Just out., August 17, 2007, Page 19, Image 19

AUGUST 17.2007
lustoutia
FLORIDA
Leaders Put Pressure
on Commission
U.S. Rep. Susan Davis, D-Calif., chairwoman of
the House Armed Services Subcommittee on
Military Personnel, said she will hold hearings
on "don't ask, don't tell."
AT YOUR HEART OUT,
A coalition of 16 national queer rights organi­
zations urged the Fort Lauderdale City Commission
and the Broward County Commission to pass
resolutions condemning Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim
Naugle’s anti-gay comments.
The coalition’s Aug. 2 letters, endorsed by the
largest and most prominent national queer organi­
zations, state that since Naugle made his defama­
tory comments in his official capacity, it is up to
the commissions to officially and formally respond
and assure the public that he does not reflect the
views of either Fort Lauderdale or Broward
County.
Naugle came under fire for claiming the city’s
proposal to buy a $250,000 robotic toilet for the
beach would reduce “homosexual activity” in
public restrooms. He reportedly went on to say that
he used the term “homosexual” rather than “gay”
because, in his estimation, homosexuals are
“unhappy.” He has also been quoted as saying he
agrees that “homosexuality is a criminal act.” He
erroneously said that Broward County had the
nation’s highest number of new HIV infections
among gay men.
OKLAHOMA
Restrictive.Adoption Law
Struck Down
versial judicial nominee of President Bush. The
vote prompted one California Democratic con­
gresswoman to threaten to oppose any re-election
plans Feinstein has.
“It would he unconscionable for Congress to
confirm Leslie Southwick to a lifetime seat on the
federal bench,” said Matt Foreman, executive
director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task
Force. “That fact that this nomination has gotten
this far is an outrage, given Southwick’s highly
troubling civil rights record.”
With her vote, Feinstein joined Republicans on
the committee with a 10-9 vote to send the nomina­
tion to the Senate floor. Congressional Republicans
have asserted that all controversial matters should
require 60 votes.
Other liberal groups joined in the protests
against Southwick, including Nan Aron, president
of Alliance for Justice, an association of civil rights
and consumer advocates. A spokeswoman for
NGLTF said Feinstein was usually a reliable ally.
Southwick is a former Mississippi Court of
Appeals judge seeking a seat on rhe Fifth U.S.
Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.
Opponents say Southwick’s voting record in 11
years on the state court overwhelmingly favored
businesses over workers and consumers.
In one case, a worker was reinstated after the state
employee had called his co-worker a racial slur. In
another case, an 8-year-old child was reportedly
removed from the home of her bisexual mother
because of her “homosexual lifestyle.” Southwick also
signed another judge’s opinion that described homo­
sexuality as a “choice that carries consequences.”
In a statement read by Feinstein at the hearing,
she said Southwick had received the American Bar
Association’s highest evaluation for his candidacy
and had taken leave from his court in 2004 to serve
with the Judge Advocate General’s Corps in Iraq.
Her vote was also criticized by members of the
A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
10th Circuit rejected the Oklahoma Department of
Health’s challenge to a lower court decision strik­
ing down an Oklahoma law so extreme that it
threatened to make children adopted by same-sex
couples in other states legal orphans when the
families are in Oklahoma. The Aug. 6 ruling is
important not only in Oklahoma, but also to fami­
lies across the United States, including in Seattle
and Houston, home to two of the families who
joined in the suit.
“Today’s decision supports the lower court’s
finding that same-sex couples who choose to adopt
are entitled under the U.S. Constitution to have
their relationships with their children respected in
every state,” said Lambda Legal’s Ken Upton, lead
attorney on the case. “The Adoption Invalidation
Law was reckless legislation that jeopardized the
safety and well-being of children and undermined
parents’ rights.”
The Oklahoma commissioner of health sought
review of a part of the judgment that required the
Department of Health to issue an amended birth
certificate to the adopted child of a same-sex
couple that accurately reflected both women as the
child’s legal parents. The court rejected the chal­
lenge and affirmed the judgment requiring
issuance of a proper birth certificate. The 10th
Circuit panel also agreed with Lambda Legal that
the law violated the Full Faith and Credit Clause
of the U.S. Constitution.
. Neither the governor nor the attorney general
of Oklahoma challenged the trial court’s decision
that struck down the anti-gay Adoption
Invalidation Law. The appellate court’s decision
also requires the Oklahoma Department of Health
to issue a birth certificate to the daughter of a same-
sex couple in Oklahoma accurately listing the
names of both parents. ©
Congressional Black Caucus.
Compiled by J aymee R. C uti
dU “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” is gone. In
its place is the 2007 Street of Dreams. Come and visit
the luxury home tour that even Mr. Leach would
admire. Join us every Thursday from 4pm-7pm for
music and wine tasting at our Wine and Jazz Series.
STREET^ DREAMS
Pn'nnJt) JOHN L SCOTT
BASCO UnUtr’i Afpiuvintj
NW NATURAL
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