ACLU-NJ News - Gay & Lesbian Rights

ACLU-NJ Sues Newark Police for Abusing Transgender Woman

NEWARK — The ACLU-NJ today filed a lawsuit against the Newark Police Department in the case of Diana Taylor, a transgender Newark citizen tormented by officers who harassed her, falsely arrested her, and threatened her safety. Filing its third suit against the troubled department in as many years, the ACLU-NJ called for reforms of the department.

"The police did more than arrest me that day — they took away my rights, my dignity and made me afraid to walk down the street," said Taylor. "I'm fighting for something that's easy to take for granted but impossible to live without — the freedom to be myself and to live my life in peace. I had always thought the police were here to protect me, and I don't want to feel like I need protection from them instead."

The harassment began nearly a year ago, when officers approached Taylor on the afternoon of March 23, 2009. They steered their cruiser into her path, taunted her about her hair, and demanded she show them identification. She didn't have ID on her, but provided her legal name, Christopher Moore. "You're right; I owe you 10 dollars. It is a man," one officer told the other, apparently settling a bet between them about Taylor's gender.

The officers immediately began to torment her, calling her a "chick with a dick," "faggot" and other derogatory names and mocking her with questions about her sexuality as witnesses gathered. Though she had committed no crime, police took Taylor into custody in handcuffs to the precinct. Police searched crime databases hoping they could find grounds to justify arresting her, but her record was clean. Police continued to humiliate her throughout the arrest, including frisking her in a sexually intrusive manner. A lieutenant who had discovered the situation told officers to let Taylor go, but when she asked to file a complaint, the lieutenant dismissed her concerns, explaining the officers didn't mean her any harm.

The officers insisted on driving Taylor home, despite her protests that she lived only two blocks from the precinct and preferred to walk. During the short ride, the officers threatened to unleash gang members living in her neighborhood to confront her if she reported the abuse. Taylor refused to succumb to the intimidation, but it took weeks of trying and numerous phone calls to internal affairs to finally convince someone to take her complaint. Weeks after filing her complaint, however, she received a notice in the mail indicating that the police had cited her for "littering" and "disorderly conduct" — both of which she fought successfully in municipal court.

"The police should serve as a safety net against discrimination and harassment, not engage in it," said Neil Mullin, an attorney with the firm Smith Mullin representing Taylor on behalf of the ACLU-NJ. "Diana Taylor deserves the dignity and the justice the law entitles her to, which is why the ACLU is fighting for her."

The case is captioned Diana Taylor v. Newark Police Department, filed in Essex County Superior Court. The complaint alleges police violated the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination by stopping Taylor from using public accommodations and retaliating against her when she asserted her rights; infringed on her constitutional rights to be free from unlawful searches; and broke laws against harassment and false arrest. The lawsuit demands that Newark establish proper training, supervision and handling of complaints, and seeks damages for the unlawful actions taken by the police.

Seeking to reform the Newark Police Department, which the ACLU-NJ has sued twice before since 2007, the ACLU-NJ called for the department's leadership to discipline problematic officers, train officers comprehensively regarding sexual orientation discrimination, improve the department's shadowy internal affairs division, and, perhaps most importantly, enlist an independent monitor with authority to truly scrutinize the department.

"This is yet another incident of police abuse to arise from Newark's shortcomings in officer training and oversight," said ACLU-NJ Executive Director Deborah Jacobs. "When will Newark's leaders give police misconduct the attention and resources it deserves, what will it take to get there?"

In addition to Taylor, the ACLU-NJ currently represents clients in two other cases of abuse from the Newark Police Department. In June 2008, two young football players and their coach were abused in a traffic stop, and in 2007 a newspaper publisher was arrested until he turned over all copies of photographs taken for his publication, violating his free press rights. The ACLU aims to hold police departments accountable, and also has a long history representing police officers (44k PDF) whose rights have been violated or who have tried to stop corruption as whistleblowers.

On Monday, February 22, 2010 the ACLU-NJ will host a Know Your Rights When Stopped by Police training for members of Newark's LGBT community from 6 - 8 p.m at the Liberation in Truth Social Justice Center at 11 Halsey Street in Newark.

ACLU-NJ and Police Organization Resolve Sexual Orientation Dispute

NEWARK - The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLU-NJ) and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) announced the resolution of a dispute involving two women who were turned away from a fundraising dance hosted by the organization. The women claimed they and their friends were excluded based on their sexual orientation or gender expression.

Towana Christopher

"We are grateful that the matter is settled, but even more, we are grateful that this resolution promises to help other lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals," stated Cheryl Rogers who, along with her partner Towana Christopher, claim that they and friends were not welcomed at a NOBLE sponsored fundraising dance held in April in Edison, NJ. "While no one should have to face discrimination, we are glad that our experience can lead to stronger ties and greater understanding between police officers and the LGBT community."

While NOBLE did not concede that any act of discrimination occurred, the two groups resolved the dispute amicably, with each gaining a better understanding of the other's views. NOBLE will extend outreach to the lesbian, gay, transgendered and bisexual (LGBT) community, and the complainants have agreed to not to pursue any legal action. Both parties expressed an interest to move forward with a strong commitment to equal rights.

"NOBLE understands the destructive power of discrimination, and we handle every complaint with the seriousness it deserves," said Jessie Lee, Jr., NOBLE's National Executive Director. "We welcome this resolution as a way to help better educate all New Jerseyans about their right to be free from discrimination."

NOBLE, recognizing the pivotal role of law enforcement in building ties with the LGBT community, has agreed to expand its outreach by appearing at events to educate the LGBT community about hate crimes laws and bias crimes. The organization will also post a statement on its website each June - to coincide with Pride Month - expressing its support for equal treatment from law enforcement regardless of anyone's sexual orientation or gender expression.

"We are proud that this resolution creates an opportunity for police officers to build a bridge with the LGBT community," stated ACLU-NJ Legal Director Ed Barocas, who represented the two women. "This resolution helps not only the women involved, but the rights of all members of the LGBT community."

NOBLE, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, was founded in 1976 with a mission to ensure equity in the administration of justice in the provision of public service to all communities, and to serve as the conscience of law enforcement by being committed to justice by action.

The ACLU-NJ, based in Newark, implements legal, legislative and public education programs in conjunction with large numbers of volunteers to advance the ACLU's goals of liberty and justice for all.

It's Prom Season ... Know Your Rights!

Spring can be an exciting time for students - prom, senior trips, and graduation are all in the cards. But it can also be stressful and upsetting if you are prevented from taking part in the prom or graduation, or stopped from wearing what you want. These guidelines can help keep your happy memories of high school from being transformed into painful reminders of prejudice.

The First Amendment, constitutional guarantees of equality and New Jersey's Law Against Discrimination protect public school students' rights to choose your prom date and what you wear.

You have the right to bring a same-sex date to the prom.

Public schools cannot require that your date be of the opposite sex.
You do not have to be gay to bring a date of your own sex.
You can't be subject to different rules or standards based on the sex of your date. If there is a professional photographer taking prom portraits, feel free to get one.

Girls can wear tuxedos and boys can wear dresses to the prom.

Public schools can implement certain rules about what to wear at a prom, but they can't be different for girls and boys. So, if you're a boy, you have the right wear a dress, but you still have to comply with school rules about formal wear or skirt length.

Public schools cannot have gender-based dress requirements for graduation.

Just like at a prom, schools can't enforce rules on what to wear based on gender. Girls can't be required to wear dresses under their graduation gowns and boys can't be stopped from wearing dresses.

Yearbooks can't be censored by removing photos of gay students or couples.

Other things to know:

You have the right not to be bullied or harassed.

Your school is required to have an anti-bullying policy in place and an effective way to handle complaints about bullying.

Students have the right to establish Gay Straight Alliances.

If your school has other non-curricular clubs (like the Key Club or Drama Club), you can form a GSA. Blocking a GSA from forming or treating it differently from other non-curricular clubs is against the law.

You can find prom-specific information at http://www.aclu.org/lgbtprom. For more information about student rights, read the ACLU-NJ's Rights of Public School Students (13mb PDF). If you run into any problems over these rights or are disciplined for how you express yourself, contact the ACLU-NJ at 973-642-2084 or http://www.aclu-nj.org/complaint.

Download the ACLU-NJ's The Prom: Know Your Rights (85k PDF) factsheet.

ACLU-NJ Wins Case Allowing Same-Sex Couple To Divorce in NJ

Decision brings state one-state closer to full marriage rights for gays and lesbians.

NEWARK - The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey today celebrated a victory in a case that allows a same-sex couple married outside the state to get divorced in the New Jersey courts.

"While the day a relationship ends is never happy, I am relieved that the courts of New Jersey are allowing us to move on, rather than keeping our relationship status in legal limbo," said LaKia Hammond, the ACLU-NJ client who was granted a divorce in New Jersey today. "Breaking up is painful enough, and I'm happy we won't have to face the hardship of having to fight just to make it official."

Despite Hammond's valid marriage in Canada, the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General argued that the couple should not be granted a divorce. Rather, the state attorney suggested that the couple should be granted "dissolution of civil union." However, as the ACLU-NJ argued, without an actual divorce from their marriage, the couple might still be considered legally married in Canada as well as in U.S. states that recognize same-sex marriages but do not have civil unions.

"The judge properly recognized that if you come to New Jersey with a valid marriage, you are entitled to leave with a divorce," said Lawrence Lustberg of Gibbons, P.C., who, along with Avidan Cover of Gibbons and solo practitioner Stephen Hyland, represented LaKia Hammond as cooperating attorneys for the ACLU-NJ. "Not granting a divorce in this situation would create confusion and undermine the longstanding legal principle of comity, which requires us to respect laws of other countries."

New Jersey Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson recognized that New Jersey accepts all foreign marriages except for ones that are affronts to New Jersey public policy. The Office of the Attorney General could muster no legitimate argument in this case to justify such an exception, especially given that the New Jersey Supreme Court had made clear that allowing marriages of same-sex couples could be permissible in New Jersey.

In fact, the New Jersey Supreme Court held in Lewis v. Harris that the state cannot create a system that imposes greater legal or economic hardships on same-sex couples that are not placed on opposite-sex couples. Not allowing the couple a divorce would have forced them to begin a second legal process to completely end their legal relationship, placing additional economic and legal burdens on same-sex couples.

"This decision is a step in the right direction, but one that never should have had to be made," said Hyland. "The Attorney General needlessly created confusion and legal problems for these couples. She should simply recognize out-of-state marriages -- the only way to ensure equal treatment for couples married outside of New Jersey."

The decision puts into question the legality of the Attorney General's 2007 formal opinion ordering that out-of-state marriages not be accepted as marriages but, rather, be transformed into civil unions.

Today's decision comes just over a month after the New Jersey Civil Union Review Commission, tasked with examining the effects of the 2007 civil union law, determined that the legal category was separate and unequal.

"By creating a separate system of rights and by injecting language and titles not understood or easily incorporated into existing real-life events and transactions, the Civil Unions Law has failed to fulfill the promise of equality," said Ed Barocas in testimony before the New Jersey Civil Union Review Commission, which in December 2008 declared civil unions to be separate and unequal. "The continued injustice for our state's gay and lesbian citizens exists on levels both profound and mundane."

ACLU-NJ Clients Win Victory for Same-Sex Couples

NEWARK - The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey won a victory today on behalf of a couple that was denied use of an Ocean Grove boardwalk pavilion for their civil union reception. The New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, Division on Civil Rights, issued a "finding of probable cause" that the Ocean Grove Camp Meetings Association violated the state's anti-discrimination law.

"The unexpected results of this painful incident have been a renewed sense of community and energy in Ocean Grove, evidenced by the flying of hundreds equality flags, fundraising events, porch parties, and support for local restaurants," said ACLU-NJ client Luisa Paster in a statement from Ocean Grove United, a group of residents committed to civil rights for all. "We now look forward to the Camp Meeting Association lifting its ban on the use of the pavilion and allowing both marriage and civil union ceremonies to take place there on an equal basis."

Harriet Bernstein and Luisa Paster, both residents of the Ocean Grove section of Neptune City, had planned to hold a civil union ceremony at the pavilion shortly after the 2006 civil union law passed. The Ocean Grove Camp Meetings Association, a private body responsible for granting applications to use the site, denied their application, claiming that civil unions violated the group's Methodist principles.

"The Camp Meeting Association could have limited use of the pavilion to its own members," said Lawrence Lustberg of Gibbons, P.C., who represents the couple as a cooperating attorney for the ACLU-NJ. "However, once the Association opens its facility to the general public, then it must remain open on a nondiscriminatory basis."

The Division on Civil Rights ruled that the Camp Meetings Association was not entitled to an exemption to New Jersey's Law Against Discrimination because use of the property was both commercial and publicly advertised, and because the Camp Meeting Association agreed to make the pavilion available for public use in order to obtain a state tax break. The Ocean Grove Camp Meetings Association's tax-exempt status was revoked in 2007 because of its discriminatory practices.

"Just two weeks after the Civil Union Review Commission found that civil unions are separate and unequal, we have a flesh-and-blood case illustrating how couples are treated differently," said ACLU-NJ Legal Director Ed Barocas. "This decision brings us one step closer to stopping a parallel system of unequal rights."

The case will now go before an Administrative Law Judge for final disposition.

The ACLU-NJ also represents Emily Sonnessa and Jan Moore, who likewise sought to hold their civil union in the pavilion. The Division on Civil Rights did not find probable cause in their case because the couple applied to use the pavilion after the Camp Meeting Association closed the pavilion to both civil unions and weddings.

ACLU Applauds Commission's Finding that Civil Unions Are Unequal

The ACLU today applauded the findings of the New Jersey Civil Union Review Commission, which found that civil unions are unequal and urged the State to give same-sex couples the right to marry.

"We agree with the commission's unanimous findings that civil unions are inadequate," said ACLU-NJ Legal Director Ed Barocas. "The commission found that the term 'civil union' is not well-understood by the public, impedes healthcare access and business transactions and places legal rights at risk. It hurts families who travel out-of-state, harms LGBT students and stigmatizes children raised in families labeled with this second-class status by the state. It will likely cost the state millions of dollars each year over nothing more than designating a class of people as unequal. The commission's report stated, "In a number of cases, the negative effect of the Civil Union Act on the physical and mental health of same-sex couples and their children is striking, largely because a number of employers and hospitals do not recognize the rights and benefits of marriage for civil union couples."

The law creating civil unions in New Jersey took effect in February 2007, but the commission's report released today found that civil unions did not give couples the same benefits of a marriage, which the ACLU has argued from the beginning.

"The civil unions law has failed to fulfill the promise of equality," Barocas added. "The law created a separate system of rights by injecting language that is not easily understood and hard to fit into real-life events. The continued injustice for our state's gay and lesbian citizens exists on many levels, from the practical, to the legal, to the profound.

"In addition to addressing the issue of inequality, the commission determined that a marriage law would alleviate disparities, increase state revenues, and help the state's job market, which are critically important during a recession. It seems that the state needs to consider the benefits of marriage to both the people of New Jersey and to its own coffers."

ACLU-NJ Chides Konica for Stripping Relocated NJ Couple's Benefits

Newark, NJ - Seeking to maintain health insurance for a 9/11 survivor, the American Civil Liberties Union today sent a demand letter to the New Jersey offices of Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. (KMBS) urging the company to interpret its policy on domestic partner health insurance so that more employees will have access to the insurance. KMBS currently interprets its policy as requiring employees to re-register as domestic partners with the state every time that they move, even though many states have no way for same-sex partners to do so.

"I'm still working at the same company, doing the same job. Why shouldn't I be able to cover my partner in Idaho like I did in New Jersey? This would never happen to a married couple," said Ralph Martinelli. "Konica wants everyone to think they care about their gay employees, but the way Konica is interpreting its policy is so restrictive that many employees are shut out of the coverage."

Martinelli, a district sales manager for KMBS, where he has worked for five years, was told that he would not be able to continue covering his partner when the couple moved from New Jersey to Idaho last year because there is no domestic partner registry in Idaho. Martinelli and his partner, Robert Ryan, have been registered domestic partners in New Jersey since 2005, and KMBS allowed Martinelli to cover Ryan when the couple lived in New Jersey.

The couple has been paying for COBRA coverage for Ryan since his insurance was cut off in October, 2007, but that coverage is very expensive and ends after 18 months -- in March of 2009. Ryan is working as a seasonal tax preparer and is looking for a full-time position. While he has recovered mostly from the trauma of being in the World Trade Center on 9/11, he still has mental and physical health needs that require regular medical care and expensive medications. Due to the cost of medical insurance, he may have to go without the care he requires if Konica Minolta continues to prevent Martinelli from extending benefits to his partner.

Typically, companies that wish to offer domestic partnership benefits to employees living in states that do not recognize same-sex relationships either accept a marriage, civil union or domestic partnership certificate from another state, or have the employee submit an affidavit attesting to the partnership.

"Konica Minolta wants all the good will that comes with providing domestic partner insurance, but they clearly don't want to have to provide the benefits. Otherwise they would never be interpreting its policy in such a restrictive way," said Jack Van Valkenburgh, Executive Director of the ACLU of Idaho. "Companies have been providing domestic partner coverage for many years now. The only possible reason for interpreting the policy the way that Konica does is to make it harder for employees to be able to provide coverage for their partners."

Martinelli and Ryan moved to Idaho so that Ryan, who experienced mental health trauma as a survivor of the attacks of September 11th, 2001, could find some relief away from the New York metropolitan area. Before he met Martinelli, Ryan managed the insurance licensing division at Morgan Stanley, and was in his office on the 74th floor of the South Tower of the World Trade Center when the first airplane struck the North Tower. While he was evacuating, Ryan became separated from the employees he supervised, and later was trampled by a crowd after the second airplane hit his office building, only four floors above where he was working that morning. After the attack he was unable to work due to the trauma, went on disability for one year, and spent his retirement savings to stay afloat. He met Martinelli in 2004. The two lived in New Jersey and then moved to Idaho, which they enjoy because of its natural beauty and its distance from constant reminders of that traumatic day.

Ed Barocas, Legal Director the ACLU of New Jersey, said, "Underlying all of this is the confusion and mistrust engendered by terms like 'civil union' and 'domestic partnership' as opposed to 'marriage.' Same-sex couples are asked to prove that their relationships aren't imaginary every time they move, and employers take advantage of the lack of uniformity to treat people unfairly."

The couple is represented by Sharon McGowan, Staff Attorney for the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Project, and Teresa Renaker of the firm Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker, & Jackson of Oakland, California.

Censorship of Gay Student Is Discriminatory Free Speech Violation

NEWARK, N.J. -- The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey In A Letter Sent Today (237k PDF) called on the Newark Public Schools to rescind last week's decision to censor hundreds of East Side High School yearbooks that included a photo of a male student kissing his boyfriend. The ACLU-NJ advised the school district that its censorship of this photo violates free speech and New Jersey's Law Against Discrimination.

"With so many challenges the Newark Public Schools face in educating their students, what a waste that they took the time to teach a lesson in discrimination and censorship instead of equality and free speech," said ACLU-NJ Executive Director Deborah Jacobs.

At the direction of Newark Public Schools Superintendent Marion Bolden, school personnel used markers to block out the image of student Andre Jackson and his boyfriend, while allowing photos of heterosexual students kissing to remain. The photo was on a tribute page paid for by Jackson; tribute pages make up about 20 percent of the yearbook, and several others showed heterosexual couples kissing.

The ACLU-NJ called on the school district to immediately re-issue the yearbook to all students with the original photograph in place.

The ACLU-NJ's letter to Superintendent Bolden, sent by Legal Director Ed Barocas, cited numerous cases and grounds on which the schools actions could be challenged, including a recent New Jersey Supreme Court ruling that specifically addressed discrimination against LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) students. The court ruled that students, including LGBT students, have as much a right to be free from discrimination in their schools as adults have to be free from discrimination in the workplace. The ACLU-NJ had filed a friend-of-the-court brief in that case.

"Treating same-sex couples differently from heterosexual couples not only disregards the fundamental guarantees of the Constitution and the laws of the State of New Jersey but also sends a dangerous message to the student body," Barocas said in the letter. "The message that LGBT students are unacceptable and undeserving serves to justify peer harassment, one of the most serious concerns schools face today."

The ACLU-NJ has addressed similar issues before, including its successful defense of the free speech and equal protection rights of an 11th Grade Student at Bridgeton High School who had been disciplined for wearing a T-shirt that expressed affection for lesbians.