ILLINOIS: Catholic Charities Loses Adoption Lawsuit Against State

An Illinois judge has ruled that the state acted legally when it canceled its adoption contract with Catholic Charities. The state's move came after Catholic Charities declared that it would not abide by the new civil unions law and treat gay couples fairly.

"The fact that the Plaintiffs have contracted with the State to provide foster care and adoption services for over forty years does not vest the Plaintiffs with a protected property interest," Schmidt wrote in the judgment. "The State may refuse to renew the Plaintfiffs' contracts." The charities had claimed that the DCFS decision not to renew contracts was illegal under religious freedom protections and argued that they have a right to continue foster care work without compromising religious practice. "We believe that we do comply [ with the law ] because there is an exemption there," said Thomas Brejcha, an attorney for the four charities. "To say that somehow our entities are the same as non-sectarian agencies is to say that alpha is the same as omega."

CHILE: President Pushes Civil Unions

Yesterday Chilean President Sebastian Pinera proposed a bill to legalize same-sex civil unions.

"All forms of marriage deserve respect, dignity and the support of the state," said President Sebastian Pinera, who signed the proposal and sent it to Congress. "This puts opposite-sex and same-sex couples on the same footing, because in both cases it is possible to develop love, affection and respect." Pinera, who brought conservatives to power after 20 years of center-left rule in the country, grated on his own election campaign when he announced his intention to legalize civil unions for gay couples. He said two million people in Chile live together without marrying. But the president has repeatedly stressed his opposition to gay marriage. "I deeply believe that marriage is by nature between a man and a woman, but that conviction does not prevent me from recognizing that other forms of affective relationships exist," he said.