Many gay and lesbian rights activists mark July 4, 1965, as the beginning of the modern gay rights movement.
In front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia that Fourth of July, the first demonstration for gay and lesbian rights was held by activists carrying some of the first signs painted with rainbows and advocating equal rights.
Forty-three years later and some 2,800 miles to the west, activists will be gathering again, this time in Portland, to show their support for gay and lesbian rights Tuesday.
Domestic partnerships were legalized in Oregon by the state legislature in 2007, then quickly taken away in January, only to be reinstated a month later.
The legal rights granted by the legislature could be revoked again this fall.
Nearly 2,000 same-sex couples have registered as domestic partners since the law was reinstated on Feb. 4, but the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments on Tuesday that could put those partnerships on the November ballot.
Gay and lesbian rights activists from the group Basic Rights Oregon have been organizing a presence for the court date.
Back in 2007, social conservatives tried to find a way to stop the domestic partnership law shortly after it was passed by state lawmakers. They sent petitioners throughout Oregon and hit the streets to obtain enough signatures to force a referendum, which would have put a hold on the law and instead put it to a ballot vote.
The Secretary of State’s office threw out the group’s petition in the fall, saying the petitioners fell short of the required number of signatures needed. Organizers had turned in nearly 5,000 more signatures than needed, but ultimately a large portion of them were thrown out during the verification process.
The Alliance Defense Fund, an out-of-state Christian legal defense group, took up the petitioners’ cause and claimed the petition was erroneously thrown out by the Secretary of State’s office. The ADF filed a lawsuit against the state office on Dec. 3.
Supporters of the law say the group’s involvement has nothing to do with democratic petition rights, but is just an attempt to undercut the rights of gay and lesbian people in Oregon.
“I don’t think these people actually care how votes in Oregon are counted. This is just a back door they are taking to get the issue on a ballot,” said Becky Flynn, a local BRO organizer.
BRO activists took the reigns in the charge to defeat the ADF and hired a top-notch elections lawyer to fight the Arizona-based legal group.
The court took no action for weeks, and same-sex couples across the state eagerly awaited the Jan. 2 date when the law would take effect. Scores of gay and lesbian couples planned wedding-like ceremonies and scheduled honeymoons.
In an eleventh-hour action, ADF lawyers filed a temporary restraining order to delay the implementation of the new law.
U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman suspended the law and put those honeymoons and celebrations on hold. He set a Feb. 1 date for both sides to argue their cases, but ultimately ruled in favor of the state.
“We argued that the case was without merit, and after a temporary but dramatic delay, the conservative district judge rejected their demands for special treatment and dismissed their case,” BRO Executive Director Jeana Frazzini said in an e-mail.
Now, the ADF has filed an appeal with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Arguments will begin Tuesday in Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse, 700 S.W. 6th Ave. .
“This is just a last desperate push by (the ADF),” Flynn said.
BRO spokeswoman Karynn Fish said she expects a ruling to come down by the end of July.
If the appellate court overturns the district court’s ruling, the domestic partnership law would be placed on the November ballot, and same-sex couples could once again see the law overturned.
If the appellate ruling does not overturn the lower court’s ruling, then those nearly 2,000 same-sex couples would win another day legally bound together.
However, there’s always the Supreme Court, Frazzini wrote. “Our opponents have long arms and deep pockets.”
[email protected]