Good news in light of Pride Month!
Lawmakers in Germany voted on Friday, June 30th to legalize same-sex marriage. Germany is the 14th country in Europe to pass a measure for marriage equality. The 13 other European countries to have passed marriage equality laws are:
- Belgium
- Denmark
- Finland
- France
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Luxembourg
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Portugal
- Spain
- Sweden
- United Kingdom
The Netherlands was the first to pass same-sex marriage equality in 2001. Finland was the last one before Germany to approve same sex marriage or marriage equality. This comes in the wake of a free vote provided by Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was against same-sex marriage.
The vote was 393–226, for-against, which is pretty much a supermajority. The vote was for “marriage for everybody.” Merkel’s Christian Democrat, Jan-Marco Luczak, said, “It would be absurd to try and protect marriage by preventing people to marry.” Germany’s first same-sex marriages are set to be celebrated early this coming fall.
This is a significant development given Germany’s role in the EU and in the world in general. It is both an economic power and a cultural one too. With such a decision, it can be predicted that other European nations will follow suit.
References
The Associated Press. (2017, June 30). Germany votes to legalize same-sex marriage despite Merkel’s thumbs down. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/germany-votes-to-legalize-same-sex-marriage-despite-merkel-s-thumbs-down-1.4185430.
Carrel, P. & Shalal, A. (2017, June 30). German lawmakers approve same-sex marriage in landmark vote. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-gay-marriage-idUSKBN19L0PQ.
Connolly, K. (2017, June 30). German parliament votes to legalise same-sex marriage. Retrieved from
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/30/germany-poised-legalise-same-sex-marriage-bill-law.
Lowder, J.B. (2017, June 30|). Same-Sex Marriage Finally Comes to Germany. Retrieved from http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2017/06/30/same_sex_marriage_is_now_legal_in_germany.html.
Vonberg, J. & Smith-Spark, L. (2017, June 30). German lawmakers vote to legalize same-sex marriage; Merkel votes no. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/30/europe/germany-gay-marriage-vote/index.html.
Original Publication in Humanist Voices.