Archive Version of
Partners Task Force for Gay and Lesbian Couples Online from 1995-2022 Demian and Steve Bryant originally founded Partners as a monthly newsletter in 1986. By late 1990 it was reformatted into a bi-monthly magazine. Print publication was halted by 1995 when Demian published Partners as a Web site, which greatly expanded readership. In 1988, the Partners National Survey of Lesbian & Gay Couples report was published; the first major U.S. survey on same-sex couples in a decade. In 1996, Demian produced The Right to Marry, a video documentary based on the dire need for equality that was made clear by the data from the survey mentioned above. The video featured interviews with Rev. Mel White, Evan Wolfson, Phyllis Burke, Richard Mohr, Kevin Cathcart, Faygele benMiriam, Benjamin Cable-McCarthy, Susan Reardon, Frances Fuchs, Tina Podlodowski, and Chelle Mileur. Demian has been the sole operator during the last two decades of Partners. Demian stopped work on Partners Task Force in order to realize his other time-consuming projects, which include publishing the book “Operating Manual for Same-Sex Couples: Navigating the rules, rites & rights” - which is now available on Amazon. The book is based on the Partners Survey mentioned above, his interviews of scores of couples, and 36 years of writing hundreds of articles about same-sex couples. It’s also been informed by his personal experience in a 20-year, same-sex relationship. Demian’s other project is to publish his “Photo Stories by Demian” books based on his more than six decades as a photographer and writer. |
Maine finally allowed marriage equality for same-sex partners on 2012. On May 6, 2009, Maine became the 6th American state to offer full, legal marriage to same-sex couples. This is the 2nd U.S. state, after Vermont, to offer legal marriage without a court order, as well as having the governor sign it into being. The law was to become effective mid-September 2009. However, with a mean-spirited, anti-gay, anti-marriage “Question 1” referendum, voters in November 2009 repealed Maine’s equal marriage law by only a 52-47 margin (with 87 percent of precincts reporting). On November 6, 2012, not only the state of Maine, but Washington and Maryland won marriage equality through voter elections.
On April 22, 2009, Sen. Dennis Damon received a roar of approval at a crowded hearing when he said the time had come to recognize same-sex marriages. His proposal, Bill LD 1020, An Act to End Discrimination in Civil Marriage and Affirm Religious Freedom, he said “recognizes the worth of every man and woman among us.” It was was backed by 60 co-sponsors. On April 28, 2009, 11 of the 14 Judiciary Committee members voted to pass the bill, while two voted against it and one proposed sending it to voters in a November referendum. On April 30, 2009, the Maine Senate voted 20-15 in favor of LD 1020. On May 5, 2009, the Maine House of Representatives voted 89-57, after which the bill was sent to the governor. Governor John E. Baldacci (Democrat): “In the past, I opposed gay marriage while supporting the idea of civil unions. I have come to believe that this is a question of fairness and of equal protection under the law, and that a civil union is not equal to civil marriage.On May 6, 2009, Governor John E. Baldacci signed the bill into law. The law becomes effective mid-September 2009. Maine became the 6th U.S. state to offer full, legal marriage to same-sex couples. The bill’s relatively smooth passage through the legislature followed years of outreach and education that introduced voters and legislators to same-sex families and explained the importance of marriage to gay couples and their children. Ongoing efforts toward marriage equality were primarily provided by EqualityMaine, the Maine Civil Liberties Union, the Maine Women’s Lobby, and GLAD. Support was also provided by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund [After October 2014, the NGLTF became known as the National LGBTQ Task Force.]. By May 9, 2009, conservative groups, led by the Maine Family Policy Council, pledged to bring the measure to a statewide vote, and hope to collect 55,000 registered voter signatures by August to remove the equality marriage law on the next November ballot. Marriage opponents hired for consultations the California firm, Schubert Flint Public Affairs, that led the successful Prop 8 proposal which overturned same-sex marriage in that state. The Flint campaign was notable for its smear tactics and lies regarding the same-sex families, and the actual intent of the marriage law.
In early May 2009, supporters of Maine’s new marriage law formed a new political action committee, Maine Freedom to Marry, and hired Jesse Connolly, who takes a leave of absence as the House speaker’s chief of staff. He led the successful 2005 campaign to retain the state’s gay rights law.
Requirements:
Auburn City Offices - 207-786-2421Divorce: A person seeking a divorce may file a complaint for divorce in the District Court if:
The right to file a complaint or bring a petition may not be denied a person for failure to meet a residency requirement if the person is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States on active duty stationed in Maine or the spouse of that member or a parent of a child of that member. The member is deemed to be a resident either of the county in which the military installation, or other place at which the member has been stationed, is located or of the county in which the member has sojourned.
Sample Rights
Military The armed services would likely consider marriage to a same-sex spouse as grounds for a discharge under its discriminatory policies towards lesbian and gay personnel. Immigration Since the federal system does not recognize same-sex couples, or their legal marriages, getting married does not offer a route to applying for immigration. There currently is no process that allows a same-sex partner to sponsor a partner for immigration to the U.S. There is no process that allows an individual to sponsor their same-sex partner to become a "Permanent Legal Resident." In the eyes of the American federal system, same-sex couples are legal strangers. Non-Maine Residents Partners who are not Maine citizens may be married in Maine. However, because many state laws forbid recognition of another state’s same-sex legal marriage license, a civil marriage license would have little or no legal meaning. Also, it is possible that a Maine couple would get married, then move elsewhere. While it is certain that the federal system will refuse to recognize the license, it is now known that most states will likewise refuse to recognize it. In the Event of a Couple Parting Maine divorce requires a 6 month residency. If you live in a state that does not honor your marriage — which may not be determined until requesting something usually triggered by a marriage license — the state courts will also be unlikely to grant you a divorce.
The ability to divorce is critical. Besides the emotional reasons to dissolve a no longer functioning union, there are legal entanglements to consider. For instance, should one of the partners form a new relationship, they would not be able to sign up their new partner for workplace benefits. Most employers require an affidavit that stipulates that the partners are not married to anyone else, or have another domestic partner.
Local Government - to locate local town and city information regarding getting a license
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