Lawfully wedded: Same-Sex Marriages Now Legal in Mass.

For gay rights advocates, May 17, 2004 marks two civil rights victories: the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education, and the first day same-sex marriages became legal in the U.S.

Those involved with or sympathetic to the gay rights movement note similarities between racial segregation, which Brown v. Board of Education deemed illegal, and marriage discrimination, which the Massachusetts Supreme Court struck down in November 2003 and again in February 2004. (For details on Massachusetts Supreme Court decision, click here.)

Proponents of gay rights feel that discrimination based on sexual orientation is parallel to discrimination based on race, religion, and gender.

Gay and lesbian marriages fully legal

Although the state legislature and governor tried to prevent them, gay and lesbian couples are getting married in Massachusetts. And for now, nothing can stop them.

However, the state legislature has approved an amendment to the Massachusetts constitution that would effectively halt the marriages; but before that can happen, the public must vote to approve it. The vote is scheduled for November 2006, but gay rights activists doubt the amendment will pass. Kevin Cathcart, executive director of gay rights group Lambda Legal, says that by the time the amendment gets on the ballot, voters will be more accustomed to the idea of gay marriage and will see that it has no negative effect on society.

Ray McNulty, spokesman for the Massachusetts Family Institute, does not agree. McNulty says that people will continue to fight against gay marriage and that his organization will campaign against state legislators who don’t support the amendment.

Obstacles for out-of-state couples

Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, a Republican, is against gay marriage and is concerned that his state will become a mecca for same-sex couples wanting to tie the knot. Therefore, Romney has revived a 1913 state law that forbids state clerks from marrying couples who cannot be married legally in their home state. The law was originally intended to block interracial marriages.

Clerks in at least four communities - Provincetown, Somerville, Worcester, and Springfield - defied the governor’s command and married all couples that requested licenses. The governor has responded swiftly by demanding copies of all marriage license applications processed by these four towns. On Thursday, May 20, 2004, Governor Romney announced that among these applications, he found ten from out-of-state couples. These applications will not be recorded by the state and are therefore nullified.

Romney has also encouraged Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly to make a "corrective effort" to stop the clerks in these towns from issuing out-of-state licenses. Reilly has not yet decided on what action to take. His options range from writing a simple letter that reminds town clerks of the law to fining clerks $500 each or sentencing them to a year in jail.

The result?

Unless Congress passes and states ratify an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, gay and lesbian couples living in Massachusetts can legally marry until at least November 2006. That’s two-and-a-half years for Massachusetts, the United States, and the world to gauge the impact of the legalization of same-sex marriages in the U.S. (Same-sex marriage is also legal in Belgium, the Netherlands, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia.)

Bush has urged Congress to amend the U.S. Constitution to ban same-sex marriage. Do you agree with this? Discuss this issue with other readers in one of our online forums.

A New Hampshire couple has threatened to sue if Massachusetts nullifies their marriage. Other legal battles are likely to ensue when couples find that other states do not recognize their rights. WomenMatter will keep you posted on this developing issue. Sign up for an e alert, and we’ll email you with an update.

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Update Posted on: 5/24/2004