obergefell

In this week's episode, Brett and Nazim talk about all the good things and the bad things that may be about Bostock v. Clayton County, the recent landmark decision by the Supreme Court holding that employers cannot fire LGBT employees under Title 9.  Law starts at (03:28).

Brett and Nazim are on their best behavior this week, as the episode deals with three LGBT cases that the Supreme Court decided to hear for next term.  The main case R.G. & G.R. Funeral Homes v. EEOC, deals with the interpretation of Title VII regarding sex discrimination, and the episode serves as a primer to more detailed discussion next term.  The law starts from the very beginning, inappropriate jokes are bleeped out, and the Avengers talk is at an all-time low.  Just try not to get to used to it.

Editor-in-Chief, Jared Grubow, sits down with Professor Gregg Strauss (UVA) to discuss his paper, What's Wrong with Obergefell, an Article that dives into the rhetoric of the landmark opinion, Obergefell v. Hodges, authored by Justice Kennedy, and why it is harmful to society.

Original release July 2, 2015.

Encore release November 23, 2018.

Encore release August 16, 2017.

We discuss the Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, with special attention to the bitter dissents seemingly aimed at delegitimizing the Court itself. We also look at the more-or-less predictible reactions by conservative politicians and pundits. Events are unfolding in various states aimed at resisting or slowing implementation of the ruling, and it's a sure bet this will be playing out until the election next fall.

Plus: Another victory! The Oklahoma Supreme Court rules that a Ten Commandments monument on the statehouse grounds is a violation of the state constitutions prohibition against the use of funds to benefit--either directly or indirectly--religion.

Meet Kim.  Hub founder and leader for years, she recently took the opportunity to visit the Secular Hub and speak about gender identity.  Societal norms on the subject are in the process of a great and substantial shift and it's thanks to all those who have stood up to fight for basic human rights and dignity for so many years.

The fight is never over, however, and it's people like Kim who have fought and continue to fight.  

Meet Kim.  Hub founder and leader for years, she recently took the opportunity to visit the Secular Hub and speak about gender identity.  Societal norms on the subject are in the process of a great and substantial shift and it's thanks to all those who have stood up to fight for basic human rights and dignity for so many years.

The fight is never over, however, and it's people like Kim who have fought and continue to fight.  

After careers in teaching, training, IT consulting, and real estate, Jim Obergefell is now an LGBTQ activist, speaker, and author. Jim is also the co-founder of Equality Vines, the first cause-based wine label that supports organizations devoted to civil rights and equality for all.

Jim is the named plaintiff in the landmark Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges, a decision that brought nationwide marriage equality to the United States on June 26, 2015. Jim and his husband John launched their legal battle with the State of Ohio to demand recognition of their lawful marriage on John’s impending death certificate. John died of ALS three months after their first court hearing, and Jim continued the fight along with more than thirty other plaintiffs from four states.

Since the ruling, Jim has continued his work as an activist and as a speaker with Keppler Speakers. Jim co-authored the book Love Wins with Debbie Cenziper, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist with the Washington Post. Love Wins is about the lovers and lawyers in this historic Supreme Court case, and it was published by William Morrow/Harper Collins. Temple Hill Productions. Fox 2000 bought the movie rights to ‘Love Wins’ and will produce a feature film based on the book.

Jim is a member of the Board of Directors for SAGE, the nation’s oldest and largest organization devoted to advocacy and services for elder LGBTQ Americans. Jim is also a member of the National Advisory Board for the GLBT Historical Society.

Jim has been honored with awards from organizations such as Equality Florida, Equality North Carolina, the ACLU of Southern California, Cleveland Stonewall Democrats, Trinity College (Dublin, Ireland), the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, SAGE, the Ohio Democratic Party, the Santa Clara University School of Law, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, the City of Cincinnati, and more. Foreign Policy magazine named Jim one of its 2015 Global Thinkers, and Out magazine named Jim to its 2015 Out 100 list.

This week's episode takes a deep dive into Justice Anthony Kennedy, including his background, his famous decisions and how similar he is other noted Republican-but-also-super-liberal Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.  Brett and Nazim also discuss how his writing on the same marriage cases may affect the transgender rights cases likely to be arriving within the next year.  The law false-starts around (04:47) but then goes for real at (07:22).

This week's episode covers two foreign policy cases that speak to broader issues about Substantive Due Process, Marriage and the President of the United States.  Kerry v. Din discusses the Due Process rights of a person who is denied entry into the United States and Zivotsky v. Kerry addresses whether or not Congress or the President can recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.  While both cases are important in their own right, Dinn presents an interesting foreshadowing into the Same Sex Marriage decisions and Zivotsky allows Brett to trick Nazim into supporting Donald Trump's presidential campaign.

Recently, our own United States of America had a watershed moment. An injustice so deeply ingrained into what we've called society, what we've called family, what we've called "real and respectable” with one fell swoop, became righted as a matter of not just public policy, but as law.

The Supreme Court's decision on Obergefell v. Hodges granted marriage equality for all persons, and while the rest of the country's legal structure catches up to the new reality, we're seeing a vocal minority of polyamorous people... and a surprising amount of popular media address the possibility of multiple partner marriage… Poly marriage.

We welcome Cunning Minx back to the Swingset, where she and Dylan step on their soap boxes and bring up Justice Roberts’ dissent’s thoughts on a plural marriage slippery slope, Justice Kennedy’s majority opinion based on fundamental rights instead of the expected equal protection. We discuss what marriage is anyway and what it represents between us as people, us as the government, and us and our beliefs. We look at where polyamorous groupings and families are vulnerable and what marriage, or a set of contracts granting protection, or possibly an incorporation would do to protect them.

Also… we discuss why we’re in the “Reefer Madness” stage of the general public recognizing what polyamory is.

Some articles that might interest you since they informed our discussion (for better or worse… THANKS MEDIA):

http://thefederalist.com/2015/07/06/polyamory-is-bad-for-kids-polyamorists-and-society/#disqus_thread

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/07/case-against-polygamy/397823/?utm_source=SFFB

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/07/10/heres-why-people-are-arguing-over-whether-polygamy-is-the-next-gay-marriage-debate/

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2015/06/is_polygamy_next_after_gay_marriage_chief_justice_roberts_obergefell_dissent.html