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DOMA and the LGBT community
11:00 pm Oct 24 - by Eric Gordon – buzz Writer
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The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) has been a huge talking point for the LGBT community. Even the recent Equality March in Washington had actors and actresses like Cynthia Nixon from Sex and the City mention the need for the end of DOMA and other acts denying members of the LGBT community equal rights.
Passed in 1996, DOMA states that "no state (or other political subdivision within the United States) needs to treat a relationship between persons of the same sex as a marriage, even if the relationship is considered a marriage in another state."
During his campaign, Obama ran on a platform that promised to address the LGBT community's issues with DOMA, as well as the military's "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy. Recent events, however, have indicated that the LGBT community is being forced to wait until after the Obama administration deals with what it is referring to as "other priorities."
Now, after 10 months of waiting, the LGBT community is demanding more of Obama and asking that their rights not be addressed as part of a numbered list of priorities. It is understandable that as a nation we have pressing matters, but perhaps Washington is making more of an effort to avoid the issue. I don't see the obstacles the administration claims are preventing these social changes being addressed by the House and Senate.
Clinton, who was president when DOMA was passed, has even gone on Anderson Cooper to talk about how he feels the decision was a mistake.
According to an article on baltimoregaylife.com, there is a repeal to DOMA that was introduced on September 1, 2009 named the "Respect for Marriage Act."
Once again recognizing the legitimacy of same-sex unions is important, but just one of the many issues that continue to impede the rights of the LGBT community, even after an impressive showing in Washington.
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