HARTFORD — -
Lawyers, lawmakers, activists and newlyweds gathered at the state Capitol Thursday to mark the one-year anniversary of the effective date of the court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage in Connecticut.
They began with a group photo on the north steps of the building. Then the celebration moved inside the ornate chambers of the Old Judiciary Room with its stained glass windows and gilded wallpaper. The crowd marked the occasion with slices of wedding cake and a toast.
Amid this very public event, state Rep. Beth Bye, D- West Hartford, and her partner, Tracey Wilson, marked a personal milestone: They were the first same-sex couple in Connecticut to marry on Nov. 12, 2008, the day the landmark ruling, Kerrigan et al v. the Commissioner of Public Health et al, took effect.
"This was a movement," Bye said. Though it came about through a 4-3 ruling by the state Supreme Court, Bye said it was the efforts of "everyday citizens" that paved the way.
State Rep. Michael Lawlor, the East Haven Democrat who co-chairs the legislature's judiciary committee, was one of the General Assembly's most consistent champions of the issue. He said there is now broad public acceptance of same-sex marriage. "Minds did change, gradually, step by step," he said.
Lawlor singled out Gov. M. Jodi Rell, who invoked her decision to support a bill granting civil unions to same-sex couples when she announced Monday she would not seek another term. Rell was an early opponent of same-sex marriage but, last spring, she signed legislation codifying the Kerrigan ruling.
"Thank you, Gov. Rell," Lawlor said.
Critics say the only way same-sex marriage can win passage is through the courts. Every time the question has been put directly to voters, it has failed, and they point to last week's referendum in Maine as further evidence that the idea remains unpopular, even in New England.
Over the past year, more than 1,700 same-sex couples have married in Connecticut; about 50 percent of them came from out of state. Massachusetts, Iowa and Vermont permit gays and lesbians to marry and it will become legal in New Hampshire in January.
Bennett Klein, an attorney with the Boston-based Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, predicted that one day every state will permit same-sex couples to marry.
"We will have victories, we will have setbacks," Klein said, citing what he called "painful" losses in both California and Maine. "But we are always moving forward."
They began with a group photo on the north steps of the building. Then the celebration moved inside the ornate chambers of the Old Judiciary Room with its stained glass windows and gilded wallpaper. The crowd marked the occasion with slices of wedding cake and a toast.
Amid this very public event, state Rep. Beth Bye, D- West Hartford, and her partner, Tracey Wilson, marked a personal milestone: They were the first same-sex couple in Connecticut to marry on Nov. 12, 2008, the day the landmark ruling, Kerrigan et al v. the Commissioner of Public Health et al, took effect.
"This was a movement," Bye said. Though it came about through a 4-3 ruling by the state Supreme Court, Bye said it was the efforts of "everyday citizens" that paved the way.
State Rep. Michael Lawlor, the East Haven Democrat who co-chairs the legislature's judiciary committee, was one of the General Assembly's most consistent champions of the issue. He said there is now broad public acceptance of same-sex marriage. "Minds did change, gradually, step by step," he said.
Lawlor singled out Gov. M. Jodi Rell, who invoked her decision to support a bill granting civil unions to same-sex couples when she announced Monday she would not seek another term. Rell was an early opponent of same-sex marriage but, last spring, she signed legislation codifying the Kerrigan ruling.
"Thank you, Gov. Rell," Lawlor said.
Critics say the only way same-sex marriage can win passage is through the courts. Every time the question has been put directly to voters, it has failed, and they point to last week's referendum in Maine as further evidence that the idea remains unpopular, even in New England.
Over the past year, more than 1,700 same-sex couples have married in Connecticut; about 50 percent of them came from out of state. Massachusetts, Iowa and Vermont permit gays and lesbians to marry and it will become legal in New Hampshire in January.
Bennett Klein, an attorney with the Boston-based Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, predicted that one day every state will permit same-sex couples to marry.
"We will have victories, we will have setbacks," Klein said, citing what he called "painful" losses in both California and Maine. "But we are always moving forward."
Waitforme, sorry, but the definition of "marriage" is as follows
1 a (1) : the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law (2) : the state of being united to a person of the same sex
Your act of exclusion is pathetic and ignorant.
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Nice try, but....that's the webster dictionary. They took it upon themselves to change the meaning. The word marriage (as well as it's meaning) was around long before Mr. Webster changed it. Nice try, though. Hope it all works out for you.
Waitforme (11/14/2009, 7:29 AM )