The Nation’s News
By THE DENVER POST, MIDDLETOWN, Conn.
Justices are learning to perform gay unions
Connecticut’s new law allowing same-sex civil unions takes effect this weekend, and justices of the peace are still learning how to handle the new ceremonies.
“On Oct. 1, civil unions become law in Connecticut, but there is not a JP in that room who knows what to do with it,” said Saul Haffner, president of Justices of the Peace of Connecticut, which held a conference Saturday on the law. “It’s going to be a mess.”
Connecticut is the first state to pass a civil-union law, which will confer the same rights as marriage, without court pressure. Vermont is the only other state that allows civil unions, and Massachusetts is the only state that allows same-sex marriages.
The Connecticut law does not require justices and clergy to perform civil unions, and some said they won’t because of their religious beliefs.