PG-rated
04-26-2007, 10:59 AM
New Hampshire has passed a civil unions law, meaning that all of New England now grants some legal recognition to same-sex partnerships.
Washington Post article (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/25/AR2007042502950.html)
Advocates, meanwhile, see promise in New England's historical role as the conscience of the nation. States here were the first to embrace racial integration in schools and they abolished the death penalty for crimes such as robbery and burglary in the 19th century, before much of the rest of the country.
And they have taken the lead on same-sex couples. Vermont became the first state to offer civil unions in 2000. Connecticut followed suit in 2005, and its legislature is now pushing forward with a full gay-marriage bill that observers say could come to a final vote as early as June.
Massachusetts, after a 2003 Supreme Court ruling there, became the first state to allow same-sex marriage -- which differs from New Hampshire's civil unions largely in that it uses the highly symbolic word "marriage."
In February, Rhode Island's attorney general issued a landmark ruling that opened the door for residents there to legally marry in Massachusetts, effectively making it the second state to recognize same-sex marriage. Maine, meanwhile, has approved domestic partnerships. To date, nearby New Jersey is the only state outside New England to adopt an expansive civil union law.
Washington Post article (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/25/AR2007042502950.html)
Advocates, meanwhile, see promise in New England's historical role as the conscience of the nation. States here were the first to embrace racial integration in schools and they abolished the death penalty for crimes such as robbery and burglary in the 19th century, before much of the rest of the country.
And they have taken the lead on same-sex couples. Vermont became the first state to offer civil unions in 2000. Connecticut followed suit in 2005, and its legislature is now pushing forward with a full gay-marriage bill that observers say could come to a final vote as early as June.
Massachusetts, after a 2003 Supreme Court ruling there, became the first state to allow same-sex marriage -- which differs from New Hampshire's civil unions largely in that it uses the highly symbolic word "marriage."
In February, Rhode Island's attorney general issued a landmark ruling that opened the door for residents there to legally marry in Massachusetts, effectively making it the second state to recognize same-sex marriage. Maine, meanwhile, has approved domestic partnerships. To date, nearby New Jersey is the only state outside New England to adopt an expansive civil union law.