Five years ago, Iowa's Supreme Court overturned that state's same-sex marriage ban. A couple dozen states face lawsuits challenging various forms of anti-gay discrimination, now bolstered by the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling last year that the Defense of Marriage Act served "no legitimate purpose" in disparaging and injuring the personhood and dignity of same-sex couples.
Two Rapid City women who have been in love and together for thirty years are about to cast South Dakota through the same-sex equality floodgates:
At a first-floor customer service window at the Register of Deeds office, Nancy Robrahn and Jennie Rosenkranz, who have been together for more than 30 years, were denied a marriage license application.
"Jennie and I would like to get married," Robrahn, 68, said to the county worker.
The county employee then denied their request for an application, citing the state's ban.
"Which is a travesty," Robrahn responded. "Which is just an absolute discrimination."
...Once Robrahn and Rosenkranz get married — which they plan to do later this year in another state — they'll return to South Dakota and file a lawsuit that will challenge the state for not recognizing their marriage certificate and the benefits that come with it [Joe O'Sullivan, "Rapid City Couple Prepares to Challenge Same-Sex Marriage Ban," Rapid City Journal, 2014.03.13].
O'Sullivan notes that marriage licenses allow couples to enjoy "automatic inheritance, child custody and hospital visitation rights, medical decision-making powers, access to family insurance policies, standing to sue for a spouse's wrongful death, and immunity from having to testify against one's spouse."
Allowing our committed neighbors these rights and privileges is important. But so is stopping the needless insult of looking at people who say, "We're married!" and saying "No, you're not!"
Speaking of illegitimate insults, Bob Ellis calls Robrahn and Rosenkranz "tyrants." I don't see how Robrahn and Rosenkranz are wreaking any tyranny over me. The gold rings didn't slide off my wife and I's fingers after the Iowa ruling. Those rings are no looser this morning after Robrahn and Rosenkranz's announcement. Those rings will stay remain just as firmly when the South Dakota Supreme Court pronounces Nancy and Jennie wife and wife. I don't call them tyrants; I call them neighbors who set a good example for anyone looking to build a lasting marital relationship.
Nancy, Jennie, be sure to rent a big hall to celebrate (1) your marriage and (2) your inevitable triumph in the courts over South Dakota's gay marriage ban. And order lots of cake.
Good for them! I've been waiting for this to happen.
I couldn't be more thrilled that these brave ladies are taking this on. This means a lot to so many people.
Some busybodies just don't have enough to worry about.
I hope these women will avail themselves of the assistance of the ACLU office in Sioux Falls if needed.More power to them! Huzzah and hurrah!
I only wish you two the best in this major endeavor you are undertaking. I certainly wish that SDak would NOT always be last in everything. If people would only realize that we people are born this way, and is not a choice that we made at birth!!! Does a mentally challenged person chose that lifestyle at birth???
In the early 70's I was mad about a wonderful man, that I met on a blind date. There was a lot of distance between us, but we wrote and occassionally called. He went to USD and I went to SDSU and we did not see each other often. One week end he said he was going to visit and we needed to talk. Of course, being the naïve person I was then, I thought he was going to take the relationship to the next level.
To shorten it up again. That week end he told me he loved me, but was gay and we had a discussion, in which he allowed me to ask any question I wanted to.
So.... I needed to do a paper in one of my sociology courses and it was on homosexuality. Believe me, I dug deep.
I found a lot of research then, back in the early 70's, that homosexuality was the way you were born, not a mental disease, not something you just wanted to try, not a .......
For years there has been factual information, but I think it has been hidden or discounted.
It has broken my heart so many of my friends and others have had to live in the closet and be treated as deviants.
Finally..... There is a fight and maybe we will have equality, but having been a "bra burner" I know it will be a long time and a real struggle.
I applaud those women and men who will fight this discrimination.
Hippies. BAH.
Careful grudz, I'm old hippie!!
Now tiptoe through the tulips, dude.
Like anyone cares what Bob Ellis says anymore. He's just soooo 2000s.
I love old hippies, such as myself.
I clicked on the link to Ellis' blog and left a comment asking how gay marriage damages my marriage. He and his amen chorus have lots of conspiracy theories and anecdotal stories about the pending collapse of American civilization but nothing backed up by facts or cogent Constitutional arguments.
There's Pusher's and there's Preachers
What they do is just insane
Separate you from your common sense
And try to steal your brain
A pusher gets into your head
To see what they might find
A preacher does the exact same thing
They push drugs of a different kind
Let's not forget there's others
They all deserve respect
They push alcohol and pharmaceuticals
And them killer cigarettes
You can't escape these people
Your mind and cash they want to own
The only way you stand a chance
Is to keep it all homegrown
Now you do this and you do that
But we'll tell you when and how
Why do our legislators
Equate a woman to a cow
Now you've heard the whole damn thing
I guess I've had my say
Just one last thing like gas I pass
And then I'll go away
We can only live our own lives
We should have that our own way
But pushers, preachers, and legislators
Keep screwing with my day
The Blindman
We love you, Blindman!
Bob Ellis in the comments. Talk about projection:
"If someone can't deal with reality after it's been laid out on a silver platter in crystal clear detail, there's nothing to be gained by dancing around the truth any longer. Someone like that is simply a closed-minded, bigoted ass--in the truest definition of each word. "
Ellis and his ilk remind me of a kid I grew up with who was happiest when he got the best presents at Xmas
...until someone else got the same thing - then he wanted better.
It was the same with his first car - his was great - until one of us got the same kind - then his was no longer "cool" enough, and he badgered his folks for a better one.
Same with his house later in life.
He was only happy as long as his house was bigger and/or newer than any of ours.
He's still that way: he's only happy as long as he has something the rest of us don't.
Oh Blindman, you have done it again! Will your wife let you marry me yet?
Oh please oh please oh please!
I just read the Bob Ellis link and holy crap!
This guy is the epitome of what is wrong with South Dakota, fortunately there are the Jennie's, Nancy's and the young Josie Weiland to challenge his archaic opinions with reality and sound logic.
Republican wingnuts have been having coronaries right and left the past couple of days on various blogs and comment sections of local papers, they are about to bleed to death because two women went to "their" courthouse to apply for a marriage license.
These wingnuts are full of whimper and whine knowing that the gay marriage avalanche is unstoppable.
Deb, let me answer that this way.
We have this little rat terrier named. Kow Kow. She is six years old and feels no need to socialize with any other dogs, and no other humans except for Belinda, unless she wants something me. In the last four months she has found a new habit that pisses me off to know end. If she wants me to do something she will set and stare at me.
Now, it doesn't matter how much you yell at her, until you get up and do whatever the little bitch wants you to do she will set and stare. You can do anything you want, read, watch tv, or try to out stare her it doesn't matter she just looks straight at your head, never blinking and never looking away. I can actually feel her eyes on me when I try to not pay attention to her.
Well Belinda has found out how much that kind of thing gets under my skin. Ten minutes ago I found out where Kow Kow got this bad habit. I had read your post to the both of them. Neither female seemed to have any interest, nothing was said. There was no, that's funny, or she can have you, there was nothing.
Then it happened. I was trying to find a movie on Netflix and Belinda was at the computer. All of a sudden it felt just like it does when Kow Kow does her thing. I looked down but the Kow was asleep on the floor, but when I looked over to the computer desk, there was Belinda starring at me.
Like a dumb ass I said "what" to which there was no answer so I continued looking for something to watch. Then I could feel it again, those eyes. I looked again and there was Belinda just starring at me.
She knows how mad I get at the dog when she does that to me and yet here my wife was doing the same damn thing. I told her " why are you doing that it's starting to piss me off,"
She still didnt say anything for about ten seconds or so, she just continued to stare at me. Then in what I can only describe as her most business like voice she said, "I'm exploring the possibility of rental income." Then she got up and poured herself a cup of coffee like nothing ever happened. WTF
What am I chopped liver?
The Blindman
Blindman-were you Uncle Shel Silverstein in a past life? Maybe an acquaintance,perhaps,maybe?
You can see, Roger, why I don't give Bob Ellis much attention here. Most of what he writes simply recycles the national talk-radio karaoke, with little connection to practical South Dakota issues. But when he does turn his attention to specifics in South Dakota, he wages a particularly hostile verbal warfare, treating real South Dakotans like the bogeymen he hears on the radio.
"What am I chopped liver? "
.
On a good day, Bill! Great stuff man!