The Michigan Legislature takes on LGBT civil rights and religious protections
Each Thursday we talk Michigan politics with Susan Demas, publisher of Inside Michigan Politics, and Ken Sikkema, former Senate Majority Leader and Senior Policy Fellow at Public Sector Consultants.
View ArticleConservatives shift attention from LGBT to religious rights
Yesterday the choice of whether to add LGBT rights to the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act was stalled in the House Commerce Committee, and it looks like it will likely stay there.
View ArticleUnequal by law: being gay in Michigan (an update)
It would be foolish to do, but Michigan business owners could put up a “Straights Only” sign in the window. It would be legal. In fact, it’s legal for just about any business to turn away gay,...
View ArticleA little revenge politics at the state House
The state House passed the Michigan Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) yesterday and it’s fair to say it was a little dose of Republican Speaker...
View ArticleDetroit’s bankruptcy exodus, religious freedom bill confusion, and a fragrant...
This week, Jack Lessenberry and Emily Fox discuss Detroit’s pending bankruptcy exit, confusion over the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and a Senate bill that would count the burning of tires, used...
View ArticleProspects for "religious freedom" bill dim as protestors rally
A couple hundred people showed up outside the state Capitol to protest House Bill 5958, which would create a Michigan Religious Freedom Restoration Act.“Five-nine-five-eight is a license to...
View ArticleStateside for Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014
Today on Stateside:Open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act enters its second year. Marianne Udow-Phillips, director of the Center for Healthcare Research and Transformation at the University of...
View ArticleStory of gay high school teacher to illustrate lack of civil rights protections
In Michigan, you can be fired or denied housing for being gay. That's because there are no LGBT protections in the state's Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.
View ArticleJudge says Michigan must recognize same-sex marriages performed last March
A federal judge says 300 gay and lesbian couples are legally married, and the state has to recognize them.They were married on March 21, 2014. That’s the only day same-sex marriages were legal in...
View ArticleWill the Michigan Legislature address LGBT civil rights protections?
Each Thursday, we discuss Michigan politics with Susan Demas, publisher of Inside Michigan Politics, and Ken Sikkema, former Senate Majority Leader and Senior Policy Fellow at Public Sector...
View ArticleFaith-based adoption bills headed to House floor
Legislation that would allow faith-based adoption agencies to refuse to work with LGBT couples or anyone else based on moral or religious grounds is headed to the floor of the state House.A state House...
View ArticleDemocrats continue push for gay rights as same-sex couples celebrate one-year...
This weekend marked the one-year anniversary of the DeBoer decision that briefly legalized same-sex marriage in Michigan in March 2014. To that end, there were some three-hundred one-year wedding...
View ArticleYoung conservatives fight to change party platform on same-sex marriage
The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on the legality of same-sex marriage later this month, and a group of young conservatives is pushing to change the Republican Party platform on gay...
View ArticleMichigan religious freedom bill gets hearing as court hears gay marriage...
On the same day the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments over same-sex marriage, state lawmakers took testimony on a bill that could shape how some businesses react to the court’s ruling.State Sen. Mike...
View ArticleLessenberry explains LGBT issues and no-fault car insurance headlines
This Week in Michigan Politics, Jack Lessenberry breaks down what happened during the U.S. Supreme Court's hearing over gay marriage bans in Michigan and other states, why the state Senate also held a...
View ArticleACLU sues Michigan over transgender driver's licenses
The ACLU of Michigan is suing Ruth Johnson, the Secretary of State, for making it difficult – and sometimes impossible – for transgender people to get a license that accurately reflects their...
View ArticleMichigan can't afford to reject rainbow dollars
The Next IdeaAs a queer man who grew up in Michigan, I sometimes wonder why I decided to come back home. I fled Detroit for New York City after graduating from the University of Michigan in 2006, and...
View ArticleBills would shield faith-based adoption agencies from effects of SCOTUS ruling
Controversial adoption on its way to Governor Rick Snyder would allow faith-based adoption agencies that take public money to refuse to work with same-sex couples. That’s even if the U.S. Supreme Court...
View ArticleNew film about life and death of Shelly Hilliard sheds light on transgender...
On October 23, 2011 a 19-year-old Detroiter named Shelly Hilliard was murdered and dismembered.It happened just three days after she cooperated with suburban police, according to a civil suit filed by...
View ArticlePastors want to create a Christian community open to all
Ken Wilson founded Vineyard Church in Ann Arbor and served on the national board of Vineyard USA for seven years.
View ArticleState Legislature aims to head same-sex marriage off at the pass
State Rep. Todd Courser, R-Lapeer, is attempting to head same-sex marriage off at the pass with a new package of bills that would take secular elected officials out of the marriage business altogether.
View ArticleMichigan's fight over LGBT civil rights heads to DC
Some Michigan activists are lobbying members of Congress to pass civil rights protections for LGBT people.The Equality Act of 2015 would ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender...
View ArticleU.S. Senator wants honorable discharges for gay service members kicked out of...
U.S. Senator Gary Peters wants service members who were forced out of the military for their sexual orientation to have their statuses upgraded.Peters is co-sponsoring the Restore Honor to Service...
View ArticleLady Ace Boogie says hip hop is broken and she's going to fix it
Linda Tellis is known as Lady Ace Boogie in west Michigan’s hip hop scene. She is a community activist and is trying to change what she calls the “broken” world of hip hop.Tellis turned her life around...
View ArticleBallot committee seeks to add LGBT protections to MI constitution
A bipartisan group is forming a ballot committee to put gay and transgender rights into the Michigan Constitution.“Fair Michigan” wants to add protections based on gender, gender identity, and sexual...
View ArticleWould Michigan voters approve LGBT civil rights in 2016?
There’s a fierce debate happening right now in Michigan’s LGBT community.Some activists are launching a big campaign to put civil rights for lesbian, gay and transgender people on the ballot. But...
View ArticleSupreme Court won't take appeal from fired state lawyer
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - The Michigan Supreme Court won't get involved in the case of a state lawyer who was fired after hounding a gay student leader at the University of Michigan.
View ArticleWhy you won’t see a LGBT-rights question on the MI ballot in 2016
The ballot campaign to add LGBT and women’s rights to the state constitution is kaput, at least for this year.Suspending the campaignThe Fair Michigan campaign succumbed to the reality this past week...
View ArticleThousands weigh in on new LGBT guidelines for schools, amid controversy
By Friday afternoon, more than 3,000 people had submitted online comments about the State Board of Education’s new recommendations for how schools should support LGBT kids.These are just draft...
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