Seperate, and most certainly not equal.

Oregon is taking one small step forward for the LGBT community in allowing domestic partnerships, however; we unfortunately live in a world where not all contracts are created equally. Viewed from a stricktly legal position, marriege is just that, a legally binding contract between two adults (unfortunately a man and a woman). However; because the 'state of marriege' is supposedly sacred, it seems that those who have given our hearts to another cannot gain the same legal protections. Even in Mass. the one state the actually allow gay marriege federal law overrides some of the vital protections. Not to say that I will not be rushing to the courthouse with every one else, simply that I do not believe this fight is over. Until the United States government recognizes that church and state are seperate and our marriege is like all marriege essentially a contract to be upheld in ALL states, much as a drivers lisence or current marriege lisence is the fight will continue.

This remenicient of the fight for womens rights and black's rights to anyone else? It's a sad world we live in when the United States a country founded on the right of religious and personal freedom states that we cannot be free because we do not love the same way they do. In a country where divorce rates among heterosexual couples has been high since long before the thought of gay marriege came up, how they can say we are a threat I'm not sure I will ever understand. Take necessary protections, but do not give up the fight for equality. WE are American citizens just like all the hetero couples out there. Do not however fail to take the opportunity being presented to us, it may be all we get for a while and it may at least cover some of the problems in the interim, we are going to be in a long hard fight and we need to take every victory (no matter how small) very seriously.