Members of First Church attend rally at State Capitol
By:Charlene McMahon

He said that when members of his church heard that there was going to be a rally at the state Capitol in support of same sex marriage, a group from his church decided to go as a group to the rally.

He said that approximately 20 members of the church attended the "Love Makes a Family" Rally at the State Capitol and stood together holding a church banner as they listened to a series of speakers.

"People (at the rally) were glad to see the church groups there. They found that hopeful and encouraging. I am proud of our church for being there," said Huleatt.

Huleatt said that First Church, considered the oldest church in the state of Connecticut, voted ten years ago to become an "open and affirming" congregation.



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Oklahoma gay couple says ban violates separation of church and state
The Associated Press


OKLAHOMA CITY- Trey Watts and Darin Moore returned from Massachusetts with a valid marriage license and a video camera full of well-wishers.

The Oklahoma City men married May 20 in Somerville, Mass. Watts and Moore are believed to be the only Oklahoma gay couple so far to have wed in Massachusetts, which last week became the first state to legalize same-sex marriages.

Now they're planning a party, complete with video footage of people they encountered while traveling.

The video clips include interviews with strangers they met - people at the airport, on the plane and on the streets of Boston. Those interviewed were asked what they thought of same-sex marriage.


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Durham church leaves NC convention over handling of homosexuality issue
By Steve DeVane

DURHAM, N.C. (ABP) -- A Durham, N.C., church has voted to pull out of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina over the convention's treatment of another congregation that admitted gay members.

The members of Watts Street Baptist Church voted May 16 to end their financial support of the state convention. The decision was mainly in response to the convention's removal of McGill Baptist Church in Concord from its rolls, said pastor Mel Williams.

"We really thought it was a violation of local autonomy," he said. In 1992 Watts Street broke ties with the Southern Baptist Convention.


McGill was removed from the state convention last year for baptizing two men believed to be gay. Officials cited a 1992 convention policy that prohibits accepting funds from "any church which knowingly takes, or has taken, any official action which manifests public approval, promotion or blessing of homosexuality."


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National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Woodhull Freedom Foundation Announce Joint Effort Study of U.S. Sex Laws


May 28, 2004, Washington, D.C. - The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (the Task Force) and the Woodhull Freedom Foundation and Federation (WFF) today announced the launch of a joint project to analyze sex laws throughout the U.S. The project will serve a dual purpose - to educate Americans about the prevalence and abuse of antiquated and unjust sex laws in the nation, and to give grassroots activists policy and organizing tools to work to change these laws.

"This project will be a significant step toward eliminating unjust laws that are used almost exclusively for the purpose of persecuting minorities," said Dr. Mary Frances Berry, Chair of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and WFF board member. "Most Americans are unaware of the sex laws in this country and how those laws are used to selectively persecute individuals simply for their private and consensual sexual expression. We believe that once people are educated on these issues, they will demand change."

The laws which the project will address range from the archaic - like Michigan's law prohibiting unmarried people from having sex and living together - to the grossly unjust - like Kansas' differing age of consent laws based on the gender of the persons involved - to those addressing facially valid public policy concerns - like laws against public lewdness, but which are routinely misused to persecute and prosecute people who participate in non-traditional forms of sexual expression.