OTTAWA, June 29, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The following chronology traces Canada’s legislative and judicial activist path to Tuesday’s landmark passage of Bill C-38, the Liberal government’s same-sex “marriage” legislation.
In 1969, former Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, claiming, “The State has no place in the bedrooms of the nation,” declares sodomy legal.
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2000/oct/001003a.html
In 1999, the Canadian House of Commons votes 216-55 in favour of enshrining the traditional definition of marriage as “one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others.” See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/1999/jun/99060801.html
In 2000, the federal government passes the homosexual omnibus legislation Bill C-23, affording homosexual unions near legal equality with marriage by a vote of 174-72. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2000/apr/00041201.html
In May, 2003, B.C. Court of Appeal Justice Kenneth J. Smith rules that laws outlawing homosexual marriage are discriminatory, ordering Ottawa to rewrite federal law to say: “The lawful union of two persons to the exclusion of all others,” eliminating any reference to “man” and “woman.” See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/may/03050101.html
June 10, 2003 – The Ontario Court of Appeal rewrites Ontario’s marriage law to allow same-sex “marriage,” reformulating the definition of marriage as “the voluntary union for life of two persons to the exclusion of all others.” See: http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/jun/03061002.html Ontario Court of Appeal Chief Justice Roy McMurtry issued the ruling along with Justice Eileen Gillese and Justice James MacPherson. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/jun/03061101.html
July 2003 – Then-Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien unveils unprecedented legislation stating, “Marriage for civil purposes is the lawful union of two persons to the exclusion of all others,” but rather than introduce the legislation for a vote in parliament, refers the same-sex “marriage” question to the Supreme Court of Canada. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/jul/03071701.html See also: Outgoing Prime Minister Chretien Finds His Own Betrayal of Catholic Faith Unbelievable, http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/nov/03111402.html and Prime Minister’s “Eternal Salvation is in Jeopardy” Says Canadian Bishop, http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/jul/03073101.html
December 9, 2004 – The Supreme Court of Canada hands down a unanimous 9-0 opinion on the reference questions on same-sex “marriage,” giving the legal green light for the government’s stated intention to introduce same-sex marriage legislation. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2004/dec/04120901.html
February 2, 2005 – Liberals under Paul Martin introduce Bill C-38 to legalize same-sex “marriage” for Canada. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/feb/05020106.html
February 24, 2005 – The Ontario Legislature passes, by voice vote, Bill 171, which further enshrines same-sex marriage in Ontario law. Premier Dalton McGuinty proposes the move to change 73 provincial statutes, to introduce gender-neutral language that otherwise refers to wives and husbands. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/feb/05022408.html
May 4, 2005 – Canadian House passes second reading of Bill C-38, 164-137. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/may/05050414.html
June 28, 2005 – Canadian parliament gives final approval to same-sex “marriage” Bill C-38. See http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/jun/05062811.html The only remaining technicality is formal approval from the Liberal-held Senate, expected by mid-late July.
See how every MP voted on C-38
http://www.campaignlifecoalition.com/fedvotes/C-38.htm
See LifeSiteNews.com Defence of Marriage page
http://www.lifesite.net/features/marriage_defence/
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