Saturday, June 30, 2012

France to Legalise Gay Marriage in 2013

France is poised to join modern and progressive nations that recognize full same sex CIVIL law marriage.  Meanwhile, the GOP and the Christian Taliban in America strive to take the nation backwards in time - preferably to a time when slavery was fine (assuming naturally the slaves were black), women knew their place and gays, of course were invisible.  But back to France.  With the election of its new government and the continued collapse of the Roman Catholic Church's influence, France will be belatedly instituting same sex marriage in 2013 and joining six other EU nations that already afford full marriage rights.  Not surprisingly, the "conservative" Catholics - who seem to have gotten their talking points from American anti-gay hate groups - are not pleased that France will be taking religious based discrimination out of its civil laws.   France 24 has details and a time line as to when the legislation will take effect.  Here are highlights:

France’s new Socialist government is to legalise same-sex marriage next year, a junior minister said on Friday, reflecting a shift in public attitudes in the majority Catholic nation.  President Francois Hollande, who took office last month, had pledged to legalise gay marriage and adoption during his election campaign but had given no timeframe.

Since Hollande’s Socialists won an absolute majority in parliamentary elections two weeks ago, the conservative UMP party, which had opposed the measure under former president Nicolas Sarkozy, can do little to stop it.  "Within a year, people of the same sex will be able to marry and adopt children together," Dominique Bertinotti, junior minister for families, told the daily Le Parisien. "They will have the same rights and duties as any married couple."

A law granting full marriage status to gay couples would bring France, which currently provides only for same-sex civil unions, into line with fellow EU members Denmark, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden.

It would also mark a profound change in French society, where more than two-thirds of people still describe themselves as Roman Catholic, according to a 2010 survey by pollster Ifop.  However, fewer and fewer of them adhere to strict Roman Catholic teachings on sexual issues or back the Vatican’s condemnation of homosexuality. Church attendance has collapsed.

As recently as 2006, surveys indicated that most French were opposed to changing the definition of marriage, but now more than 60 percent support the idea, the pollster BVA said. A majority also favour allowing gay couples to adopt children.

Still, there is certain to be opposition from conservatives and practising Catholics.  "We are convinced that young people’s development requires the presence of a mother and a father," said Thierry Vidor, head of the Familles de France umbrella group, which represents some 70,000 families, and campaigns for traditional family rights.  "We will take action to try to show that this measure is ultimately dangerous for society."

Would that these sheep would take action to demand accountability from the child rapist enablers and protectors in the Vatican and throughout the Church hierarchy.  But then again, such action would be truly consistent with  real concern about children as opposed to an excuse for anti-gay bigotry.  Thus, such action will not happen.

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