Northern wedding bells. (Canada).Now that courts in three of the country's 10 provinces have declared that the federal government must grant marriage fights to gay and lesbian couples, it looks like there will be a showdown in Canada Canada (kăn`ədə), independent nation (2001 pop. 30,007,094), 3,851,787 sq mi (9,976,128 sq km), N North America. Canada occupies all of North America N of the United States (and E of Alaska) except for Greenland and the French islands of . The latest decision came on May 1 from a court in British Columbia British Columbia, province (2001 pop. 3,907,738), 366,255 sq mi (948,600 sq km), including 6,976 sq mi (18,068 sq km) of water surface, W Canada. Geography , which ruled unanimously that Canada cannot discriminate dis·crim·i·nate v. dis·crim·i·nat·ed, dis·crim·i·nat·ing, dis·crim·i·nates v.intr. 1. a. against gay couples. The federal government has until June 30 to reply to the B.C. ruling. "They can appeal the decision, but they'll surely lose," said John Fisher
Saint John Fisher also John Cardinal Fisher (c. 1469 – 1535), was an English Catholic bishop, cardinal and martyr. of the Canadian Canadian (kənā`dēən), river, 906 mi (1,458 km) long, rising in NE New Mexico. and flowing E across N Texas and central Oklahoma into the Arkansas River in E Oklahoma. group Equality for Gays and Lesbians Everywhere. "Or they can just accept it and grant gays and lesbians full equality under the law." Unlike similar rulings in Quebec and Ontario, the B.C. decision is the first to specifically rule out the option of a civil union system for gay couples, saying full equality in marriage is required. A multitiered legal strategy by gay activists, who applied for and were denied marriage licenses in various provinces, resulted in the decisions. Though marriage falls under federal jurisdiction, marriage licenses must be administered provincially. |
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