aTypical Joe: a gay New Yorker living in the rural South

Thursday, June 30, 2005

Spain & Canada support marriage

Crooks and Liars has the video and text of Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin in support of the Civil Marriage Act:

Martin: I rise today in support of Bill C-38, the Civil Marriage Act. I rise in support of a Canada in which liberties are safeguarded, rights are protected and the people of this land are treated as equals under the law.

It passed the House of Commons and is expected to become law by the end of July.

And in Spain:

Spain’s parliament today approved legislation allowing gays and lesbians to marry, becoming the fourth country in which same-sex unions are legal.

Spanish lawmakers voted 187-147 in favor of a bill legalizing same-sex marriages, following the Netherlands and Belgium. In Canada, where nine of 13 regions allow the unions, the House of Commons yesterday passed a bill extending the right nationwide.

Gay marriage strengthens all marriage.

UPDATE: James Joyner quotes AP:

...Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero noted this in debate before the vote. “We were not the first, but I am sure we will not be the last. After us will come many other countries, driven, ladies and gentlemen, by two unstoppable forces: freedom and equality,” he told the chamber.

And comments, “I suspect he’s right.”