Eureka Spring on Monday approved a
resolution in favor of gay marriage, making it the first Arkansas
city to do so.
According to the Lovely
County Citizen, the resolution passed 4-0-1 with one City
Council member voting “present.”
Two long-time residents, Michael Walsh
and Lamont Richie, initiated the resolution.
“It has been in the works for a
couple of months,” Richie said. “San Antonio had passed a
similar resolution, and we approached Aldermen Lany Ballance and
James DeVito, who were happy to sponsor it to the council.”
Richie spoke at length on the
resolution during the meeting, arguing that “someone else's
religious belief” should not deny him and his partner of 28 years
the “choice to enter into a legal relationship that automatically
carries with it such benefits as survivorship rights.”
Eureka Springs is the only city in
Arkansas to create a Domestic Partnership Registry.