Chile to Consider Same-sex Marriage

Marriage Equality continues to spread though Latin American on the heels of Argentina's historic legalization of same-sex marriage.

Reuters reports:
The head of Chile's Socialist party, Fulvio Rossi, told reporters on Sunday that he planned to sponsor a bill to legalize gay marriage in the country, as occurred last month in neighboring Argentina.

"This is a project that I will present ... and I am also calling on the Church to be more welcoming, and I say that as part of the Church," the senator said, responding to remarks from Chilean Cardinal Francisco Javier Errazuriz who described the same-sex weddings in Argentina as "an aberration."

A gay couple from Chile was among the first to marry in Argentina, in the wine-making Mendoza region, when the country become the first in Latin America to allow same-sex nuptials.

Sebastian Pinera, Chile's first conservative president in two decades, has vowed to give more rights to same-sex couples, but opposes gay marriage.

There has also been talk in recent weeks that Peru, Paraguay, and Uruguay may also join Argentina on the Marriage Equality band wagon. Mexico City also recognizes same-sex marriage, although the Mexican federal government does not.

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Gay Mormons Speak Out Against Church's Anti-gay Campaign in Argentina

From The Salt Lake City Tibune:
Affirmation, a support group for gay and lesbian Mormons, is criticizing the LDS Church for its efforts to thwart the legalization of same-sex marriage in Argentina. Last week, Argentina became the first Latin American nation to allow gay marriage. Mexico City also sanctions such unions.

The LDS Church has denied it played an official part in opposing the Argentine law before it was approved by the nation's legislature. But Carlos Aguero, the church's public-affairs director for Argentina, attended a meeting earlier this month with leaders from several conservative Christian churches and anti-gay-marriage groups to plan protests, according to reports in Argentina.

"This is another appalling example of the LDS trying to dominate government decisions being made by democratically elected officials," David Melson, executive director of Affirmation, said in a statement.

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Argentine Senate: "Gay marriage is law in Argentina."

While most of us in the western hemisphere were sleeping, the Senate of Argentina passed a law making same-sex marriage legal for the first time in a Latin American country. 

Despite a fierce anti-gay campaign waged by both the Mormon and Catholic churches (big surprise!) in the mostly Catholic nation, the senate voted 33-27 to pass the bill that had the backing of Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who through her actions, defines the words "fierce advocate". The vote came just after 4:00 a.m. Thursday morning.

Evan Wolfson, Executive Director of Freedom to Marry released this statement:

"Today's historic vote shows how far Catholic Argentina has come, from dictatorship to true democratic values, and how far the freedom to marry movement has come as twelve countries on four continents now embrace marriage equality. Argentina's vote for the freedom to marry marks an important advance for fairness and family values as more couples around the world will now share in marriage, with families helped and no one hurt. Today's vote adds momentum to the international movement to secure the freedom to marry for all loving and committed couples."

"Key to Argentina's human rights achievement was strong leadership from legislators and the president. It is time we see more of our own elected officials standing up for the Constitution and all families here in the United States. America should lead, not lag, when it comes to treating everyone equally under the law."

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Argentine Gay Couple Marries in Tierra del Fuego

In an historic first, Alex Freyre and Jose Marie di Bello became Latin America's first same-sex married couple on Monday. The couple had hoped to marry in Buenos Aires on December 1st, World AIDS day, under the recently expanded civil unions statute, but the ceremony had been blocked by a court order. Both men are HIV positive.

The couple wed in a civil ceremony in the seaside resort town of Ushuaia in the Tierra del Fuego province because Governor Fabiana Rios, an advocate for same-sex marriage, over-ruled the court order that blocked the couple's previous attempt to marry in Buenos Aires.

Freyre said in a statement to Todos Noticias, "It is a dream come true for us. We are completely moved, and so happy for what this means for all gays and lesbians in Argentina."