Currently the Netherlands is the only country that offers full legal marriage for same sex partners. It adopted this law on April 1, 2001. The United States does not support same sex marriage. There iis no state or province in the world that offers the same range of benefits from legal marriage that the Netherlands do. It is too bad that you have to be a resident of the Netherlands to participate in this great display of freedom.
In the United States gay guys and lesbians have very few options. The following is a basic fact guide for those who are considering legal union.
What does it mean to be legally married?
Basically, it means that the state recognizes you as a couple and their are certain advantages that come along with a government recognized marriage. The laws provided when a state recognizes a marriage are very important when having a family. Custody over children, taxes, insurance, and the right to make a medical decision for a spouse are a few examples of marriage rights.
State Laws Triggered by Legal Marriage – a Sample
Assumption of Spouse’s Pension, Automatic Inheritance, Automatic Housing Lease Transfer, Bereavement Leave, Burial Determination, Certain Property Rights, Child Custody, Crime Victim’s Recovery Benefits, Divorce Protections, Domestic Violence Protection, Exemption from Property Tax on Partner’s Death, Immunity from Testifying Against Spouse, Insurance Breaks, Joint Adoption and Foster Care, Joint Bankruptcy, Joint Parenting (Insurance Coverage, School Records), Medical Decisions on Behalf of Partner, Name Change if Desired, Reduced Rate Memberships, Sick Leave to Care for Partner, Visitation of Partner’s Children, Visitation of Partner in Hospital or Prison, Wrongful Death (Loss of Consort) Benefits
Federal Laws Triggered by Legal Marriage – a Sample
Access to Military Stores, Assumption of Spouse’s Pension, Bereavement Leave, Immigration, Insurance Breaks, Medical Decisions on Behalf of Partner, Sick Leave to Care for Partner, Social Security Survivor Benefits, Sick Leave to Care for Partner, Tax Breaks for Married Couples, Veteran’s Discounts, Visitation of Partner in Hospital or Prison
As far as the United States is considered, same sex marriage bear no weight in legal status and we are not provided with any of the above.
What about a ceremonial marriage?
Ceremonial marriage may be officiated by church officials, or anyone you choose. Many churches marry same-sex couples. Church officials are vested to oversee signing of legal marriage documents, but they have no control over their legal content. Ceremonial marriages in and of themselves involve no civil laws and carry no legal benefits or responsibilities.What is common law marriage?
Common law marriage is only available in certain states and does not apply to same-sex couples. It allows for some marriage law to apply to opposite-sex couples who have lived together a certain length of time.The State of Washington has had some court judgments which have created a “quasi-common-law” status. This has sometimes been applied to same-sex couples. This “quasi” status has also been totally dismissed for use by for same-sex couples in an Appeals Court ruling on February 11, 2000 in Vasquez v. Hawthorne. It could also be easily eliminated through future state laws.
What about domestic partnership registration?
Domestic registration is a system that some states let same-sex couples go on the record as a non-married partnership. They offer little to none known benefits and can sometimes cost more than an actual marriage license. Little is known about the long term benefits of the registration because of the lack of record on them.
Many private employers and municipalities offer domestic partner benefits to their workers. These often depend on signing an affidavit — not a city registration — which frequently defines the economic relationship between the employee and the employee’s partner. These affidavits could be used in court against a partner after a relationship ended. Like registrations, their legal status is uncertain.
When can we expect to be able to get a legal marriage license?
People in the community are trying very hard for same sex couples to be recognized but the battle has been going on since the first court case in 1971 and the future is uncertain.One of the greatest accomplishments came from the Vermont court in 1999. Their final ruling stated that same-sex couples must be afforded the same rights and benefits as opposite-sex couples, but required the Vermont Legislature to provide legal marriage or a “domestic partnership” law, rather than immediately require marriage licenses for same-sex couples.
Rather than offer legal marriage the Vermont legislature decided to copy about 300 out of the State’s 870+ marriage laws and label the new law “Civil Union”.
By designing the same sex couple marriage differently, the Supreme Court ruled disregarding the Civil Union as discrimanation. Civil Unions effective July 1, 2000 except for provisions relating to insurance and taxes that become effective in 2001 — do not have any legal weight in the Federal sphere, and it is highly unlikely that any other state will honor the new, almost-but-not-quite-marital license.
The new status, however, does offer a vastly improved range of protections for same-sex couples never before available in the United States. Those couples who live in Vermont, once signed up as a civilly unionized couple, can say they are no longer “legal strangers” — they are finally “next-of-kin.”
There is a marriage suit in New York, which lost the first two rounds. It may yet go several more rounds in court.
While the Hawaiian court, in December 1996, found in favor of legal marriage, the final ruling, in December 1999, lost the case. There are no more appeals possible.
A marriage case in Alaska won the first round, but the couple decided to not pursue legal marriage in light of a 1998 state ballot measure which limited marriage as a union between one man and one woman, and prohibited any legal recognition of same-sex marriage.
The U.S. House and Senate and the President passed a bill (Defense of Marriage Act) in 1996, that prohibits recognizing a same-sex marriage for federal purposes (taxes, job benefits, immigration, etc.) and allows states to ignore a same-sex marriage from another state. Once legal marriage is available, suits will be mounted to challenge the DOMA law. The bill appears to be unconstitutional on several counts. However, bringing a case to the U.S. Supreme Court could take another five years.
While various states and the federal systems may attempt to block legal same-sex marriages, many businesses and cities may very well recognize a license from whichever state first provides one.
Why all the opposition to legal marriage for same-sex couples?
The only reason that same sex marriage is not legal is because of prejudice. The government tries to hide behind the following arguements:
Disintegration of Marriage
Allowing same-sex couples the same right to legal marriage enhances the institution of marriage. Only if one believes that same-sex couples are inferior, or if one hates homosexual men and women, could one think that access to marriage by same-sex couples would somehow debase marriage.
Tradition
The nature of marriage has changed through the centuries. In Biblical days, marriage was a brutal event — children and wives were treated like slaves and used as barter. In the very early days of the Catholic and Orthodox Church, male-male marriages were the first to get official church blessing; opposite-sex marriages came later.
Religion
In America, we have a very strict separation of church and state. There is no state religion. No church can dictate state policy. Marriage contract law is designed by states. Most opponents to same-sex marriage want their personal religion to dictate state policy.
After same-sex couples, what then?
When all that is being asked for is allowing two people of any biological sex to enter into a marriage contract, the idea of asking for any combination of numbers of people and any combination of relationships is pure fantasy. Allowing equal treatment of a family of two does not begin to fulfil the dreaded specter of this type of argument.
Procreation
No marriage is invalidated because the couple cannot conceive. It is two-faced to deny same-sex couples, many of whom have custody of children.
Children
All studies of children raised by lesbians and gay men have found them to be well-adjusted. No proof exists that gay people are unfit as parents.
Cost
Yes, civil rights cost. Same-sex couples would benefit in direct, financial ways by saving on health, car and other types of insurance, as well as in the areas of banking, dual parent adoptions, pensions, death and Social Security benefits, and memberships, etc.
The social system would save over time as well, because same-sex couples would be legal responsible for each other’s welfare. Welfare or other governmental grants are harder to get if one has a legal spouse with an income. Rather than take crowded civil court time to resolve dissolution or custody disputes, same-sex couples could use the quicker and less expensive family courts. Families able to obtain job benefits for their partners can maintain a healthier household, which also costs society less in the long-term.
Validation
Supporting same-sex marriage in no way renders opposite-sex marriages invalid, nor does it mock them. Opponents seem greatly disturbed that once these marriages — and homosexuals in general — are acceptable, that lesbians and gay men will become greater in number and gain power. Some also predict it will signal the falling of the economy, the culture and the “American way of life.”
All of these cover-up reasons used by the government are obviously not valid and results of prejudice and hatred for homosexuals. We cannot call ourselves a nation of freedom if we do not recognize all of our citizens as human beings who deserve the same rights. The idea that everyone in our dear free country is created equal is a joke to the government who does not believe in this simple statement of freedom. Since the beginning of our founding we have had some sort of oppression. Women were treated unequal, racial segregation and mistreatment, and numerous other civil right battles such as sexual orientation. Our country has never been free and the idea that we are free has been a mockery all along.