By Kathleen Gilbert and Peter Smith
WASHINGTON, DC, December 1, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – By a lopsided majority, the District of Columbia City Council voted this afternoon to approve legislation that opens the legal definition of marriage to include homosexual couples. The vote went through despite strong protests from the city's religious leaders who said that the law violates individual conscience rights and religious liberty.
The “Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality Amendment Act of 2009” passed on the first vote by an overwhelming 11-2 margin. The measure was predicted to pass, as it had been originally sponsored by nine of the thirteen city council members, and Mayor Adrian Fenty has already vowed to sign the bill into law.
The DC Council will have to conduct a second vote on the measure later in the month before Mayor Fenty can sign the legislation. The measure also will have to undergo a 30-day period of Congressional Review before same-sex “marriages” can be performed in the federal district.
The fight against the law was led largely by the city's black pastors led by Bishop Harry Jackson of Hope Christian Church, and the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, which opposed the scant religious protections in the bill.
DC Archbishop Donald Wuerl warned that if the bill were not amended to allow state-affiliated entities to recognize only traditional marriage in its employment practices, then the diocese would be forced to end its social services contracts with the city.
The DC Board of Ethics and Elections muzzled last month's attempt by Bishop Jackson and other Christian religious leaders to put the marriage question in the hands of voters through a ballot initiative, ruling that the initiative amounted to a violation of homosexuals' “human rights.”
Jackson has argued that the BOEE's decision amounts to a denial of the civil rights of DC voters, especially members of the federal district's black community, who adamantly opposes same-sex “marriage” and would vote to preserve the natural definition of marriage if given the opportunity.
Although Congress has the authority to block the city's legislation, few U.S. lawmakers have expressed interest in pursuing action against the marriage measure.
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Two Catholic Governors Lash Out at DC Catholic Church for Same-Sex “Marriage” Ultimatum
Lawmakers Refuse to Address D.C. Archdiocese's Concerns Regarding Same-Sex “Marriage” Law
D.C. Government Quashes Marriage Ballot Initiative as Violation of “Human Rights”