Achieving marriage equality in the Heartland
from The Decorah Newspapers
... "Iowa has a historic commitment to protect the equality and individual liberties to all of its citizens," said Sharon Malheiro during the Achieving Marriage Equality in the Heartland conference at Luther College last weekend.
Malheiro is president of the Board of Davis Brown Law Firm in Des Moines and founder and Board Chair of One Iowa, an organization that has led the effort for marriage equality within the state.
Working in cooperation with Lambda Legal, she helped lay the groundwork for Varnum v. Brien, Iowa's marriage equality lawsuit, initiated by six same-sex couples, including Bill Musser and Otter Dreaming of Decorah.
Malheiro said as a lawyer, it has been her passion to work for the rights of same sex couples in Iowa since the Defense of Marriage Act was passed in 1998.
She said she feels it is imperative that same-sex couples have the right to call their relationship "marriage" rather than just "civil union."
