It’s official: gay marriage is now legal in Massachusetts. As of midnight last night, the Bay State became the first in the nation to offer state-sanctioned marriage licenses to same-sex couples. This was the date set by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court when it ruled last year that gays and lesbians had a constitutional right to marry. Since then, all attempts by the state legislature and the governor to forestall or overturn the ruling have failed.
Today, as thousands complete marriage applications in which the words “bride” and “groom” have been permanently replaced by “Party A” and “Party B”, those opposed to such unions, politicians, religious leaders, and activists are meeting in Washington to map out a strategy for securing a constitutional ban.
Guests:
Alan Wolfe, Director of the Boisi Center on Religion and American Public Life at Boston College
Mary Bonauto, plaintiff attorney in Goodridge case
Rev. Cathy George, chair of Episcopal Diocese Task Force on Blessing of Holy Unions
Carlos French, who applied for license with his partner Anthony Gomez last night at Cambridge City Hall