YES!
Did you see that the city of St. Louis made national news from coast to coast yesterday? Did you happen to see the front page of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Thursday? I’m STILL beaming with pride and joy.
courtesy of PROMOonline.org
St. Louis Post-Dispatch Editorial Board said it best, “HOLY CHUTZPAH!” Actually they borrowed the phrase from Rabbi Susan Talve who participated in the news making event.
St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay joined four LGBT couples Wednesday evening as they were married and their marriage licenses signed by the City Recorder of Deeds.
Before the ceremonies took place, Mayor Slay stood by the couples and stated, “St. Louis is a city that doesn’t tolerate discrimination. We are sending a message on what’s right, and I can’t think of anything more right than this.”
Taking marriage vows were four longtime St. Louis couples. After a 39 year engagement, Richard Eaton and John Durnell were the first to be married. Then Tod Martin, deputy chief of staff for U.S. Senator Clair McCaskill and David Gray (together 22 years), Miranda Duschack and Mima Davis (together 4 years), and Bruce Yampolsky and Terry Garrett (together 30 years) were married one by one in the mayor’s office with numerous beaming witnesses on hand for the historic occasion. “
courtesy of kansascity.com
“The City issues thousands of licenses ever year. What makes these four licenses special is that they are first issued in the State of Missouri to couples of the same-sex,” Mayor Francis Slay said in a statement after.
The kicker? Missouri was one of the first states to ban same-sex marriage via a constitutional amendment that passed in August of 2004.
Almost immediately, Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster announced a legal challenge to block the city from issuing marriage licenses until two other cases brought by the ACLU regarding the constitutionality of Missouri’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriages is resolved. UPDATE: Circuit Court Judge Rex Burlison denied a restraining order this morning after Mayor Slay agreed to stop issuing same sex marriage licenses for the time being.
courtesy of PROMOonline.org
We believe that Mayor Slay is the first mayor in the country to actively defy a state marriage ban and do what we all know is good, right and fair.
So YAY Missouri! It took a wise and courageous mayor to lead the way for Missouri and to put my state on the national radar for something good, something right.
I may live about 5 inches from the city of St. Louis (to be truly technical) but I’m enormously proud to claim it as my city. Thank you thank you Mayor Slay.
Can you EVEN imagine the mood at the annual PRIDEFEST and PRIDE parade this weekend in downtown St. Louis?
You know where I’ll be —proudly. YES!