Today marks the 40th Anniversary of Loving vs. Virginia, the historic Supreme Court case from 1967 that removed prohibitions against interracial marriages. Today, we continue the effort to extend that vision to gay marriage, and in that vein, the national LGBT organization, Freedom to Marry, has launched a provocative advertising campaign.
It’s interesting to note high visibility couples who have benefited from the Loving vs. Virginia ruling. And it’s important to note that, today, Virginia has the most draconian anti-gay rights laws on the books. Sad but true.
In honor of this day, I thought I’d reprint an essay I wrote for Lambda award-winning anthology I Do/I Don’t. The piece is somewhat dated, but it provides a snapshot of what gay marriage/civil union efforts were like just three years ago. And even though we have achieved civil unions in Connecticut, it has created a separate but equal path for its citizens. Yes, key rights have been extended to queer couples and equalized across the board, but we do not as yet share the same walk on the same path to marriage.
Oh, and Tommy? The queen-in-waiting I mentioned in the essay? We were reunited a couple of years ago. He grew up to be a bear.
To wit: Of Course, I Do.
Note: Foxfire isn’t picking up the essay’s format. You might want to view it in IE.
