Argentina Legalizes Gay Marriage

Posted on by

BBC– Argentina has become the first country in Latin America to legalise gay marriage after the Senate voted in favour. The country’s Chamber of Deputies had already approved the legislation.

The vote in the Senate, which backed the bill by just six votes, came after 14 hours of at times heated debate.

The law, which also allows same-sex couples to adopt, had met with fierce opposition from the Catholic Church and other religious groups. The legislation, backed by President Cristina Fernandez’s centre-left government, passed by 33 votes to 27 with three abstentions.

There were demonstrations for and against the bill outside Congress as senators debated. Outside Congress, as the debate continued into the early hours of Thursday, supporters and opponents of the bill held rival demonstrations.

“Nearly every political and social figure has spoken out in favour of marriage equality,” said Maria Rachid, president of the Argentine Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transsexuals. “And we hope that the Senate reflects this and that Argentina, from today forward, is a more just country for all families,” she told the Associated Press.

Ines Frank, from a group called Argentine Families Argentina, said opposition was not discrimination “because the essence of a family is between two people of opposite sexes.”

There have been several gay marriages recently in Argentina, some of which were annulled by the Supreme Court, creating a legal controversy. Civil unions between people of the same sex are legal in Buenos Aires and in some other provinces but there was no law to regulate it on a country-wide level.

Argentina’s capital is widely considered to be among the most gay-friendly cities in Latin America. It was the first Latin American city to legalise same-sex unions. Same-sex civil unions are also legal in Uruguay and some states in Brazil and Mexico, while gay marriage is legal in Mexico City.

© COPYRIGHT BBC, 2010

Photo by flickr user Mariano Pernicone

Leave a Reply

RELATED NEWS

  • Empire Files: The Hidden War on Trans Rights
  • 7 Must Watch Empire Files Reports From Palestine
  • Human Rights Hypocrisy – Colombia vs. Venezuela
  • The Philippines Trafficking Epidemic: Past & Present
  • WORLD NEWS

  • Empire Files Podcast: A Russian Anti-War Perspective on Ukraine
  • Media Roots Radio: Hollywood Gets Tough On Putin, Ukraine Scorched Earth Info War, Banning Russia
  • Media Roots Radio: RIP RT America, The End of An Era
  • Media Roots Radio: Revenge of the Kagans, DOD’s 11 Ukrainian Bio Labs, 60 Mins Targeted Individuals, Havana Reviews
  • Media Roots Radio: Fog of Cold War, Sitting Duck Op, Doomsday Clock 100 Seconds to Midnight
  • Abby Martin Confronts Nancy Pelosi Over Pentagon Spending at COP26
  • Media Roots Radio: Cure For Havana Syndrome & Info War Against Cuba w/ Alan MacLeod
  • Empire Files Podcast: Colombia On Fire w/ Student Leader From Protest Epicenter
  • Empire Files: Debunking Israel’s ‘Human Shield’ Defense in Gaza Massacre
  • Media Roots Radio: Gaza Under Attack Again, Operation Prison Wall Guardian & Alt-Media Zionism
  • Empire Files Podcast: #SaveSheikhJarrah: The Fight for East Jerusalem
  • Media Roots Radio: Mother of All Afghanistan Podcasts, Sex Cults & Cop Trials
  • Empire Update w/ Abby Martin: Arctic War, Aid to Israel Challenge, Army VR Money Pit
  • Empire Files: US Retreats From Afghanistan: Truth Behind The Empire’s Defeat
  • Empire Files: Uganda Dictatorship: Imperialism’s Pearl of Africa