December 24, 2004

Same-sex marriage spreads
to another Canadian province

by Anthony Glassman

St. John?s, Newfoundland--The Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador ruled in favor of same-sex marriage on December 21, bringing to eight the number of provinces and territories in Canada with full same-sex marriage.

The decision by Chief Justice Derek Green means that 87% of Canadian citizens now live in areas with same-sex marriage.

The suit was brought by two lesbian couples against the province, and the federal government supported the couple?s side before the court.

Many viewed the case to be a mere technicality, as no court has ruled against same-sex marriage rights in Canada since the beginning of the current tide of opinions in the 1990s.

Parliament will be considering a bill this winter to institute same-sex marriage federally. The three most populous provinces, Ontario, Qu?bec and British Columbia, already allow it.

The bill was referred to the Supreme Court of Canada last summer for an opinion on its constitutionality. The court found December 9 that it passed constitutional muster, including a clause exempting religious organizations opposed to same-sex marriage from performing them.

Conservatives are trying to derail the bill with amendments to keep marriage as an opposite-sex institution while creating nationwide civil unions for same-sex couples. However courts have already ruled that the ?separate but equal? approach is not satisfactory.

Other leaders of the Conservative party are trying to force a national referendum, although a July 1 survey found that 57% of Canadians favor same-sex marriage.

In addition to British Columbia, Ontario and Qu?bec, the Yukon Territory, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia already allow full same-sex marriage. Alberta, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories still do not allow it.