Wyoming House committee rejects civil unions

Timothy Kincaid

January 30th, 2011

From the Star-Tribune

Legislation that would have made Wyoming the third state to recognize civil unions narrowly failed in the House Judiciary Committee on Friday.

The 5-4 vote to defeat House Bill 150 came after hours of impassioned testimony from supporters who said civil unions would give same-sex couples basic rights and opponents who claimed civil unions were a thinly disguised stepping stone to gay marriage.

Some who voted against the bill left open the possibility of support for a differently worded bill.

But state Reps. Bob Nicholas, R-Cheyenne, and Frank Peasley, R-Douglas, who cast the deciding votes against the bill, opposed the proposal not on ideological grounds, but rather because they worried the wording of the bill — which almost exactly mirrored the rights and responsibilities Wyoming law lists for marriage -– could lead to legal pitfalls in the future.

In the meanwhile, I would support a petition to have Wyoming change it’s motto from “Equal Rights” and it’s nickname from “the Equality State”.

And with Wyoming’s bill to ban recognition of out-of-state relationships, I would just love to see California, New Jersey, and others pass a truth in advertising law that requires all tourism advertising in the state to warn residents that their legal rights and contracts will not be honored.

Pomo

January 30th, 2011

I just emailed tourism@visitwyo.gov

Hello,

Not that I have a great impact on your tourism but I am canceling my trip to Wyoming and yellowstone this summer. Recent action in your capital has made my partner and I not feel welcome in your state. Within the last month a bill to grant LGBT citizens in Wyoming basic legal rights for their relationship was killed in the house committee. Whats worse, your legislature has just passed a ban on recognition of out-of-state same-sex relationships. So if something happened to one of us while we were there, who knows what kind of legal nightmare we would encounter. Laws and attitudes like that don’t make your state very welcoming to outsiders. So much for your state motto… I’ll take my vacation dollars elsewhere.

regards,

Gay Activist Ryan

January 30th, 2011

Wyoming’s motto should be now called:

“Where we treat gays like unequal pieces of shit and everyone else is equal”.

I just found out the motto called the “the equality state” – started because Wyoming was the first US state to allow women the right to vote way back in 1887!!!!!

It really makes me ANGRY to be treated like a second class citizen every day – even today in 2011!!!!

Gay Activist Ryan

January 30th, 2011

Remember back in 1998 Matthew Shepard got bashed in that state – I see now NOTHING has changed since!!!!!!

Gay Activist Ryan

January 30th, 2011

Pomo you are ALWAYS welcome in beautiful Vermont!!!!!

Spend your tax and tourist dollars there!!!!!

customartist

January 31st, 2011

I wonder what those “legal pitfalls” might be?

Doesn’t Washington State have “everything-but-marriage”, and has there been a tsunami or has Mt. St. Helens blown it’t top off again?

– I think not.

and Ryan,
Thanks! for that bit of history. Nice!

Wyoming – NOT the Equality State!

Overall, why are we voting on Civil Rights in the first place? Whether it be Gay issues or others, this is wrong.

I’ll put all of my available contributions into the Prop 8 Case for now. Our rights shall obviously not come from the legislatures.

Pomo

January 31st, 2011

@Ryan… thanks! My partner and I spent our tax dollars there last summer and my partner wants to move there now. haha. I’m not ready for those winters but maybe someday…

Ben in Oakland

January 31st, 2011

I just sent this, not that it will do any good.

Your legislature, amidst all of the actual pressing business, felt it had the time and necessity to not only ban same-sex marriage, but to ban recognition of same sex relationships legally entered into out of your state. So much for The Equality State. Apparently, equality before the law applies only to some people, and who could possibly care about the havoc such laws can and have wreaked on the lives of gay and lesbian Americans.

My husband’s– yes, we are legally married– family is coming from Germany this summer to visit. They want to see our wonderful national parks, especially Yellowstone. Ten of us were planning on going to Wyoming. Now we are not. We’ll see Yosemite, and then head north to Oregon.

I will not put my family into the legal jeopardy that being in your state will provide us. I doubt if your legislature gives a rat’s ass about it, and perhaps you don’t either. but sheer meanness is not a good basis for public policy.

This kind of small-minded vindictiveness is the perfect example of why our political discourse is poisoned, our political will is paralyzed, and our country is in obvious decline.

Priya Lynn

January 31st, 2011

Way to go Ben.

Mark F.

January 31st, 2011

Do you boycotters also boycott all other states that don’t have gay marriage or civil unions? Just asking.

Ben in Oakland

January 31st, 2011

On the whole, I tend to avoid most of them most of the time. I decided long ago– say around 2004, for some reason or other — that my tourist dollars were better spent outside of this country.

I’m not perfect on it, but so far I have managed to avoid visiting any truly anti-gay state.

Mark F.

February 3rd, 2011

Ben, do you think California should be boycotted because of Prop 8?

Leave A Comment

All comments reflect the opinions of commenters only. They are not necessarily those of anyone associated with Box Turtle Bulletin. Comments are subject to our Comments Policy.

(Required)
(Required, never shared)

PLEASE NOTE: All comments are subject to our Comments Policy.

 

Latest Posts

The Things You Learn from the Internet

"The Intel On This Wasn't 100 Percent"

From Fake News To Real Bullets: This Is The New Normal

NC Gov McCrory Throws In The Towel

Colorado Store Manager Verbally Attacks "Faggot That Voted For Hillary" In Front of 4-Year-Old Son

Associated Press Updates "Alt-Right" Usage Guide

A Challenge for Blue Bubble Democrats

Baptist Churches in Dallas, Austin Expelled Over LGBT-Affirming Stance

Featured Reports

What Are Little Boys Made Of?

In this original BTB Investigation, we unveil the tragic story of Kirk Murphy, a four-year-old boy who was treated for “cross-gender disturbance” in 1970 by a young grad student by the name of George Rekers. This story is a stark reminder that there are severe and damaging consequences when therapists try to ensure that boys will be boys.

Slouching Towards Kampala: Uganda’s Deadly Embrace of Hate

When we first reported on three American anti-gay activists traveling to Kampala for a three-day conference, we had no idea that it would be the first report of a long string of events leading to a proposal to institute the death penalty for LGBT people. But that is exactly what happened. In this report, we review our collection of more than 500 posts to tell the story of one nation’s embrace of hatred toward gay people. This report will be updated continuously as events continue to unfold. Check here for the latest updates.

Paul Cameron’s World

In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center wrote that “[Paul] Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany.” What the SPLC didn”t know was Cameron doesn’t just “echo” Nazi Germany. He quoted extensively from one of the Final Solution’s architects. This puts his fascination with quarantines, mandatory tattoos, and extermination being a “plausible idea” in a whole new and deeply disturbing light.

From the Inside: Focus on the Family’s “Love Won Out”

On February 10, I attended an all-day “Love Won Out” ex-gay conference in Phoenix, put on by Focus on the Family and Exodus International. In this series of reports, I talk about what I learned there: the people who go to these conferences, the things that they hear, and what this all means for them, their families and for the rest of us.

Prologue: Why I Went To “Love Won Out”
Part 1: What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Part 2: Parents Struggle With “No Exceptions”
Part 3: A Whole New Dialect
Part 4: It Depends On How The Meaning of the Word "Change" Changes
Part 5: A Candid Explanation For "Change"

The Heterosexual Agenda: Exposing The Myths

At last, the truth can now be told.

Using the same research methods employed by most anti-gay political pressure groups, we examine the statistics and the case studies that dispel many of the myths about heterosexuality. Download your copy today!

And don‘t miss our companion report, How To Write An Anti-Gay Tract In Fifteen Easy Steps.

Testing The Premise: Are Gays A Threat To Our Children?

Anti-gay activists often charge that gay men and women pose a threat to children. In this report, we explore the supposed connection between homosexuality and child sexual abuse, the conclusions reached by the most knowledgeable professionals in the field, and how anti-gay activists continue to ignore their findings. This has tremendous consequences, not just for gay men and women, but more importantly for the safety of all our children.

Straight From The Source: What the “Dutch Study” Really Says About Gay Couples

Anti-gay activists often cite the “Dutch Study” to claim that gay unions last only about 1½ years and that the these men have an average of eight additional partners per year outside of their steady relationship. In this report, we will take you step by step into the study to see whether the claims are true.

The FRC’s Briefs Are Showing

Tony Perkins’ Family Research Council submitted an Amicus Brief to the Maryland Court of Appeals as that court prepared to consider the issue of gay marriage. We examine just one small section of that brief to reveal the junk science and fraudulent claims of the Family “Research” Council.

Daniel Fetty Doesn’t Count

Daniel FettyThe FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics aren’t as complete as they ought to be, and their report for 2004 was no exception. In fact, their most recent report has quite a few glaring holes. Holes big enough for Daniel Fetty to fall through.