Wedding Bells at the City Clerk’s Office

This weekend, champagne corks popped and wedding bells chimed—around the world, to be sure, but they were especially loud here in the state of New York, where the Marriage Equality Act officially went into effect and same-sex marriage became legal. Hundreds of couples flocked to their local marriage bureaus to tie the knot in front of family, friends, and the whole world.

Some of us Workmanites were lucky enough to be right in the middle of the action on Sunday, when we headed down to the City Clerk’s Office in Manhattan and joined in the festivities. Last week we wrapped up copies of Steven Petrow’s Complete Gay & Lesbian Manners in true wedding-gift style. Then on Sunday morning we donned our tissue-paper boutonnieres and met up outside the government building to greet the revelers.

What we found was spectacular! There was a real spirit of celebration and camaraderie in the air as people lined the sidewalks to cheer the happy couples emerging from the City Clerk’s Office with marriage licenses in tow. People hugged and took lots of pictures, and there was music coming from everywhere. We even ran into NY State Senator Tom Duane, the lead sponsor of same-sex legislation in New York. He was clearly proud to be there amongst the people for whose rights he had been fighting for so long—especially because the law has a direct effect on his own life: Joked his partner Louis Webre, “We had an 18-and-a-half-year engagement!”

One of my personal favorite parts of the day was when two women got married under a rainbow-colored chuppah. After they were officially married by the state, they came out to the park and were married by a rabbi. Then much singing and dancing ensued, and their kids got piggy-backed all over the place. I had never been to a Jewish wedding before, and now I can say that not only have I been to one, but that the ceremony was performed on the streets of New York!

So fun was had by all, as they say, not least by those who got married. We all had a great time congratulating the newlyweds and handing out wedding gifts—such a great time, in fact, that as you read this blog post, we’re there doing it all over again! Feel free to stop by and say hello this Monday morning, and grab a copy of Complete Gay & Lesbian Manners while you’re at it. Plus check back later for more photos and maybe even some video of the happy scene here in Manhattan.

AND! If all this talk of marriage has you worrying about your own love life, be sure to watch Steven Petrow’s latest video on 365Gay.com, where he tells us once and for all if it’s really that big of a deal to lie on your online dating profile (Hint: Yes!).