Legion World Forums LEGION COMPANION The Anywhere Machine Not Good Enough, Rhode Island

After last week's historic vote in New York legalizing same sex marriage, Rhode Island today passed a watered down and insulting civil unions bill. Oh yeah, the "we just don't want to call it marriage because you people don't deserve marriage" crowd got their way.

Worse yet, there is an exemption for religious hospitals. They will be able to deny domestic partners from making life saving and emergency medical decisions.

After three years of making almost monthly emergency medical decisions for my partner - in a state that has no domestic partnerships - and frequently at religious hospitals - I can tell you this is an absolutely inhumane and cruel concession. It's a step backward. Frankly, we would rather refuse medical treatment and die - convulsing and bleeding -on the sidewalk in front of any so called "medical facility" that implemented such a policy. Treat us with dignity or don't treat us at all. Don't practice cruelty in the name of religion, and don't pretend to care for patients while insulting their very identity and their loved ones at the times when they need them most. Unacceptable, Rhode Island. Go back and try again.

I'm sorry Jerry, to be on the receiving end of such discrimination and segregation is horrible.

California, where I live also has the civil unions and a ban on gay marriage (which has been overruled in court but gay marriages haven't been allowed to occur during the appeals proces ... which is odd to say the least)

Would anyone who worked at one of these hospitals really deny you ... I hope they would not be so ridiculous but there are a lot of 'by the book' robots out there in the world. It's distressing and humiliating to have to even worry about the prospect.

I'll hope for a slew of lawsuits.

It's not what we'd like, but it's still better than anything we'll have in Texas anytime in the foreseeable future.

Oh, personally we've never been denied. We wouldn't tolerate it and have always made that very clear. And frankly, the staff in every hospital we've ever been to could care less. They are grateful to have someone around to help with the tough decisions, unpleasant parts of the care, and to provide medical history.

The point is, that politicians in RI should not present this legislation as progress. We can get better care than that in any state with or without domestic partner benefits.

Okay, having reread your post, I understand your frustration. That particular concession did not need to be made and should be changed.

Still, having some recognition, particularly from the point of view of someone living in a state where same-sex marriage, civil unions and anything remotely resembling them are all outlawed (remember that there was talk the the Texas Legislature got so comprehensive in their banning that they may have inadvertently banned opposite-sex marriage in the process), is better than nothing.

Yes, in reality there are parts of the bill that will benefit some people in some ways. As the battle rages on, though, and as a point of comparison, this week, New York got it right. Rhode Island didn't.

I worry that Civil Unions are a precedent for separate and unequal, a barricade rather than a step towards equality, much like don't ask don't tell.

sigh.

At times, I don't even want to get married .... just to say 'F U'.

I prefer marriage equality measures to civil unions, but can accept this type of legislation as a stepping stone. Compromise is also necessary, at times, to get legislation moved forward. I'm totally okay with many exemptions for religious organizations. For example, a minister who is morally opposed to gay marriage should not be forced to perform a marriage ceremony. Nor should he or she face a discrimination suit for taking that moral stand. Denying medical care is a totally different matter. That crosses the line between practicing your religion freedom, and imposing your religious beliefs in a manner that hurts others.