Friday, May 17, 2013
The law's chief author, who represents Southwest Minneapolis, said many senators who wanted to be at the ceremony on the Minnesota Capitol steps could not.
Minnesota state Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Minneapolis) told the Minnesota Senate Wednesday of his disappointment that "the doors of this chamber were locked" Tuesday—preventing senators from attending the large crowd assembled on the Capitol steps for Gov. Mark Dayton's ceremonial signing of the bill Dibble introduced legalizing same-sex marriages in Minnesota. According to The UpTake, "Republican Senators used a rarely invoked rule to lock the doors of the Senate chamber to keep members inside as they debated the bill to allow unionization among certain workers." Related: Day Care Providers Rally as Minnesota Senate Approves Unionization Bill Excerpts from Dibble's remarks Wednesday night: "I want to thank everyone on all sides of the issue …
Thursday, May 16, 2013
State Rep. Karen Clark told the Associated Press about recruiting Dibble to work for her. Together they shepherded their marriage-equality bill through the Minnesota Legislature.
The Associated Press describes the backgrounds of two south Minneapolis legislators—state Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Minneapolis) and state Rep. Karen Clark (DFL-Minneapolis)—to make gay marriage legal in Minnesota: Dibble, 47, graduated from high school in the Minneapolis suburb of Apple Valley and came out in college. He cut his teeth politically in the late 1980s as a member of the Minnesota chapter of ACT UP—a gay civil rights group that engaged in civil disobedience out of anger toward government neglect of AIDS and HIV sufferers. He got an early chance to join the establishment from Clark, who tapped him to run one of her re-election campaigns. "I pulled him from street politics," she said. Dibble was elected to the House in 2000, and in…
Monday, May 13, 2013
The bill will now move to the governor's desk to be signed into law.
After similar measures failed in past sessions, Sen. Scott Dibble's same-sex marriage bill was passed by the Senate in a 37-30 vote Monday afternoon. Dibble (D-61) and fellow Southwest Minneapolis Sen. Jeff Hayden (D-62) both entered yea votes Monday afternoon. Dibble, along with the bill's co-author Republican Sen. Branden Peterson and Reps. Karen Clark (DFL-62A) and Steve Simon (DFL-46B), introduced the bill back in February. The Minnesota House passed the measure last Thursday in a 75-59 vote. When the measure was introduced Monday, Dibble called it "a very simple bill," and added that "sometimes the simplest bills are the most powerful." Read: Dibble Introduces MN Same-Sex Marriage at MN Senate: 'A Very Simple Bill' Sen. Warren Limmer…
Southwest Minneapolis' state representative introduced his gay-marriage bill at the Minnesota Senate Monday.
Minnesota state Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Minneapolis) introduced his bill to legalize same-sex marriage Monday afternoon at the Minnesota Senate. Dibble called it "a very simple bill. ... Sometimes the simplest bills are the most powerful." After reading through the bill's language, substituting the version passed by the Minnesota House of Representatives on May 9, 2013, Dibble concluded by saying that the bill "is not as earth-shattering as folks might think." Patch will continue to update readers as Monday's debate continues.
Friday, May 10, 2013
The next step is for the MN Senate to vote on the bill that State Sen. Scott Dibble, who represents Southwest Minneapolis, co-authored.
State Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Minneapolis) saluted the Minnesota House of Representatives' passage Thursday of same-sex marriage legislation. The Minnesota Senate will take up its version of the bill, introduced by Dibble, on Monday. Dibble said in a statement Thursday: "Today's historic vote by the Minnesota House of Representatives is a very large step toward the freedom to marry for Minnesotans. We have cleared one of the final obstacles on our journey toward greater equality. "We have arrived at this moment because regular, hard working people across the state have shown the courage to live with dignity, step forward and tell their stories, talk to their neighbors, and stand up for equality. We have engaged in a statewide conversation …
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Highlight of debate was extended back-and-forth between sponsor of bill and author of 2012 marriage amendment.
A bill legalizing same-sex marriage in Minnesota—written by a Southwest Minneapolis state Senator—passed its last hurdle before a floor vote in the state Senate Tuesday afternoon. The Minnesota Senate Judiciary Committee approved Sen. Scott Dibble's (DFL-61) Senate File 925 on a 5-3 vote. The measure is co-sponsored by first-termSen. Branden Petersen (R-35). Later that evening, the House Judiciary Committee passed the measure's companion bill, House File 1054, sponsored by Rep. Karen Clark (DFL-62A). A highlight of the Senate debate was extended back-and-forth between opponent Sen. Warren Limmer (R-Maple Grove) and Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Minneapolis), the bill's co-author. That debate starts around the 14:40 mark on the YouTube video above…
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Legislature is considering proposed upgrade to vague state statutes.
Tuesday afternoon, Minnesota state senators and advocates gathered at the State Capitol to hear details of a proposed new anti-bullying law that would beef up the state's vague bullying laws. The bill, written by Southwest Minneapolis' Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-61) and Rep. Jim Davnie (DFL-63A) would require the state Department of Education to track and publish bullying data alongside the academic data it already collects. The bill would also require individual districts to have anti-bullying policies that protect students based on disability and sexual orientation, among others—current law only covers bullying based on sex, race, and religion. The bill includes religious and free speech protections and offers districts training resources …
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Opponents vow half-million dollar offensive to counter legalization.
Wednesday morning, Minneapolis and St. Louis Park legislators are scheduled to introduce a measure to legalize same-sex marriage in Minnesota. Watch the announcement live on Patch, courtesy of TheUptake! Tune in to this webpage at 10 a.m. At 10 a.m., Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-61) and Reps. Karen Clark (DFL-62A) and Steve Simon (DFL-46B) will join Rabbi Michael Latz from Southwest Minneapolis' Shir Tikvah synagogue and United Church of Christ leader Rev. Karen Smith Sellers to formally announce the introduction of a legalization bill. All five were prominent leaders in the defeat of a 2012 state constitutional amendment seeking to ban same-sex marriage. The legislation is co-authored by state Sen. Branden Peterson (R-35). National same-sex …
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Same-sex marriage opponents float a "counter offer"
One week after activists flooded the Minnesota State Capitol in support of legalizing same-sex marriage in Minnesota, a Southwest Minneapolis legislator is expected to introduce a bill to do just that. Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-61) has introduced similar measures in many past legislative sessions, but this year his efforts might just bear fruit. “It’s just simply an amendment that removes the restriction that disallows some couples from getting married,” Dibble told WCCO on Sunday. “My strong sense, even from folks in greater Minnesota, is that they’re comfortable with this, they know that Minnesota has changed a lot and is continuing to change at a very rapid pace.” Pro-legalization activists Minnesotans United for All Families have aimed …
Friday, February 15, 2013
Advocates pushing for legalization this year.
On Valentine's Day, same-sex marriage advocates thronged the Minnesota state capitol to hear Southwest Minneapolis' state Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-61) and a bevvy of faith leaders call for the legalization of same-sex marriage. Dibble is widely expected to introduce a legalization bill some time this session, although he has repeatedly said the state's budget is his first priority. The rhetoric echoed that of last year's campaign to defeat a proposed state constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. Instead of having a "conversation" with one's neighbors, though, advocates were asked to do the same with their legislators. "I'm asking you to be brave again," Dibble told the crowd, according to the Pioneer Press. "It is time for a …
cg
9:06 am on Thursday, May 16, 2013
I normally never comment on articles on any online news sources, but I can't let Mike B's bit of revisionist history stand. Reagan's record on AIDS was very poor, The activism of groups like Act-Up was crucial in drawing attention to the issue. Let us not forget the thousands of individuals who were jailed during the civil rights movement. There is a place for activism in our democracy - and … more ›