Today Maine became the 5th state to vote for Marriage Equality. Yesterday the City of Washington DC also voted to recognize gay marriages that take place in other states. Iowa and Vermont allowed Gay Marriage in the past month. New Hampshire could also join the list as soon as this week.
One thing that I am still struck by is the lack of news attention this has received. Just 4 or 5 years ago this would have been Front Page Breaking News! - today it is hardly mentioned - all which are good signs and an indication that peoples views are changing.
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine's governor signed a freshly passed bill Wednesday approving gay marriage, making it the fifth state to approve the practice and moving New England closer to allowing it throughout the region.
New Hampshire legislators were also poised to send a gay marriage bill to their governor, who hasn't indicated whether he'll sign it. If he does, Rhode Island would be the region's sole holdout
Maine Gov. John Baldacci, a Democrat who hadn't indicated how he would handle his state's bill, quickly signed it.
"In the past, I opposed gay marriage while supporting the idea of civil unions," Baldacci said in a statement read in his office. "I have come to believe that this is a question of fairness and of equal protection under the law, and that a civil union is not equal to civil marriage."
The law is to take effect in mid-September but could be sidetracked before then. Opponents promise to challenge it through a public veto process that could suspend it while a statewide vote takes shape.
No comments:
Post a Comment