Avon Gay Couple Remains Part of Discrimination Lawsuit Against the Federal Government

An Avon couple plans to stay in a discrimination lawsuit against the federal government despite President Barack Obama's recent decision claiming that 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), that does not federally recognize gay marriage, is unconstitutional.

According to the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) website, Avon same sex couple James "Flint" Gehre and Brad Kleinerman paid $1,600 more in federal income taxes in 2009 because they had to file separate tax forms instead of doing so jointly like heterosexual couples are legally allowed to do. That was the first year the two were legally married, Gehre said. Gehre and Kleinerman have been together for at least 20 years, according to the couple's profile on the GLAD website.

"There was no basis other than this arbitrary law that said our marriage could not be recognized [federally]," Gehre said. "We were being denied benefits that legally married couples were entitled to.

Prior to DOMA, Gehre said that the federal government left it to individual states to determine if they recognized same-sex marriages, but DOMA created a conflict in the previous law. When DOMA was enacted, the federal government was no longer required to recognize a same-sex marriage, even if a state did.

GLAD filed the Pedersen v. O.P.M. lawsuit on Nov. 9, 2010, which is the "second major, multi-plaintiff lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) Section 3 and the government’s denial of protections and responsibilities to married gay and lesbian couples," according to GLAD's website.

"We joined the Pedersen suit due to the fact that over the years we’ve been severely penalized in paying higher taxes," Gehre said. "The suit is trying to highlight several of areas in which there is no rational basis for [same-sex couples] being denied [these benefits]."

Gehre said that there are several benefits that not only he and his husband, but also his children are denied as a result of DOMA. For instance, Gehre said the law does not allow him or his husband to put his family on their medical benefits plan.

United States Attorney General Eric Holder wrote a letter to Speaker of the House John A. Boehner (R) Wednesday stating that the Obama administration deems the portion of the Defense of Marriage Act that defines marriage as between a man and woman to be a violation of the "equal protection component of the Fifth Amendment."

While Gehre, who is part of a discrimination lawsuit against the federal government, is happy to hear the news, he and his husband do not plan on pulling out on the lawsuit.

It's good that the administration [recognizes] that this really seems to have arisen out of prejudice," Gehre told Patch. "That's all very good, but DOMA still remains law of the land."

While Gehre said that he and Kleinerman have not previously stood in the forefront on the matter, he is grateful that other people fought for gay rights before him, making it possible for him to raise a family and adopt his children. That is why he and Kleinerman joined the lawsuit – to do the same for other people that gay rights activists have already done for his family.

Gehre and Kleinerman are the fathers of three adopted children, Raymond, 19, Rick, 18, and Joseph, 9, according to GLAD. Kleinerman is a human resources employee at CIGNA Healthcare and Gehre is a former teacher and police officer, and now a stay-at-home father, the GLAD website reported.