Newsletters
Gay Men and Lesbians as Foster Parents
Civil rights advocates say that sexual orientation discrimination occurs when a state refuses to place a foster child with a single man because he is gay or when a lesbian couple is not permitted to provide emergency foster care because of their sexual orientation. At least two states have laws or regulations prohibiting gay men or lesbians from serving as foster parents. Those opposed to such laws and policies cite reports indicating that children raised by lesbian or gay parents--either as single parents or as same sex partners--seem to receive the same level of care and concern as do children raised by heterosexual parents. Proponents of permitting gay men and lesbians to provide foster care also point to the critical shortage of foster care providers.
The Right to Privacy and Screen Scrapers
A "screen scraper" is a program that automatically picks up data on one page or website and copies or moves it into another. Also known as "screen grabbers," these types of software record a computer user's activities, including keystrokes, websites visited, and desktop applications used. Privacy advocates and many consumers have expressed concern that the collection and sharing of data and computer usage habits can be readily and quickly abused, without a consumer's consent or knowledge. A federal court has approached a screen scraping case by looking to the provisions of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, while a state court has looked to the law of trespass.
Sexual Orientation Discrimination in Housing
The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits intentional discrimination in the rental, sale, and financing of housing due to a prospective renter or buyer's race, color, national origin, sex, religion, disability, or family status. The term "sexual orientation" is not among those traits protected by the Fair Housing Act. As a result, the Fair Housing Act does not offer protection against sexual orientation discrimination.
Marriage Protection Act Proposed
As civil rights advocates voiced their disapproval of the federal Defense of Marriage Act and similar state measures, supporters of such laws realized that challenges to the constitutionality of the laws were inevitable. Hoping to avoid these challenges, some federal legislators wrote a bill called the Marriage Protection Act of 2004. In July 2004, the United States House of Representative passed the Marriage Protection Act. As of November 2004, the bill had not yet been passed in the Senate. It is anticipated that proponents of the bill will likely face an uphill battle in the Senate. Civil rights advocates say that if the Marriage Protection Act does become law, it would be the first time that Congress has completely "stripped" all federal courts from considering a federal law.
"Defense of Marriage" Laws
About 38 states enacted "Defense of Marriage" laws after the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) became law in 1996. The federal DOMA defines marriage only as a union of a man and a woman. Some of the state Defense of Marriage laws explicitly refuse to recognize a civil union or same sex marriage entered into in another state or country. Some state laws go even further by making no legal recognition of same sex couples. Currently, only Massachusetts permits same sex marriage. Vermont law provides for civil unions.
