Marriage Equality USA

Follow Us

Stay Informed
A Historical Look
After Marriage
Faith
Medical and Science
Publications and Tools
Resources
Transgender

Resources
Publications and Tools

AMICUS BRIEFS

  • All Children Matter: Condensed Version Public policy should serve the interests of all children. However, there are 2 million children being raised by LGBT parents--children from all walks of life, living in almost every U.S. county -- who have become collateral damage of ideology and laws designed to hurt LGBT people. All Children Matter is the most comprehensive look to date at these children; how they are failed by society, government and the law; and how simple changes to unfair laws can begin to ensure we are giving all children the chance to reach their full potential.
  • Chipping Away at Equality - A report and resource guide issued by the Human rights Campaign (HRC) for journalists which compiles more than two dozen new, sweeping and seemingly-coordinated pieces of legislation in more than a dozen states across the country -- all geared toward undermining LGBT equality in a shroud of religious language. Released 6 February 2015.
  • Census Snapshot 2010 provides data related LGBTQ couples and families compiled by the Williams Institute from the 2010 United States Census.
  • How to Change Your Public Position on Marriage In March 2012 Third Way released a publication aimed at guiding politicians through the process of changing their public stance on marriage equality in a way that shows strength, not weakness.
  • Human Services for Low-Income and At-Risk LGBT Populations This report from the Williams Institute discusses what is known about low-income and at-risk LGBT people and their interactions with human services, especially services funded by ACF, and identifies important areas for further research.
  • Partners Task Force for Gay & Lesbian Couples A national resource for same-sex couples, containing more than 200 essays, surveys, legal articles, and resources on legal marriage, ceremonies, domestic partner benefits, relationship tips, parenting, and immigration.
  • Public Support for Marriage for Same-sex Couples by State April 2013 by Andrew R. Flores and Scott Barclay, The Williams Institute.  From the Executive Summary: Around the issue of same-sex marriage, there has been a slate of popular and legislative actions in a number of states in the past four years. Some states have supported marriage recognition for same-sex couples while other states have prohibited it. The marked differences among states on this issue raise three questions: the current position of each state's general population on the legality of same-sex marriage, how it differs across the 50 states and District of Columbia, and its change since 2004. This research brief seeks to directly address those three questions.
  • Religious Landscape Study May 2015 from Pew Research finds that of 35,000 American adults the Christian percentage of the population is dropping precipitously, to 70.6%. In 2007, the last time Pew conducted a similar survey, 78.4% of American adults called themselves Christian.
  • Same-Sex Couples and Marriage: Model Legislation for Allowing Same-Sex Couples to Marry or All Couples to Form a Civil Union August 2012 by Jennifer C. Pizer and Sheila James Kuehl for the Williams Institute. From the Intro: Marriage and other relationship protections for same-sex couples and their families are becoming increasingly common in the United States. While more state legislatures are amending their state statutes to allow same-sex couples to access the protections and obligations of marriage, the approaches taken vary from state to state. The inconsistency of state laws is confusing and creates complications for same-sex couples and their families, businesses, and state and local governments. The Model Marriage Code and Model Civil Union Code are designed to improve consistency by offering model bill language for states wishing to offer comprehensive state-law protections and obligations to same-sex couples, and the analysis provided here places these Codes in a social science and policy context.
  • Same-Sex Marriage Rights: A Timeline 1970-1998 This material is an Equal Marital Rights for Same Gender Couples educational/advocacy resource of the United Church of Christ. This is a good timeline. United Church of Christ congregations have permission to reproduce this resource for use in the local church.
  • Same-Sex Planning Tool The Same-Sex Planning Tool provided by nerdwallet helps couples navigate the maze of state and federal laws that govern marriage for LGBT couples. The tool outlines the 7 essential legal documents for couples wanting to protect themselves, as well as key financial and tax considerations facing same-sex couples.
  • Securing Legal Ties for Children Living in LGBT Families The lack of legal recognition for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) families harms children and threatens their ability to thrive. Children may go without health insurance or a parent may be limited in making healthcare decisions for them. Children in foster care are denied permanent homes, even when there are qualified, loving LGBT families ready, able and waiting to adopt. Children may be wrested away from the only parents they know when relationships dissolve or a parent dies or becomes disabled. And they may be unable to access financial lifelines and safety net programs designed to support families during family crisis.
  • Securing Legal Ties for Children Living in LGBT Families: A State Strategy and Policy Guide Examines the outdated state laws—particularly in the areas of marriage and parenting—that largely ignore and routinely harm the roughly two million children being raised by LGBT parents. It provides an overview of the diversity and demographics of LGBT families, looks at how the paths to parenthood for LGBT parents intersect with archaic laws and practices that often leave children without legal ties to both their parents, and explores the ways in which that lack of legal ties hurts children being raised in LGBT families.
  • In addition, Securing Legal Ties for Children Living in LGBT Families (which expands on the content from All Children Matter: How Legal and Social Inequalities Hurt LGBT Families) offers a detailed framework for state policymakers to draft, pass and enact new laws that protect all children--including those living in LGBT families and other contemporary family structures--and recommendations for amending, repealing or overturning discriminatory laws that leave children without the security of legal ties to their parents.
  • 2014 STATE EQUALITY INDEX - HRC. The State Equality Index looks at statewide laws and policies, both positive and negative, in six broad areas – relationship recognition, parenting, non-discrimination, hate crimes, youth, and health and safety – assessing nearly 70 equality-related law and policy measures.
  • State Resource Map from the Williams Institute Click on each state to find state-specific research on issues such as LGBTQ demographics, marriage, parenting, and workplace issues — including state-level data and maps from Census 2010.
  • The Cost of Being Gay  We thank journalist Tara Siegel Bernard and the New York Times for this series, which provides a factual look at the financial realities of same-sex partnerships.