DC Leads, California Follows

While the constitutionality of Proposition 8, the California ballot initiative banning same-sex marriage, is considered in the U.S. District Court, other parts of the United States are taking the lead in gay rights.

Washington D.C. is becoming a great proponent in change. The Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality Amendment Act of 2009 has been introduced in Washington D.C. This act would allow same-sex couples to be legally married in D.C. when currently D.C. only recognizes same-sex marriages from other states. This amendment provides hope for gay marriage in both D.C., and potentially, on a national level.

Washington D.C. is not a state; it is a district of Congress, which means that all city laws must be approved by Congress in order for them to take effect. If Congress approves same-sex marriage in D.C., Congress will implicitly show its support for same-sex marriage. Government officials and policymakers will be forced to clearly express an opinion either for or against same-sex marriage in a vote. In the past, the topic of same-sex marriage has been a touchy and taboo subject and therefore, little consensus has been reached on the issue. The vote on the ordinance by the Washington City Council will force Congress to reach a definitive consensus.

On December 1, 2009, the D.C. Council voted on legalizing same-sex marriage. The first round of voting passed with 11 votes in favor and 2 dissenting.

Later that month in December the D.C. Council passed the proposed same-sex marriage bill with a final vote of 11-2. Council member Phil Mendelson commented, “Today is the final step in a long march in equality.” From here the bill will be signed by the mayor of the District of Columbia and then must go to Congress for a review period of thirty legislative days before the bill is signed in as law.

By no means does this mean that same-sex marriage will be legal nationwide. On November 3, Maine voted 53-47 to repeal gay marriage, a similar result to what occurred in California with Proposition 8.

In his campaign, Barack Obama promised to get rid of the U.S. military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, yet it is still in place. Many believe that Obama has been busy pushing his health care agenda, not yet focusing on the rights of LGBT citizens. Currently Belgium, Canada, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Norway, and the Netherlands have legalized same-sex marriage and recognize the union. In the United States, only Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire (which will be effective in January 2010), Washington D.C. and New York recognize the union but do not perform marriages between same-sex couples.

Many other countries recognize civil unions and registered partnerships including Iceland, New Zealand, Finland, France, Germany, Switzerland, Greenland, Andorra, Colombia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Hungary, Luxembourg, New Caledonia, Slovenia, United Kingdom, and Uruguay.

California is not on this list, due to the passing of Proposition 8. This illustrates the divide among residents of California. Here, in the Bay Area, support for same-sex marriage or similar legislation would likely pass by a landslide. It is indeed curious that Iowa and other more “conservative” states are passing same-sex marriage laws.

With Washington D.C’s movement to legalize same-sex there is a vast opportunity for change in current legislation. Hopefully, it will spur the legalization of same-sex marriage nationwide. With Congress’s approval there is much hope for same-sex marriage to be legalized nationwide.

One Response

1. 8:23 AM on January 20th, 2010senior:

   great article, very informative.

   i really hope it’s legalized here soon…

Leave a Comment

All comments are moderated. If your comment contains profanity or libelous content, please don't waste our time.