As Edgars Rkēvičs be the first openly gay print Latvia’s history, here’s a glimpse at other openly gay heads of state om around the world.
Contents:
- FIRST GAY MARRIAGE CELEBRATED FRANCE
- LATVIA BE 7TH NATN TO BE LED BY AN OPENLY GAY HEAD OF STATE
- 08 MAR 2013 FRANCE EMBRAC GAY MARRIAGE
- GAY MARRIAGE IS PROTTED FRANCE
FIRST GAY MARRIAGE CELEBRATED FRANCE
Sort through the more than 30 jurisdictns that have enacted laws allowg gays and lbians to marry. * france 2013 gay marriage *
Dpe support for the reform Montpellier, which boasts of beg France's most gay-iendly town, officials scrapped plans to broadst the weddg live on a giant TV screen and stead beamed live onle to the cy's webse. "Love each other, love , love one another, bee 's important, " said Aut om a balny to a crowd of hundreds of well-wishers outsi the cy hall, addg the next step would be a law allowg gay upl to adopt children. Backed by a slim majory of French and feted by gay men and lbians when me to force this month, a law makg France the 14th untry to allow same-sex marriage has triggered street protts by nservativ, Catholics and extreme right-wgers.
" Frigi Barjot, a pk-clad edian who leads the anti-gay marriage movement, has urged her supporters to stay away om Wednday's weddg and exprsed ncern at right-wgers who have hurled bricks, bottl and firecrackers durg march.
LATVIA BE 7TH NATN TO BE LED BY AN OPENLY GAY HEAD OF STATE
Earlier, French Interr Mister Manuel Valls pledged to toughen penalti for homophobic behavr, cg an crease the number of threats agast gay people on onle foms.
"It's likely that we'll have to harn penalti for homophobic speech and behavr by law. " Homosexualy, still a crime some 78 untri, has been legal France sce the Revolutn, and the age of nsent was lowered to that of heterosexual relatns 1981. Aut, 40, and Boile, 29, were the first gay uple to apply to marry as Print Hollan was phg through the law, which grants equal marriage and adoptn rights that go beyond existg l for civil partnerships.
08 MAR 2013 FRANCE EMBRAC GAY MARRIAGE
Aut proposed by phong Boile at work September ont of cy officials who had jt announced that Montpellier would host the first gay weddg.
Sce then, ralli that are partly fuelled by anger at the ernment over other issu like the enomy appear to have erod support for the gay marriage law; now stands at 53 percent, wh 47 percent opposed, reflectg a ep natnal divisn, particularly over the adoptn rights clus. Last week, one opponent of gay marriage shot himself ad at the altar of Paris's Notre Dame thedral and on Sunday hundreds of thoands marched the pal to mand the law's repeal.
Related stori:Thoands flood Paris to prott same-sex marriageFrance legaliz gay marriage spe angry protts. Sce the first same-sex marriag took place the Netherlands 2001, more than 30 other jurisdictns have enacted laws allowg gays and lbians to marry, mostly Europe and the Ameris.
GAY MARRIAGE IS PROTTED FRANCE
Argenta 2010Lat Ameri-CaribbeanFirst untry Lat Ameri to allow gay and lbian upl to marry.