Four gay couples’ marriage license request rejected
Kip Williams and his partner Jason Marcus said they made the request Friday, along with two other men and four women, in hopes that the publicity generated by their action would prompt “people to begin thinking about intolerance.”
“Anybody should have the right to legally acknowledge their love,” Williams said. “What could be wrong with two people stopping to love each other, especially with all the pain and grief in the world?”
Tennessee’s constitution doesn’t allow same-sex civil unions and state law defines marriage as between one man and one woman. The group’s request came after the city of San Francisco decided to issue marriage licenses to gays and lesbians, prompting same-sex couples from across the country to travel to California to get married.
“We’re taking this action to show that interest in gay marriages isn’t just in big cities but is also in small-town America,” Marcus said.
Knox County Clerk Mike Padgett was prepared for the couples’ request and the media spotlight that accompanied it because both Williams and Marcus had been in contact with his office about the planned event.
“These people, I’m sure, have an agenda,” Padgett said. “They’ve been in contact with me about two weeks, and both have been very accommodating and very sincere.”
In anticipation of the same-sex marriage license requests, Padgett sent his employees a memo several weeks ago outlining how they should handle the issue. The memo directed employees to process the application to the point of obtaining a valid photo identification document until the same-sex issue is encountered.
The memo, which noted state law concerning marriage, said a person could be charged with a misdemeanor for issuing such a license. Clerks were advised to direct any applicant that questions the denial further to the county law department.
“DO NOT enter into any dialogue regarding your beliefs or opinions in this matter,” the memo stated.
Padgett, who refused to comment further on the couples’ request, said that he believed — through talking with other county clerks across the state — that this was the first attempt in Tennessee by same-sex couples to get a marriage license.
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Information from: The Knoxville News Sentinel, http://www.knoxnews.com