Today marks 10 years of marriage equality in Massachusetts and seven years of legality (on top of 13 years of illegality) for my spouse Helen and me.
Although same-sex couples in Massachusetts could not marry until May 2004 (see photo), state Chief Justice Margaret Marshall issued her groundbreaking ruling in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health on November 18, 2003.
Helen and I didn’t plan to have our wedding on this historic date three years later. We had been living in New York and planned the whole thing in about two weeks, driven by Helen’s new job and the need to get me on her health insurance. We only realized the coincidence when our Justice of the Peace mentioned it. But yes, we were one of the many couples to use the quote from Marshall’s decision as part of our wedding ceremony.
Fact is, we still view our original anniversary, in the spring, as our “real” one, with this being simply the occasion that the state caught up with what we’d known for years. Still, it’s kind of fun to be able to celebrate both together.
I should also mention, as a point of pride, that the lead plaintiffs in the case that won marriage equality in the Bay State, Hillary and Julie Goodridge, are moms. (They are no longer together—but one of the benefits of having a legal marriage is recourse to established divorce proceedings, including child custody arrangements.) Four of the six plaintiff couples in total are parents as well (two pairs of moms, two dads), and the remaining two spend much time with their nieces and nephews (and in one case, grandnieces), according to the case files.
For a good review of the history of the decision, see Lisa Keen’s piece over at Keen News Service. Be sure, too, to read Chris Geidner’s profile of Mary Bonauto, the lawyer who argued the case—and also a lesbian mom.
Sixteen states plus the District of Columbia have now approved marriage equality, three in the past two months. Massachusetts was the first, however, so raise a Sam Adams (or a cranberry juice, our state beverage) in celebration today. Since it’s my Massaversary, I’ll have two.