Equally Speaking
The following is a transcript of HRC’s morning news webcast "Equally Speaking." To view the current videos visit the main Equally Speaking page.
Good morning, and thanks for tuning in to Equally Speaking, your morning dose of GLBT news from the Human Rights Campaign for Monday, April 7th. I’m Shelena Williams.
And I’m David Paul. First up, news about a new HRC initiative.
Today is the first day of HRC’s “Seven Days to a Better Financial You” educational campaign. All this week, HRC is holding a series of events that draw attention to the unique financial and legal challenges faced by the GLBT community as a result of being unable to marry. To learn more about the “Seven Days” campaign, visit hrc.org.
A federal appeals court has ruled that a roommate matching website violated California law by requiring people state their sexual orientation before doing business with them. The court found that asking such a question on the internet is no different than asking it in person or by telephone. The ruling allows a pending lawsuit to proceed against the roommate website.
Kansas City, Missouri’s city council has voted to extend anti-discrimination laws to protect expressions of gender identity. Mayor Mark Funkhouser said that he will sign the measure into law. Kansas City joins more than 90 municipalities, 12 states, and Washington, D.C. in providing gender identity protection.
A Texas court has denied motions for summary judgment in the case of a transgender woman who had a job offer withdrawn after a background check disclosed her sex as male. A summary judgment is a ruling issued without trial based on undisputed facts. The case will now proceed to mediation, and if no resolution is reached, it will then go to trial.
A Canadian man who was convicted for knowingly spreading the HIV virus has been given an 18 year prison sentence. Carl Leone pleaded guilty to 15 counts of aggravated sexual assault after failing to inform his sexual partners of his HIV status. Five of the 15 are now HIV-positive.
A proposed amendment to the Arizona constitution that would ban same-sex marriage will most likely not appear on the ballot in November. The bill initially appeared to have enough support for passage. However, just before the House vote, a clause was added that would grant unmarried couples, both same and opposite sex, many of the rights of marriage but without the name.
That’s the news from us today. Thanks for tuning in to Equally Speaking.
Have a great day, and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow morning.