Contents:
- WHERE EUROPE STANDS ON GAY MARRIAGE AND CIVIL UNNS
- CALIFORNIA STILL HAS AN ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE LAW ON THE BOOKS. VOTERS ULD REMOVE NEXT YEAR
WHERE EUROPE STANDS ON GAY MARRIAGE AND CIVIL UNNS
In Uganda lawmakers passed a bill earlier this year outlawg homosexualy, wh punishments as tough as the ath penalty. Meanwhile, Republin printial ndidate Ron De Santis was acced of postg a homophobic vio to mark the end of Pri month.
He has troduced a number of reforms sce then cludg liftg a ban on homosexual men makg blood donatns and endg the practice of so-lled sex normalizg surgeri on children. Read More: Southeast Asia’s Most Gay-Friendly Country Still Has No Law Agast LGBT Discrimatn Same-sex civil partnerships were legally regnized Greece 2015 and genr inty 2017, but progrs on other issu had been piecemeal until Msotakis me to power 2019. ATHENS – Greece legalized gay civil unns Tuday spe opposn om the Church and a rebelln by some right-wg members of the lg aln.
Lawmakers voted 193 favor vers 56 agast the long-awaed reform, followg a heated 10-hour bate which supporters of the bill — some wearg rabow gay pri badg — trad barbs wh opponents. Outsi parliament, gay rights mpaigners gathered wh banners readg “Love is the Law” and “All I want for Christmas is Equaly.
CALIFORNIA STILL HAS AN ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE LAW ON THE BOOKS. VOTERS ULD REMOVE NEXT YEAR
Activists say regnn of same-sex civil partnerships is an important step towards gag greater acceptance a untry where the Orthodox Church still holds sway and where reports of homophobic vlence have creased recent years. While many untri already allow same-sex marriage, Greece is one of the last European Unn stat to legalize gay civil unns. Prsure for change creased after the European Court of Human Rights led two years ago that was discrimatory for the untry to exclu gay upl om existg legislatn givg tax, pensn and herance rights to unmarried heterosexuals.
Homophobic remarks by clergymen fueled the bate ahead of Tuday’s vote. Bishop Seraphim of Piras lled homosexualy “unnatural lewdns” while the ntroversial Bishop Amvross of Kalavryta orred church his dce to sound funeral bells “ mourng” over the bill’s expected passage. Inpennt Greeks MP Vasilis Kokkalis said gay civil unns would unrme tradnal fay life.
“This will allow gay people to be more visible, ” said Nancy Papathanasu, a board member at the OLKE lbian and gay anizatn. More than 18 years after the Netherlands beme the world’s first untry to legalize same-sex marriage, Northern Ireland has bee the latt European jurisdictn to allow gays and lbians to marry. Northern Ireland is the 18th European jurisdictn to legalize gay marriage.