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Date Posted: 00:43:21 06/12/03 Thu
Author: Kris
Subject: News of MAJOR importance...

Since our reporter extraordinaire is ummm busy at the moment I'll post this. AND I am not putting it in a reply since I think its too important!

From Planetout.com:

Within hours of the Ontario Court of Appeals ruling that legalized same-sex marriages in the Canadian province, plaintiffs Michael Leshner and Michael Stark were married in a civil ceremony in front of a group of about fifty friends. Many other gay and lesbian couples, including Americans, are expected to follow suit, as provincial leaders confirmed Wednesday that they will follow the court's orders. "I'm charged to follow the laws and will follow the laws with regards to this matter," Ontario Attorney General Norm Sterling told Canada.com.

In Canada's capital, Federal Justice Minister Martin Cauchon said the government knows it must find a prompt "national solution" to the question of same-sex marriages. Courts in Quebec and British Columbia have ruled that same-sex marriages must be legal. But unlike the Ontario Court, the ruling judges in the other cases gave the government a deadline of July, 2004, to take action. Yesterday's ruling, which took effect at once, made next year's deadline irrelevant, as couples from throughout the country may now marry in Ontario.

Syndicated news reporter Rex Wockner spoke Wednesday with the Toronto city clerk's office, which confirmed that couples who marry in Ontario are not required to be a resident of the country, meaning that American couples may go to Canada to marry.

Couples must first apply for a license with clerk, Wockner said. Subsequently, they must have the marriage solemnized by a judge, justice of the peace or an appropriate authorized religious representative. The person who conducts the ceremony then files paperwork with the Ontario Provincial Office of the Registrar General, and the married couple may apply to receive their official marriage certificate in about 12 weeks.

Evan Wolfson, Executive Director of Freedom to Marry, confirmed that anyone may marry in Canada. American couples who do so, he warns, should realize that they will be "as married as anybody on the planet." The decision is not a political gesture. "It's not just a sign-up on a list," said Wolfson. "They will be assuming all the responsibilities and commitments of marriage, and when they come home -- although they might face uncertainties and discrimination -- they will be married."

Wolfson anticipates that it will take a few years for American courts and legislators to agree on the status of gay Americans who marry in Canada. During this time, Wolfson says these couples will have a unique chance "every day to role model what married gay Americans look like, and help dispel the scare tactics of the religious right."

Although litigation is a sure bet, as certain states or public agencies resist recognition of the Canadian same-sex marriages, Wolfson cautions couples not to race across the border and come home ready for a lawsuit. On behalf of all gay and lesbian couples seeking the right to marry in the United States, he says, such suits should be chosen strategically and handled, he hopes, by legal groups who are well-experienced in working on the fight for marriage in the courts.

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Replies:

*Sets up collection cans for Nick and Drew...* (NT) -- Kris, 00:45:41 06/12/03 Thu
- *giggles* I keep asking where the ring is, only to be met with laughter! How crzy is that! (NT) -- Nick, 09:18:00 06/12/03 Thu