Tag Archives: transgender

LGBT, transgender rights

Fairness for All Marylanders Act Passes Senate

The Fairness for All Marylanders Act (FAMA) easily passed the Senate on a 32-15. Sponsored by Sen. Rich Madaleno (D 18) and strongly supported by floor leader Sen. Jamie Raskin (D 20), the bill protects the rights of transgender Marylanders.

The bill was earlier amended by the Senate to strengthen it after it had been weakened, though passed, by the Judicial Proceedings Committee. The bill now heads over to the House of Delegates, which has passed versions of this legislation in previous sessions.

The passage of marriage equality and then the referendum vote by the people of Maryland in favor of it seems to have taken the sting out of LGBT legislation. There is a lot lest angst about voting for this relatively straightforward anti-discrimination bill now that the tide has turned on the LGBT issue which attracts the most press.

Sen. Kittleman (R 9, Howard) was the only Republican to vote yes. Four Democrats voted no: Sens. Astle (D 30, Anne Arundel), De Grange (D 32, Anne Arundel), Dyson (D 29, Calvert, Charles, St. Mary’s), and Mathias (D 38, Somerset, Wicomico, Worcester).

Kittleman voted for the marriage bill and is probably the Republican who represents the most pro-marriage Republican district, as Howard voted strongly for marriage equality. More surprising are the no votes by two Anne Arundel Democrats. Anne Arundel also voted for marriage equality, and presumably more strongly in areas prone to elect Democrats.

The no votes by two Democrats hailing from southern Maryland and the Eastern Shore shock less. Marriage equality lost in both of their districts, though with more support than one might expect. Here is how the Senate voted:

YEA: Miller, Benson, Brochin, Conway, Currie, Feldman, Ferguson, Forehand, Frosh, Gladden, Jones-Rodwell, Kasemeyer, Kelley, King, Kittleman (R), Klausmeier, Madaleno, Manno, McFadden, Middleton, Montgomery, Muse, Peters, Pinsky, Pugh, Ramirez, Raskin, Robey, Rosapepe, Stone, Young, Zirkin.

NAY: Astle (D), Brinkley, Colburn, De Grange (D), Dyson (D), Edwards, Getty, Glassman, Hershey, Jacobs, Jennings, Mathias (D), Reilly, Shank, Simonaire.

Share
LGBT

Wa Times LGBT Obsession

WTpage1

The Washington Times. Who even knew they still printed this rag? It’s like the 1980s are calling and want to know why their paper wasn’t delivered to President Reagan’s Cabinet secretaries.

Yesterday, I happened to have to wait in a place with a copy and turned to the op-ed pages. One column was by a “gay conservative woman” expressing her distress at Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer’s veto of the so-called “religious freedom” bill designed to allow discrimination against lesbians and gays.

Now that Mary Cheney has become pro-gay rights, someone else  has volunteered to fill the gaping flack void.

Of course, the bill would have also permitted Muslims not to serve Christians but that didn’t cross the minds of supporters until after voting for the bill. The threat to Arizona tourism and business caused an avalanche of business Republican opposition and Brewer vetoed the legislation. Capitalism in action.

The letters to the editor included one attacking Attorney General Eric Holder for his strong support of LGBT rights:

By adding his weight to this final insult, Mr. Holder is dragging the “rotten fruit of the sex revolution” across this land, infecting families and children of all creeds.

Meanwhile, the front page has an article about how DC is going to cover gender reassignment surgery for people with gender dysphoria. This article struck me as fair with quotations from both Mayor Vincent Gray and Mara Keisling, the National Center for Transgender Equality.

Still, one is struck by the placement. One suspects that it’s designed to be incendiary rather than because the Times’ editors think this is a good or necessary idea. The Washington Post covered the same topic under Post Local.

Share