Equality Matters Picks Of The Week, April 25 - 29, 2011

Equality Matters staff offers our picks for the most interesting, outrageous, or thought provoking stories of the week:

• King & Spalding Back Out Of Defending DOMA: King & Spalding, the law firm that last week agreed to defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in federal court, announced Monday that it would be backing out of its contract due to an “inadequate” vetting process. Conservatives quickly criticized the firm and praised Paul Clement, the firm’s attorney on the case, for resigning in order to continue defending the law.
• Rhode Island Punts On Marriage Equality: Rhode Island House Speaker Gordon Fox has announced that he does not believe a marriage equality bill will pass this year’s General Assembly. Instead, Fox announced he would be sponsoring a civil unions bill that would give gay and lesbian couples the same state rights as married couples. Not surprisingly, the Catholic Church has already come out in opposition to civil unions.
• New Secretary Of Defense Won’t Disrupt DADT Repeal: Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) repeal will continue smoothly despite Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ expected resignation on June 30, according to a recent statement from the White House. Advocates of repeal had expressed concern that Gates’ resignation will come before repeal is finalized.
• Bryan Fischer, Fox Host Discuss Glee’s “Product Placement” Of Homosexuality: A Fox affiliate in Houston invited Bryan Fischer, of the anti-gay hate group the American Family Association, to warn about the threat that Gleeposes to students who might be persuaded to become gay.
• Minnesota Senate Committee Advances Constitutional Amendment Banning Gay Marriage: The Minnesota Senate Judiciary Committee voted 8-4 to advance a bill that would let voters to decide whether to adopt a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in 2012. Same-sex marriages are already illegal in the state.
• Federal Judge Applies Fourteenth Amendment To Sexual Orientation Employment Discrimination Case: A federal judge ruled Monday that a lesbian employee in Ohio could claim constitutionl protection in her job discrimination lawsuit against her county employer:

Though sexual orientation may not be a suspect or quasi-suspect class, the Court finds that constitutional disparate treatment claims alleging sexual orientation discrimination by a public employer at least garner the bare minimum of rational basis review.