In the state of Wisconsin, tens of thousands of LGBT couples and unmarried straight couples do not enjoy the same legal rights, safeguards, and security as married couples—in areas ranging from property ownership¹ to family-medical leave² to notification after one partner has been the victim of a crime³. Our laws explicitly give rights in these areas to married couples, but they make no provision for unmarried couples in long-term, committed relationships. This creates what we call the FAIRNESS GAP.

The goals of this project are to document and personalize the FAIRNESS GAP. We will provide information, analysis, and a forum for you to share your family's experiences so that we may all better understand the obvious and not-so-obvious ways in which the FAIRNESS GAP impacts families across our state.

 

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Have you experienced the fairness gap? If so, email or call 608.441.0143 to tell us how.

 

 

This information is provided for informational and educational purposes only. Fair Wisconsin does not render professional or legal services, and nothing contained in or linked to our Web site should be construed as legal advice (which always must be tailored to the facts of a particular case).

Chapter 1: Our Vision/Our Stories/Our Future

In this first entry of the FAIRNESS GAP, we outline the background and vision of our efforts to shine light on very real discrimination impacting thousands of Wisconsin citizens. Every few weeks we will highlight a different aspect of the current disparity in legal protection in our state for unmarried couples and their families. Check back often for updates, and help spread the word. Bringing these stories to light will provide a powerful weapon in our fight against discrimination and inequity.

Background

By choosing the name "FAIRNESS GAP" to describe this initiative, we aim to do more than just convey an idea. Our hope is to spark a statewide discussion that will transform perceptions about fairness and the law. In setting the stage for the discussion ahead, we examine the transformative power of the word: fair. As used by Fair Wisconsin and in our FAIRNESS GAP project, fair means more than equality or the lack of it. Fair is also something to strive for – a creed to live up to, a goal to become.

Our nation was founded on the concepts of liberty and equality, enshrined in our near perfect Constitution. History has propelled us into a constant state of transformation and struggle to realize those ideals. Whether fighting to outlaw slavery or working to grant women the right to vote, we have fought to eliminate disparate treatment among our citizens so that all Americans could enjoy the same unalienable rights granted by our Constitution. The promise of a brighter tomorrow has stirred generations of Americans to build a better country – a more perfect union, if you will.

Fair Wisconsin has been leading that fight for LGBT justice in our state. Current laws in America’s Dairyland are not fair. Our courts and our halls of government do not treat LGBT people as equals. We seek to change that.

Within Wisconsin's borders and within its citizens there is a sense of fairness that defines us more accurately than the laws on our books. In that sense, the name Fair Wisconsin does not just apply to a campaign for LGBT people or their families. Fair Wisconsin describes us as a state, it describes us all.

But the name Fair Wisconsin does more. It challenges us to move the Wisconsin on the books closer to the Wisconsin that exists within us, the Wisconsin of our values and ideals. This distance, between our laws and our ideals, comprises the FAIRNESS GAP. It is a significant distance, an expansive gap. We will see that in the course of this project, anchored in the real life experiences of people living in our state.

Next Steps

In this space, we aim to start a statewide exploration of the FAIRNESS GAP. We will highlight the many significant protections in Wisconsin law that are not available to unmarried couples in long-term, committed relationships. We also hope that you'll participate in this ambitious project by sharing your family's experiences so that we may feature them here. We need your stories, your passion, and your support to highlight this FAIRNESS GAP and continue the struggle for equality.

We hope to address some of the following categories of (unequal) rights that make up the FAIRNESS GAP:

• Spousal and Dependant Support Protections
• Health Insurance Protections
• Other Insurance Protections
• Worker's Compensation Protections
• Wrongful Death Protections
• Income Tax Benefits
• Transfer-of-Home Protections
• Marital Property Protections
• Adoption and Child-Rearing Protections
• Medical Treatment Decision-making Protections
• Benefits and Privileges in the Legal Process
• Probate Protections
• Miscellaneous Protections

Whether you are a victim of this FAIRNESS GAP or a concerned ally, please start discussing these practical and very real examples of the injustice LGBT families face. Our job is to continue telling these stories on this website and via the media.

Your job is to share, discuss, and personalize the fact that not all Wisconsinites are treated equally under the law.

Together, we can make the educational, social, and political changes necessary to ensure that future generations are not treated with injustice and can enjoy full equality in a truly Fair Wisconsin.

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1. A joint tenancy is presumed where the individuals named in a title or the buyers or sellers of property are husband and wife. § 700.19(2)
2. An employee can use family and medical leave (up to six weeks in a twelve-month period) to care for a spouse with a serious health condition; "spouse" is specifically defined to mean a legal husband or wife. § 103.10(3)(b)
3. Spouses of crime victims are entitled to notification when the perpetrators are transferred to community residential confinement or to the intensive sanctions program, or when the perpetrator escapes from prison, or when an inmate is scheduled to be released after serving a prison sentence, or if an inmate is paroled. § 301.046, § 301.048, § 301.38, § 301.46, §302.105, § 304.06

From the Summary of Benefits Available to Married Couples Under Wisconsin State Law (pdf)

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