On Wednesday, June 3, the New Hampshire Senate and House passed a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry. Governor John Lynch quickly signed the bill, which goes into effect at midnight on January 1, 2010. New Hampshire joins Vermont, Maine, Iowa, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.

 On June 3, Vermont Freedom to Marry staff Sheryl Rapee-Adams and Ashley Kaufmann were on the ground in Concord, New Hampshire where other Vermont equality supporters joined them to celebrate with Vermont's neighbors in the Granite State. Many thanks to those who made the trip and many others who helped spread the word and sent good vibes!

As the jubilant crowd streamed from the State House, a supporter thanked a legislator who smiled and said, "You're welcome. Now we need you to be there for us."

 That will be equally true in Vermont. Watch for Vermont Freedom to Marry alerts with opportunities for you to help equality this summer by volunteering at VFM's THANK YOU VERMONT booth at summer events and  county fairs.

Thank you for always being there for equality.

A divided California Supreme Court has upheld the Constitutionality of Prop 8, though it affirmed the validity of marriages of same-sex couples who legally married in California prior to passage of that constitutional amendment last November.  Civil rights advocates have vowed to overturn Prop 8 where it began:  at the ballot box. 

Last fall, the movement for gay and lesbian civil rights hit a low when California voters overturned a decision of that state's highest court that same-sex couples had a constitutionally-protected right to marry.  Since then, the national tide has shifted decidedly, with Iowa, Vermont and Maine joining Massachusetts and Connecticut in allowing same-sex couples to legally marry, and New Hampshire on the verge.

"We had hoped the California Court would strike down Prop 8," explained Beth Robinson, of Vermont Freedom to Marry, "but we, and our counterparts in California, remain undaunted.  The advances of the last few months drive home the reality that if we persevere, we will succeed." 

We'll try to post the California decision on our web site as soon as we can access it.  In the meantime, we urge Vermonters to give their immediate attention to our neighbors to the East, as our counterparts in New Hampshire can use all the help we can offer them in this home stretch:  www.nhftm.org.

In the long run, let's support our friends in California as they prepare for another round before the voters, www.eqca.org; in New York, as they urge their Senate to pass the marriage bill already passed by their General Assembly,  www.prideagenda.org ; in Maine, where they're gearing up to defend the newly-won freedom to marry in a voter initiative, www.equalitymaine.org, and New Jersey, where they're mounting a legislative push of their own, www.gardenstateequality.org. 

Beth Robinson
Vermont Freedom to Marry