Earlier today, the Vermont Legislature voted to override Governor JimDouglas’s veto of a bill allowing same sex marriage. This adds Vermont to a small but growing list of states that legally recognize same sex relationships. This also marks the first time that it was done by legislative action without a court mandate to do so. The bill was introduced in February, and yesterday passed the Senate. Withing hours, Douglas vetoed the bill, but earlier today, for the first time in nearly two decades, the House narrowly overrided it by a vote of 100-49, the exact number to get the two thirds majority necessary. The Senate vote wasn’t quite the nail biter at 23-5 in favor of an override. The new law goes into effect on September 1, and the state will no longer issue civil union licenses.
Nearly ten years ago, Vermont was on the forefront of the marriage debate. The Vermont Supreme Court ruled that same sex couples are “entitled under Chapter I, Article 7, of the Vermont Constitution to obtain the same benefits and protections afforded by Vermont law to married opposite-sex couples”. This decision compelled the legislature to devise a system that would grant the rights and responsibilities of marriage to consenting adults who wished to enter into a legally recognized union with a member of the same sex. Vermont is the next domino to fall, and within a generation, most Americans will view the same sex marriage debate the same way we view mixed race marriage, only a few decades after Loving v. Virginia opened the door for all Americans to marry someone of any race they choose.