'We're getting married!'
2008-05-16 11:30
West Hollywood, California - The bars and cafes of Los Angeles' bustling gay hub buzzed with excitement on Thursday hours after California's top court gave a green light to same-sex marriage.
"I'm so stunned. Today is one of the best days of my life," said Matthew Anderson, receiving a pedicure in the Hollywood Nail Spa, whose entrance was festooned with balloons in the colours of the gay pride rainbow flag.
"Everybody is very, very happy about it, because we can actually have a relationship and get married now," the 26-year-old waiter told AFP.
Known affectionately as "Boystown", West Hollywood, sandwiched between Beverly Hills and Hollywood, is one of the foremost gay villages in the United States, where 40% of its 37 000 residents are estimated to be gay.
Later on Thursday, around 400 people attended an impromptu rally in the centre of West Hollywood to celebrate the ruling.
One of the plaintiffs in the case, Robin Tyler, could not hide her jubilation. "We're getting married!" she said to loud cheers. "I'm going to be a June bride!"
Among the crowd were lesbian partners Shelley Peterson and Jennifer Medvin, two nurses who gave birth to twins nine weeks ago.
Phones ringing off the hook
"It's just wonderful to know that the kids will be able to say that their parents are married rather than domestic partners," Peterson said.
"They're going to be the same as everyone else in their class."
Earlier, a special events promoter at the Eleven restaurant and nightclub, who gave his name as Livonia, said he had been on tenterhooks early on Thursday as he waited for news of the decision.
"I was waiting to find out the result and everyone I've spoken to today has said that their phones are ringing and texting off the hook with invitations and ideas for parties," he told AFP.
Livonia said the increasing acceptance of gays by heterosexuals had contributed to the California court ruling.
"It's 2008 and this is a big step and we're here. You know, gay people aren't going anywhere without the support of straight people and I think today there's a lot of synergy on that end and I think that's why we are happy," he said.
"People are starting to celebrate with us, instead of in spite of us."
'This is a historic day'
Others reacted more cautiously to the news, with a waitress at the popular Abbey gay bar wondering what the legal ramifications might be.
"I think it's great. They should have done it many many years ago," said the waitress, who gave her name only as Monica.
"I don't know how they are going to treat it law-wise though. When a man and a woman get married, a woman can easily screw a man over for child support, property and all that stuff.
"But if you have two women with a child, how are things going to be split in that situation?"
Meanwhile West Hollywood's council is made up of gay officials - including mayor Jeffrey Prang - who wasted no time in hailing the victory.
"This is a historic day, not only for California, but for the nation," Prang said. "The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community can begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel in our civil rights movement."
Council member and former mayor John Duran, a long-serving gay rights activist, welcomed the historic decision.
"Why would any government attempt to prevent two persons in love from marrying and making a lifetime commitment?" he asked.