County residents say same-sex marriage bill will help them

Originally published February 11, 2008
By Meg Bernhardt



Susanne Abromaitis and her partner traveled to Vermont in 2004 to get married, then flew back to their home in Maryland where they knew their wedding wouldn't be recognized.
The Frederick couple held a wedding reception for friends and family anyway, but had to hire a lawyer to gain the ability to make medical decisions for each other or get domestic partner health benefits.

"Of course, it was disappointing because you get off the plane in Baltimore and it's like our rights were left behind in Vermont," Abromaitis said.

She is one of about 15 Frederick County residents who plan to travel to Annapolis today and participate in a rally organized by Equality Maryland in favor of a bill that would make same-sex marriage legal in the state.

They will also meet with local delegation members to share their stories and, they hope, to gain their support for the bill.

Same-sex marriage is a hot topic during this session of Maryland's General Assembly because last September Maryland's Court of Appeals upheld a state law defining marriage as between a man and a woman.

In the ruling, the court said the General Assembly could change the definition if it wanted to permit same-sex unions, leaving the door open for legislation this session.

The bill to legalize same-sex marriage was introduced last month in the Senate by Senator Richard S. Madaleno, Jr., and in the House by Delegate Ben Barnes, along with other sponsors. Hearings are scheduled for later this month.


Status quo

Also last month, senators introduced a bill that would add the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman into the Maryland constitution.

Republican Sen. Alex Mooney, who represents Frederick and Washington counties, is one of the sponsors of that bill.

"I think it's important for our society that marriage maintain its successful status between one man and one woman," Mooney said.

He said keeping marriage between men and women is best for encouraging and raising children, and follows natural law.

Abromaitis, a 30-year-old woman who works for a nonprofit organization on environmental issues, has been down to Annapolis before and said she's met with local delegation members who disagree with her about same-sex unions.

In some cases they agree to disagree, she said, but it's important to her that they have the conversation and are able to listen to each other.

"It was really important for us to have a ceremony and have the rite of passage," she said.

In her heart, she and her partner are already married, but having it official in Maryland would be meaningful in many ways, especially for the legal rights, she said.

Married couples have 1,138 federal protections and 425 state protections, including joint ownership of property and ability to file joint taxes, that she believes all committed couples should have.

"It's a matter of civil rights, and equality under the law," Abromaitis said. "I think anyone who believes in these things would be supportive of this."


Ordinary people

For another Frederick County woman, changing the marriage law would be a step toward society viewing her as an ordinary person.

Suellen Evans, a small business owner in Frederick County, has never written her representatives or attended rallies, but she said she's watching this session, hopeful they will change the law.

"I think this bill would allow people that are so afraid of gay people É the opportunity to step back and take a breath É and to realize it is about relationships and it's not about sex."

When Evans came out six years ago, she said many people she knew treated her like she had a contagious disease.

At the time, she was living in Virginia, but moved to Frederick County almost a year ago because Virginia had started passing laws against gay people.

She wants to live in a state where the government views her as a person, and not just a gay person.

She and her partner of four years would love to get married, but it's not allowed right now so she doesn't dwell on it.

"We're just like everybody else, we want relationships, we want strong relationships, we want loyalty," she said.

If the law were passed, Evans said it would help her friends in long-term relationships gain recognition.

"It's not a disease, it's something that's contagious, it's not something that should be looked down on. It just is."


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