National Organization for Marriage is going to have their hands full trying to control all the back-biting factions within Washington’s anti-gay industry. Did they know what they were in for when they decided to spend upwards of $6 million to interfere in the affairs of a state 2,500 miles distant from their offices in Washington, D.C.?

Homophobia and racism are not the same thing, but they share a common root in prejudice and are sometimes expressed in similar ways: social ostracization, beatings, killings, barriers to work, education, housing and public places.

The intensity of discrimination endured by the various categories of people facing prejudice may not always be the same, but to the individual on the receiving end of the discrimination, it hardly matters whether others have received the same amperage of misery.

Fifteen years ago the Washington state Legislature overrode Gov. Gary Locke’s veto and passed the discriminatory “defense of marriage act” (DOMA) to prevent gay and lesbian couples from obtaining civil marriage licenses. Today the Washington state Legislature became the first in the nation to correct its DOMA mistake and pass a marriage equality bill.

The House is expected to pass the bill as early at this Friday, and Gov. Gregoire is eager to sign it. These are momentous, historic actions, but they are not the end of the story. Anti-equality activists have promised to put a referendum on the November, 2012 ballot, asking voters to approve or reject the new law.

Last week, Starbucks joined the long list of Washington employers endorsing Washington’s marriage equality bill. The Starbucks statement reflects their years-long commitment to equality. I sent them a “thank you” note, and they replied.

Despite timely, cogent research showing gay couples form loving and committed partnerships when allowed to do so, anti-gay Pastor Joe Fuiten has written an article called “Turning Marriage into a Farce” contending that “[g]ay marriage is not a step of human progress but a regression to marriage as a joke.” Here we take down the Pastor’s sources, data and logic.

Washington’s marriage equality bill got its first public hearings in House and Senate committees on Monday. Faith leaders both Jewish and Christian came forward to testify in support of the bill. Their message to the legislature was clear: stop discriminating against our right to solemnize marriages for gay and lesbian couples. Civil marriage laws should facilitate free religious expression, not hinder it based on one sect’s beliefs.

The wait has been excruciating to see who would become the final dedicated vote needed in the Washington state Senate to pass the marriage equality bill (SB 6239). Today, Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen (D-Camano Island) announced that she’s signing on for equality.

For those who claim that passing the marriage equality bill this year is a needless distraction from the state’s economic concerns, here’s hard data showing that expanding civil rights pays dividends.

In response to the filing on Friday of Washington’s civil marriage equality bill, the Washington State Catholic Conference issued a statement in opposition called “Marriage and the Common Good“.