CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
The Montana state senate Wednesday, with bipartisan support, voted to remove the state's anti-sodomy law from the books, the Associated Press reports.
The law had been struck down by the Montana supreme court in 1997, six years before the U.S. Supreme Court voided all state sodomy laws, but had remained part of the state's legal code.
The senate approved removal of the law by a 41-9 vote, with 19 of the 28 Republican senators supporting the move. Even though the state Republican platform has called for criminalizing gay sex ever since the 1997 supreme court decision, the AP noted, "A noticeable shift in public opinion over sexual issues in the years since then, and the GOP's support for individual freedoms, led some Republicans to throw their weight behind the often Democrat-backed issue."
Sen. Tom Facey, a Democrat, sponsored the repeal bill, and another Democrat, Sen. Christine Kaufmann, spoke fervently in support of the measure, with references to her relationship with a female partner.
"For 30 years the words in this code have aligned me with people who molest animals," Kaufmann said. "You have many gay and lesbian members of your community who live under these words every day."
LGBT activists saw Wednesday's vote as an important step forward. "We are thrilled to see the Montana senate finally [vote to] remove unconstitutional language that is both hurtful and demeaning to gay and lesbian Montanans from the law books," Jamee Greer of the Montana Human Rights Network said in a statement.
The measure will go through one more vote, largely procedural, in the senate before moving to the house, the AP reports.
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
18 of the most batsh*t things N.C. Republican governor candidate Mark Robinson has said
October 30 2024 11:06 AM
True
After 20 years, and after tonight, Obama will no longer be the Democrats' top star
August 20 2024 12:28 PM
Trump ally Laura Loomer goes after Lindsey Graham: ‘We all know you’re gay’
September 13 2024 2:28 PM
60 wild photos from Folsom Street East that prove New York City knows how to play
June 21 2024 12:25 PM
Melania Trump cashed six-figure check to speak to gay Republicans at Mar-a-Lago
August 16 2024 5:57 PM
If you think Project 2025 is scary, take a look at Donald Trump's Agenda 47
July 09 2024 2:35 PM
Latest Stories
President Biden, HHS Secretary Becerra mark Transgender Day of Remembrance
November 20 2024 6:39 PM
HBO says it stands by J.K. Rowling's 'right to express her personal views'
November 20 2024 6:05 PM
Sir Lady Java, drag artist and activist who performed alongside the famous, has died
November 20 2024 5:57 PM
KUST. unveils 'Thong 01' just in time to stuff for the holidays
November 20 2024 5:45 PM
Remembering queer lives lost to hate
November 20 2024 1:30 PM
Breaking newsletter: Mike Johnson bans trans people from U.S. House bathrooms
November 20 2024 1:21 PM