Gay Rights On a Roll

I am so proud of the Americans these days: First they come out in droves to vote - for a president with a white mother and a black father - and now finally gay rights seem to be on a roll in the US too!

I wonder how much Sean Pean and his Oscar winning role as Harvey Milk has helped this development :-) Not that I needed to be turned, but I definitely loved the movie and want to check out this documentary about Harvey Milk.

No matter what has moved the people in Iowa, Vermont and now New York to join forces with Connecticut and Massachusetts, I hope this movement will continue to all the other states in the US - this is notably an encouragement to my fellow Washingtonians here in the North West: make it happen!

Denmark, where I am from, was one of the first countries in Europe to allow gay marriage:
"Currently there are nine European countries that give marital rights to gay couples. In Scandinavia, Denmark (1989), Norway (1993), Sweden (1994), and Iceland (1996) pioneered a separate-and-not-quite-equal status for same-sex couples called "registered partnership." (When they register, same-sex couples receive most of the financial and legal rights of marriage, other than the right to marry in a state church and the right to adopt children.) Since 2001, the Netherlands and Belgium have opened marriage to same-sex couples." (source: Slate)

Since August 2001, gays in Denmark can also be married in a church as long as both a mayor and a priest is present, but they have to find a priest that is willing to do so. The priests can't be forced to do it since some are against performing a wedding ceremony for a gay couple in their church. Oscar Frederiks church in Göteborg in Sweden was the first church in Scandinavia to marry a gay couple according to homotropolis.dk. This month the Swedish parliament voted that all marriages from May 1 2009 are gender neutral. Swedish priests that are against performing a wedding ceremony for a gay couple still won't be forced to do so though.

In December 2007 the Danish parliament voted to allow gay couples in Denmark to adopt children, after seeing it work well in Sweden, our more advanced brother country. Heja Sverige! Go Sweden!


Link time line:
NY Governor Introduces Bill to Allow Gay Marriage
Big Wins Re-Energize Gay Marriage Activists
Mayor Bloomberg urges NY to allow gay marriage
NY State Court Recognizes Gay Marriages From Elsewhere