Another travesty of DoMA

[princealbertofb]

For those of you taking an interest in this question of same sex marriage, here is what the French people seem to think in a recent poll... If you don't read French you'll still see the pie chart. 56% are for giving us that right to marry... So when is the government going to do something about it?
http://www.tetu.com/actualites/france/le...omos-19854

[marshlander]

... here is what the French people seem to think in a recent poll...

The argument for not making any changes seems to be we could always get PACSed. Entering into a Pacte civil de solidarité will not, for example, provide PA and me security when one of us dies (some of you will know stuff to do with death and bereavement is pretty high up in our thoughts at the moment). Straight people who get married in France do not have to jump through expensive extra legal hoops to ensure their spouse is provided for at the time of death. Those privileges come with the marriage certificate. Their joint belongings are not taken by the state and given to surviving parents and siblings before the partner gets a look in, no matter how long a couple has been together. The state does not demand 65% tax on the estate when one partner in a marriage dies. A marriage in the UK would be recognised as a marriage in France. The benefits of a civil partnership do not cross the channel.

Maybe we're supposed to be grateful that we can afford so many luxuries with all our pink euros. :mad:

... if I've understood it all correctly :redface:

[princealbertofb]

Basically, it's time we adopted fairer civil partnerships in France, if they still don't want to call it marriage... let them call it what they want but let them respect our rights (we pay taxes too!)

[azulai]

There was a horrible murder of James Anderson in the motel parking lot in Jackson, MS. Here's an article in the NYTimes about his family filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the teens who mercilessly beat him up and ran him over for those unfamiliar with this tragedy.

But, what I learned today was that Anderson was gay and his partner of 17 years cannot join the lawsuit because of DOMA and MS law!

Horrifying: Domestic Partner of Man Slain in Race-Based Crime Can't Sue Because of Mississippi Law

In Jackson, Mississippi, a carload of white teenagers are alleged to have beaten, robbed and run over an African-American man, killing him, in what appears by all accounts to be a particularly brutal race-based hate crime.

Now, as the truck's driver sits in prison awaiting capital murder charges and his companions may yet face criminal penalties of their own, the family of James C. Anderson is filing suit against the teens for wrongful death.

Another brutal irony in the case is that Anderson was gay and in a long-term relationship, with a daughter. But his partner, who may suffer the most from his loss, cannot join the lawsuit, as the New York Times reports: "James Bradfield, Mr. Anderson’s partner of 17 years, is not a plaintiff. Under Mississippi law, same-sex partners have no claim in civil actions like this, Mr. Dees said."

As blogger Rod 2.0 notes: "the slain man's partner of almost two decades is forced to sit on the sidelines—courtesy of the Defense of Marriage Act and the lack of statewide protections for LGBTs and same-sex couples in Mississippi. Yet another example of Mississippi justice." It's another example of how discriminatory practices on paper can have devastating real-life consequences.