The Orlando Sentinel published a guest column by Rep. Alan grayson (FL-09) to celebrate the arrival of marriage equality to Florida.
Marriage equality has finally come to Florida. At 12:01 a.m., Jan. 6, when the Osceola County Clerk of Courts began conducting ceremonies, I was there to congratulate the happy couples. (I even served as a ring bearer in County Commissioner Cheryl Grieb's ceremony.)
This special occasion was not only a celebration for these couples. It was a celebration for our entire community. Marriage brings people together, and for the first time in Central Florida, that applies to everyone.
A friend of a friend texted me on Jan. 6. Although she didn't plan to get married that night, she said she was glad that she finally could.
That's what marriage equality is about: the right to love whomever we please, and the opportunity to have our love recognized equally by the law.
The greatest blessings that any elected official could ever help his constituents to enjoy are justice, equality and peace. Today is equality's day.
Marriage equality fulfills the American dream in a way that a house or a good job cannot. The real American dream is to be all that you can be, no matter what you look like; no matter where you're from; no matter what language you speak; and now, no matter whom you love.
Some truly courageous people made this possible.
Clerk of Courts Armando Ramirez proved to be a person of courage. He opened the courthouse and performed ceremonies when many clerks in this state refused. The Osceola County commissioners also showed courage. I asked them to make marriage equality possible, and they rose to the occasion, directing the clerk to open his office at midnight.
At my request, State Attorney Jeff Ashton promised — despite threats of litigation from opponents — that the clerk would not face prosecution for performing same-sex marriages.
And, of course, so many other Floridians dedicated themselves, for so long, to fighting for this fundamental right. Their efforts have yielded an enormous accomplishment — one for the ages and one that, in some respects, echoes the accomplishments of our parents and grandparents in the civil-rights movements of the 1950s, '60s and '70s.
As of Jan. 6, we not only got to see the promised land; we reached the promised land.
Alan Grayson is a U.S representative from Orlando.
