“The Way Life Should Be: Marriage in Maine”
Three Same-Sex Couples Tell Their Stories in New Video
Melissa and Angela have been together 11 years and are raising a young son. Steve and Jim, together for 30 years, run a small business. Rita and Sara Jane have eight grandchildren between them, and have been together for 25 years. All three Maine couples would like to get married – but they can’t.
In the new video, “The Way Life Should Be: Marriage in Maine,” all six born-and-bred Mainers tell the stories of their lives and relationships, and why they want to marry in Maine. They discuss everything from parenting to aging, and how their exclusion from marriage affects their lives legally, emotionally, and socially.
“For same-sex couples, as for opposite-sex couples, marriage is about love, dignity and respect,” said EqualityMaine Executive Director Betsy Smith. “It’s also about the hundreds of legal rights and responsibilities, touching on every area of life, that come with marriage.” In the United States, same-sex couples can currently marry only in Massachusetts.
In Steve’s words, “I think marriage isn’t just about the other person; it’s not just about children; and it’s not just about society – it’s about all those things together.” He adds, “I don’t think there’s anything I’d rather do than get married to Jim.”
The video can be viewed on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCzJn3PRhfk) and will be shown at house parties across the state. In conjunction with national Freedom to Marry Week (February 11-17), “The Way Life Should Be: Marriage in Maine” is also being sent to cable access stations.
The video is a production of EqualityMaine, the Maine Civil Liberties Union (MCLU), and Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), who worked with filmmaker Molly O’Neill of Moped Productions on the 12-minute video.
EqualityMaine works to secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in Maine through political action, education, and collaboration. We envision a Maine where LGBT persons and their families have full equality in the hearts and minds of Maine people and in all areas of the law.
The Maine Civil Liberties Union is the Maine affiliate of the ACLU, the nation’s largest organization dedicated to defending civil liberties. The MCLU works for equal protection under the law for all Mainers, regardless of race, sex, religion, or national origin.
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders is New England’s leading legal rights organization dedicated to ending discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and HIV status. GLAD is active in all six New England states.
To receive a copy of the video for review, please contact Carisa Cunningham at ccunningham@glad.org, or (800) 455-4523.
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Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders is New England's leading legal organization dedicated to ending discrimination based on sexual orientation, HIV status, and gender identity and expression.