Wow.
According to the Sun Chronicle, the State Department says the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) prohibits them from recognizing his married name: "'We are unable to comply with your request for a name change based on the documentation you sent because of the Defense of Marriage Act ...,' the letter states. 'In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administration bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife.'"
This is an outrage.
Hair-Wynn applied for the passport so he could go to Ghana and work at orphanages educating children about HIV and AIDS. He says he's changing his name back so he can go.
I still can't believe it. I'm sorry to say it, but sadly equal rights does not exist in this country. Shame on us for being so damn intolerant.
Posts
5 comments:
He legally changed his name...it shouldn't have anything to do with his marital status...wtf is this?
i'm asking the same thing, joe. apparently the reason you changed your name is more important to Team George W. Bigot than is the legality of the name change. disgusting.
Joe,
From what I've read, it seems like because he changed his name through the same process as any person legally wed (on his marriage license), it violated DOMA. So, yes, he could change his name through the much harder way, through the courts and at the cost of several hundred dollars, but the fact remains he didn't, and shouldn't have had to.
This actually has been happening from day one of marriage equality in MA. There are 2 ways to change your name in this state - on your marriage license and through a court order.
[George's feds will only take the court order for passports, but they will take the name change for Social Security. All the easier for collecting taxes, don't you know.]
Having taken one of those methods, I had to get my passport in the old name. Thanks, DOMA! It's fun traveling overseas with two different names on ID!!
Apparently, the leg. can pass something to the effect that changing the name on the marriage license is the same as a court order and that can clear it up, but they just haven't gotten 'round to it.
Humph.
Likes Bikes 2
Well why the heck not?
Why are they wasting their time on foolishness like height and weigh discriminatiuon, and leaving married gay people in the lurch like this?
Post a Comment