Minnesota Marriage Equality Decision Brings a Change in Legal Thinking

[MineralMan]

The passage of Minnesota's Marriage equality law was made a little easier by an amendment to the bill introduced by a Republican legislator. That amendment changed the word "marriage" in the bill to "civil marriage." What that means is that all marriages in Minnesota will now be classed as "civil" marriages.

That is significant, and actually induced several Republicans to vote for the bill, rather than against it. Why? Because it separated marriage by law from religion. Churches can still perform marriages, but by identifying marriage as a state matter, it removes religion as the basis for marriage.

It may seem like a minor point, but it is not. Throughout the US, couples wishing to marry must go to their local jurisdiction and obtain a marriage license. After the ceremony, a record of the marriage is recorded in that jurisdiction, and becomes a matter of record. That is the legal side of marriage, and has nothing to do with religion. Couples can be married by civil authorities without any recourse to any religious ceremony. That is true in every state. Religion is not required for a couple to be legally married.

By adding "civil" to the word "marriage," the state of Minnesota has taken a crucial step in how we understand marriage. It will be, in Minnesota, a civil matter - a matter of law. Religion will have no weight in Minnesota marriages.

The Minnesota House of Representatives has passed this bill. On Monday, the state Senate will also pass it. There's no question about that, according to Senate officials. The governor will sign it. It will become law. And, by becoming law, it changes the definition of marriage completely and removes any religious connotation from marriage. Churches can still marry people, but the state is firmly in charge of recording and legalizing marriages.

It may seem a small step, but is a huge step, in reality, and may be a paradigm shift in the battle for marriage equality.

[LostOne4Ever]

1. I would think

That its mutually understood from the beginning that Government can only affect civil marriage due to the first amendment. But from some of the things i have seen repugs say I guess im over-estimating their intelligence again

But if it gets them to go along with it why not put a label on it to make the obvious even more obvious. I guess this is the reason why toothpicks have instructions on them.

[MineralMan]

4. Yes, it's an end-around move, or so it seems.

It lets some Republicans vote for it, like they have voted for "civil unions" in some states. But, they're missing something here. Minnesota will be a state where marriage is a non-religious thing by law. It has always been that way, of course, but it hasn't been codified as such. It seems like such a small thing, but in legal terms, it's a large move. It makes that status official.

The effects will not be obvious for some time. However, one of the first effects is that virtually anyone will be able to perform marriage ceremonies. Right now, it's difficult for the non-religious to register as someone who can legally perform those ceremonies in Minnesota. That will change with this bill, too.

[MineralMan]

2. Once marriage equality opponents figure this out,

they're not going to like it at all. This change has huge potential to rewrite how we look at the legality of marriage.

[LostOne4Ever]

3. Depends on the state

My state even opposes civil unions. I highly doubt that simply adding the word civil to marriage is going to change the mind of the average Texan.

[MineralMan]

5. Texas won't likely change until marriage equality is a federal thing.

That may take some time, but it will happen.

[lindysalsagal]

6. Same with immigration status: They're looking for another form of citizenship.

I'm no expert, but there are many ideas floating around about the classification of naturalized citizens. I agree that if we can find a way for republicans to still feel superior to mexicans, they'll allow some form of citizenship that makes life reasonable for those who are undocumented.

This is a huge concession from the rw. Same thing with guns: They're actually starting to admit they need background checks. They just have to yell and scream a while, first.