Since that time Connecticut, New Hampshire and New Jersey have adopted civil union laws and Massachusetts and California have legalized same sex marriage. Most recently the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that to create two tiers for legal partnerships was not legal. The court found:
"Interpreting our state constitutional provisions in accordance with firmly established equal protection principles leads inevitably to the conclusion that gay persons are entitled to marry the otherwise qualified same sex partner of their choice.
"To decide otherwise would require us to apply one set of constitutional principles to gay persons and another to all others. The guarantee of equal protection under the law, and our obligation to uphold that command, forbids us from doing so. In accordance with these state constitutional requirements, same sex couples cannot be denied the freedom to marry."
It's now a matter of when, not if, this issue moves to the U.S. Supreme Court. It is hard to imagine even this conservative court being able to rule that it's reasonable to accord rights and privileges based on sexual orientation.
In 2000 Vermont civil union law was a reasonable first step. But now it is time for Vermont to take the next step toward true equality and fairness and it can take one of two forms. Either the state legalizes same sex marriage -- period -- or it creates civil marriages, open to hetero and homosexual couples. Being legally married would require a civil marriage certificate, and if couples wanted a church marriage, they could have that ceremony, too.
Churches and the congregations could continue to decide whether or not to perform and recognize same sex marriages while all couples in the state would enjoy legal equality. This would create a desirable separation between church and state on the issue and move Vermont back into the forefront of fairness and equity for all.
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