Windsor married her long-time partner Thea Spyer in Canada in 2007; however, because that marriage was not recognized in the United States, she received a huge tax bill when Spyer passed away, a tax bill heterosexually married people would not receive. In her successful challenge of the tax bill, Windsor changed marriage for millions of same-sex couples in the United States.

No cause of death was given in the statement from her lawyer, Roberta Kaplan; however, it is well-known that she had suffered from heart problems for years.

Windsor worked for IBM in senior positions after earning a master’s degree in math from NYU.

Windsor is survived by Judith Kasen-Windsor, who she married last year. Kasen-Windsor told ABC News, “The world lost a tiny but tough-as-nails fighter for freedom, justice and equality.”

The post DOMA-toppling plaintiff Edith Windsor dies at 88 first appeared on Lesbian.com.

On June 26, Logo TV will air its initial edition of “Trailblazers,” a one-hour special featuring the celebrities, politicians, activists and trendsetters who are actively working to effect cultural change for the betterment of the LGBT community.

Actor Daniel Radcliffe, a longtime supporter of The Trevor Project, will serve as presenter as DOMA activists Edie Windsor and Roberta Kaplan, the cast of the groundbreaking Netflix series “Orange is the New Black” and openly gay former NBA star Jason Collins are honored.

Scheduled to air during the 45th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots and the one-year anniversary of DOMA being overruled, “Trailblazers” will also feature performances by A Great Big World, Ariana Grande, Tegan and Sara, Iggy Azalea, Mary Lambert, Jared Leto, Kylie Minogue, Rita Ora and Tyler Glenn.

The event will be held in New York City’s Cathedral of St. John the Divine, one of the first churches to host gay marriages, and Logo is offering viewers an opportunity to share stories of their own “Hometown Trailblazers” with a chance to win a trip to the Big Apple to view the event live.

The post Logo TV ‘Trailblazers’ honors Windsor, ‘Orange is the New Black’ first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Ever since the Supreme Court ruled against the Defense of Marriage Act last year, the Obama administration has been rolling out on a continual basis new federal benefits for married same-sex couples — but access to some benefits remains uncertain months after the decision.

While the administration has afforded a preponderance of the 1,138 federal benefits of marriage to same-sex couples, other benefits — including Social Security, veterans and family leave benefits — are still in limbo for those living in non-marriage equality states. For these benefits, federal policy looks to the place of residence, not the place of celebration, in determining whether a person is married.

The policy of the Obama administration has been to expand benefits to married same-sex couples to the furthest extend possible under the law following the court decision against DOMA. That position was formalized last week in a memo from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder extending certain federal benefits under the purview of the Justice Department to married gay couples.

Read more at Washington Blade

Washington Blade is America’s leading gay news source.

The post Questions remain months after DOMA ruling first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Now that the US Supreme Court has overturned DOMA (The Defense of Marriage Law), gay and lesbian married couples have lots of new federal rights and benefits. One of those benefits is that now married same-sex couples will file their federal income tax as married couple. Another benefit is that married couples can go back and file joint married for the past three years.

If you’re like me, you probably have lots of questions about how to file, how to know if you’re filing correctly and what it means to file as a same-sex couple on the federal and state level. I had the fortune to speak with Lisa Greene-Lewis, CPA, from TurboTax about the new tax laws for gay and lesbian couples in 2013 and how to get the most out of filing your 2013 taxes.

Read more at LesbianLife at About.com

The post Tax guide for same-sex couples first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Anyone who is married and who files taxes could have seen this coming from a mile away. The Defense of Marriage Act was struck down by the Supreme Court last year, taking with it unfair tax discrimination against married same sex couples. Now, same sex couples who are legally married in one of the 19 states, Washington D.C. or another foreign jurisdiction can file federal taxes as married. This is true for same sex couples who are married but live in a jurisdiction that does not recognize that marriage.

But what about state taxes? That’s where it gets more tricky. Since each state has their own tax guidelines, there isn’t one blanket rule for same sex married couples. In those states that don’t allow same sex couples to marry, otherwise married couples have to file their state taxes separately.

Read more at Care2.com

Care2 is the largest online community of people passionate about making a difference.

The post Lawsuits challenge Kansas state tax discrimination first appeared on Lesbian.com.

The Obama administration extended on Friday a policy counting same-sex marriages as equal to opposite-sex unions for the purpose of federal student financial aid, although the change could increase the amount of money a student would have to contribute toward an education.

The policy, announced by the Education Department, is the latest in a series of policy developments bringing the Obama administration into alignment with the U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act.

Under the new guidance, a student or a parent of a student, will be considered legally married if they’re in a same-sex marriage when applying for aid through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA. The new policy applies to a same-sex marriage included on the application even if the applicant lives in a non-marriage equality state.

Read more at Washington Blade

Washington Blade is America’s leading gay news source.

The post Dept. of Education to recognize same-sex couples first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Time magazine’s Paul Moakley created this tribute to the love story that conquered DOMA.

The post Edie and Thea: A pictorial history of their love story first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Edith “Edie” Windsor, the plaintiff in the June 2013 Supreme Court decision that struck down the so-called “Defense of Marriage Act,” is on the editorial short list of 5 — coming in at number 3 — for Time magazine’s person of the year, capping off a year of landmark progress for equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people.

Every December, Time magazine chooses from five finalists one “Person of the Year.” In addition, Windsor was a finalist in the public online poll, a clear demonstration of the growing public support for marriage equality and the power of her story and fight for equality and dignity for her marriage and life with Thea Spyer and the thousands of other same-sex couples in the U.S. and around the world.

Read more at TheSeattleLesbian.com

The Seattle Lesbian online magazine reaches more than 188,000 readers per week globally.

The post Edie Windsor makes Time short list, launches website first appeared on Lesbian.com.

A Pennsylvania judge on Thursday ordered a clerk in a suburban Philadelphia county to stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, saying only the state legislature or a state or federal court had legal authority to overturn the state’s ban on gay marriage.

The ruling came two months after Montgomery County, Pa., Register of Wills D. Bruce Hanes startled state officials by deciding on his own to begin granting marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples.

Hanes, who is in charge of the county’s marriage license office, said the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in June overturning a section of the federal Defense of Marriage Act on grounds that it was unconstitutional also invalidated the Pennsylvania law prohibiting same-sex marriage.

Read more at Washington Blade

Washington Blade is America’s leading gay news source.

The post Judge orders halt to same-sex marriage licenses first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s June rulings striking down the unconstitutional Defense of Marriage Act and enabling California to resume same-sex marriages, supporters of LGBT equality have begun a full-court press to expand the number of states with full equality from 13 to 50. Here is a rundown of the legal challenges, legislative efforts, and referendum processes in states that do not yet have civil marriage.

Arkansas

Arkansas has had a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages and unions since 2004. In July, a group of Arkansas families filed a federal lawsuit against the state and local governments challenging whether the state constitutional ban violates the U.S. constitution. Also, while it is unlikely that an Arkansas court will rule its own state constitution unconstitutional, another group of plaintiffs have brought a state case challenging the constitutionality of the ban.

Read more at ThinkProgress.org

The post The push for marriage equality: A state-by-state round-up first appeared on Lesbian.com.