Same Sex Unions

During the second day of a widely watched federal trial on same-sex marriage, an expert on the history of marriage testified that its central purpose historically was not procreation, but the creation of stable households. Harvard professor Nancy Cott, who has written a book about the history of marriage in the United States, told a federal court in San Francisco that child rearing was only one of several purposes of marriage, not "the central or defining purpose." "There has never been a requirement that a couple produce children in order to have a valid marriage," Cott testified, adding that George Washington, the father of the nation, was sterile.

A small artist settlement in southern Arizona became the conservative state's first city to allow civil unions between same-sex couples, voting in a new ordinance and defying a threat from Atty. Gen. Tom Horne, who promised to take legal action if the measure passed. Late Tuesday night, City Council members voted 5-2 to allow what gay marriage supporters see as the next best thing, adding a section to its city charter that clears the way for civil unions in their town of about 5,600 residents.

John Boswell's "Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe" broaches two crucial issues: the subjectivity of translation--in this case, what do other people mean when they speak of love or marriage? And the relevance of history--of what use is the past to us? Boswell approaches these questions in a particularly striking and controversial form--more vividly than a historian investigating, say, slavery or usury in the ancient world--because he is speaking of sex. Sexuality in general, and sexuality between people of the same sex in particular, has always been characterized by tremendous privacy, subjectivity, circumlocution and, often, concealment.

At San Francisco City Hall, officials are awaiting their moment in history, but they just don't know when it will come. In the complex calculus of gay marriage in California, weddings could become legal within days. So City Hall is preparing for a possible crush of same-sex couples seeking marriage licenses and making contingency plans for demonstrations. But it is also possible that this preparation is for naught and the future of same-sex unions will remain up in the air for months or longer.

The state Supreme Court ruled in Richmond that the state must enforce a Vermont court order awarding child-visitation rights to a mother's former partner. The justices rejected Lisa Miller's claim that a lower court had improperly ignored a state law and a state constitutional amendment prohibiting same-sex unions and the recognition of such arrangements from other states. The ruling was a victory for Janet Jenkins, who has been fighting for visitation rights since the dissolution of their 2000 civil union in Vermont.

Lynn D. Wardle is correct that the Mormon Church may participate in supporting or opposing an initiative (Column Right, July 15). Churches and other nonprofit organizations have a well-established right to participate in the political process within clearly spelled-out parameters. But it is important for Californians to understand what forces are behind the anti-gay Knight initiative. The Mormon Church contributed 40% of the funds in recent marriage-discrimination initiatives in other states.

A student has sued the Los Angeles Community College District for allegedly censoring a classroom speech he gave against same-sex unions in the emotional aftermath of the passage of Proposition 8, the gay marriage ban. Jonathan Lopez, who is working on his associate of arts degree at Los Angeles City College, quoted a dictionary definition of marriage as the union of a man and a woman, and cited several Bible verses during a public speaking class...

Re "Acceptance at the altar," Editorial, Aug. 2 Last month, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church approved resolutions favoring the election of openly gay bishops and the blessing of same-sex unions. The votes came in spite of appeals from orthodox bishops and deputies concerned about our relationships with brother and sister Anglicans around the world. Anglicans in Africa and the Far East were ignored. I spent a school year in Taiwan and returned much more aware of how negatively Anglicans there view the Episcopal Church's increasingly self-assured stance toward blessing homosexual unions.

Many therapists have served the needs of gay and lesbian couples. Like heterosexual couples, same-sex partners seek counseling for everything from a mate whose sloppiness is like nails to a chalkboard to grappling with severely mismatched libidos. But now, clinical psychologist John Gottman, a research scientist at the University of Washington who has studied heterosexual couples for 28 years, has tailored workshops explicitly for the needs of gay and lesbian couples based upon research that examined the interactions of same-sex couples.

PARIS - The French Parliament on Tuesday approved a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry and adopt, voting after months of often angry debate and sometimes violent protests in the streets. Members of the Socialist government chanted "Equality, equality" and stood up to applaud the results of the 331-225 vote in the National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament. The center-right opposition party immediately announced its intention to appeal the law. Justice Minister Christiane Taubira, a strong supporter of the bill, said she was "overcome with emotion.

The year 2012 is shaping up as a big one for same-sex marriage. Last week, the Washington state Legislature passed a bill allowing gay marriage, and legislatures in Maryland and New Jersey may follow suit shortly (though New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has promised a veto). North Carolina and Minnesota are conducting referendums this year on constitutional amendments to bar gay marriage, and Maine is likely to conduct a referendum on legalizing it. On Tuesday, the U.S. 9th Court of Appeals reminded us that courts too have something to say on the subject.

During the second day of a widely watched federal trial on same-sex marriage, an expert on the history of marriage testified that its central purpose historically was not procreation, but the creation of stable households. Harvard professor Nancy Cott, who has written a book about the history of marriage in the United States, told a federal court in San Francisco that child rearing was only one of several purposes of marriage, not "the central or defining purpose." "There has never been a requirement that a couple produce children in order to have a valid marriage," Cott testified, adding that George Washington, the father of the nation, was sterile.

Re "Acceptance at the altar," Editorial, Aug. 2 Last month, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church approved resolutions favoring the election of openly gay bishops and the blessing of same-sex unions. The votes came in spite of appeals from orthodox bishops and deputies concerned about our relationships with brother and sister Anglicans around the world. Anglicans in Africa and the Far East were ignored. I spent a school year in Taiwan and returned much more aware of how negatively Anglicans there view the Episcopal Church's increasingly self-assured stance toward blessing homosexual unions.

Progressives in the Episcopal Church were on the verge of claiming another victory Wednesday as leaders endorsed the creation of blessing liturgies for same-sex unions one day after they ended a de facto ban on the ordination of gay bishops. The action by bishops at the church's General Convention in Anaheim left conservatives with little to celebrate. They said the twin measures would further divide the 2.

The Iowa Supreme Court, citing California's historic marriage decision, overturned a ban Friday on same-sex marriage in a ruling that emphasized the need for courts to protect minorities even when public sentiment is against them. The unanimous decision makes Iowa the first Midwestern state to legalize gay marriage, which is also permitted in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Vermont and California appear to be sliding in opposite directions these days, and we're not talking about tectonic plates. As the institution of marriage undergoes seismic shifts, Vermont is moving from civil unions for same-sex couples toward full marriage, while the California Supreme Court is weighing whether to uphold Proposition 8, which stripped marriage rights from gay and lesbian couples.

TUCSON -- An old copper mining town turned artist enclave in southern Arizona may be the first city in the conservative state to allow the civil union between any couple regardless of sexual orientation. The move comes just days before the U.S. Supreme Court takes up the issue of same-sex marriage and follows a poll showing more than half of Americans support such marriages. Tuesday evening, Bisbee City Council members voted to allow the next best thing to gay marriage. In a first reading of an ordinance, adding a chapter to its city charter, they cleared the way for civil unions.

Legislators in Buenos Aires granted legal status to gay and lesbian couples, allowing benefits such as pensions and hospital visits in a move hailed as a first in Latin America. After a noisy marathon debate, the legislature voted 29 to 10 to legalize same-sex civil unions in the city of 3 million that has a reputation as one of the most progressive in deeply Roman Catholic South America.

The year was 1951. The U.S. military had just declared homosexuality an "unacceptable risk" and dishonorably discharged about 2,000 men and women from the armed services. It was the same year Army Sgt. Bob Claunch and his commanding officer, Lt. Jack Reavley, fell in love. More than half a century later, they are still together. For most of their lives, marriage was not an option for gays.