Friday, May 10, 2013 – Rhode Island became the tenth state and Delaware became the Eleventh state to legalize same sex marriage in the United States of America. Minnesota could be the twelfth state to approve the marriage of gay and lesbian couples.
On Thursday, May 2, 2013, Rhode Island became the tenth U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage with a 56-15 vote.
Gov. Lincoln Chafee, an ex republican and an Independent now, signed the bill. He said, ”When your belief and heart is in something, it’s easy work. I am proud to say that now, at long last, you are free to marry the person you love.”
Rhode Island House Speaker Gordon Fox, who is openly gay, spoke about his longtime partner Marcus. He said, ”We’re not going to be talking about same-sex marriage anymore, we’re going to be talking about marriage.”
The Roman Catholic Church fought fiercely against the measure. Bishop Thomas J. Tobin, the outspoken head of the Diocese of Providence, said in a letter “(I am )profoundly disappointed that Rhode Island has approved legislation that seeks to legitimize ‘same-sex marriage.’ ”
State Representative Art Handy, told the Boston Globe “Time has been marching on in terms of public opinion,” said Handy. “There are so many young people who do not understand how in the world this is an issue that people are unhappy about. It just doesn’t make any sense to them.” Working on the gay marriage issue “helped me appreciate my own marriage and my relationship with my wife even more.”
Representative Arthur J. Corvese, an opponent said the bill alters a “millennium-old definition of traditional marriage.”
Grace Diaz, the first Dominican-American woman elected to state office in the history of the United States of America said, “I’m rising in support of my brother, who had to hide from our [family] and go to Mexico, because nobody accepted him the way that he is… I have the courage to talk with my friends in the church and tell them that this bill is all about love.”
The new law will take effect on Aug. 1, 2013.
On Tuesday, May 7, 2013, Delaware became the 11th state to legalize same-sex marriage. The votes were 12 YES and 9 NO.
The bill won passage two weeks ago in the state House on a 23-18 vote.
Gov. Jack Markell signed the legislation into law after half hour the Senate vote.
Delawareans will be able to get married starting on July 1. The law provides a mechanism for converting existing same-sex civil unions established in Delaware to marriages.
“I think this is the right thing for Delaware. It took an incredible team effort,” Markell said.
Opponents said, same-sex marriage destroys a centuries-old institution.
The new law doesn’t give same-sex couples any more rights or benefits under Delaware law than those they already have in civil unions. It also states that same-sex unions established in other states will be treated the same as marriages under Delaware law.
Clerics don’t have to perform same-sex marriages if that conflict with their religious beliefs. But business owners who refuse to provide marriage-related services to same-sex couples could be subject to discrimination claims.
On Thursday, May 9, 2013, the Minnesota House has passed a measure to legalize same-sex marriage. The vote was 75 to 59.
The measure now goes to the Senate, which will take up the issue on Monday, May 13, 2013.
If it passes Monday, Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton will sign it into law and make Minnesota the 12th U.S. state to legalize gay marriage.
Other states since 2004 legalized gay marriage following the example of Massachusetts (2004), Connecticut (2008), Iowa (2009), Vermont (2009), New Hampshire (2010), New York (2011), Maine (2012), Maryland (2012) and Washington (2012).
Washington D. C., the U.S. federal capital, although not a state, also legalized marriage for same-sex couples in 2009.
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