Back in December we learned the AMAZING news that the Washington DC city council, the ruling body in our nation’s capital, voted to allow same-sex marriage to be legal within its boundaries and just last week we learned that couples in DC were allowed to apply for their marriage licenses … it was reported then that March 9 was the first day those couples could be legally wed and today is that historic day. Here are a couple photos of 2 same-sex couples getting LEGALLY MARRIED in Washington DC earlier today!!!

A lesbian couple together for more than a decade smiled through tears Tuesday as they became the first same-sex couple to marry in the District of Columbia, on the first day such unions are legal in the nation’s capital. Sinjoyla Townsend and Angelisa Young said they had waited years to marry. They were first in line last week to apply for a marriage license at Washington’s marriage bureau. “You are my friend, my partner, my love,” Young, 47, told Townsend, 41. “I will love you today, tomorrow and forever.” After the wedding, those present cheered as the two women embraced and cried. They have been together for 12 years and have children, according to biographical information released by the Human Rights Campaign and D.C. Clergy United for Marriage Equality. The new law survived a Supreme Court challenge. The measure went into effect last week, but couples had to hold off until Tuesday because of the district’s three-day waiting period. “We’re very excited,” Townsend said last week. She and Young were among 100 couples applying for licenses. The district joins Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont in allowing same-sex couples to marry. Mayor Adrian Fenty signed the Washington measure into law in December after the city council overwhelming passed it. It then went through a review period, during which Congress had an opportunity to intervene. The Supreme Court last week rejected a request from a group of Washington residents to keep the law from going into effect. Local courts had previously turned down lawsuits to block it … Also among the first couples to marry Tuesday were Reggie Stanley and Rocky Galloway, both 50. The couple have two daughters, Malena and Zoe Stanley-Galloway, each 15 months old, according to the biographical information released by the equality groups. Also married on Tuesday were the Rev. Elder Darlene Garner, 61, and the Rev. Lorilyn Candy Holmes, 53, of Laurel, Maryland. Both of them serve in leadership roles in the Metropolitan Community Church. The women are mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers, according to the groups. During Garner and Holmes’ ceremony, a representative from their families read a statement blessing the marriage.

HOW WONDERFUL!! What a happy, happy day for the people of Washington DC and what an historic day for the United States of America. We still have a LONG way to go before marriage equality is made available to ALL citizens of the US but little by little, the right for same-sex couples to marry is becoming a reality in the US of A. These newly married couples in DC can now move to neighboring Maryland where, altho same-sex couples cannot yet legally be married there, they will be treated the same as any heterosexual married couple. This is such an important step forward for our country. While the rest of our country waits for true liberty and justice for all, we can take some comfort in the loving celebrations taking place in Washington DC today :) Much love and congrats to all the newlyweds!!!

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In December, by a vote of 11-2, the Washington DC city council (which is the ruling body of our nation’s capital) determined that same-sex marriage will be legal in the District of Columbia and would go into effect in March of 2010. Just last week, in preparation for DC’s legalization of same-sex marriage, the State of Maryland determined that it would recognize the rights and privileges of same-sex couples who are legally married in the US as they would any legally married heterosexual couple. In a last ditch effort to halt the progress of marriage equality in DC, opponents petitioned the Supreme Court to intercede and stop today’s legalization of same-sex marriage … but the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, John Roberts, rejected the request from opponents to stop the law from going into effect:

Chief Justice John Roberts of the Supreme Court rejected on Tuesday a request from opponents of gay marriage to put on hold a new law that allows same-sex couples to wed in Washington, D.C. Roberts acted right before the law takes effect on Wednesday. In December, the city council adopted a measure which adds the nation’s capital to the five states that already allow same-sex marriage. Opponents of gay marriage argued there should be a public referendum on the law, which expands the definition of marriage to include same-sex couples, before it takes effect. Roberts refused to put the law on hold and said the local Board of Elections, the city’s superior court and its court of appeals all had rejected the request for a referendum. Roberts said the Supreme Court’s practice has been to defer to local court decisions on District of Columbia matters of exclusive local concern. Roberts also said the U.S. Congress has allowed the law to go into effect.

And with that last failed bid to hinder the law from going into effect, same-sex couples are now able TODAY to apply for marriage licenses in the capital of the United States of America:

Same-sex couples can start applying for marriage licenses Wednesday in Washington. Supporters say couples planned to line up before the city’s marriage bureau opened at 8:30 a.m., and some officials were expecting 200 or more people. Washington will be the sixth place in the nation where gay marriages can take place. Because of a mandatory waiting period, however, couples won’t actually be able to marry in the District of Columbia until March 9. Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont currently issue licenses to same-sex couples. The city’s Moultrie courthouse, which houses the marriage bureau, is just blocks from the U.S. Capitol. To deal with the crowd expected Wednesday, the marriage bureau will bring in temporary employees to help its regular staff, courthouse spokeswoman Leah Gurowitz said. “Everybody who wants a marriage license is going to get one. It may take a little longer, but they will get their license,” Gurowitz said. To prepare for Wednesday, the marriage bureau has changed its license applications so they are gender-neutral, asking for the name of each “spouse” rather than the “bride” and “groom.” And at civil marriage ceremonies to be performed in the courthouse, a booklet for the official performing the marriage now reads, “I now pronounce you legally married” instead of “I now pronounce you man and wife.” A marriage license application costs $35, and the marriage license $10. Couples who are already registered as domestic partners in the city can convert their registration into a marriage license by paying the $10 fee. Supporters expected the day to be festive. A District of Columbia councilman who introduced the gay marriage bill planned to hand out boxes of vanilla and chocolate cupcakes to the first 200 couples in line. Terrance Heath, 41, planned to be at the courthouse with his partner, Rick Imirowicz, 43. The two have been together for 10 years and have a 7-year-old and a 2-year-old, but Heath said Wednesday feels like “a step forward.” “My husband has always been my husband to me, but having that legal recognition, that legal protection, makes it easier to deal with any number of situations,” said Heath, a writer and blogger. “If you tell people you’re married, you don’t really have to explain much beyond that.” The two, who live in Maryland, plan to marry on March 9, the first day possible.

This is a happy, very important day for the US. While same-sex couples cannot actually marry in Washington DC until March 9, they are able to apply for their marriage licenses starting today in preparation for those weddings that can legally take place starting next Tuesday! I’m still boggled that Washington DC, the capital of the United States of America, has legalized same-sex marriage and, yet, the majority of the country still outlaws the practice. Still, this is an important move forward. I am convinced I will see marriage equality come to the whole US in my lifetime … but I will fondly remember the brave first 6 places in the US — namely Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire and the District of Columbia — that forged the way for true liberty and justice for all in this country! Yay!!

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Amazing marriage equality news to pass along today … the Attorney General of the great State of Maryland, Douglas F. Gansler (a Democrat), has determined that Maryland will immediately begin recognizing same-sex marriages performed in other States where it is legal (Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire and the District of Columbia). As you may recall, Washington DC just legalized same-sex marriage back in December and will begin marrying same-sex couples in March … since DC and Maryland are close neighbors, it would seem that the Maryland Attorney General is merely taking action to prepare his State for the influx of new same-sex married couples:

Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler (D) declared Wednesday that Maryland will recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere and that its agencies should immediately begin affording gay married couples the same rights as heterosexual ones. With Gansler’s decision, Maryland in effect joins the District and a handful of states including New York that recognize same-sex marriages performed in four New England states and Iowa. The District also has its own measure legalizing those unions that is expected to take effect next week. Gansler, a supporter of legalizing same-sex marriages, was asserting his authority as the top legal adviser to state agencies to answer a question that experts say had been left unclear by Maryland law. He was responding to a legislator’s request that he issue an opinion. The attorney general’s opinion unleashed a torrent of emotions from both gay rights advocates and those opposed to same-sex marriage, adding a potentially explosive issue to election-year politics in Maryland. It is likely to be quickly challenged in court, Gansler acknowledged. Gay and lesbian groups said the decision put the state on track toward legalizing same-sex marriage and would embolden them to push more strongly for pending legislation to do so. Similar measures have died in the legislature in years past. The exact practical implications of Gansler’s decision were unclear. David Rocah, a staff lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland, said he thought that the opinion could have “hundreds, if not thousands,” of implications for same-sex couples married elsewhere. Rocah said the opinion could ensure same-sex spouses’ rights to health benefits, inheritances, child support and even divorce. Gansler said state laws have more than 1,000 references to spouses or marriage. Gov. Martin O’Malley (D), who has consistently voiced support for civil unions but stopped short of endorsing same-sex marriage, said his administration would be “guided” by Gansler’s legal opinion. Under O’Malley, Maryland has significantly expanded benefits to couples who register as domestic partners, but under Gansler’s opinion, same-sex couples married elsewhere would no longer have to go through that step to get many of the same protections. “I am confident that the Attorney General and his office will provide all necessary advice to state agencies on how to comply with the law,” O’Malley said in a statement. “I expect all state agencies to work with the Attorney General’s office to ensure compliance with the law.” Gansler’s opinion answered a question about recognizing same-sex marriage that was posed last spring by Sen. Richard S. Madaleno Jr., an openly gay Montgomery County Democrat. In a roughly 50-page opinion that took nine months to compose, Gansler says the starting principle in state law is that a marriage that is valid in the place of celebration remains valid in Maryland. And even though the state narrowly defines marriages performed within its borders as between a man and a woman, Gansler says, such restrictions don’t amount to a strong public policy argument that would override recognizing unions from elsewhere.

While this does NOT mean that same-sex couples can marry in Maryland, it does mean that couples who have been married in the 6 States and the District of Columbia, where same-sex marriage is legal, will be afforded the same rights and privileges in Maryland as would any heterosexual married couple. This is fantastic news. We live in a country, with United States, where the laws of the States are recognized as legal and binding in other States in the Union … this makes perfect legal sense. The tide towards marriage equality for all in the country continues to pick up steam. Little by little, bit by bit … we shall overcome and we will get there some day. Wee!!

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Congratulations are in order for Eamon Farrell and Steven Mannion who were wed in a ceremony in Dublin, Ireland this weekend. Eamon is older brother to actor Colin Farrell, who was on hand to be the Best Man at the nuptials. Here are photos of the newlyweds (who were actually legally married in Canada over the Summer but were remarried in this civil union ceremony in Ireland over the weekend) alongside Colin and his eldest son James as they made their way out of the festivities at Krystle nightclub last night:

The wedding celebrations of Colin Farrell’s gay brother were a family affair last night at Krystle nightclub on Harcourt Street in Dublin. Farrell’s brother Eamon was marking his marriage to his longtime partner, Irish artist Steven Mannion. Colin was in Dublin for the party, bringing his five-year-old son James with him. Colin’s father, Eamon Sr., his mother Rita, and his sisters, Claudine and Catherine, were also at the bash, along with other high-profile Dublin socialites. James is Colin Farrell’s first son, whom he had with former girlfriend, American model Kim Bordenave … Although this is a time of celebration for the Farrell family, the clan has had other issues to contend with recently, too. The newlywed Eamon has expressed disappointment that he and Steven could celebrate in Ireland but they could not formally wed here. The Irish Civil Partnership Bill brought in earlier this year gives gay people many of the same rights as hetersexuals, but does not legislate for marriage. As a result Eamon and Steven got married in Vancouver, Canada, over the summer, where same-sex marriage is legal. “We have to get married abroad,” he complained in an interview at the time. “It’s absolutely terrible. We have to go somewhere legal, which narrows it down to about five countries. “Who wants a civil union? It’s just so legal. I want to be able to get married.” Farrell was best man at his brother’s summer wedding.

While I understand the couple’s frustration at having to A) travel to another country in order to be legally wed and B) settle for a “civil union” instead of an actual marriage in their homeland, I hope they are able to take comfort in the fact that they are lovingly committed to one another no matter what anyone has to say about it. I LOVE that Colin has been so involved in this happy time in his older brother’s life … I’m sure it meant a lot to Eamon to have his family included in his nuptials to Steven. Much love and congrats goes out to the happy couple. May they live a long, happy and prosperous life together :)

[Photo credit: INFdaily; Source]

I’ve got more great news to pass along today in the push for marriage equality! Mexico City, one of the largest metropolitan cities in Latin America, has made a huge step forward in progress by legalizing same-sex marriage. Not only that, Mexico City has also legalized same-sex adoption, meaning that same-sex couples within their borders will be able to adopt children just like any heterosexual couple can! It is pretty remarkable that such a major metropolis would afford equality to its citizens in such a way that a majority of the world has yet to do:

Mexico City, one of Latin America’s largest metropolises, on Monday legalized same-sex marriage and adoption by same-sex couples. By a vote of 39 to 20, the city’s legislative assembly approved revisions to the civil code to permit same-sex marriages. Five legislators abstained. In a separate motion, the assembly voted 31 to 24 in favor of legalizing adoption by same-sex couples, with nine abstentions. The revision will change the definition of marriage to a union between two people, instead of the current version, which specifies a union between a man and a woman. Civil groups in favor and opposed to the vote had gathered since early in the morning outside the legislative building. In 2007, the legislators approved same-sex civil unions. Mexico City is the second major Latin American city to legalize same-sex marriage. In November, a Buenos Aires, Argentina, court legalized same-sex marriages. The first marriage to be held under the new law, however, was delayed over legal wrangling in the courts.

This is amazing news, truly. Much of Latin America is staunchly Catholic, so for cities like Buenos Aires and Mexico City to legalize same-sex marriage despite the influence of the Catholic Church says a lot about the mettle of those governments. Imagine, a country that enjoys a separation of Church and State … doesn’t that sound wonderful? Much love and congrats goes out to the people of Mexico City on this great advancement of marriage equality. And so … as the march for equality moves forward in this country we have another beacon of hope to look to as we work towards our goal of liberty, justice and equality for all here in the US of A.

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Happy news for marriage equality today!! The City Council of Washington DC, the capital of the United States of America, has voted 11-2 to legalize same-sex marriage in the District of Columbia. Barring intrusion by the US Congress (which is highly unlikely to happen), same-sex couples will be able to apply for marriage licenses as early as March 2010!

The Washington, D.C., City Council voted Tuesday to legalize gay marriage in the nation’s capital, handing supporters a victory after a string of recent defeats in Maine, New York and New Jersey. Mayor Adrian Fenty has promised to sign the bill, which passed 11-2, and gay couples could begin marrying as early as March. Congress, which has final say over Washington’s laws, could reject it, but Democratic leaders have suggested they are reluctant to do so. The bill had overwhelming support among council members and was expected to pass, though opponents have vowed to try to get Congress or voters to overturn it. David Catania, who introduced the bill and is one of two openly gay council members, called the bill a ”matter of social justice” before the vote. Two members voted ”I do” when their names came up, and when the vote finished a packed chamber erupted into cheers and clapping. The ”no” votes included former mayor Marion Barry, now a council member. If Congress does not reject the bill, the district will join Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Vermont in issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. They will be able to wed in New Hampshire starting in January. Gay marriage supporters have had less success elsewhere recently. Maine voters overturned the state’s same-sex marriage law last month. Earlier this month, the New York state Senate rejected a bill that would have allowed gay couples to marry. And New Jersey’s legislature, which had been working on a same-sex marriage bill, postponed a recent vote when the measure appeared headed for defeat. Tuesday’s vote in the district came after several months of discussion, including two marathon council hearings at which some 250 witnesses testified. Opponents included the Archdiocese of Washington, which said it might have to stop providing adoptions and other services because the law would force it to extend benefits to same-sex couples. But most who testified in this overwhelmingly Democratic city were supporters. Some, teary-eyed, asked the council to let friends, relatives or themselves marry. One man proposed to his partner during his testimony. The law will likely take effect around St. Patrick’s Day in this city of 600,000, which is about 1/17th the size of Rhode Island. Congress has 30 working days to reject it, but that has happened just three times in the past 25 years and appears unlikely in this case.

This is an amazing, amazing day … and we are one step closer to enjoying full marriage equality here in the United States of America. Think about it … our nation’s capital city has come to realize that marriage equality is a right that should be enjoyed by its citizens … and one day, hopefully soon, the rest of the country will come to the same realization. Back in June, New Hampshire successfully legalized same-sex marriage and folks there will begin to marry next month. Yes, there have been set backs but we solider on, press forward and celebrate each new win. We will get there, I know it with every fiber of my being. Thank you Washington DC for joining those who are leading the way towards TRUE marriage equality for all :)

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Bruce Springsteen, The Boss himself who was recently honored at the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony in Washington DC for his achievements in American culture through the arts, has posted a new message on his official website lending his support for the right of same-sex couples to marry in the US. Here is the full text of Springstreen’s official statement on marriage equality:

A BRIEF STATEMENT FROM BRUCE
Like many of you who live in New Jersey, I’ve been following the progress of the marriage-equality legislation currently being considered in Trenton. I’ve long believed in and have always spoken out for the rights of same sex couples and fully agree with Governor Corzine when he writes that, “The marriage-equality issue should be recognized for what it truly is — a civil rights issue that must be approved to assure that every citizen is treated equally under the law.” I couldn’t agree more with that statement and urge those who support equal treatment for our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters to let their voices be heard now.

Love to Bruce for taking such a bold and vocal stance on this very important issue. I have long held, as well, that the matter of same-sex marriage is a matter of civil rights so I am very pleased to know that he agrees. I am very hopeful that the brave voices of straight allies like Springsteen will speak to the hearts and minds of others and will help them realize that inequality for some is inequality for all. Thank you Bruce for lending your support for this issue … I look forward to the day when the US can truly be called the Land of the Free — to marry :)

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