A  wrap of news, issues and events which may impact or affect the GLBT  segment of society. The issue of same-gender relationships and legal  status continues to loom as the major story for those who are GLBT.

The  Supreme Court is scheduled to listen to arguments on the issue of  same-gender equality in March. Mexico is moving toward nationwide  same-gender marriage legalization. American society seems to be shifting  its mood and support for same-gender equality.

First let's look at what is happening south of the border from an article on Policymic.com:

Mexico's  Supreme Court has ruled that a law in the southern Oaxaca state, that  bans same-sex marriages, is unconstitutional, paving the way for  same-sex couples to marry in that state and possibly in the rest of  Mexico. In a unanimous decision on Wednesday, the tribunal struck down  an Oaxaca state law that declares that "one of the purposes of marriage  is the perpetuation of the species."

In its ruling, the court  declared that to restrict marriages to the union of one man and one  woman "violates the principle of equality."

Currently, same-sex  marriage is only legally allowed in Mexico City, where a same-sex  marriage law was enacted in 2010. The court's ruling comes from a  lawsuit filed by three gay couples against the state of Oaxaca. Despite  the historic influence of Catholicism on Mexican culture, gay marriage  advocates are celebrating this ruling as a momentous milestone for human  rights.

“It’s a big advance [and] a large step for other  claims that will surely come in time,” said Antonio Medina, an activist  who helped lead the fight for couples’ rights in Mexico City to Salon on  Wednesday. “It’s a significant step, without a doubt.”

You can read the full article here: http://policymic.com/articles/20275/gay-marriage-oaxaca-mexico-supreme-court-rules-in-favor-of-same-sex-couples

From BuzzFeed.com we get some insight to the upcoming Supreme Court hearings on both  California's Proposition 8 and the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA):

The  Supreme Court has set a schedule for one of the key cases in its docket  for next year, requesting the first filings in a lesbian widow's  challenge to the Defense of Marriage act for the day after President  Obama's inauguration.

The court order also made clear the  complexity of the case reaching the Supreme Court over the Defense of  Marriage Act's federal definition of "marriage" and "spouse."

The court in a Friday order has separated the briefing in Edith  Windsor's challenge to DOMA into two portions: one focused on the merits  of the question of whether DOMA is constitutional and the other focused  on the questions the court has asked regarding whether it even has the  authority to hear the case.

The first filings are slated for  Jan. 22 and will come in two parts: the House Bipartisan Legal Advisory  Group (BLAG), established by Republican leadership, will argue defense  of the law on the merits; and Vicki Jackson, a court-appointed lawyer,  will make the case that the court lacks jurisdiction.

Responses  from the Obama administration, BLAG and Windsor to Jackson's arguments  will be due by Feb. 20. These will be technical arguments about whether  the Obama administration's decision to agree with the Windsor that the  law is unconstitutional makes this no longer a case that the court can  hear and whether BLAG — as a part of the legislative branch — has the  constitutional ability to be a party to the case.

Then, on Feb.  22, the Obama administration's brief on the merits of the case is due.  Windsor's merits brief will be due four days later, on Feb. 26.

The final briefs replying to the above arguments will be due on the  merits of the case from BLAG and regarding the jurisdictional questions  from Jackson or others within 30 days of the previous brief but due at  the court "not later than 2 p.m. one week before the date of oral  argument."

In addition to the Windsor challenge to DOMA, the  court also is hearing the challenge to California's Proposition 8. No  additional instructions from the court about the briefing in that case  have been issued, so the opening brief, which is to address both merits  and jurisdictional questions, is as of now due from the proponents of  Proposition 8 on Jan. 22.

For more on the Supreme Court scheduling: http://buzzfeed.com/chrisgeidner/supreme-court-sets-schedule-for-lesbian-widows-do

Finally this in from Gallup about how Americans are changing their opinion about same-gender equality:

Inheritance Rights for GLBT - 78% say yes   18% say no

Health Insurance and Employee Benefits for GLBT - 77% say yes  20% say no

Adoption Rights for GLBT - 61% say yes  36% say no

Full survey results are here: http://gallup.com/poll/159272/americans-favor-rights-gays-lesbians-inherit-adopt.aspx

From  the Cornfield, step-by-step, day-by-day, living life as one's self and  not in a militancy of in-your-face, acceptance, tolerance and equality  will one day come to all people no matter one's sexuality.