same-sex marriage has been valid in the US state of Vermont since September 1, 2009. Vermont was the first state to introduce civil unions in July 2000, and the first state to introduce marriage same-sex by enacting the law without being asked to do so by a court decision. Same-sex marriage became legal earlier as a result of court rulings, not legislation, in four states: Massachusetts, California, Connecticut, and Iowa.
Video Same-sex marriage in Vermont
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Whether by law or court decision, Vermont was a leader among US jurisdictions in protecting gay and lesbian rights in the 1990s. In 1990, it was one of the first states to enact hate crime laws that included sexual orientation. In 1992, he added sexual orientation to the anti-discrimination law. In 1993, the Supreme Court of Vermont with a unanimous decision established a second parental adoption right that allows a person in same-sex relationships to adopt his partner's biological child. When the Vermont Legislature reformed state adoption legislation in 1995, it made same-sex couples entitled to adopt.
Maps Same-sex marriage in Vermont
Claim
On July 22, 1997, three same-sex couples sued the state and jurisdictions that rejected their marriage license. They lost in court on December 19. The court ruled that the Vermont law limiting marriage to different sexes is constitutional because they serve the public interest by promoting "the relationship between procreation and child care".
The High Court of Vermont heard the case in an appeal and on December 20, 1999, came to power at Baker v. Vermont that the Vermont Constitution entitles same-sex couples to "the same benefits and protections provided by Vermont law to marry the opposite sex". The court did not give the plaintiffs the help they were looking for. Instead of ordering state officials to allow same-sex couples to marry, he invites the state Legislature to find a solution:
Whether this ultimately takes the form of inclusion in the marriage law itself or parallel "parallel partnership" or some equivalent legal alternative lies in the Legislature. However, any system chosen must be in accordance with the constitutional imperative to grant to all residents of Vermont the same benefits, protection and legal security.
The court did not set a deadline, but suspended its judgment for "a reasonable period".
Mary Bonauto, one of the plaintiffs' lawyers, then describes how same-sex marriage patrons struggle to understand how they win the verdict but have no right to marry: "[T] hey has this beautiful language there about gay humanity, but I do not believe them has done something I think is a political judgment, I have never heard of separating the word marriage from rights and protection. "
Civil union legislation
When the House Judiciary Committee raised the question in February, 3 of its members supported same-sex marriage while 11 supported something equivalent discussed as a "civil rights package". The Chairman of the Committee said that only the last one can pass the Legislature, that only "broad-based" civil rights bills "can be achieved". The House of Representatives voted 76-69 in favor of a law that created a civil union with the same legal rights and obligations as marriage on March 15, 2000. The law also defines marriage as a union of men and women. Debate in the Senate, where the bill was changed, stalled. The Senate also defeated two proposed constitutional amendments designed to overturn Baker's decision, which defines marriage as the union of men and women and others given to the Legislature of all authorities to determine the merits of marriage.. The Senate passed a law 19 to 11 on April 19 and the House passed April 25 with 79 to 68 votes. Governor Howard Dean signed the law into law on 26 April without a public ceremony. Immediately after the signing, he held a press conference where he said:
There is much to celebrate about this bill. The celebration, as the subject of this bill, will be personal. They will be celebrated by their spouses and families, but people make commitments to each other.... I believe this bill enriches us all as we look with new eyes to a group of people who have been excommunicated for many generations.
The New York Times is called the Vermont civil union "same-sex marriage in almost everything but name". Bonauto calls the law "heart". He said couples outside the country would want to take advantage of the law, although its impact for them would only be a symbol.
Implementation
The debate about civil unions is fierce and highly polarized, touching every corner of the country and generating a popular reaction that began even before the law was signed under the Take Back Vermont slogan.
Once the civil union law comes into effect, some clerks express objections to participation. Gerry Longway, Fairfield Town Officer said: "I am not here to judge what people do, but I do not want to be forced to be a part of it, it's like, if I do not trust the death penalty, they will not make me pull a switch." As the July 1 start date approaches, most seem ready to issue a civil union license. On June 18, opponents of the law put a full page on Burlington Free Press that portrayed the civil union as the work of "the unbearable arrogance of a narcissistic gay lobby that would place personal pleasure before public order." The first day for civil union is Saturday, when the clerk's office is usually closed. Some were opened as they had been requested and a handful of licenses were issued and ceremonies were held, including one for Holly Puterbaugh and Lois Farnham, plaintiff at Baker, at First Church of Congregation in Burlington.
When union legislation came into force on 1 July 2000, Vermont became the third US state after Hawaii and California to offer legal status to same-sex couples, and the first to offer civil union status covering the same legal rights and responsibilities. as a marriage.
The 2000 and later elections
The November 2000 election, with the legislature and the governor at stake, became a referendum on civil unions. Opponents of civil unions adopted "Take Back Vermont" as their slogan and closed the landscape with their signs. It has been used previously to protest property taxes and represent anger at state governments across various issues even when the focus of the campaign is on civil unions. The campaign hopes to win control of both Vermont assemblies for the Republic and possibly even oust Dean who became governor since 1991. Garrison Nelson, a professor of political science at the University of Vermont, called the autumn campaign "real, honest-to-good, social issue of fire bed ".
Six ruling legislators supporting the union were missing in September's primaries, five Republicans and one Democrat. One of the losing Republicans was Senator Peter Brownell, who was portrayed as being lobbied by priests on both sides and asked: "So whose religion is I obliged to obey?" Roman Catholic Bishop Burlington Kenneth Angell testified against the civil union bill in front of the House committee and sent letters with titles such as "How Will Jesus Choose?" and "Vote Your Conscience." Both parties and candidates at all levels attracted unusual foreign currency, including funds from national political parties, and the sums collected broke all records for the political race in Vermont.
An election day poll by Voter News Service reports that Vermonters is evenly distributed and election results vary. Dean won re-election and Democrats held their majority in the state Senate, which would block any attempt to repeal civil union legislation, although their control margin was only 16-14. In primary and electoral elections, 16 incumbent civil union holders are not returned to the Legislature. Republicans control the House for the first time in 14 years. Bishop Angell saw it as a defeat:
I am very disappointed. We spent a lot of time and effort trying to work for certain causes, and it seems like we were not heard.... I never, ever think in my life that I will try to convince people that marriage is between men and women. They call it a civil union here, but it's nothing more than a marriage by another name.
In the first half of 2001, the Vermont Representative Council issued several pieces of money to annul the civil union legislation. One replaces the civil union with a "mutual partnership" that can form two people, which can include blood relatives. No one has a chance to bypass the Senate or win the Dean's signature. At the same time, Burlington Free Press and Rutland Herald began printing civil union announcements just as they do wedding notices.
The question of the legal status of same-sex relations attracted increasing attention in other countries. On election day 2000, Nevada and Nebraska endorsed steps to change their constitution to define marriage as a union of men and women. Voters in Maine narrowly defeated acts prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, whose supporters were partly due to the fact that their opponents "had little additional ammunition on Vermont." In the spring of 2001, the legislature of Rhode Island and Connecticut held hearings on civil union legislation. In mid-April, seven couples filed a lawsuit to force Massachusetts to recognize same-sex marriage.
In the first year of civil unity was available, 2,479 same-sex couples formed the Vermont civil union. Only 502 of the couples were Vermont residents. About two-thirds are women. Polls show the public remains evenly divided. Dean commented: "None of these terrible predictions come true, there are big rhubarb, lots of fear, and now people realize there's nothing to be afraid of." The civil union was hardly mentioned as a problem in the 2002 gubernatorial election, a three-way race won by James Douglas, a Republican who was not interested in renewing the contentious debate. Profits made by opponents of civil unions receded in the Legislature that same year, as Democrats grew their majority in the Senate and Republicans gave back some of their 2,000 profits in the House.
In June 2004, Thomas Clark Ely, Episcopal Bishop of Vermont, announced a ceremony for priests to use in the blessing of civil unions as a three-year experiment.
On October 8, 2004, 7,201 couples have entered into a civil union in Vermont. In November, even when 11 countries voted for their constitutional amendments that would ban same-sex marriages, some also banned civil unions, in Vermont, the Democrats took back control of the state House of Representatives and conducted polls for the Associated Press report that 40% of Vermont voters favor same-sex marriage, an additional 37% support civil unions, and 21% do not support both. While married supporters in Massachusetts did not respond to voters in November, Marty Rouse, campaign director with the advocacy group MassEquality said: "I think Vermont helps to educate Massachusetts because of the geographical proximity of both countries, the Massachusetts people should see that the right of marriage same for same-sex couples is not as scary as some think. "
Marriage law
In July 2007, legislative leaders made a commission to consider "Family Recognition and Protection". His report in April 2008 made no recommendation but detailed the differences between unions and marriages, including the terminology and rights and obligations associated with each status.
The State Senate passed a similar-sex marriage law on March 23, 2009 and Governor Jim Douglas threatened to veto. On April 3, the State House passed a revamped version of the Rule 94-52, some voices avoiding a veto-proof majority of two-thirds. On April 6, 2009, the Senate approved an amendment made by the House of Representatives and the Governor vetoed the law as promised. On April 7, 2009, the Senate ruled out a veto with a 23-5 vote and the House overruled it 100-49.
The law came into force on 1 September 2009. Vermont became the fifth country to give legal recognition to same-sex marriage, though only three other states - Connecticut, Iowa and Massachusetts - did so without restrictions. California on that date only recognizes same-sex marriages established between 16 June and 5 November 2008, when forced to stop issuing marriage certificates to same-sex couples through voter approval of Proposition 8. Vermont is the first state to establish legal recognition of same-sex marriage based on law and not as a result of a court decision. Since September 2009, the definition of marriage in the state of Vermont is as follows:
Marriage is the union of two people who are legally recognized.
Economic impact
A comprehensive UCLA March 2009 study concluded that widespread marriage to same-sex couples would increase Vermont's economy by more than $ 30.6 million in business activity over three years, which in turn would result in increased state and local sales taxes and fee revenues of $ 3 , 3 million and make about 700 new jobs.
Margin statistics
From September 2009 to June 2013, at least 2,779 same-sex couples were married in the state of Vermont.
Public opinion
The Public Policy Polling Survey July 2011 found that 58% of Vermont voters believe that same-sex marriage should be legal, while 33% consider it illegal and 9% unsure. A separate question in the same survey found that 79% of Vermont voters supported the same-sex law enforcement, with 55% supporting same-sex marriage, 24% supporting civil unions but unmarried, 18% not supporting legal recognition, and 3% unsure.
A poll conducted by the Castleton Polling Institute between June 3 and June 20, 2013 found that 66% of Vermont voters favor same-sex marriage, while 13% are against and 21% have no opinion.
A poll of the Chinese Institute of Religion Research last year found that 80% of Vermont residents favor same-sex marriages, while 16% are against and 4% are unsure.
See also
- LGBT Rights in Vermont
- same-sex marriage in the United States
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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