Massachusetts Leads The Country In The Right Direction
Nov 18 '03 (Updated Nov 20 '03)
The Bottom Line Three Cheers for the SJC here in Massachusetts. They have bravely made the right decision! Now the hard work of securing and keeping that right starts.
Holy Cow – did you see the news on CNN?
BOSTON, Massachusetts (Reuters) -- The highest court in Massachusetts ruled Tuesday it is unconstitutional for the state to deny marriage to gay and lesbian couples, a move that could make the state the first to legalize same-sex marriages.
I had to write something. This is probably one of the most important and enlightened decisions made in a long time. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that the state cannot deny gay couples the right to marry in Massachusetts. This brings Massachusetts one-step closer to being the only state in the country where gay marriage is legal.
Massachusetts isn’t issuing marriage licenses yet though, the SJC has given the legislature 180 days to figure out what to do. Much like Vermont’s Supreme Court did during the civil union debate. The legislature has a few options: let the ruling stand and allow gay marriages, create civil unions – much like Vermont, or start the process of amending the state constitution to redefine marriage as something specifically between a man and a woman to prohibit gay marriage.
Now, I am sure that the backlash will be strong and swift here. Several groups have been circulating petitions for a voter referendum to change the constitution of Massachusetts to prevent gay marriages. Even the Speaker of the House, Tom Finneran has supported changing the constitution to prevent gay marriage. So I am unsure as to what exactly will happen – the earliest a referendum question to amend the constitution could be on the ballot is 2004 or 2005, depending upon how fast the parties get their act together. I am not sure how well the referendum would fare either. I would like to think that Massachusetts, known a bastion of liberals and diversity, would turn down a referendum question prohibiting gay marriage, but recent poles have shown an almost even split between those supporting gay marriage and those against it.
However, either way, right now I feel very proud to be a resident in a state (once again, I lived in Vermont during the civil union issues) where equal civil rights for gays is a valued concern. I for one, will be out campaigning to save that right now that we’ve earned it and I hope that everyone else that supports equal rights for gay and lesbian relationships is out on the street fighting to keep this hard earned right.
My partner and I have been together for 7 years – would it not be a wonderful thing for the two of us to finally be married and have the state recognize our relationship for what it is? We are as dedicated and committed to one another as any other couple, the only difference is that we are two men, as opposed to a woman and a man.
Three Cheers for the SJC here in Massachusetts. They have bravely made the right decision! Now the hard work of securing and keeping that right starts.
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Massachusetts Leads the Country In the Right Direction
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