05:10 PM PST on Wednesday, March 3, 2004

From KGW.com and KING5.com Staff and Wire Reports

KGW Over 200 gay couples were lined up in Portland for same-sex marriage licenses.

PORTLAND - The first gay couples to be married in Oregon tied the knot Wednesday morning and hundreds lined up to do the same.

The marriages came after Multnomah county officials determined that banning them violates the state constitution.

"I will my share my soul with you," Abby Haywood told Jamie Bolyard as they were married outside The Multnomah County office building where the two were among hundreds of same-sex couples who showed up to get their marriage licenses after the county Board of Commisioners announced their approval of gay marriages.

The ceremony was performed by Glenna Shepherd, minister with the Metropolitan Community Church.

Other same-sex marriages were performed by a county judge on the 21st floor of Portland's downtown Hilton Hotel -- and the first to exchange vows there were Mary Li and Rebecca Kennedy.

"I can't describe how great it feels," said an ebullient Li as she held up her marriage certificate -- showing her and her partner's name under the Oregon seal.

Two men -- Stephen Knox and Eric Warshaw -- were the next to be married at the Hilton by Judge Betty Roberts in front of a large group of applauding witnesses.

“We will not allow discrimination to continue,” proclaimed commissioner Lisa Naito, at a Wednesday morning news conference with other county officials.

The day was not without controversy, however, as protestors gathered, some calling the ouster of the commissioners who they said acted illegally.

Agnes Sowle, the county attorney, said nevertheless that a review of state law led her to “conclude that the Oregon Constitution prohibits the county from discriminating” against same-sex couples for the purpose of marriage. Sowle said she also obtained a concurring opinion from an outside legal counsel.

Both legal opinions were delivered to county commision chair Diane Linn Tuesday afternoon, who directed county officials to begin issuing gay marriage licenses Wednesday. At least two commissioners said they requested the legal opinion about a month ago after being approached by gay rights groups.

The first in the growing line of couples outside the county building to get licenses was Christine Tanner, who won a landmark Oregon Court of Appeals ruling in 1998 requiring all state and local governments in Oregon to offer spousal benefits to the same-sex domestic partners of their employees.

Tanner, a nursing professor at Oregon Health & Science University, said she and her partner have been together for 19 years and raised two children together.

“There are only so many big events in people’s lives — birth, marriage and death,” said Tanner, who waited overnight in front of a county office in a rainbow-colored lawn chair. “It’s a big deal. For us, this is symbolic.”

The mood was optimistic despite the gray winter morning and chilling drizzle.

Basic Rights Oregon joined with the Oregon chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union to host marriages later in the morning at a downtown hotel and in the afternoon at a civic auditorium.

“I grew up Catholic — there were bouquets and bridesmaids and gowns and churches,” said Sandra Naranjo, 31, who sat in a lawn chair all night with her partner of 10 years. “But in the end, it’s not about the wedding. It’s about the rights.”

Linn’s decision came without an official vote from the four other county commissioners — but with the explicit support of all but one of the other elected officials.

“No, I will not support it. This is a state issue and we’d be crossing over the line,” said county commissioner Lonnie Roberts, apparently in the minority view among the commission members.

Roberts maintained he was left out of the loop on the decision by Linn and the other commisioners.

“This was clandestine,” Roberts said, noting that he received word of the decision from the sheriff—as opposed to his fellow commisioners.

“The way I see it, we should’ve done this with a full board and taken public input so it doesn’t seem like a backdoor proposition,” he maintained.

Basic Rights Oregon and the ACLU had been working with the county commissioners’ office on the question of gay marriage licenses, said Roey Thrope, executive director of Basic Rights Oregon.

“We know this is a deeply important moment to gay and lesbian couples in Oregon and are excited about the day when we are no longer denied the right to marry,” Thorpe said. “Many of these couples have been waiting decades, and this is the first time they’ve been seen as equal under the law.”

Commissioner Cruz acknowledged that some in county government began thinking about taking the step after they were approached by Basic Rights Oregon.

Naito said careful legal research showed the county must grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples or risk violating the Oregon Constitution.

“As a state legislator in 1991 I took an oath that directed me to uphold the Oregon Constitution. As a Multnomah County Commissioner, I again swore to uphold the Constitution of our State,” Naito said Wednesday.

Naito said that granting the marriage licenses does not interfere with any religious group or church, but does ensure that couples have the same rights, no matter whether they are heterosexual or homosexual.

“Same sex couples want their relationships to have the same legal weight as heterosexual relationships the right to inherit assets, own their homes jointly, and cover their families with health insurance,” Naito said.

Kevin Neely, spokesman for Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers, said their office was in consultation with Gov. Ted Kulongoski and would probably react to Multnomah County’s decision later Wednesday.

Kulongoski said he favors civil unions for gay people but does not believe that present state law permits gay marriages.

The Democratic governor said reasonable people can differ on what the state marriage laws says, but he said when someone reads it and considers the year it was written they were "thinking of a man and a woman getting married."

Kulongoski said he favors passing laws to end discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment, housing and some other matters.

Multnomah County officials brushed aside questions from a KGW.com reporter at Wednesday’s news conference about why they failed to consult Myers before deciding that gay marriage was legal under state law.

Opponents may seek court injunction

The Christian Coalition of Oregon planned to consult its lawyers and may file suit seeking an injunction to stop Multnomah County from performing same-sex marriages, executive director John Belgarde told kgw.com.

The county’s decision cheapens the institution of marriage defined by God as a union between a man and woman, Belgarde said. Belgarde made it clear he doesn’t dislike gays but said the definition of marriage is unquestionable.

“It saddens me because what’s the next step?” he said. “The old cliché—it’s a million years old—let the camel’s nose into the tent, and you wake up, and you have a camel laying beside you. There’s truth to that.”

Opposition from Oregon’s Republican leadership was also swift.

“I’m very upset that this travesty is taking place in Oregon. It definitely is an insult to the voters and to the people,” said Kevin Mannix, chairman of the Oregon Republican Party, who called for the state attorney general to put a halt to the marriages immediately.

Mannix also said the move by the county will only add to the momentum of President Bush’s recent call for a national constitutional amendment prohibiting same-sex marriages.

“More idiotic moves such as the one about to be taken by Multnomah County will simply add fuel to the fire,” Mannix commented.

Like San Francisco, Portland has long been viewed as a bastion of liberalism. Multnomah County is ahead of the country in that it already recognizes same-sex “domestic partnerships.” It’s an image that stands to be reinforced if same-sex couple are issued marriage licenses.

Now, Multnomah County will follow the lead of San Francisco, Calif.; New Paltz, New York and Sandoval County, New Mexico. More than 3,400 couples have been married in San Francisco and New Paltz has about 1,000 couples on a waiting list. Sandoval County in New Mexico issued licenses and conducted some nuptials recently before the state attorney general there invalidated the licenses.

The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled last month that gay marriage must be allowed under the state constitution. States typically recognize marriages performed in other states, but 38 states since 1996 have approved laws and constitutional amendments that seek to prevent recognition of same-sex marriages from other states.

Last week, the California Supreme Court declined a request to immediately stop San Francisco from marrying gay couples and to nullify the weddings already performed. Earlier Tuesday, the mayor of New Paltz, N.Y., was charged with 19 misdemeanor counts for performing weddings for gay couples. Jason West performed wedding ceremonies for 25 gay couples Friday.

NWCN Mary Li and Rebecca Kennedy were the first gay couple to exchange vows before a judge at the Hilton Hotel in Portland, Wednesday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.