National Gay and Lesbian Task Force collection of Media Reports on Same-sex Marriage, 2004 General Election
Scope and Content of Collection
This collection consists of newspaper clippings and printouts of articles posted to newspaper and other media websites ("WebClips") documenting GLBT-related issues in the last quarter of 2004, in particular the political battle over constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage put before voters in 11 states (Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon and Utah) in the general election of November 2 (Louisiana and Missouri voted on, and passed, similar amendments earlier in the year). The newspaper clippings relate almost exclusively to the issue of same-sex marriage and the role the NGLTF played in the political battle. The webclips, taken from a wide variety of websites (including newspapers, television and radio stations, and organizations), cover a broader range of other GLBT issues, many of them local, in which the also NGLTF played a role.
Dates
- Creation: September-November 2004
Creator
- National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (U.S.) (Organization)
Access
The collection is open to researchers. There are no access restrictions.
Publication Rights
Researchers wishing to publish materials must obtain permission in writing from ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives as the physical owner. Researchers must also obtain clearance from the holder(s) of any copyrights in the materials. Note that ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives can grant copyright clearance only for those materials for which we hold the copyright. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain copyright clearance for all other materials directly from the copyright holder(s).
History
The GLBT community has challenged the legal restriction of marriage to opposite-sex partners since at least 1970, when the Reverend Troy Perry, founder of the predominantly GLBT Metropolitan Community Church, presided over a ceremony between two women, issuing a church marriage certificate that would have exempted the couple from obtaining a marriage license had they been a man and a woman. Other efforts to circumvent the legal restriction were subsequently undertaken in Minnesota (1971), Kentucky (1973), Boulder, Colorado (1975), Washington, DC (1990), and Ithaca, New York (1995).
GLBT efforts to obtain legal recognition of same-sex marriage increased in the decade between 1995 and 2004. In 1996, the Supreme Court of Hawaii's consideration of a measure that would have legalized same-sex marriage in that state created considerable controversy. In response, anti-gay sentiment in the US Congress led to the passage of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which gives states the right to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages enacted in other states and denies federal benefits to same-sex marital partners. The measure passed even though same-sex marriage had not yet been made legal anywhere in the US, and despite the fact that it appeared to pose a conflict with the Constitution's provision for full faith and credit.
Despite the passage of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, the GLBT community's efforts continued, meeting with increasing success:
Extent
2 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Newspaper clippings and printouts of articles on posted to newspaper and other media websites ("WebClips") documenting the political battle over constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage put before voters in 11 states (Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon and Utah) in the general election of November 2, 2004.
Arrangement
The materials are arranged by format (newspaper clippings and webclips), then chronologically by the date of publication.
Acquisition Information
Gift of the Sheri Lunn, former Communications Director, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, September 2008.
Processing Information
Collection processed by Lilly Insalata, October 18, 2008.
Processing this collection has been funded by a generous grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
Subject
- National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (U.S.) (Organization)
- Title
- Finding aid of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Collection of Media Reports on Same-sex Marriage, 2004 General Election Coll2008.055
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Lilly Insalata
- Date
- © 2008
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in: English
Repository Details
Part of the ONE Archives at the USC Libraries, University of Southern California Repository
909 West Adams Boulevard
Los Angeles California 90007 United States
(213) 821-2771
askone@usc.edu