300 Smiles

Congratulations to Sinjoyla Townsend and her partner Angelisa Young! They were the first of 150 same-sex couples to become legally wed in Washington, D.C. today. It was a monumental day for love, as people drove in from all around the region to have their marriage licenses given to them in the nation's Capitol. Upon arrival, they were greeted by a gender-neutral marriage bureau, which merely asked for the name of each "spouse," rather than for the names of the bride and the groom. Needless to say, there were smiles abound in Washington, D.C. today.

The District council made a historic decision back in December, when it voted to legally recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere, granting same-sex couples their inherent civil right to benefit from all of those convenient marriage bonuses, which are given without question to heterosexual couples across the country. And Mayor Adrian Fenty signed off on the law in December, keeping in step with his promise that gay marriage would be on the horizon for Washington, D.C. This action provides not only tax benefits and financial co-dependency rights, but a symbolic movement in the capitol of the country which boasts itself as the most free; finally allowing all of its citizens the basic freedom to love without judgement or deprivation. It means that their relationships will be respected, and that their commitment to each other will be recognized in the eyes of the law.

And today was the day that it went into effect. And although their is some worry about the revocation of marriage rights, given the tragic outcome of California's Proposition 8 vote during the 2008 elections, and the unsuccessful opposition to the council's decision, today was a day reserved for celebration, not fear. Washington, D.C. now joins the ranks of 5 other love-friendly locales in the nation: Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Hurray! These are the kinds of freedom-giving, difference-accepting places that I'd want to live in. What about you?