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Mexico: Gay Marriage Legal Today in Mexico City

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

A law allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry comes into effect on Thursday in Mexico City. The law, which was passed by the city’s local assembly in December, gives gay people full marital rights, including the right to adopt.

Several gay couples are now expected to register to get married as early as next week. Mexico City is one of the first capitals in Latin America to fully recognise gay marriages.

Judith Vazquez and partner Lol-kin Castaneda hope to become one of the first couples to marry under the new law. “It’s the end of our fight and the beginning of life in freedom in Mexico City,” Ms Vazquez told the BBC. “This is a great, historic moment for the whole of society in Mexico City,” added Ms Castaneda.

Full Story from BBC News
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RI: Three Candidates for Governor Publicly Support Gay Marriage

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Three major candidates running for governor of Rhode Island have promised to support and sign a bill allowing gay marriage if elected. General Treasurer Frank Caprio and Attorney General Patrick Lynch, both Democrats, and former Sen. Lincoln Chafee, who is running in November as an independent, made the pledge at a Statehouse rally on Wednesday before more than 200 people.

Moderate Party candicate Ken Block said through a spokeswoman that he also supports gay marriage.

Proponents of gay marriage believe the state is closer to approving the measure since Republican Gov. Don Carcieri (kuh-CHEHR’-ee), a social conservative and gay marriage opponent, can’t run again because of term limits.

Full Story from CT Now
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Mexico: Mexico City Gay Marriages Begin Tomorrow

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

The same-sex Mexican wedding will be born tomorrow as a new law puts Mexico City on the front lines of the gay marriage battle raging across Latin America.

But even as gay couples line up to tie the knot, the Catholic Church and President Felipe Calderon’s conservative party are gearing up to fight the law, the Washington Post reports.

Same-sex unions are legal in Colombia, Uruguay, Brazil, and Ecuador, as well as Argentina, where two gay men wed in December, but Mexico City is the first place south of the border to formally allow gay marriage. A local cardinal blasted the law as “perverse” and Calderon said it violates the Mexican constitution, which “speaks explicitly of marriage between a man and a woman,” but advocates note there has been no popular backlash against gay marriage in the city.

Full Story from Newser
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Canada: Conservative Edits Gay References Out of New Immigration Manual

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

Tory Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney should be ashamed of himself for editing out references to gay and lesbian rights in a government manual, critics say. Kenney, who represents a riding in Calgary, last June ordered references to historical achievements in gay rights edited from a manual for immigrants applying for citizenship, according to news reports from Ottawa.

A senior bureaucrat made a last-ditch effort to have the references reinserted into the new manual before it went to press in November, but Kenney refused to budge. The news report said Kenney ensured that two paragraphs from an earlier draft were not included in the new 63-page manual, which replaces a 1995 edition of the manual.

According to the Canadian Press, the draft included this paragraph under a section titled Towards a Modern Canada: “Homosexuality was decriminalized in 1969 and more recently, civil marriage rights to same-sex couples was legalized nationwide in 2005.” Under the section on citizenship rights, the earlier draft said: “Equality Rights — Canadians are protected against discrimination based on race, gender, national origin, religion, sexual orientation or age.”

Full Story from The Province
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Argentina: Gay Couple Celebrates First Gay Wedding in Buenos Aires

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

After a series of bumps in the road, Damian Ariel Bernath and Jorge Esteban Salazar, a gay couple who had been authorized last week by Judge Elena Liberatori to get married, they finally made history today by celebrating the first gay marriage in the city of Buenos Aires.

Last Friday Judge Maria del Carmen Gioco had appealed Liberatori’s ruling by stating that her decision had to be revoked by the Contentious Administrative Court after she considered it had not made part of the process.

“Attorneys are obligated to follow due process in every case, and to make everyone comply with the law. In this case, the judge denied our unconstitutionality request, and for that reason, the attorney’s capability is limited. Hence, the judge understood it was not necessary to communicate her decision to Court,” said Florencia Kravetz, the couple’s lawyer.

Full Story from the Buenos Aires Herald
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DC: Local Methodist Church Defies Church Leaders, Will Perform Gay/Lesbian Weddings

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

A United Methodist congregation in Washington, D.C. has vowed to celebrate same-sex weddings, putting itself at odds with other Christian churches protesting the District of Columbia’s new marriage equality law. The pastor and 12 other ordained clergy who attend Dumbarton United Methodist Church in Georgetown said they would conduct such ceremonies after Congress failed to override D.C.’s new law on March 3. The larger United Methodist Church does not permit same-sex weddings, and no other Methodist congregation in Washington has taken the same step.

“As a pastor, I am called to extend care and grace to all people even as Jesus did,” said Rev. Mary Kay Totty, pastor at the 238-year-old church. “We celebrate love and loyalty wherever it is found.”

Dumbarton church’s stand is poles apart from the protests by other Christian churches that same-sex marriages are against biblical teachings. Catholic Charities has announced that it will close its adoption and foster care programs in the District, rather than provide services to gay and lesbian couples. Some Christian ministers have rallied against the marriage equality law.

Full Story from PR Newswire
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DC: Supreme Court Refuses to Block Gay Marriage Law: Licenses Start Today

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

In an order issued late Tuesday evening by Chief Justice John Roberts, the US Supreme Court refused to block a gay marriage ordinance passed by the District of Columbia’s City Council. In a short opinion, Roberts wrote “Without addressing the merits of petitioners’ underlying claim, however, I conclude that a stay is not warranted. First, as “a matter of judicial policy” – if not “judicial power” – “it has been the practice of the Court to defer to the decisions of the courts of the District of Columbia on matters of exclusively local concern.”

“Second, the Act at issue was adopted by the Council and placed before Congress for the 30-day period of review required by the D. C. Charter,” Roberts continued. “A joint resolution of disapproval by Congress would prevent the Act from going into effect, but Congress has chosen not to act.”

A Congressional veto could have overruled the Council, but attempts by conservatives were blocked in the House. Conservative groups then went to the Courts, but failed.

Full Story from Chicago Pride
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Costa Rica: Update on Proposed Gay Unions Bill

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

In Costa Rica, the issue of same-sex relationships has been an active topic for the past several years, but little progress has been made in terms of establishing an official policy. In a country with Roman Catholicism as the official Constitutional religion and with a large majority conservative population, it has been a controversial topic with supporters and opponents on both sides of the issue.

After several attempts to bring the issue to the legislative level, the most recent proposal called Coexistence Societies, which can be read here in Spanish, does not seek to legalize same-sex marriage, but seeks to offer alternatives for these couples. The text is based on four basic points [es], which include hospital visitation rights, dividing of earned wealth, inheritance rights, and insurance options.

During the presidential campaign, Laura Chinchilla of the National Liberation Party (PLN), who was elected on February 7, 2010 promised to support same-sex unions as an alternative to marriage, as she expressed in this video [es]. However, shortly after she was elected and after meetings with Assembly deputies from the Christian-aligned parties and with Evangelical Christian leaders, she hardened her position towards the proposal of same-sex unions [es].

Full Story from Global Voices
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DC: Gay Marriage Foes Ask Supreme Court for Emergency Injunction

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

The Associated Press is reporting that foes of a DC gay marriage law set to take effect Wednesday are asking the Supreme Court to halt its start. The challenge was filed with Chief Justice John Roberts on Monday. Opponents say the law should be put up for a vote.

The government of DC approved the law in December, but has been defending gay marriage since it approved a law last spring that recognizes the marriages of gay and lesbian couples from other states.

A last-minute appeal to the District of Columbia Appeals Court, which was rejected Friday, left opponents with few legal options to head off the law from going into effect.

Full Story from On Top Magazine
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Washington DC Expecting Long Lines, Protesters When Gay Marriage Licenses Released Tomorrow

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

D.C. Superior Court, where couples go to get marriage licenses, is preparing for big crowds as soon as same-sex marriage becomes legal Wednesday. “The one thing that we want people to keep in mind because they want to be part of the initial rush to get a license is that you bring with you your ability to be patient,” says D.C. Superior Court Chief Judge Lee F. Satterfield.

Expect long lines and lots of protesters.

On a typical day, the court gets about a dozen applications for marriage licenses. In addition to your patience, Satterfield asks that if you are coming down to be one of the first to apply for a license that you bring your identification and cash or a money order.

Full Story from WTOP.com
Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.