massachusetts, you have a right to display that phrase on your t-shirt--or many messages that others might find "political," "offensive," "controversial," or "disruptive."
The answer: true. Even though school administrators at Lynn English High School told a student she could not wear the shirt there, they were wrong. Both Massachusetts law and the First Amendment protect a student's right of free expression unless the student "substantially and materially" disrupts the school. (The Supreme Court has carved out some exceptions under the First Amendment, but they don’t apply to this situation.)
