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Loading ...Connecticut Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage
10.10.2008 12:31pm EDT
(Hartford, Connecticut) Connecticut’s Supreme Court ruled Friday that gay couples have the right to marry, making the state the third behind Massachusetts and California to legalize such unions through the courts. The ruling comes just weeks before Californians go to the polls on a historic gay-marriage ballot question, the first time the issue will be put before voters in a state where same-sex couples are legally wed.
The 4-3 ruling is the first time that a state that had willingly offered an alternative to marriage was told by a court that civil unions aren’t enough to protect the rights of gay couples. Connecticut was the first state to voluntarily pass laws to affirm civil unions."I can’t believe it. We’re thrilled, we’re absolutely overjoyed. We’re finally going to be able, after 33 years, to get married," said Janet Peck of Colchester, who was a plaintiff with her partner, Carole Conklin.
"I’m just ecstatic. It’s such a relief, the joy of it," said another plaintiff, Jody Mock of West Hartford, who sued with partner Elizabeth Kerrigan.
In the majority opinion, Justice Richard N. Palmer wrote that denying marriage to same-sex couples would create separate standards.
"Interpreting our state constitutional provisions in accordance with firmly established equal protection principles leads inevitably to the conclusion that gay persons are entitled to marry the otherwise qualified same sex partner of their choice," Palmer wrote.
The Family Institute of Connecticut, a political action group that opposes gay marriage, called the ruling outrageous.
"Even the legislature, as liberal as ours, decided that marriage is between a man and a woman," said executive director Peter Wolfgang. "This is about our right to govern ourselves. It is bigger than gay marriage."
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said the ruling goes into effect Oct. 28 when it is implemented by action of the of the Superior Court. There will be no appeal, he said.
Gov. M. Jodi Rell said she disagreed with the ruling.
"The Supreme Court has spoken," she said. "I do not believe their voice reflects the majority of the people of Connecticut. However, I am also firmly convinced that attempts to reverse this decision – either legislatively or by amending the state Constitution – will not meet with success."
State Sen. Michael Lawlor, chairman of the legislature’s Judiciary Committee, said he expects the General Assembly will pass a gay marriage law next year codifying the Supreme Court ruling.
"It’s important that both the legislature and the court weigh in," he said. "The court is saying that it’s a constitutional requirement that marriage should be equally available to gays and straights and the legislature should weigh in saying whether or not it’s constitutionally required, it’s the right thing to do."
The court was sharply divided in the decision, with three justices issuing separate dissenting opinions.
Justice Peter T. Zarella wrote that he believes there is no fundamental right to same-sex marriage, and the court’s majority failed to discuss the purpose of marriage laws, which he said is to "privilege and regulate procreative conduct."
Zarella added, "The ancient definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman has its basis in biology, not bigotry. If the state no longer has an interest in the regulation of procreation, then that is a decision for the legislature or the people of the state and not this court."
The lawsuit was brought in 2004 after eight same-sex couples were denied marriage licenses and sued, saying their constitutional rights to equal protection and due process were violated.
They said the state’s marriage law, if applied only to heterosexual couples, denied them of the financial, social and emotional benefits of marriage.
Supreme courts in Massachusetts and California also have ruled in favor of gay and lesbian couples, concluding the domestic partnerships were unequal to the rights given in heterosexual marriage.
Civil unions and a similar arrangement, known as domestic partnerships, are offered to same-sex couples in Vermont, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Oregon, Hawaii, Maine, Washington and the District of Columbia.
Peck said that as soon as the decision was announced, the couple started crying and hugging while juggling excited phone calls from her brother and other friends and family.
"We’ve always dreamed of being married," she said. "Even though we were lesbians and didn’t know if that would ever come true, we always dreamed of it."
Trace, your statement about Barr and Obama are simply not accurate. Bob Barr’s website does not have a page exclusively devoted to LBGT rights. Obama does.
Barr has also not indicated he is against Proposition 8 in California. Obama has specifierd his opposition on his website.
To Barr’s credit, he has indicated he is against a fedreal constitutional amendment against same sex marriage (like Obama), but that is as far as he as gone. His website states:
Regardless of whether one supports or opposes same sex marriage, the decision to recognize such unions ought to be made by each state rather than imposed as a one-size-fits-all mandate by the federal government. Any federal laws that prevent states from determining their own standards for marriage should be repealed; the federal government should not define marriage, whether by statute or constitutional amendment.
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However, Barr has not specified his position on hate crimes. ENDA, and DADT.
So unless you have a link proving otherwise, wake up and realize Obama is LIGHTYEARS ahead of Barr on LGBT issues.
OK, Wayne, we get it. Your purpose is clear. You want McCain/Palin to win. Now, can you be a good little boy and stop running into the room and shouting while the adults are trying to have a serious discussion?
Why do people keep mentioning Obama for support? He doesn’t agree with or support same-sex marriage, he thinks it should only be between a man and a woman..
10 SECONDS!!!! THAT’S ALL WE NEED. IF YOU ARE AN OBAMA SUPPORTER, WRITE TO OBAMA’S WEBSITE AND ASK HIM TO SPARE JUST “10 SECONDS” TO HELP US FIGHT FOR OUR EQUALITY. TAKE 10 SECONDS OBAMA, AND LOOK INTO ANY NEWS CAMERA AND SAY THE WORDS: “VOTE NO ON PROP 8, I’M BARACK OBAMA AND I APPROVED THIS MESSAGE” – IT WOULD ONLY TAKE 10 SECONDS, BUT IT COULD HELP WIN THE FIGHT FOR EQUALITY FOR MILLIONS OF GAY AMERICANS. ASK OBAMA FOR 10 SECONDS!
So-called “libertarians” have shown time and again that they’re more than willing to sell out to the GOP’s religious extremism whenever it suits their economic interests. If capital gain tax cuts makes it to the agenda, they’d sell out their own mother to make it happen. Ron Paul and Bob Barr were both strong supporters of the DOMA.
And they didn’t start criticizing the GOP – either on gays, civil liberties, or any other issue – until after the 30 seat rout in 2006. I find it a little convenient that these libertarians suddenly “found their voice” after their team was uncremoniously ejected from power by the American people. I guess there’s nothing like being in the wilderness to make folks see the ideological light.
10 SECONDS!!!! THAT’S ALL WE NEED. IF YOU ARE AN OBAMA SUPPORTER, WRITE TO OBAMA’S WEBSITE AND ASK HIM TO SPARE JUST “10 SECONDS” TO HELP US FIGHT FOR OUR EQUALITY. TAKE 10 SECONDS OBAMA, AND LOOK INTO ANY NEWS CAMERA AND SAY THE WORDS: “VOTE NO ON PROP 8, I’M BARACK OBAMA AND I APPROVED THIS MESSAGE” – IT WOULD ONLY TAKE 10 SECONDS, BUT IT COULD HELP WIN THE FIGHT FOR EQUALITY FOR MILLIONS OF GAY AMERICANS. ASK OBAMA FOR 10 SECONDS!
Yeah, Eddie – Barr is running as a Libertarian and has made more positive comments about equal rights for gays than Obama ever has. Bob Barr, Ron Paul and Even Dennis Kusinich are the only candidates that actually speak out for the benefit of gay people as a whole.
It really is beyond me why more gay people are not Libertarian.
Agreed, LBGT leaders need to put pressure on Obama to do a sound bite against prop 8. But withhold out votes, or vote for homophobic McCain or Barr, please – don’t insult our intelligence.
JohnM
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John, when gay people literally have to beg our LGBT leaders to “put pressure on Obama” just to get him to even consider doing a 10 second soundbite video to help in our fight for equality, that should tell you loud and clear that Obama is NOT our friend. If Obama really believed and supported our equality he wouldn’t need to be “Pressured” to do it. But not only is Obama NOT helping us, he HAS no problem organizing “Faith Tours” headed up by bigots who hate gays, and are pushing to pass Prop 8 (And these are Obama’s supporters!!!!! And you don’t hear him speaking out against them do you?) The LGBT community will always lose the fight for equality as long as we continue to GIVE OUR VOTES AWAY. Our vote is the only power we have. We have to wake up to the reality that none of the politicians are our friends. Only vote for politians that fully support our equality, and YES, WITHOLD our votes if none of the politicians speak out for our rights. Democrats have had our votes for generations, and our fight for equality is always pushed to side as soon as the election is over. The minute Democrats find out they can no longer take our votes for granted is the exact minute that they will make the political sacrifices necessary to regain our vote. But no politician will ever step out on a limb for our equality unless they are forced to. That is the sad reality.
IF OBAMA WANTS OUR VOTES THEN HE NEEDS TO STEP UP AND SPEAK OUT AGAINST PROP 8. NO MORE BS. IF OBAMA REALLY SUPPORTED OUR EQUALITY HE COULD TAKE JUST 10 SECONDS TO DO A VIDEO SOUNDBITE THAT SIMPLY SAID “VOTE NO ON PROP 8″. HE NEEDS TO SPEAK OUT, SO EVERYONE CAN HEAR, NOT THAT ONE LITTLE B.S. WRITTEN STATEMENT THAT YOU HAVE TO RESEARCH JUST TO FIND! IF OBAMA WANTS OUR VOTES, THEN OBAMA NEEDS TO SHOW SOME LEADERSHIP ON THIS ISSUE. OUR EQUALITY IS AT STAKE, AND INSTEAD OF OBAMA HELPING US, OBAMA IS ACTUALLY ORGANIZING “FAITH TOURS” THAT ARE HEADED UP BY ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE, PRO PROP 8 BIGOTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!THAT IS THE TRUTH THAT EVEN THE GAY PRESS DOESN’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT. THAT IS NOT HELPING US, IT’S HURTING US. WAKE UP PEOPLE. SUPPORT POLITICIANS WHO SUPPORT YOUR EQUALITY.
Speaking of Libertarian. It seems that Bob “Author of DOMA” Barr is running for President as a Libertarian!!! LOL!!! Yeah, right!!! Bob “DOMA” Barr is a Libertarian!!! My caboose!
I think Justice Sachs of the South African Constitutional Court blew a hole in the “procreation” argument so wide you can a drive a car through it:
“…however persuasive procreative potential might be in the context of a particular religious world-view, from a legal and constitutional point of view, it is not a defining characteristic of conjugal relationships. To hold otherwise would be deeply demeaning to couples (whether married or not) who, for whatever reason, are incapable of procreating when they commence such relationship or become so at any time thereafter. It is likewise demeaning to couples who commence such a relationship at an age when they no longer have the desire for sexual relations or the capacity to conceive. It is demeaning to adoptive parents to suggest that their family is any less a family and any less entitled to respect and concern than a family with procreated children. It is even demeaning of a couple who voluntarily decide not to have children or sexual relations with one another; this being a decision entirely within their protected sphere of freedom and privacy.”
The bigotry of the dissenting judges is apalling. Marriage was always a power structure meant to regulate the distribution of property. Procreation! And who raises the children discarded by irresponsibly procrating breeders?
I disagree with the logic used in the dissenting opinion of Justice Zarella. He argues that marriage as a matter of law is about protection of procreation. If that were indeed true, then elderly people and those who are incapable of bearing children would not be legally allowed to wed. Marriages would need to have a sunset clause allowing them to expire when one or both partners could no longer create an offspring.
As an aside to that argument, one need look no further than the orphanages of Connecticut to realize that our planet has more than enough foster and underwanted children. Justice Zarella’s argument lacks logic.
Congratulations Tristan and everyone in Connecticut. This is indeed a very sweet and significant victory that we can all take time to celebrate.
Your friends in California are joyous that you have joined the small family of US states celebrating marriage equality.
We are, indeed, celebrating here in CT.
However, we have our own Proposition 8-style voter initiative coming up in November.
The fight hasn’t been won yet. The battle was won, but the war continues.
But, that’s for another day. Today, the glass is definitely half FULL and not half empty!