Chapter 1 - The Netherlands

then and now

Tags: Urgency Required

It is commonly known that the Netherlands was the first country to recognize marriage
among same-sex couples in 2001. Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Norway and Sweden
followed, as did the American states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont and
Maine. It is only in these countries and states that gays and lesbians have virtually the same
rights as heterosexuals.

Recognizing marriage is - albeit not without problems - an important reference point for gay
and lesbian liberation. Even in the countries and states that recognize same-sex marriage,
not all goals have been reached. With the current legislation in these countries, adopting
children sometimes remains difficult. Recently in the Netherlands, the question arose if it
would be better to explicitly state in article 1 of the constitution that discrimination based
on sexual orientation is prohibited. Another problem that has to be resolved is that in the
Netherlands, civil officials are allowed to refuse to marry same-sex couples by citing conflict
with their conscience, while it would be considered objectionable if they would do the same
with couples of a different religion, race or ethnic background.