Bloomington, Indiana Mayor Mark Kruzan
on Thursday presided over a “wedding” ceremony for 13 gay and
lesbian couples.
Indiana law prohibits gay couples from
marrying and Republicans at the State House have proposed a
constitutional amendment banning such unions.
The symbolic wedding vows were staged
at the Buskirk-Chumley theater to protest the amendment.
“By the power not yet invested in me
by the state of Indiana, I pronounce you partners in life,” the
mayor told the couples.
More than 10 Monroe County Council and
Bloomington City Council members attended the ceremony, throwing
flowers onto the couples at its end.
“It is symbolic,” Kruzan told
Indiana
Public Media, “and it's not power that's vested in me as the
mayor of Bloomington. But I think it's important for people to
realize that there are a lot of people who depend on voters willing
to stand up and say, 'This is what we would like to have the power to
do.'” (Raw video from the event is embedded on this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
Participant Danielle McClelland, who
“married” her partner of 20 years, Susan Ferentinos, said, “I
only wish it were real.”