The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Manitoba became the fifth jurisdiction in Canada to allow same-sex marriages yesterday following a court ruling that declared the traditional definition of wedlock unconstitutional. Officials began issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples after Justice Douglas Yard declared that excluding them from matrimony violates the provisions of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. "I don't think the courts had much of an option," said Flin Flon MLA Gerard Jennissen. "The fact that this was the fifth jurisdiction in Canada shows that that's the direction it's going. Whether someone agrees with that, that's a moral decision people will have to make, including politicians." Same-sex marriage is an issue for a sizable number of Jennissen's constituents, though the MLA said yesterday's decision was strictly a court matter, not a political one. "To me, it seems as divisive an issue as abortion is; it's about half and half," said Jennissen. Yesterday's ruling changes the meaning of marriage only in legal terms, and does not force churches to perform the ceremonies. Manitoba's first same-sex marriage is planned for tomorrow between a Winnipeg lesbian couple, Jordan Cantwell and Laura Fouhse. Both women were connected to a lawsuit brought forth last month that challenged the marriage laws and sparked yesterday's ruling. The case marked the first time the federal government chose not to oppose, or ask for an adjournment of, a same-sex marriage lawsuit. Manitoba is now the fifth province or territory to allow same-sex marriage, joining Ontario, Quebec, B.C. and the Yukon Territory. While supporters applauded the move as a progressive step toward a more equal society, traditionalists, particularly those in the church community, were sorely disappointed. "I think it's going to be the beginning of the unraveling of society as we know it," said Pastor Brian Gold of the Flin Flon Pentecostal Assembly. The ruling, he said, represents a slippery slope that may lead to further changes to the legal meaning of marriage. "Then it can go to the next degree, which would be polygamy," said the pastor. "What's stopping them now from making the definition two men and one woman or two women and one man?" Despite the ruling, Ottawa retains the final decision on the legal definition of marriage. The Supreme Court of Canada is reviewing draft legislation that would change the definition in federal law. Jennissen expects the nation's highest court to make a ruling on the matter in the summer of 2005 and suspects the justices will side with the provincial courts that have already okayed same-sex wedlock. However, the MLA said, suspicions don't always prove true.9/17/2004
