Stephanie Chafee

Lynn McKinney and Ron Margolin, a gay couple who have been together 32 years, will take advantage of Rhode Island’s new civil unions law that was signed by the Governor on July 2.

The Narragansett couple had originally asked the governor to oversee their civil union ceremony. But he will be out of the country on November 5th, the date they’ve picked for the ceremony.

“Stephanie said she’d do it and we were delighted,” Margolin said. “She’s been so active in the HIV/AIDS work from the very beginning…she’s been right there all of the time.”

WPRI-TV

Mrs. Chafee was granted approval by the state’s General Assembly to perform the ceremony — lawmakers routinely authorize people who aren’t judges or members of the clergy to perform marriages, but this is the first time Assembly has approved a civil union ceremony request.

The couple credited the Chafees with being long-time advocates for the gay and lesbian community; Stephanie Chafee was one of the first nurses in Rhode Island to work with AIDS patients, said McKinney.

Though Governor Chafee recognized that the bill was “imperfect” (as it did not give full marriage rights to gays and lesbians) he believed that it was a step forward and was a bill that brought “tangible benefits to thousands of Rhode Islanders”.

But, new data from the Rhode Island government, collected by the Associated Press shows that during the first month of legal civil unions, only nine couples took advantage of the new law.

The civil unions legislation was passed with overwhelming majorities in the state House and Senate, yet with great opposition from organizations on both sides of the same-sex union debate.Conservative religious organizations, such as the Catholic Conference, opposed the bill because it was a recognition of same-sex relationships and might lead to the “redefinition of marriage”. Marriage Equality Rhode Island’s Martha Holt also decried the civil unions bill, stating:

Civil unions are unacceptable because they marginalize gay and lesbian couples in very significant ways. The General Assembly will essentially be legalizing a two-class system that subjects thousands of Rhode Island same-sex couples to discrimination. We cannot support legislation that establishes a second class of citizens in Rhode Island.

That there has been only nine couples who have had a civil unions ceremony in the past month is no surprise to Marriage Equality Rhode Island spokesperson Dawn Euer:

If it had been marriage people would have been lining up … People are holding out for marriage. They want true equality, not a made-up, bureaucratic, second-class status.”

Religious organizations, to no one’s surprise, are stating the exact opposite of MERI’s analysis.

Instead of same sex couples holding out for marriage equality, NOM Rhode Island asserts that this shows that the push for marriage rights is only about “redefining marriage” and not about any sort of legal and financial protections for same-sex couples.

In an interview with Focus On The Family’s Citizen Link, NOM RI Executive Director Chris Plante stated that “Same-sex marriage advocates will seek to redefine marriage again in January. I’m not sure what they’ll be asking for this time. They can’t say, ‘We need this right or benefit or protection,’ because they’ve got it.”

Lincoln Chafee

The measure is largely seen as a compromise over failure to garner enough support in the state legislature to pass a marriage equality bill.

The Governor, an independent who supports gay marriage, signed the measure with the promise that it would move Rhode Island closer to the ultimate goal of legalizing gay marriage.

Chafee said he signed the civil unions bill with “reservations” because it “brings tangible rights and benefits to thousands of Rhode Islanders. It also provides a foundation from which we will continue to fight for full marriage equality.”

He had two major criticisms of the civil union bill: that it failed to provide full marriage equality to same-sex couples and that it allowed religious entities to choose to not recognize civil unions.

The new law includes a section that says no religious organization — including some hospitals, cemeteries, schools and community centers — or its employees may be required to treat as valid any civil union, providing a religious exemption “of unparalleled and alarming scope,” Chafee said in a statement.

Reuters

The new law would, for example, allow religious hospitals refuse a civil union spouse the right to make emergency medical decisions.

Marriage Equality Rhode Island called the measure “flawed.”

The civil unions bill was introduced as a compromise after House Speaker Gordon Fox, D-Providence, said gay marriage legislation would not pass the General Assembly this year. Fox, who is openly gay, supports gay marriage but said it couldn’t overcome opposition, particularly in the Senate.

Rhode Island becomes the fifth state to allow civil unions between same-sex couples. Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois and New Jersey already permit same-sex civil unions.

Six states — Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire Connecticut, Iowa, and most recently New York — and the District of Columbia, allow full marriage equality for gay and lesbian couples. (The New York law takes effect July 24.)

Thomas J. Tobin

“The concept of civil unions is a social experiment that promotes an immoral lifestyle, is a mockery of the institution of marriage as designed by God, undermines the well-being of our families, and poses a threat to religious liberty.

“The Church reminds its members that homosexual activity is contrary to the natural law and the will of God and, therefore, is objectively sinful. Persons with same-sex attraction are required to live the Christian virtues of chastity and modesty, as all persons are. The importance of these virtues is clearly established in the Holy Scriptures and in the constant tradition of the Church.

“Because civil unions promote an unacceptable lifestyle, undermine the faith of the Church on holy matrimony, and cause scandal and confusion, Catholics may not participate in civil unions. To do so is a very grave violation of the moral law and, thus, seriously sinful. A civil union can never be accepted as a legitimate alternative to matrimony.”

Rhode Island state lawmakers on Wednesday voted to approve a bill that would permit civil unions between gay and lesbian couples.

Gov. Lincoln Chafee’s office said he intends to sign the bill into law.

State senators voted 21-16 to endorse the bill, about two hours after it was voted out of committee.

The legislation, which already has passed the state House, allows gay couples to enter into civil unions that offer the same rights and benefits given to married couples under Rhode Island law.

It is now headed to Chafee’s desk for his signature. Ahead of the vote, the independent governor called the legislation an “incremental step” toward allowing gay marriage, which he supports.

[...]

The civil unions bill was introduced as a compromise after House Speaker Gordon Fox, D-Providence, said gay marriage legislation would not pass the General Assembly this year. Fox, who is openly gay, supports gay marriage but said it couldn’t overcome opposition, particularly in the Senate.

USA Today

The legislation, which passed overwhelmingly in the state’s lower house on May 19, affords same-sex couples a host of new state tax breaks, health-care benefits and greater ease of inheritance.

But marriage equality advocacy groups say the bill’s overly broad exemptions would allow religious institutions to ignore rights given through civil unions. The measure would, for example, let religious hospitals refuse a civil union spouse the right to make emergency medical decisions.

Marriage Equality Rhode Island called the measure “flawed.”

If signed by the Governor, the law would take effect on July 1, and Rhode Island would become the fifth state to allow civil unions between same-sex couples. Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois and New Jersey already permit same-sex civil unions.

Six states — Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire Connecticut, Iowa, and most recently New York — and the District of Columbia, allow full marriage equality for gay and lesbian couples. (The New York law takes effect July 24.)

The 62-11 vote came after a last minute attempt to revive gay marriage legislation failed — the civil unions bill was introduced just two weeks ago as a compromise after House leaders said the gay marriage bill did not have the votes to pass this year.

The civil-unions bill — opposed by hundreds who came out to testify last week and thousands, according to one lawmaker’s count, who signed petitions — did indeed pass in the House, with a vote that cut across party lines, even as it left lawmakers at odds over where the issue goes from here and what people in Rhode Island really want.

Supporters called the vote a historic victory, one that provides important rights to same-sex couples despite falling short of full marriage equality.

Prior to the vote, Rep. Arthur Handy (D-Cranston), sought to revamp the bill so that it would legalize same-sex marriage and provide additional protections for clergy and religious institutions that oppose same-sex marriage. But the effort failed because it violated House rules that prohibit a floor amendment from changing an entire bill.

Rep. Peter J. Petrarca (D-Lincoln), the bill’s sponsor in the House, called the vote “a great result,” one that could lead to more debate next year on the issue of same-sex marriage.

Ray Sullivan, a spokesman for the LGBT advocacy group Marriage Equality Rhode Island, said civil unions will never be a substitute for true marriage.

The measure now heads to the Senate, where legislators predict broad support for civil unions. Gov. Lincoln Chafee (I), said he supports gay marriage but will sign a civil unions bill if passed in the Senate.

Supporters said the bill treats gay couples as a second-class minority, proponents of traditional marriage said the bill would amount to a state sanction of immoral behavior and open the door to same-sex marriage being approved in the courts.

The House Judiciary Committee voted 9-3 to advance the measure to a House vote now scheduled for Thursday.

The bill would allow gay couples to enter into civil unions granting all of the rights and benefits given to married couples under Rhode Island law, but stops short of sanctioning marriage. The proposal was introduced as a compromise after legislative leaders said gay marriage legislation lacked the votes to pass this year.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Peter J. Petrarca (D-Lincoln), surfaced earlier this month, after House Speaker Gordon D. Fox withdrew his support for a same-sex marriage bill.

Fox (D-Providence), who is openly gay, said he supports same-sex marriage but did not have the votes needed for passage in either the House or the Senate.

The bill is modeled after civil unions laws recently approved in Delaware, Illinois and Hawaii.

While same-sex marriage supporters said the bill would merely legalize treatment of gay couples as a second-class minority, proponents of one-man, one-woman marriage said the bill would amount to a state sanction of immoral behavior and open the door to same-sex marriage being approved in the courts.

What differed from the earlier hearing, on a bill that would have legalized same-sex marriage, was that this time just about everybody was there to voice opposition.

The civil unions bill — which would grant same-sex couples all of the rights and benefits given to married couples under Rhode Island law — was introduced after House Speaker Gordon Fox (D-Providence), who is openly gay, announced that a gay marriage bill lacked the votes to pass this year.

Same-sex marriage supporters argued that if the Defense of Marriage Act — already ruled unconstitutional in federal court — is eventually overturned, same-sex couples in Rhode Island who have entered into civil unions will not have the same federal rights as married couples.

There are 1,138 federal laws and programs that apply to people who are married, which married same-sex couples do not currently enjoy, due to DOMA.

The House Judiciary Committee could vote as early as next week on whether to send the measure to the full House.

Rep. Peter J. Petrarca (D-Lincoln), called his bill an important first step, that would give same-sex couples the same rights that married couples now have under Rhode Island law, reported the Providence Journal.

But outside, more than 200 same-sex marriage supporters made it clear that the push for passage of a same-sex marriage bill this year is not over.

Directing their anger at House Speaker Gordon D. Fox and other lawmakers they had looked to for support before Fox’s announcement last week that he would not back a gay-marriage bill this year, they said they will not settle for anything less than “equal rights.”

The bill is modeled after laws recently approved in Delaware, Illinois and Hawaii.

Traditional marriage supporters are opposed to the measure altogether and contend that it essentially is same-sex marriage, but by another name.

In an editorial appearing in the Rhode Island Catholic, the church said efforts to aimed at “appeasing homosexual activists” by legalizing civil unions is ultimately a “stepping stone to the legal recognition of same-sex relationships as marriage.”

“Government sanctioned civil unions cannot be supported by those who truly understand the unique nature and status afforded a man and a woman in marriage. We call upon the members of the Rhode Island House and Senate to cast aside such compromises and rather work to strengthen marriage in our state by passing a Defense of Marriage Bill that clearly defines marriage as between one man and one woman.

“Only then will the attempts by radical activists to redefine marriage and undermine family life in Rhode Island finally be stopped. Civil Unions are not the answer,” the editorial said.

Earlier this week, openly gay House Speaker Gordon Fox (D-Providence), a leading supporter of the gay marriage bill, said there was lack of support in the state Senate to pass the marriage equality bill during this legislative session, and that he would instead support a civil unions bill.

A House spokesman said Thursday that lawmakers are reviewing civil union laws in other states to help them craft the proposal, which could be introduced as early as Tuesday.

Gordon Fox

House Speaker Gordon Fox (D-Providence), a leading supporter of the gay marriage bill, said in an email that he “will recommend that the House not move forward with a vote on the marriage equality bill during this legislative session,” and that he will instead support a civil unions bill.

“I have had conversations with Senate leadership and, unlike the marriage equality bill, I am optimistic that a civil unions’ bill can gain passage in both chambers during this legislative session,” Fox wrote.

“The new civil union bill is currently being drafted and will soon be ready for introduction and public inspection. I will be one of the sponsors.

“Because of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) passed by Congress in 1996, the federal government does not recognize same sex marriages and therefore federal rights are not granted to same sex couples who get married in states that allow it.”

Reaction to Fox’s announcement has been swift and critical.

“Rhode Island House Speaker Gordon Fox has made a serious miscalculation,” said Freedom to Marry’s National Campaign Director, Marc Solomon, in a statement.

“With support for the freedom to marry topping 60 percent — higher than in any other state in the country — and with a strongly supportive governor, the Rhode Island House should send a marriage bill — and nothing less — to the Senate now,” Solomon said.

“Nothing short of marriage is equality for Rhode Island’s gay and lesbian citizens and their children,” said Karen Loewy, an attorney for the Gay and Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, in a statement.

“By citing DOMA, Speaker Fox lets the federal government set the standard for discrimination and sells out the gay community for the sake of political expediency. DOMA’s days are numbered as it comes under increasing legal and political attack,” Loewy said.

Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed’s opposition to the marriage equality bill was seen as a key obstacle to its passage. In a statement to reporters, she said she supports civil union legislation and is confident it will pass.

A House committee will review legislation on Tuesday that would allow civil unions between any two people over the age of 18 who cannot legally marry their partners. That would include — in addition to gay couples — relatives, the elderly, and unmarried siblings looking to secure legal rights to make medical decisions for each other.

The measure will be considered by the House Judiciary Committee, the same panel that previously heard testimony on a gay marriage bill.

Committees in both the House and Senate have held hearings on legislation to allow gay marriage, but neither chamber has scheduled a vote on the bill.

Last week, Gov. Lincoln Chafee urged the Rhode Island General Assembly to approve the gay marriage bill.

The Providence Journal reports:

Testimony in the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, which was expected to go late into the night, centered on a bill introduced by Sen. Rhoda E. Perry (D-Providence), that would recognize civil marriage between people of identical gender, while leaving religious institutions the right to refuse to participate.

The committee agenda also included bills that would place the question of gay marriage before voters in a referendum, allow domestic unions for same sex couples, and create “reciprocal beneficiary agreements” that would allow two unmarried people ineligible for marriage to obtain certain rights and responsibilities.

As the hearing went late into the night, exchanges between supporters and opponents got heated.

Rep. Frank Ferri (D-Warwick), who is openly gay, admonished a gay marriage opponent sitting nearby who held a large sign that read “Keep Marriage Holy.”

“Why do you care who I love?” Ferri asked the man. “Shame on you. Shame on you that your God is the God that’s right and mine isn’t. Shame on you for thinking you’re more perfect than I am.”

House leaders also held hearings, in February, and could call a vote as early as next week.

Blah blah blah.. marriage is about kids, blah blah blah.

Once again, the NOM completely skips out on the thousand of infertile heterosexual couples, couples who don’t want kids, or the fact that allowing more people to marriage would put millions of homeless children into loving homes.

Watch the ad here:

On a related note: the NOM is still refusing court orders to reveal which organizations that is supplying the millions of dollars that they’re spending.

After a 2010 with few marriage equality measures contested outside the courtroom, 2011 will likely see a number of battles state by state across the country.

Three states plus the District of Columbia are facing the prospect of losing marriage equality, an additional seven states could start the process of amending their state constitutions to ban marriage equality, five could gain marriage equality.

Here are the key states to watch.

States that could lose marriage equality:

New Hampshire:

LGBT advocates have considered New Hampshire — with a new, veto-proof Republican majority — one of this year’s most serious battlegrounds.

But House Majority Leader Rep. D.J. Bettencourt (R-Salem) said January 13 that repealing the state’s year-old marriage equality law is not a Republican priority in 2011. The party wants, instead, to focus on jobs and the economy.

But Bettencourt refused to say he would discourage the introduction of repeal bills. And gay marriage opponents Kevin Smith, executive director of the far-right group Cornerstone Action, and State Rep. David Bates (R-Windham), told the Associated Press they still plan to pursue a repeal.

The executive director of New Hampshire Freedom to Marry, Mo Baxley, said in a statement that she was “pleased” the repeal is not a priority for Republicans but added that her organization is continuing its planned efforts to preserve the existing law.

Iowa:

Republicans in the legislature plan to introduce a bill to pursue a state constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, in response to a 2009 ruling by the Iowa Supreme Court that made marriage legal for same-sex couples.

The change must be approved by two successive legislatures and then ratified by voters. Republicans control the House 60-40, but Democrats have a 26-24 edge in the Senate, and Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal (D-Council Bluffs) has said he would block a vote on such a bill.

Several Republican legislators also want to begin impeachment proceedings against the remaining four of the seven justices who joined in the unanimous marriage ruling. The other three justices lost retention elections last November, after right-wing groups campaigned to oust them.

Impeachment would require a simple majority in the House and a two-thirds majority in the Senate, but the judges would be removed immediately if impeached by the House and could be reinstated only if found not guilty after a Senate trial. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told The Cedar Rapids Gazette that Democrats would “shut the place down” if necessary to block an impeachment effort.

Update: On Feb. 1, The Iowa state House passed House Joint Resolution 6, an amendment that seeks to repeal the state’s marriage equality law, and deny any form of legal recognition for gay couples. The bill now moves on to the Iowa Senate, where Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal (D) has vowed to fight attempts to pass the amendment.

Washington, D.C.:

A coalition of local anti-gay activists led by Bishop Harry Jackson of Hope Christian Church in Maryland has been pushing for a referendum on the district’s year-old marriage equality law.

D.C. courts and the district’s Board of Election ruled last year that this would violate a district prohibition on referenda related to the city’s Human Rights Act — which bans discrimination based on sexual orientation. Jackson has asked the Supreme Court to consider the case.

Update: On Jan. 18, the U.S. Supreme Court said it would not hear Jackson’s appeal.

States that could win marriage equality:

Rhode Island:

Newly elected Governor Lincoln Chafee (I) expressed his support for marriage equality during his inauguration speech January 4. Legislators introduced marriage equality bills in both the House and Senate on January 6.

Democrats hold large majorities in both chambers, and House Speaker Gordon Fox (D), who is openly gay, is a cosponsor of the bill. The bill may face a bigger struggle in the Senate, where Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed opposes marriage equality.

Maryland:

Marriage equality bills are pending in both houses of the legislature, and supporters now form majorities on the key judicial committees that must first approve them.

State Senate Minority Leader Allan H. Kittleman, however, said he will introduce a bill to allow civil unions for both same- and opposite-sex couples.

Update: On Jan. 18, Kittleman announced he will step down as minority leader after Republican colleagues told him they would not support his civil unions bill.

On Jan. 21, Senate Majority Leader Rob Garagiola (D) introduced the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act. The legislation would permit same-sex couples to marry but would not require churches to perform the unions.

New York:

Although Republicans have a two-seat majority in the State Senate, Empire State Pride Agenda Executive Director Ross D. Levi said in a press release that LGBT advocates have “picked up at least two ‘yes’ votes.” Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo has said he would sign a marriage equality bill if it reaches his desk.

Update: On Jan. 17, New York state Sen. Thomas Duane (D-Manhattan), the Senate’s biggest booster of gay marriage, said he’ll introduce legislation “within weeks” to legalize same-sex marriage, and will push for a vote before the end of June.

All three of the above states already recognize marriages of same-sex couples from other jurisdictions.

New Jersey:

The state Supreme Court last June refused to hear a case that claimed the state’s civil union law did not provide full equality. It said the case must first go through the trial court process.

Jennifer Pizer, National Marriage Project Director for Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, said a trial court attempt is “a sensible next step for us to consider.”

Lambda Legal and state LGBT rights group Garden State Equality are also working on another round of marriage equality legislation, although Pizer could not yet share any details.

California:

The case to overturn Proposition 8, the state ban on same-sex marriage, is in a rather unusual spot.

It is awaiting a decision from the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, but the appeals panel said January 4 that it could not render a decision on the constitutionality of Proposition 8 until the California Supreme Court rules that there is some state law or authority to justify giving the Yes on 8 proponents of the initiative legal standing to appeal the case in federal court on behalf of California voters.

Pizer said that a 9th Circuit decision against Proposition 8 would have “a massive positive effect nationwide” as marriage equality became a reality on both coasts.

She also noted there are “serious efforts underway now” for potential ballot measures in 2012 to secure marriage equality in Maine, Oregon, and Washington.

States that could win civil unions:

Hawaii:

Acting House Majority Leader Blake Oshiro, who is openly gay, told KITV on Jan. 10 that he wants to pass a civil union bill early in the session. The Hawaii legislature is almost the same as the one that passed such a civil union bill last year only to see it vetoed by outgoing Republican Governor Linda Lingle.

Current Governor Neil Abercrombie, a Democrat and long-time supporter of equal rights for gays, has said he would support a new bill.

Update: On Jan. 28, the state Senate passed a civil unions bill that would grant same-sex and heterosexual partners essentially the same protections, rights and benefits currently extended to married couples. The measure moves to the state House, where, leaders said they expect it to pass by a wide margin.

Illinois:

The Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act passed in the Illinois state Senate on Dec. 1 after passing in the House the previous day. The civil unions bill will provide the same spousal rights to same-sex partners when it comes to surrogate decision-making for medical treatment, survivorship, adoptions, and accident and health insurance.

Update: On Jan. 31, Gov. Pat Quinn signed the civil unions bill into law. Gay and lesbian couples will be able to have their unions legally recognized by the state effective June 1, 2011.

Montana:

Montana bans same-sex marriage under the state constitution, but the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a case on behalf of seven couples to try and gain the protection of domestic partnerships.

Colorado and Delaware will also likely see civil union bills introduced.

States that could ban marriage equality:

Indiana, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, and Wyoming have statutes that prevent same-sex couples from obtaining marriage licenses, but efforts to protect those bans from legal challenges are expected through proposed constitutional amendments.

Lambda’s Pizer noted that anti-gay groups may wait until 2012 to do seek introduction of such measures in hopes of using them to rally conservative voters to turnout during a presidential election year.

This year, though, Wyoming State Rep. Cathy Connolly (D), the only openly gay member of the legislature, plans to introduce a bill for full marriage equality and one for civil unions, while Republican legislators are planning to reintroduce a defense of marriage law.

Update: On Jan. 20, the Wyoming state House advanced legislation to prohibit recognition of out-of-state gay marriages, while a Senate committee approved a resolution aimed at a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. The House measure passed on its first hearing with 34 out of 60 votes.

And New Mexico Attorney General Gary King issued a non-binding opinion January 4 stating that same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions would likely be recognized in the state.

Evan Wolfson, Executive Director of Freedom to Marry, said that this year, “we have the chance to really make some important strides in key states.” He stressed that wins in the states will help sway public opinion and move marriage equality forward on a federal level as well.