By Dawn Wolfe Gutterman
LANSING – The first hearing in National Pride at Work v. Granholm, the suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union's LGBT Project to protect domestic partner benefits for gay and lesbian state and municipal employees, will be held Tuesday, Aug. 16. At stake is the issue of whether or not Proposal 2, the anti-marriage amendment passed last November, can be used as a reason to take away health insurance and other important benefits from LGBT-headed families and prohibit such benefits from being offered in the future.
The hearing, originally scheduled for July 21, was delayed so that Governor Jennifer Granholm could seek alternate council. Granholm supports domestic partner benefits while Attorney General Mike Cox, who would normally defend the state against the suit, does not. (See "Proposal 2 suit delayed until Aug. 16" online at www.pridesource.com.)
According to a report by the Gongwer News Service, Granholm has dropped a motion to dismiss the suit because of a motion by Cox to become a separate party in the case, allowing the two to argue their different takes on the law.
"The question is whether the proponents were right when they said that Proposal 2 wouldn't affect domestic partner benefits – now we want to find out if that is true," said Granholm spokesperson Liz Boyd.
During the campaign, anti-gay proponents claimed that Proposal 2 was about defining marriage, period. Now, many of the same people advocate taking away essential benefits from families headed by gay couples.
At the hearing, Judge Joyce Dragonchuk will hear the ACLU's motion for summary disposition.
"We're saying, based on our pleadings, that you can render a judgement in favor of our position," said Jay Kaplan, the staff attorney for the ACLU's LGBT Project, who added that Granholm's office has filed a brief in support of the plaintiffs' position.
Cox is asking that the court dismiss the case with a ruling against domestic partner benefits for families headed by same-sex couples, said Kaplan.
Kaplan stressed the need for the LGBT community and allies to be in the courtroom on Aug. 16.
"It's important … as a show of support of the position that this amendment wasn't intended to deny domestic partner benefits. It's important that the courtroom be filled with people who support this position," said Kaplan.
Come support the ACLU as they fight for LGBT rights. The hearing will be held at 3 p.m. in the courtroom of Judge Joyce Dragonchuk, located at 313 W. Kalamazoo in downtown Lansing.
For more information or to make a contribution to the ACLU's LGBT Project, call 313-578-6815 or visit http://www.aclumich.org.
Learn More
The ACLU of Michigan has released "Families Under Attack: Real Stories of Michigan Families" aimed at educating the public about the issues encountered by LGBT families on a daily basis. To read the publication visit http://www.aclumich.org/pubs/storyproject.pdf. (requires Adobe Reader)
