North Carolina approved a constitutional amendment Tuesday defining marriage solely as a union between a man and a woman, becoming the latest state to effectively slam the door shut on same-sex marriages. Full story here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/08/amendment-one-north-carolina_n_1501308.html

US President Barack Obama has ended months of hedging on the issue of gay marriage by saying he thinks same-sex couples should be able to wed. He has become the first sitting US president to back gay marriage.   Full story here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18014102

A bill to allow same-sex civil unions is winding its way through the Colorado legislature and may be passed before the end of the session on Wednesday, May 9. Full story here: http://www.xtra.ca/blog/national/post/2012/05/06/Colorado-close-to-passing-civil-unions-bill.aspx

A prominent Russian gay rights activist was convicted on Friday of spreading "gay propaganda" among minors in the first such ruling in Russia's modern history. Full story here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/04/nikolai-alexeyev-russian-gay-rights-activist-propaganda_n_1477867.html?ref=gay-voices

Former President Bill Clinton has recorded an audio advertisement opposing North Carolina's proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.   Full story here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/05/bill-clinton-north-carolina-gay-marriage-amendment_n_1484516.html?ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay Voices