Thursday, April 4, 2013

Roe v Wade, DOMA and You

The North Dakota legislature just passed a personhood bill it now heads to the voters.  If the voters pass this law it will effectively outlaw abortion in North Dakota.  This gives an unborn fetus the status of a citizen.  This is the version the North Dakota Legislature just passed.
Provide equality and rights to all human beings at every stage of biological development.
This law could have some unforeseen effects that could play in our advantage.  I see the words, "Provide equality and rights to all human beings..." and I think that if this law is voted into their constitution it could in theory give all LGBTQI folks equal marriage within North Dakota. 

Forty years ago Roe v Wade made abortions legal in our country, and since that glorious day, the anti-abortionist have been whittling away at the rights to have an abortion with nonsensical laws and rulings.  While 68% of Americans are for allowing abortions, the antis are in full steam making it nearly impossible in many states to find a doctor, or a Planned Parenthood Clinic that will provide this service.  Here is a good link that talks about this. 

Now, I bet y'all are sitting there wondering why I'm talking about personhood bills and run arounds to Roe v Wade.  What I fear will happen is that the moment DOMA is struck down, the attacks on equal marriage will commence.  That states with legislatures stuffed with the GOP will find a loophole, a work around that will restrict either equal marriages, or access to benefits that opposite sex marriages are entitled to. 

I think the first court case out of the box in many states, will be the religious angle of not wanting to provide health care, death benefits, etc to same sex partners, just like they are attempting to opt out providing birth control under the Affordable Health Care Act, due to "religious reasons".


In states where anti-discrimination laws haven't passed, LGBTQI will suffer discrimination when trying to access rights granted by the federal government for all legally married couples, and only win their legal rights thru long drawn out court cases.  The courts are going to be stuffed full of court cases trying to wrestle rights given to us by the feds, and taken away by the states.

The blue print to fight against equal marriage is in place, they only have to implement it.  Unless the justices word their ruling against DOMA very narrowly we could be in for a very very long fight.  By allowing the states input into abortion they handed the religious right a law that is as permeable as cheese cloth. 


4 comments:

  1. I fear you are correct, unless the SCOTUS rulings are far reaching, which seems unlikely.

    I long for the day when the far-right, fundamentalist idiots just die out. They are a dying breed.

    Peace <3
    Jay

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  2. I don't think the ND law would have any positive effects for us, as the anti-LGBT forces already argue that we have equal rights to marry people of the opposite sex and that LGBT is a behavior, not a state of being, so we really don't deserve any rights. :-(

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  3. This is why I'll likely never leave California. Even though I don't have all of my rights, I'm unwilling to give up whatever protections I have.

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  4. I think it might get worse before it gets better, but I think time, and the growing push for equality by our politicians and citizens, will make this happen.

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