Same-sex relationships

Citation

Jones, J. (2009), "Same-sex relationships", Equal Opportunities International, Vol. 28 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/eoi.2009.03028caa.001

Same-sex relationships

Same-sex relationships

Article Type: Guest editorial From: Equal Opportunities International, Volume 28, Issue 3.

Only a few years ago a very famous family law professor asked me “Same-sex marriage? Why don't you leave marriage alone?” I was quite taken aback by this question as the answer seemed obvious to me: every human being should be able to pursue the good life. If that means a life shared with someone else, whether for life or for a finite period, that is legally and socially recognised, then that is what should be enabled. The law (and religion) has accepted for some time now that there has to be free will in order to contract a marriage. Thus forced marriages have been criminalised and annulments are possible where consent is not freely given. If the law recognises that one should be free to marry the partner of one's choice then why is that not the case for every human being over a certain age? Surely choice is the leitmotif of today's liberal and post-liberal agenda. Then why try to exclude some? That is the question the family law professor should have been asking instead.

The pace of change in relation to same-sex partnership recognition is exceedingly fast – a fact outlined by Professor Jeffrey Weeks in the interview following. Some 60 years ago there was no spes (hope) of progressing to the “ordinariness” that is acceptance of same-sex relationships today. Today there are seven countries in the world which have taken the requirement of sex out of marriage. Others will follow. The start in most countries has been the employment sphere. Incremental changes to rights, benefits and obligations, even in the very (gender) contested area of pensions post-Barber. Employment rights and benefits for same-sex partners of workers are still expanding in countries around the globe. The next step has been to open registration schemes for same-sex partners with legal rights and obligations flowing from them. Gender-neutral marriage usually follows.

Most rights have been won through the courts. One can say that law has played and continues to play a leading role in this area of everyday life. Thus this special issue looks at aspects of legal recognition of same-sex relationships in the UK, Germany, the USA and Canada. One can see that each of the four countries is progressively expanding the rights and benefits same-sex partners are able to access. Each is progressing at its own pace, but once the journey has started progress is swift. Germany appears to be the most conservative country at the moment, but there may well be progress soon with the help of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice. The USA presents a mixed bag, with law and policy at odds with each other in just about all states; optimism rules at the moment so it may be that marriage will be opened up sooner than expected. Canada has permitted same-sex marriages for several years now. So the debate has moved on to key issues such as the effect of marriage on, for example, children, relationship success and break-up. These issues are timeless in the sense that many of the arguments employed by “the conservative right” mirror the arguments rolled out against race discrimination laws, women's calls for equality, and disabled persons' right to have the world look at life (and work) from their point of view. They did not work then and they will not work for long now. I look forward to the day when these arguments are sections in the history books, not fought on the streets during pride marches.

Jackie JonesGuest Editor