As federal courts continue to strike down states' bans on same-sex marriage, it is inevitable that Supreme Court will soon weigh in on the issue. Lawyer Paul Smith, who was part of the team that successfully overturned DOMA, predicts that the Court will rule in favor of same sex marriage within one to two years.
In light of the still-ongoing controversy regarding LGBT groups’ efforts to march in Boston’s St. Patrick’s day parade, I’d like to revisit the 1995 Supreme Court case that upheld the parade organizers’ right to exclude such groups.
The St. Patrick’s day parade has a long history in Boston. The City of Boston was the official sponsor of the parade until 1947, at which point Mayor Curley granted authority over the parade to the South Boston Allied Veterans War Council, a group of individuals from various South Boston veterans groups. Nonetheless, the City continued to fund the parade, and allowed parade organizers to use the City seal until 1992.
In 1992, a group of Boston residents formed the Irish-American Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Group of Boston (GLIB). [Read More…]
