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Canada becomes third country in the world to legalize same sex marriage

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Lincoln:
Same-sex marriage bill passes in Commons
CTV.ca News Staff

Canada will become the third country in the world to officially sanction same-sex marriage.

In a 158 to 133 vote, the House of Commons adopted Bill C-38 -- the controversial legislation legalizing same-sex marriage from coast to coast -- on its third and final reading Tuesday night.

The Liberals had the support of almost all New Democrat and Bloc Quebecois MPs for the vote.

The bill will become official once it receives Senate approval, which is expected to happen within days. An earlier Conservative motion to send the bill back to committee was voted down 158 to 127.

"(This) is about the Charter of Rights,'' Prime Minister Paul Martin said earlier Tuesday.

"We are a nation of minorities. And in a nation of minorities, it is important that you don't cherry-pick rights.

"A right is a right and that is what this vote tonight is all about."

The decision marks the end of a long and divisive debate, with fierce opposition coming from Conservative members, religious groups, and even members of the Liberal Party.

The legislation applies to civic weddings at public venues like city halls and courthouses. Religious groups still have the right to refuse to sanctify same-sex marriages, but opponents of the bill are vowing to keep up their fight.

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper is promising that he won't let the issue rest; he says he'll revisit the new law if he becomes the next prime minister. He also repeated his claim that the law lacks legitimacy because it passed with the support of the separatist Bloc party.

"I don't think Canadians are going to accept as a final word a decision taken by only a minority of federalist MPs," he said. But Harper didn't specify how he would address the issue if the Tories were to form the next government.

Liberal Justice Minister Irwin Cotler said Harper is going to have to come clean and acknowledge that he would have to invoke the Constitution's notwithstanding clause to override the new law.

"They're going to have to acknowledge that they want to override the (Charter of Rights); override constitutional-law decisions in nine jurisdictions in this country; override a unanimous decision of the Supreme Court of Canada; override the rule of law in this country," Cotler said.

The clause is available to provinces to override federal laws that
intrude on provincial jurisdiction.

But almost every provincial and territorial government has already legalized same-sex marriage; and the new legislation will ensure that the four "hold-out" jurisdictions that yet haven't -- Alberta, Prince Edward Island, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories -- now must.

"It's an historic moment, it's about equality for gays and lesbians," said NDP MP Libby Davies.

Alberta Premier Ralph Klein, who is "strongly opposed" to the bill on moral grounds, acknowledged Tuesday that little can be done to stop same-sex marriages in his province.

"Since this is federal legislation, to use the notwithstanding clause as contained in our own Marriage Act would be frivolous," Klein told reporters in Calgary. "It wouldn't stand up in any court of law. So there are some other options that we would have to consider."

Klein said although some members of his caucus are threatening to use every legal weapon at their disposal to get around the legislation, "there are no legal weapons; there's nothing left in the arsenal."

As expected, about three dozen Liberal MPs voted against the measure. Martin declared it a free vote for backbench MPs, but cabinet ministers were under orders to vote in favour of the bill.

On Tuesday, a junior cabinet minister chose to resign and return to the backbenches rather than vote in favour of same sex marriage.

Joe Comuzzi, the minister of state for economic development in northern Ontario, informed the prime minister of his decision in the early morning.

"I promised faithfully to the people of Thunder Bay-Superior North that I would defend the traditional definition of marriage," he explained to reporters on Parliament Hill.

After the same-sex vote was put to bed, the House immediately adjourned for the summer, thus ending one of the stormiest sessions of parliament in Canadian history. MPs won't meet again until Sept. 26.


http://sympaticomsn.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1119954631626_33?hub=topstories

mauzip:
good for you!

Lincoln:
My thoughts written out:

Wow. It finally happened. Same sex marriage, as Liberals socialists and seperatists call it. Supposedly a defining moment in Canada. In reality, this is one of the worst days in the country's history. The Liberals pushed through this terrible legislation. Pearson, King, St. Laurent and the other Liberal PMs of the country must be rolling over in their graves. Even Tommy Douglas of the NDP (whom many forget was A CHRISTIAN MINISTER) must be shaking his head. It is time for change. Harper needs to stand up and use the Notwithstanding Clause of the Charter, and make it damn clear he will. Realistically speaking, the positive that will come out of this terrible legislation will be the Liberals' demise. When nearly the whole country is against the sinful marriage bill, the Liberals will have no chance at defending against this one. Let's see you dither through this one Mr. Martin.
 
I pray for God's mercy upon my country and pray for change.

eS El Duque:
i thought this was legalized ages ago....i don't like gays at all...but i don't give a shit about this bill

Twentytwofifty:

--- Quote from: Lincoln The Reform-A-Tory on June 28, 2005, 07:43:35 PM ---Realistically speaking, the positive that will come out of this terrible legislation will be the Liberals' demise. When nearly the whole country is against the sinful marriage bill, the Liberals will have no chance at defending against this one. Let's see you dither through this one Mr. Martin.
 
I pray for God's mercy upon my country and pray for change.
--- End quote ---

The Liberals will never lose.  Martin is invincible.
I hate to say it but it's true.

As far as this issue is concerned, I could really care less.  But I hate it when these clowns call it a "human rights" issue or something along those lines.  That's bullshit.

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