At midnight, January 1st, gay New Hampshire residents had more than just the New Year to celebrate. The countdown to midnight also marked the countdown to legalized civil unions for same-sex couples in the state. Nearly 200 people were on hand at the State House to bear witness to a mass of couples who declared their legal commitments in a group ceremony.
With tempatures falling below freezing, organizers welcomed over 30 couples who gathered at the New Hampshire State House to join together in the newly legalized civil unions, according to the Associated Press. The mass ceremony was organized by state Rep.
Gail Morrison (D-Sanbornton) and activist
Jen Majors.
"We are a citizen legislature and we legislated this into being," said Morrison, according to the AP.
Morrison joined with her longtime partner
Pauline Chabot and Major with her partner,
Kelley Morris, during the group ceremony, presided over by Unitarian Universalist Minister
Mary Wellemeyer. A group of clergy and justices of the peace provided couples with the opportunity to recite individual vows. After the group ceremony, the couples walked through an archway decorated with a "just married" banner and rainbow ribbons.
However, regardless of the archway banner, New Hampshire's civil unions do not provide the full rights and legal protections of true marriage and same-sex couples who become legally recognize can face some heavy drawbacks. For example, engaging in a civil union can trigger "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and lead to expulsion to the military. Also, divorcing a spouse if one party moves out of state could be difficult. These inequalities still rankle with LGBT activists pushing for the full equivalent of legal marriage for same-sex couples in the state.
"We really didn't believe that we'd be able to see this accomplished within one year but it has happened," state Rep.
Jim Splaine, a sponsor of the civil unions bill, told the gathered crowd. "One thing we have to keep in mind is that there is much more to do. We have to continue the journey to make sure that we have marriage equality, full marriage equality—with the word marriage—soon."
A lone protestor, in the form of a member of The Christian Civic League of Maine, attempted to hand out anti-gay pamphlets during the proceedings at the State House, according to
Boston.com.
New Hampshire's civil unions law was enacted by the Legislature last year and signed by Democratic Gov. John Lynch in May. New Hampshire joins Vermont, Connecticut and New Jersey as states legally extending civil unions to same-sex couples. Massachusetts remains the only state in the country to allow gay marriage.
