First same-sex couples marry in Maine

Jamous Lizotte, left, and Steven Jones pose with their marriage license, early Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, at City Hall in Portland, Maine. Same-sex couples in Maine are now legally permitted to marry under a new law that went into effect at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday. / AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty

PORTLAND, Maine Arriving in a limo, Donna Galluzzo and Lisa Gorney had all the trappings of a traditional wedding: Rings, flowers, wedding vows, an entourage and a friend to officiate.

With tears in their eyes, they were among the first gay couples to exchange wedding vows early Saturday morning after Maine's same-sex marriage law went into effect at midnight.

"We're paving the way for people to go after us. I think it's just amazing. It's freeing. It's what's right," an emotionally drained Gorney said after their ceremony in front of City Hall.

After waiting years and seeing marriage rights nearly awarded and then retracted, gay couples in Maine's largest city didn't have to wait a moment longer than necessary to wed, with licenses issued at the stroke of midnight as the law went into effect.

Steven Bridges and Michael Snell were the first in line, and they received cheers from more than 200 people waiting outside after they wed in the clerk's office.

"It's historic. We've waited our entire lives for this," said Bridges, a retail manager, who's been in a relationship with the Snell, a massage therapist, for nine years. Bridges, 42, and Snell, 53, wore lavender and purple carnations on black T-shirts with the words "Love is love."

Katy Jayne, left, gets a kiss from Lauren Snead after they obtained their marriage license, early Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, at City Hall in Portland, Maine.

/ AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty

Voters in Maine, Maryland and Washington state approved gay marriage in November, making them the first states to do so by popular vote. Gay marriage already was legal in New York, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and the District of Columbia, but those laws were either enacted by lawmakers or through court rulings.

In Maine, Gov. Paul LePage signed off on the certified election results on Nov. 29, so the new law was to go into effect 30 days from that date. The law already is in effect in Washington state; Maryland's takes effect on Tuesday, the first day of 2013.

Nobody knew exactly how many couples would be rushing to get their marriage licenses early Saturday in Maine. Falmouth joined Portland in opening at midnight. Other communities including Bangor, Brunswick and Augusta planned to hold special Saturday hours.

In Portland, the mood was festive with the crowd cheering and horns sounding at midnight as Bridges and Snell began filling out paperwork in the clerk's office in Portland City Hall. There were free carnation boutonnieres and cupcakes, and a jazz trio played.

Outside, the raucous group that gathered in front of the building cheered Bridges and Snell as if they were rock stars and broke into the Beatles' "All You Need is Love."

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[eroteme2]

There will now be numbers of happy sodom-loving male couples in the Pine Tree State!

[eroteme2]

Meant to say sodomite-loving rather than sodom-loving.

[EvolvedLiberal]

How do you spell that sound a dog makes just before it throws up?

[MaxyRaddy]

Slow-news may be right. I tried it and it almost works if you have a sausage stuck in your throat.

[Andrew_K9]

I'm sorry, but to me these people aren't "married" per se. Only a man and woman can be legitimately "married". Same sex couples are wanting this to be made 'normal'. But that's not how it is. You guys need to wake up and realize and accept what you have and take it for what it's worth. What you have is a same-sex relationship. Take it, live together and be happy with it but don't try to equate it to a marriage, because it isn't. My thought is: two men, or two women, cannot procreate and make a child, so it is not a legit marriage and cannot be called that. America is getting so lenient and letting people do whatever they want that it'll come back to haunt this country someday.

[harry_underwood]

Andrew, your statement that "Same sex couples are wanting this to be made 'normal'" is far from the facts on the ground. Same-sex couples want the legal and physical protections of marriage so that they won't be treated as non-families like they have up until now.

And your distinction between a marriage and a "same-sex relationship", irrespective of the treatment of such by the institutions of civil government and society, is lacking in observational data. Same-sex couples have adopted and raised children without impact upon the children's self-sense of sexual orientation, and will continue to do so as married couples recognized by their governments.

And your suggestion to "take it, live together and be happy with it" lacks knowledge of how the government and the private sector have treated such families. No, most same-sex couples in this country cannot "take" or "live" with whatever a "same-sex relationship" (in your words) is supposed to personally mean to them unless they spend gobs of money on hiring a lawyer and working out whatever details which are not excluded against them by state bans against recognition of their relationship. Their "same-sex relationships" mean nothing in most of this country's states, no protections are provided to them at the federal level, and most businesses in the private sector do not provide domestic partnership benefits to unmarried couples.

Same-sex marriage is about protection of familial relationships under our laws, not "normality", and most definitely not about so-called "special rights". When their families are recognized as families rather than "relationships", they will rejoice, and then most will simply go home and raise their kids in the way that they've learned from their own parents.

[FormerUSMCSergeant]

legalbutnotjust says: Who gives a sh*t who loves who in the bedroom, in the kitchen, on the altar, on the beach, on the ski slopes, in the 'no tell' motel rooms, yada yada?
---
The self-righteous among us feel they have a right to dictate to all.
Deluded lot......

[Lindag20]

Of course a little brainwashing from their leaders help them along their way.

[FormerUSMCSergeant]

melbatom says:God's Laws are again violated. Take a good at THE GREAT WHITE THRONE...
---
Where can it be viewed?

[Lindag20]

In your bathroom.

[realtimecoffee]

POSTING__AWAY replies: I'VE GOT NEWS FOR YOU, MELBA-TOAST:
I AM GOD.
AND I COMMAND YOU TO GO -F- YOURSELF
---
lol if we had just listened, a whole bunch of **** would have never come up.

[realtimecoffee]

Slow_news replies: Sodom and Gomorrah was destroyed because four angels were not given free lodging for the night.

----
Are you kidding? Angels ALWAYS cash in their frequent flyer miles!

[realtimecoffee]

End of year silliness, we don't get to use enough of it.

[nuttyworld]

so if majority vote in favor of same sex marriage, it's fair, and the minority must abide; but if in another state the majority vote for marriage only between man and woman, the minority throw tantrums and cry to courts.

[Gorgor-Gor]

As a Democratic Republic based on the Constitution, yes.

[realtimecoffee]

Oh man Slappy, then Taxi drivers would rule!

[melbatom]

God's Laws are again violated. Take a good at THE GREAT WHITE THRONE judgment and you will see that you are facing judgment based on God's Rules of life in this case you stand on your merits or on faith. PROBLEM: no one standing out side of faith will survive this one. One factor is the Law of God and this type of marriage is a violation of those rules ending in judgment. How about that!

[InvisibleZombie]

Well MELBATOM (or Melba/Tom)- Why don't you let people "facing judgement" face it while married instead of shacking up? It shouldn't matter to you anyway since you'll never have to mingle with any "deviants" in your afterlife, right?

[Gorgor-Gor]

Unless you're Jewish, the old testament tribal rules don't apply to you either.

[FormerUSMCSergeant]

Same sex couples express glee while bigots express angst over the ending of this discrimination. I have no problem with bigots feeling angst. It's because of their own bigotry that they feel that way.