First Gay Couples Marry In Mexico City
Some gay couples made history Thursday, becoming the first same-sex marriages to take place in Mexico City.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Judith Vazquez and Lol Kin Castaneda on Thursday became the first gay couple to marry in Mexico under a new law that allows same-sex couples to wed and to adopt children.
The law was passed by the Mexico City legislature in December and applies only to the capital. It is the most far-reaching gay-rights law in Latin America and one of several measures that have put the city and its leaders at odds with the more conservative country.
“This is a historic day,” presiding judge Hegel Cortes said shortly after pronouncing Vazquez and Castaneda “legitimately united in matrimony.” Three other same-sex couples also tied the knot.
Actress and feminist activist Jesusa Rodriguez’s flight was delayed and she missed the event; she and her partner of 30 years were wed later in a separate ceremony.
The city put on quite a show, despite harsh criticism from the conservative ruling party that governs the nation and from the influential Roman Catholic Church.
The ceremony took place in the columned courtyard of the 300-year-old Municipal Palace, on a stage festooned with white lilies and a larger-than-life bust of Benito Juarez. Mayor Marcelo Ebrard attended, applauding warmly and hugging all of the newlyweds, as did the heads of the city’s legislature and highest court.
“I am overjoyed to finally be making this real,” said Vazquez, 44. “A different world is possible.”
The couples responded affirmatively when asked by the judge whether they were entering marriage of their free will. Then Vazquez and her bride were the first to step up and sign the registry, each sealing it with a thumbprint. They gave an ink-stained thumbs up and kissed as the audience erupted in cheers.
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