Gay marriage, civil unions, or neither?  The annual gay marriage debate is heating up once again.  In my opinion, the majority of Rhode Islanders support allowing same-sex couples to join in a legally recognized way.  Most would argue that it is the right thing to do.  Committed couples deserve to have the same legal protections afforded to married couples.  The problem is, what do you call it?

     Senator Leo Blais has sponsored legislation (S0136) to make gay marriage illegal in Rhode Island.  My feeling is that this bill will have very little support.  The true debate will focus on gay marriage vs civil unions.  From what I can see, each would offer similar rights and protections.  The main distinction is in the name itself.  I support gay marriage, but I think a failure to compromise will doom any progress.

     Many people seem to support legal recognition of same-sex couples, but want to keep marriage separate.  This is far from ideal to supporters of gay marriage, but it is a start.  Accepting a compromise won't rule out passing a marriage bill in the future.  While it wouldn't offer complete change right away, it would start a process of incremental change.  

     I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think we will see gay marriage or civil unions voted on this year.  It's one of those controversial issues that many of our state senators and representatives like to stay away from.  At any rate, I do think gay marriage (or civil unions) will continue to gain support.


http://www.projo.com/news/content/same_sex_marriage_02-22-09_H2DCC7T_v26.1f6250d.html