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Love Without Limits
By Eileen Zaffiro, News_JournalOnline
June 27, 2004
For 40 years, two Volusia County men gave their hearts to one another.
The two had promised 'til death do us part in their own private way, but when one of the elderly men recently had a heart attack and stroke, they were ripped apart. Before they knew what was happening, the sick man's daughter was moving him to her home several states away against his will, according to a friend of the couple.
He had given his daughter power of attorney, and his partner had no legal recourse.
It wasn't a freak situation in the world of same-sex couples. They can't legally marry and secure most of the rights that are automatic for married heterosexual couples.
Many are fighting to keep it that way, from the president and governors to local churches and national Christian groups. Gay marriage in Massachusetts is facing legal challenges, including one filed June 7 by a coalition of conservative groups and lawmakers who argue that the state's highest court usurped the Legislature's authority when it ruled last year that prohibiting same-sex couples from marrying violates the state's constitution.
Nonetheless, many predict the new same-sex marriage rights in Massachusetts will one day be duplicated nationwide. Most local gay couples are busy fighting a more basic battle.
They're trying to be accepted in the community for who they are, and many are afraid to publicly press the marriage issue. Only about 75 people, including several from out of town, turned out for a marriage rights march through central Daytona Beach on June 12. Of the dozens of gay couples asked to be named in News-Journal stories, only a few agreed.
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