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Partners Task Force for Gay and Lesbian Couples Online from 1995-2022 Demian and Steve Bryant originally founded Partners as a monthly newsletter in 1986. By late 1990 it was reformatted into a bi-monthly magazine. Print publication was halted by 1995 when Demian published Partners as a Web site, which greatly expanded readership. In 1988, the Partners National Survey of Lesbian & Gay Couples report was published; the first major U.S. survey on same-sex couples in a decade. In 1996, Demian produced The Right to Marry, a video documentary based on the dire need for equality that was made clear by the data from the survey mentioned above. The video featured interviews with Rev. Mel White, Evan Wolfson, Phyllis Burke, Richard Mohr, Kevin Cathcart, Faygele benMiriam, Benjamin Cable-McCarthy, Susan Reardon, Frances Fuchs, Tina Podlodowski, and Chelle Mileur. Demian has been the sole operator during the last two decades of Partners. Demian stopped work on Partners Task Force in order to realize his other time-consuming projects, which include publishing the book “Operating Manual for Same-Sex Couples: Navigating the rules, rites & rights” - which is now available on Amazon. The book is based on the Partners Survey mentioned above, his interviews of scores of couples, and 36 years of writing hundreds of articles about same-sex couples. It’s also been informed by his personal experience in a 20-year, same-sex relationship. Demian’s other project is to publish his “Photo Stories by Demian” books based on his more than six decades as a photographer and writer. |
On January 30, 2003, Belgium became the second country in the world to offer legal marriage to same-sex couples.
While many countries offer some kind of domestic partnership status — and many mistakenly refer to it as marriage — none have the full equality in legal, economic and social stature as is available in legal marriage.
The original bill had been already approved by the Senate, and prevailed in the House of Representatives, with a 91-22 vote (nine abstentions). The opposition Christian democrat CdH and the extreme right Vlaams Blok voted against it. The law, years in the making, had to overcome criticism of the country’s top administrative court, which ruled that the concept of marriage legally represented “union between a man and woman.” The government parties decided the ignore the legal advice and proceeded with the bill nevertheless. The original Belgium marriage license’s was severely flawed in that it did not allow adoption of children as a couple. Some couples did not want to marry because it prevented them from adopting children. Birth within a same-sex marriage did not imply affiliation, as the same-sex spouse of the biological parent had no way to become the legal parent. A proposal to permit adoption was approved by the Chamber of Representatives of the parliament on December 1, 2005. In April 2006, it passed and enabled legal co-parenting by same-sex couples. While the Belgium age of consent is 16, all legal marriages require the parties to both be 18 or older.
Originally, the license only allowed marriage between Belgians, or between Belgians and people from countries where a marriage of same-sex couples was also allowed. An October 1, 2004 law change made it possible for any foreign same-sex couple to marry in Belgium if at least one of the spouses has lived there for three months.
All documentation needs to be taken to the marriage office in the commune where at least one partner lives. For many, this office will be part of the Service de l’Etat Civil/ de Burgerlijke Stant, and may be located in the municipal buildings of the Town Hall (Maison Communale/Stadhuis). Required original or certified copies (not photocopies):
The marriage takes place in the municipality where at least one of the parties were resident at the time that the marriage was announced. Belgian law only recognizes the validity of a civil ceremony and the only authority with the power to celebrate a legal marriage is the office of the state via the local municipality (Ambtenaar van de Burgerlijke Stant/ Officier de l’Etat Civil).
Civil marriages take place at the Town Hall. At certain times, and on certain days, no charge is made for this service. On completion of the civil ceremony, the marriage is recorded in the register of civil status at the Town Hall and the newly-weds are issued with a marriage booklet. This acts as the legal proof of their status as a same-sex married couple.
To acquire Belgian nationality, you must be living with your Belgian spouse at the time of the application. Depending on your residence rights in the country, you must also have been living together for a certain time. Each of the partners must satisfy one of the following conditions:
If your main place of residence is abroad, you must make a declaration at the Belgian embassy or consulate. These services will then contact the public prosecutor of the Court of First Instance of Brussels for opinion.
As of November 22, 2004, more than 300 same-sex legal marriages had taken place in Belgium. By July 2005, 2,442 same-sex couples had married in Belgium, according to the Interior Ministry. A total of 3 percent of all Belgium marriages are same-sex, Flemish broadcaster VRT reported.
This high rate of marriage may result from the fact that many same-sex couples had been living together for years, and it was only relatively recently possible for them to marry.
Should a Belgium same-sex married couple come to the U.S., it seems likely that the U.S. would refuse to recognize the marriage because the U.S. government and a majority of U.S. states have made laws denying recognition to any legal marriage licenses held by same-sex couples.
The U.S. has no international obligations to recognize marriages from other nations, but generally has done so, unless they violate established public policy.
Marriage - Belgium’s Web Site
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