Republican delegate files to repeal same-sex marriage ban in Virginia
Republicans killed the Democratic efforts to repeal the ban earlier this year.
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Hm.
Republican Del. Tim Anderson (Virginia Beach) filed a bill for the upcoming General Assembly’s legislative session that would repeal the ban on same-sex marriage in Virginia. This law has already been ruled unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court but the ban still remains on Virginia’s books. The provision was placed into the Constitution 16 years ago and defines marriage as being between a man and a woman.
As pointed out by the Virginia Progressive Legislative Alert Network, Anderson recently sued to have “Gender Queer” removed from children’s book sections. “Gender Queer” recounts the author’s journey from adolescence to adulthood and their exploration of gender identity and sexuality, ultimately identifying as being outside of the gender binary.
On the lawsuit that was eventually dismissed by a judge earlier this year, Anderson said:
"This was never never about trying to ban gay literature or trans literature," Anderson said. "This was simply just saying these have really sexual explicit content and it's not appropriate for kids."
The editorial section of the Virginian-Pilot recently criticized Anderson for the lawsuit and connected it to the tragedy that happened at Club Q in Colorado. The Pilot said efforts like the one from Anderson to remove this book from children’s libraries as an example of the “exhaustive and relentless opposition” that LGBTQ Americans face.
Anderson referred to the editorial as fiction. “The connection is as fictional as the belief the Pilot has an ounce of journalistic integrity,” Anderson said. :The premise, that the lawsuit sought to ban Barnes and Noble from selling Gender Queer is false. The lawsuit sought limited relief, which is not to sell the book which contains extreme graphic sexual images to minors. Protecting children from adult content is not anti-LGBTQ and certainly had nothing to do with the Colorado shooting.”
Anderson then said he plans to continue to protect children from a “woke, Marxist liberal mob.”
Democrats have been trying to repeal this ban for years but Republicans have blocked them each step of the way. Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) and Del. Mark Sickles (D-Fairfax) plan to introduce a repeal of the ban again. Their efforts earlier this year were defeated by the Republican-held House of Delegates.
“The same Virginia Republicans who have made life hell for LGBTQ Virginians are trying to paper over their Fear the Queer hate campaign by supporting half measures to clean up the bigotry they put into Virginia’s constitution 15 years ago. Don’t fall for it,” said Kevin Saucedo-Broach, a staffer for Del. Alfonso Lopez (D-Arlington).
While the Supreme Court made these types of bans illegal in 2015, advocates are worried that the current Supreme Court could overturn that decision as they did with Roe v. Wade earlier this year.
Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in June that the court should review and reverse previous “errors” under the 14th Amendment right to equal protection.
This will continue to be a developing situation throughout the upcoming session and possibly beyond. The resolution would have two be approved by the General Assembly in 2023 and 2024 since it is in Virginia’s Constitution.
Executive Schedule
9:30 AM: GOVERNOR GLENN YOUNGKIN ATTENDS CABINET MEETING
1:30 PM: GOVERNOR GLENN YOUNGKIN RECEIVES BRIEFING FROM SECRETARY OF FINANCE STEPHEN CUMMINGS
3:30 PM: GOVERNOR GLENN YOUNGKIN RECEIVES BRIEFING FROM SECRETARY OF EDUCATION AIMEE GUIDERA
6:00 PM: GOVERNOR GLENN YOUNGKIN DELIVERS REMARKS AT CITY OF CHESAPEAKE CANDLELIGHT VIGIL
LOCATION: Chesapeake City Park
Would-be state senate candidate Cheryl Turpin files lawsuit alleging unconstitutional filing fee - Richmond Times-Dispatch
by Charlotte Rene Woods
Former delegate and would-be candidate for Virginia’s 7th Senate district Cheryl Turpin, D-Virginia Beach, has filed a suit against the governor, a state senator, election officials and the Democratic Party of Virginia after failing to qualify for the district’s upcoming special election.
On Nov. 15, Gov. Glenn Youngkin and President Pro Tempore of the Senate Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, issued writs to declare a special election in Virginia’s 7th Senate district.
Virginia skill-game lawsuit pushed back again over disputed budget amendment - Virginia Mercury
by Graham Moomaw
In the hundreds of pages of legal documents filed in a Southside Virginia courthouse as part of a closely watched gambling lawsuit, an image from “Star Trek: The Next Generation” succinctly captures what the surrounding legalese is about.
It shows the android character Data standing at a craps table in a spaceship casino, using superior robotic precision to throw winning dice rolls over and over.
Theoretically, a human could try to become so skilled they achieve similar dice mastery, a gambling consultant working with the state of Virginia wrote. But in the real world, no matter how much players want to believe they’re in control, a dice roll is fundamentally a matter of chance, not skill.
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