Disney’s magic kingdom closed to same-sex weddings

Posted on March 6, 2007
Filed Under Florida | Leave a Comment

On the February 20th episode of The View, well-known wedding planner David Tutera appeared on the talk show to promote his David Tutera Couture Wedding Collection at Walt Disney World Resorts in Orlando, Fla. The collection allows the happy couple to choose between four elaborate wedding styles: classic elegance, simply chic, cocktail soiree and whimsical garden.

But are those weddings available if there are two brides or two grooms? Short answer: no. According to Walt Disney World spokesperson Jason DiPietre, Disney’s Florida property requires a valid Florida marriage license in order to offer their services.

But getting that answer was far from a straightforward task, as the Walt Disney World Weddings website and the Disney consultants at first gave confusing, often contradictory information to AfterElton.com’s questions.

The fact is, Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings and Honeymoons offers wedding ceremonies, not marriage licenses. The two things are legally completely separate; no license is legally required or necessary for such a ceremony to take place.

When asked why Disney, a private corporation, insisted it needs a valid marriage license to offer wedding services, DiPietre responded that what “makes the marriage binding and recognized by the state [of Florida] is the license, so that is why we need the license.”

Florida state law, however, does not regulate to whom Disney may offer their wedding services; it only regulates which ceremonies the state recognizes as legal — a fact that we pointed out to DiPietre. He said in response: “What we offer our guests is the opportunity to get married through the state of Florida. A marriage is only recognized in the state [of Florida] with a marriage license.”

Though pressed further on the issue, DiPietre only stated: “The Walt Disney World Resort is open to everyone, every day. We extend our welcome to everyone and treat all of our guests with respect.”

While Disneyland Resort in California also requires a California marriage license to hold a wedding on their property, they will host same-sex commitment ceremonies for domestic partners. (The Florida property won’t.) But there is a catch. Weddings with marriage licenses are handled by Disney’s wedding team and, should the couple choose, the ceremony may be held in Disney’s Rose Court Garden. Commitment ceremonies, however, are handled by the local corporate office and are held in one of the banquet halls or ballrooms. Only heterosexual couples are allowed access to the Rose Court Garden.

It’s possible that denying same-sex couples access to the Rose Court Garden might be in violation of California’s civil code section 51 of the Unruh Civil Rights Act. This act prohibits all businesses in the state from discriminating on the basis of “marital status” and “sexual orientation.” We were unable to clarify by press time whether this was the case or not.

DiPietre may claim that what Walt Disney World Resort offers is the opportunity to get married through the state of Florida , but that isn’t the message sent by the Fairy Tale Weddings website. Instead, potential customers are promised “The Disney Touch” as well as imagination, romance and fantasy. In fact, the only mention of a Florida marriage license is under the Wedding Guide section.

When AfterElton.com asked Freedom to Marry, a pro-gay advocacy group that works to win marriage equality nationwide, for their take on Disney’s policies, spokesperson Samiya Bashir said: “There are countless companies all over Florida that offer their services to same-sex couples. So for any private company to lean on their state’s legal discrimination to offer their own is fruitless.” Read more….

Sources: AfterElton.com and Mickey News

Governor opposes GOP funding for gay ban

Posted on February 13, 2007
Filed Under Florida | Leave a Comment

Governor Charlie Crist does not want any more Republican Party money spent to advance a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage in Florida, and on Tuesday he dodged the issue of whether people should be able to vote on it.

“I just think that their money can be better spent on other things that may be more pressing, like elections,” Crist said. “The people care about issues like insurance premiums, property taxes and public safety.”

“He is certainly allowed to express his opinion,” said John Stemberger, an Orlando lawyer and chairman of the effort to put a same sex marriage ban in Florida’s Constitution. “I cannot imagine that he would reverse his position as a strong supporter of this effort. It’s good policy and good politics for him, and it is a historical thing that is going to happen”.

To date, the Florida Coalition to Protect Marriage, a political committee, received $300,000 last year from the Republican Party of Florida, more than half of the marriage group’s reported total.

Florida has a state law banning same sex marriage, but supporters want it embedded in the Constitution.

Backers of what is called “the Florida Marriage Protection Amendment” are close to collecting the 611,000 signatures they need to get the proposal on the November 2008 presidential election ballot, subject to approval by the Florida Supreme Court.

The campaign’s spokesperson is Laura Gallagher, the wife of Tom Gallagher, the candidate Crist vanquished in last year’s Republican primary.

Supporters already faced one new hurdle: a requirement that ballot initiatives in Florida must get approval of at least 60 percent of voters. Now they face resistance from a popular new governor who has sought to cast himself as a non-ideological problem solver tackling issues such as insurance, taxes and crime.

“I’m convinced those are the kinds of issues that the people of Florida want us to focus on that are in government, and I think it would be appropriate for the party to do the same, and I believe they will,” Crist said. Asked if people should have a chance to vote on the same sex marriage issue, Crist said: “We only have so much time. And we have to prioritize what we put our energy into.” While running for governor last year, Crist signed a petition in support of the same sex marriage ban.

In a Republican primary marked by rival Tom Gallagher’s overt appeals on issues such as abortion and gay marriage, Crist ran TV ads touting his work as attorney general in “defending traditional marriage.”

But after Crist trounced Gallagher by a 2-to-1 margin, social issues virtually vanished from the political dialogue, and gave way to issues Crist considers far more important, such as insurance and taxes.

Source: St. Petersburg Times

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