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thatcrazycajunThe Republic of South Africa's parliament, as reported here by the San Diego Union-Tribune and a number of other news outlets, has just voted to allow full government recognition of same-gender marriages, making it the first African nation to do so. What's more, current SA President Thabo Mbeki is expected to sign the bill into law the instant it reaches his desk—without having needed his arm twisted politically to make him do so, by all appearances.
If you know how virulently, reactionarily conservative that region is on social issues, you understand the massive historical significance of this. (Our local paper reports, frex, that more conservative African-based Anglican congregations are suddenly attracting lots of US-based parishioners who are severely P.O.'ed at the Episcopal Church US for being willing to not only tolerate but elevate queer clergy; see story here.) You can't possibly be surprised that, of all the nations on the sub-Saharan continent, this is coming out of the one that gave us Nelson Mandela, can you?
Slowly but surely, progress is being made. Minds are being changed (and those that won't are being moved out of the way). Now if only some alleged human beings here in this country (like in, oh, say, California and New Jersey) would catch the frickin' clue bus already and realize that two men or two women wanting to marry does exactly zero harm to anyone else's marriage. Honestly, the way some of these inDUHviduals (thanks, Scott Adams) talk, you'd think that for every GLBT couple that gets a marriage license, a straight couple would get theirs revoked!
"The problem with truth is that it almost always destroys someone's cherished falsehood." —Lazarus Long
If you know how virulently, reactionarily conservative that region is on social issues, you understand the massive historical significance of this. (Our local paper reports, frex, that more conservative African-based Anglican congregations are suddenly attracting lots of US-based parishioners who are severely P.O.'ed at the Episcopal Church US for being willing to not only tolerate but elevate queer clergy; see story here.) You can't possibly be surprised that, of all the nations on the sub-Saharan continent, this is coming out of the one that gave us Nelson Mandela, can you?
Slowly but surely, progress is being made. Minds are being changed (and those that won't are being moved out of the way). Now if only some alleged human beings here in this country (like in, oh, say, California and New Jersey) would catch the frickin' clue bus already and realize that two men or two women wanting to marry does exactly zero harm to anyone else's marriage. Honestly, the way some of these inDUHviduals (thanks, Scott Adams) talk, you'd think that for every GLBT couple that gets a marriage license, a straight couple would get theirs revoked!
"The problem with truth is that it almost always destroys someone's cherished falsehood." —Lazarus Long
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Date: 2006-11-14 08:32 pm (UTC)I would be proud and honored to have a civil union with John.