Affirmation: Gay & Lesbian Mormons

Films

Gita Deane and Lisa Polyak

Lisa Polyak and Gita Deane to Speak at the Affirmation Conference
They Were Featured in Heart of the Matter

September 2007

As the lead plaintiffs in Maryland's marriage equality lawsuit, Deane and Polyak v. Conaway, Lisa Polyak and Gita Deane have cemented their names in the history of the fight for equal rights. The Baltimore Circuit Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in January of 2006, and a final ruling by Maryland's highest court, the Court of Appeals, could be issued any day.

Lisa and Gita met at Trinity College in Washington, DC, during their freshman year. As Gita was here on a student visa at the time, they became intimately familiar with the challenges facing international same-sex couples when marriage is not an option. After a deportation notice and thousands spent on legal fees over several years, Gita finally obtained U.S. citizenship in 1994. The couple have two daughters, Lisa giving birth first, and Gita carrying their second daughter. Each have adopted the other's biological child, a step that would not be necessary if they could marry.

Throughout it all, Lisa and Gita have been, and continue to be, strong and visible advocates for equality. They have opened their lives in print and film interviews, community forums, and meetings and hearings before state legislators. Putting themselves in a rare position of public scrutiny, they do it for the very reason so many attack the idea of same-sex marriage: to protect their family.

Gita, a learning specialist at Goucher College, and Lisa, an environmental engineer for the U.S. Army Medical Department, have their story featured prominently in the award-winning 11 minute documentary Heart of the Matter, which can be viewed above. Affirmation is honored to have them joining us at Conference.