LGBT Rights
The ACLU has advocated on behalf of Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender people for over 70 years and in 1986 founded the LGBT & AIDS Project. The LGBT Project fights discrimination and moves public opinion on LGBT rights through the courts, legislatures and public education. The mission of the Project is to foster a society in which LGBT people and people with HIV/AIDS enjoy the basic rights of equality, privacy and personal autonomy, and freedom of expression and association.
ACLU LGBT Staff Attorney Honored for Creative Leadership in Human Rights
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:July 2, 2010
DETROIT -- The National Education Association will present American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan LGBT Project Staff Attorney with the Virginia Uribe Award for Creative Leadership in Human Rights at its Human and Civil Rights Awards Dinner tonight in New Orleans. The award is presented to a nominee whose activities in human rights significantly impact education and the achievement of equal opportunity for those facing sexual orientation discrimination.
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Michigan Appeals Court Says Trial Court Cannot Refuse to Hear Lesbian Mother’s Custody Case
IMMEDIATE RELEASE:February 20, 2009
DETROIT —The Michigan State Court of Appeals today held that a Michigan family court cannot refuse to hear a child custody case simply because it involves children whose parents are lesbians, ruling that there is no gay exception to Michigan’s child custody laws. > Full Story
ACLU of Michigan Applauds Connecticut High Court Upholding Marriage Equality
Immediate Release:
October 10, 2008
DETROIT -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan applauded the Connecticut Supreme Court’s decision today that barring same-sex couples from marrying violates the state’s constitution. The National ACLU, ACLU of Connecticut co-counseled the case with Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders.
> Full StoryACLU Blasts Court Decision Denying Michigan Families Domestic Partner Benefits
IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 7, 2008
Detroit -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan blasted a Michigan Supreme ruling today, which upheld a lower court’s decision that Proposal 2, passed by Michigan voters in 2004, prohibits public employers from offering domestic partner benefits. The majority opinion was written by Justice Steven Markman,which was joined by four other justices with a dissent written by Justice Marilyn Kelly and Justice Michael Cavanagh.
> Full StoryACLU Cautions Insurer Against Denying Churches Coverage Based on LGBT Stance
Immediate Release:
March 7, 2008
DETROIT - In a letter to one of the largest insurers of churches in the country, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan expressed deep concern today over the company’s policy to deny churches coverage based on “controversial” stances.
> Full StoryMichigan High Court Should Protect Healthcare for Families
Immediate Release:
November 6, 2007
Lansing -- At a Michigan Supreme Court hearing today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan asked the court to reject the Michigan Court of Appeals decision that the state’s marriage amendment bars public employers from offering same sex domestic partner benefits.
Michigan Voters Did Not Intend To Deny Families Health Benefits
The ACLU doesn't believe that voters intended to take health benefits away from families when they voted on Proposal 2 in 2004. And this is just what we'll argue in front of the Michigan Supreme Court this Tuesday, November 6.National Pride at Work v Granholm et al is our case asking the courts to declare that the 2004 Proposal 2 does not prohibit public employers from offering benefits to the partners and children of lesbian and gay employees. The ACLU of Michigan brought this case after Attorney General Mike Cox issued a ruling stating his belief that health benefits for same-sex couples were not allowable under Proposal 2. The Ingham County Circuit Court ruled in our favor, but the decision was reversed by the Michigan Court of Appeals in February of this year.
We urge you to do two things:
1) Attend the hearing on Tuesday. The hearing will be held in downtown Lansing at the Hall of Justice, 925 W. Ottawa. The Court begins hearing arguments at 9:30 a.m., but our case will be heard at approximately 11:00 a.m. It is important for the Court to see that real people care deeply about this issue and are affected by the outcome of this case. Read about the people involved in this case here.
2) Write a short letter to your local paper today expressing your support for equality. The most effective letters are brief, heartfelt statements. Tell the editor that all people deserve equal treatment and that it was never the voters' intent to deny health coverage to families. Get letter writing tips and links to Michigan newspapers here.
This is a fight about real people - our friends, our neighbors, our families. Please make your voice heard on Tuesday.
> Full StoryStop Employment Discrimination for ALL Americans
“Take Action Here: Contact Your Congressperson Today to Urge ENDA Support”
Key leaders of the House of Representatives threatened last week to have a quick vote on a bill that would cut from the Employment Non-Discrimination Act the people who most need its protections. Instead of protecting the full gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community, it would cut out transgender workers and threaten protections for any gay or lesbian worker who isn’t “enough of a man or woman.”
Michigan Supreme Court Blocks Suit Challenging Domestic Partner Benefits
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 25, 2007
Detroit -- The American Civil Liberties Union lauded a Michigan Supreme Court ruling today that upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit against the Ann Arbor Public School District. The lawsuit was brought by 17 taxpayers in an attempt to force the school district to discontinue benefits to the families of gay and lesbian employees.
ACLU Encouraged that Michigan Supreme Court to Hear Domestic Partner Case
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 24, 2007
DETROIT -- Encouraged by the Michigan Supreme Court’s decision today granting a request to appeal the Court of Appeals’ ruling that the state’s marriage amendment prohibits public employers from offering domestic partner benefits; the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan will ask the court to remand the case to the lower court to determine voter intent.
> Full StoryACLU Disappointed by Decision to Ban Domestic Partner Benefits, Vows Appeal
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 2, 2007
Detroit -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan is deeply disappointed with the Michigan Court of Appeals ruling to overturn a trial courts decision and conclude that the Michigan’s marriage amendment, which passed in 2004, prohibits public employers from offering domestic partner benefits.
City of Lansing Approves Human Rights Ordinance
Lansing Becomes 14th Michigan City to Ban Discrimination Based on Sexual OrientationDecember 19, 2006
The ACLU of Michigan applauds the work of the Lansing City Council in passing a human rights ordinance last evening by a unanamous vote of 8-0. Lansing's ordinance prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, sex, age, national origin, marital status, familial status, mental or physical limitation, political affiliation, source of income, and sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations. > Full Story
Appeals Court Puts Domestic Partnership Benefits Case on Hold and Fast Track
October 31, 2005 - Press Release
While a court order issued today by the Michigan Court of Appeals puts the ruling on hold that allows public employers to offer domestic partnership benefits without violating the “marriage amendment,” it also allows public entities to continue offering current benefit and negotiate future contracts. The court also ordered the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan case to be put on a fast track.
> Full StoryTransgender Legal Issues for the Non-Attorney
The LGBT Project recently published a booklet on legal issues for the Transgender Community.” Written with non-lawyers in mind, legal topics include making name and gender marker changes to driver’s licenses and birth certificates, bathroom usage, employment discrimination, and validity of marriages.
Click here to read "Transgender Legal Issues for the Non-Attorney"
> Full StoryDomestic Partnership Ruling Should Not Be Appealed
Action Alert - September 29, 2005
Tell the Attorney General, Governor Granholm and Your State Legislators to Give Benefits to Same-Sex Domestic Partners. Take Action Here!
On Tuesday, an
During the campaign, proponents of Proposal 2 denied that the "marriage amendment" would put health benefits at risk. Now, the same forces behind Proposal 2 are claiming exactly the opposite.
The ACLU of Michigan filed suit in April after Attorney General Mike Cox issued a non-binding opinion stating that, under Proposal 2, the state of
This week, Judge Joyce Dragonchuk agreed with the ACLU, representing 21 same-sex couples and their families.
"[This] ruling affirms that
Urge the state to let the court's decision stand. Tell the Attorney General, Governor Granholm and Your State Legislators to Give Benefits Back to Same-Sex Domestic Partners. Take Action Here.
Marriage Amendment Does Not Reach the Workplace
Judge Rules Same-Sex Partners Will Keep Benefits
September 27, 2005 - Press Release
DETROIT -- In a victory for Michigan same-sex couples, a state judge ruled today that public employers are not prohibited from offering domestic partner benefits to employees. The request for a declaratory judgment was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan on behalf of 21 same-sex couples who were in danger of losing health care benefits after the “same-sex marriage” passed in November 2004.
> Full StoryHearing Tomorrow on Domestic Partnership Benefits Lawsuit
August 15, 2005 - Press Release
DETROIT -- At a hearing tomorrow, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan will ask the court to declare that the amendment passed by Michigan voters in November 2004, regarding same-sex marriage, does not prohibit domestic partnership (DP) benefits offered by public employers.
> Full StoryHearing Postponed on ACLU's Domestic Partnership Benefits Lawsuit
July 20, 2005 - Press Release
DETROIT -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan has just been notified that the hearing scheduled for Thursday, July 21 to determine whether public employers may provide domestic partnership benefits following the passage of the “Marriage Amendment” has been postponed.
> Full StoryDomestic Partnership Benefits (National Pride at Work v. Granholm)
Motion for Immediate Consideration of Plaintiffs Appellants Motion for Stay
Final Leave to Appeal
ACLU Appellate Brief
ACLU motion for summary disposition
Governor Granholm's response brief
Attorney General's Motion for Summary Disposition
ACLU reply brief to AG's motion for summary disposition
Attorney General's Motion and Brief to Intervene
University Professors Amicus Brief
University of Michigan and Wayne State University Amicus Brief
> Full Story
ACLU Files Lawsuit on Proposal 2 Denying Same-Sex Partner Benefits
March 21, 2005 - Press Release
DETROIT - At a news conference this morning, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan announced the filing of a lawsuit requesting that the court declare that the amendment passed by Michigan voters in November 2004, regarding same-sex marriage, does not prohibit domestic partnership (DP) benefits offered by public employers.
> Full StoryACLU Disagrees with Proposal 2 Attorney General Opinion
March 16, 2005 - Press Release
DETROIT -- In a statement issued today by Executive Director Kary Moss, the ACLU of Michigan strongly disagrees with the opinion issued today by the Michigan Attorney General regarding Proposal 2, the same-sex marriage amendment voted on in the November 2004 election. According to the opinion, benefits for the same sex partners of municipal employees, currently available in several Michigan cities, cannot be renewed in future contracts.
> Full StoryProp 2 supporters should keep word on allowing partner benefits
November 18, 2004
Six confusing words in new amendment on marriage must not be used to deny health insurance to Michigan's gay families
Jay Kaplan and Kary L. Moss / Special to The Detroit News
This is a sad time in Michigan's legal history. On Nov. 2, a majority of voters approved an amendment to Michigan's constitution. The language, "Only the union between one man and one woman in marriage shall be recognized as marriage or similar union for any purpose" seemed simple, but it isn't.
> Full StoryACLU Saddened By Passage of Discriminatory Amendment
November 3, 2004 - Press ReleaseDETROIT -- In a blow to civil rights and all people of Proposal 2, a discriminatory unconstitutional amendment passed last night.
> Full StoryVote No on Proposal 2 - Get the Message Out
Vote NO on Proposal 2
These documents will provide the information you need to get the message out about this harmful amendment to our state constitution.
Read the op-ed by John Scalise, Chair of the Central ACLU Branch
> Full Story
ACLU Will Investigate Michigan State Police Sting Operation Targeting Gay Men
June 21, 2004 - Press Release
DETROIT -- After receiving information about the entrapment of gay men or men suspected of being gay at a highway rest area, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan announced that it will be investigating the alleged undercover sting operation by the Michigan State Police.
> Full StoryDetroit City Council To Vote on Domestic Partnership Benefits
March 24, 2004 - ACTION ALERT!!!
The Detroit City Council will be voting on whether to provide domestic partner benefits to city employees. Such benefits would be offered to same-sex and opposite-sex partners of employees. The current debate is in follow-up to a 2001 vote by City Council to set up a domestic partnership registry in the City of
The Story Project
Put a human face on LGBT issues be part of
The Story Project.
Send us your story! Identifying information will be kept anonymous upon request. The ACLU of Michigan’s LGBT Project is collecting stories from individuals who have experienced bias because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
> Full StoryHearings Likely on Anti-Same Sex Marriage Amendment
January 16, 2004
ACTION ALERT - UPDATED ON 1/30/04
Michigan’s anti-gay organizations have mobilized to pressure Michigan’s Senators to take action on Senate Joint Resolution E (SJR E), a pending amendment to the state Constitution, by mid-February.
Your help is needed to ensure that the resolution fails.
> Full StoryWrite to Congress Now About Anti-Marriage Amendment
In a televised interview with Diane Sawyer that aired on December 16, 2003 President Bush stated that he would support a United States Constitutional Amendment to ban same-sex marriage.
Given the great influence that presidential support can have on proposed legislation in Congress, now more than ever it is essential that you contact both your United States Senators (Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow) and your Representative (see link to find your representative) to voice your opposition to this proposed amendment.
The proposed federal amendment to the United States Constitution goes much further than banning same-sex marriage (which already is banned by the current federal law, entitled the Defense of Marriage Act). The amendment would ban any form of governmental recognition of same-sex relationships, including civil unions. States such as Vermont which provide for civil unions, as well as California and Hawaii which provide for domestic partner benefits would be precluded from doing so.
Such an amendment would foreclose any constitutional legal challenge to the denial of recognition of same-sex relationships.
The proposed amendment goes against the history and tradition of amendments to our United States Constitution which has been amended only 17 times in more than 225 years. Unlike this proposal which would codify discrimination against a certain group of individuals, the constitution has only been amended to expand the rights of United States citizens. Polls show that a majority of Americans, even those who oppose same-sex marriage, are against tinkering with the Constitution to promote discrimination.
Call your Senators and Representatives and let them know your opposition.
To find your Representative:
http://www.house.gov/writerep/
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
> Full StoryMuskegon Community College President Urged to Allow "Drag Show" on Campus
December 18 - UPDATE
Muskegon Community College has indicated that they will approve the GSA's application to sponsor a "drag show" on campus.
December 17, 2003 - Press Release
DETROIT -- The ACLU of Michigan sent a letter to the Muskegon Community College's attorney today urging the colllege to reverse its position and to permit that a gay student group to stage a “drag” show on campus.
> Full StoryAmicus Brief Filed to Support Ann Arbor Public School District
November 24, 2003 - Press ReleaseDETROIT -- In an unusual coalition of partners, three groups have jointly filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the Ann Arbor Public School District who is being sued by a conservative legal foundation for providing domestic partner health benefits to gay and lesbian employees of the district.
> Full StoryACLU Disagrees with Second Parent Adoption Judicial Recommendations
The Michigan Judicial Institute has just published its Adoption Benchbook, which provides recommendations to judges regarding the interpretation of adoption law. > Full StoryGet Busy. Get Equal Campaign
Click on this new ACLU website created to help you take advantage of one a once-in-a-lifetime chance to make significant changes in the way America treats LGBT people. > Full StoryStop the Drive to Write Intolerance into Michigan's Constitution
August 8, 2003
A drive to amend the Michigan Constitution to define marriage as strictly between a man and a woman, invalidate all local domestic partnership laws and nullify Michigan civil rights protections based on marital status is beginning. State Senator Alan Cropsey, R-DeWitt has announced that he will introduce legislation for a constitutional amendment when the Legislature returns to work in September.
U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Sodomy Law
Striking Down Texas Law Against Same-Sex “Sodomy,” Supreme Court Rights Egregious Wrong of 17 Years, Signaling New Era for Gay Rights
Thursday, June 26, 2003 - Press Release
WASHINGTON - In an historic decision with wide-ranging implications, the U.S. Supreme Court today struck down a Texas law that makes some kinds of sexual intimacy a crime, but only for gay people.
> Full StoryThinking of Getting Married in Canada?
Joint Advisory From Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund, National Center for Lesbian Rights, ACLU Lesbian & Gay Rights Project, and Freedom to Marry - June 2003
On June 10, the high court of Ontario, Canada's most populous province, ruled that the exclusion of same-sex couples from civil marriage infringes human dignity, harms families, and violates the constitution. The court ordered an immediate end to this cruel discrimination. Within hours, same-sex couples began marrying.
> Full StoryMichigan Department of Corrections Agrees to Stop Identifying Prisoners as Gay
April 8, 2003 - Press Release
DETROIT -- At the urging of the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) will no longer identify prisoners as homosexual on prison forms and records.
> Full StoryACLU Urges Court to Disqualify Judge from Second Parent Adoption Hearings
August 7, 2002 - Press Release
Detroit - Tomorrow, a Wayne County Circuit Court will hear the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan’s request to disqualify Washtenaw County Chief Judge Archie Brown from deciding whether or not to allow unmarried couples to adopt based on his declared bias and prejudice on the issue of second parent adoption. The ACLU is representing six couples who had filed second parent adoption petitions in Washtenaw County.
> Full StoryDetroit Settles ACLU Lawsuit Challenging Police Sting Operation Against Gay Men
July 23, 2002 - Press Release
Detroit - The ACLU of Michigan announced today that a settlement has been reached with the City of Detroit in a constitutional challenge of the undercover sting operations in Rouge Park that targeted gay men or men perceived to be gay.
> Full StoryACLU Files Motion Requesting Chief Judge Return Second Parent Adoption Cases
June 14, 2002 - Press Release
The ACLU of Michigan filed a motion today requesting that Chief Judge Archie Brown return the second parent adoption cases to Judge Donald E. Shelton. Judge Brown had removed the cases from Judge Shelton's docket because he disagreed with Shelton's rulings on these kinds of cases. If Judge Brown is unwilling to grant the motion, the ACLU is requesting that he disqualify himself due to bias.
> Full StoryACLU of Michigan and Concerned Attorneys Object to Chief Judge's Directive
Directive Orders District Court Judges to Not Process Petitions for Second Parent Adoptions in Washtenaw County
June 11, 2002 - Press Release
Detroit - Today the ACLU of Michigan, together with concerned attorneys, asked Archie C. Brown, Chief Judge of the Washtenaw County Trial Court, to rescind a directive that he issued on June 4, 2002 to judges within his district. The directive orders those judges to not process petitions for second parent adoptions, including any petitions that are currently pending.
> Full StoryACLU of Michigan Applauds Rosie O'Donnell's Stand on Gay Adoption
March 13, 2002 - Press Release
DETROIT -- On tomorrow night’s ABC’s Prime Time, Rosie O’Donnell will be disclosing her own sexual orientation and how she and her family have been affected by Florida’s law that prohibits gays and lesbians from adopting children. > Full Story2001 Voting Victories for GLBT Rights in Michigan
November 7, 2001 - Press Release
Three victories for GLBT rights in Michigan
Efforts to deny civil rights protections for GLBT persons in Michigan were defeated by Michigan voters on November 6, 2001.
> Full StoryThink Twice Before Giving to the United Way
August 16, 2001Op-ed Appearing in the Ann Arbor News
Do white supremacist groups have a right to bar Blacks and Jews from joining their organizations? Yes, because racism and anti-Semitism are core values of these private groups. Would you give money to the Klan just because it has a right to be racist?
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