Gay couples wed in Asheville after North Carolina same-sex marriage ban struck down

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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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gay_marriage_2_asheville_20-14Gay couples obtained marriage licenses Friday evening at the Buncombe County Register of Deeds Office and then were wed during simple wedding ceremonies nearby after a federal judge in Asheville struck down North Carolina’s ban on same-sex weddings.

U.S. District Court Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr., in Asheville issued a ruling Friday shortly after 5 p.m. declaring the ban approved by state voters in 2012 unconstitutional, according to the Associated Press.

Couples had already assembled at the office of Drew Reisinger, the county’s register of deeds, as they awaited a ruling. Reisinger kept his office open late Friday to issue marriage licenses.

Cogburn’s ruling follows Monday’s announcement by the U.S. Supreme Court that it would not hear any appeal of a July ruling by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond striking down Virginia’s ban, according to the Associated Press.

Image link from @CSElive on Twitter. The couple pictured were the first same-sex couple to be married in Asheville.

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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

  • 1

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47 Comments

  1. Matt October 11, 2014

    Sweeeeeeeeet!!!

    Reply
  2. Tim Peck October 11, 2014

    As a long-time advocate for individual rights, I am happy to see the courts agree with me regarding peaceable, voluntary contracts between free adults that cause no harm to others. No majority has the right to vote to violate the rights of any groups or individuals. Today is a historic victory for human rights and the theocrats lost.

    Reply
    1. luther blissett October 11, 2014

      Shorter Mouthpiece: “me me me me me!”

      Today was not, in fact, about you.

      Reply
    2. LEW October 13, 2014

      Agree with you Tim!

      Reply
  3. RedHotPoker October 11, 2014

    Im all FOR ‘legal unions’ but the definition of marriage will not change…these wedded couples are just living a farce that will likely be overturned..sorry, but TRUE!

    WHY would CITY take such an advocacy position on THIS?
    Such is NOT the business of these people, BUT these people are all criminal democrackkks so they don’t have to follow rules…

    It’s TIME to FLY the ‘Don’t TREAD on ME’ flag on City Hall now…

    Reply
    1. ncnc October 11, 2014

      Well, not actually ‘true’, but your opinion; and to answer your ‘how can the city’ do this? Well, it’s actually the the Supreme Court and the state. That is true (ie fact). I’m proud of our city for being so quick to comply and offer equal rights to its citizens (that’s my opinion – see the difference?).

      Reply
    2. Ashevillian October 11, 2014

      Don’t tread on other people’s rights to get married that does not involve you in any way shape or form.

      You lost.

      Reply
    3. smytty October 11, 2014

      Your definition is welcome to stay mired in the stone age. The legal definition, aka “the one that matters,” has finally evolved to recognize the rights of people to follow their hearts. Just understand that society and the courts have passed you by.

      This is a significant and very good day. Extremely happy for all the good people of Asheville that this means so very much to.

      Love is winning out.

      Reply
    4. chris October 11, 2014

      An awesome moment, made more awesome by your tinfoil hat response! Kudos!

      Reply
    5. Matt October 11, 2014

      There are hundreds of rights granted to couples who are legally married that aren’t granted to those that are in a ‘civil union’. So the concern about reserving the term marriage for hetero couples is not really what’s at stake here.

      This isn’t just ideological, it’s human rights.

      Reply
      1. Harold October 15, 2014

        Yes. You are correct. And I love 3 consenting adult women equally and want to legally marry all of them. This is my right.

        Reply
        1. hauntedheadnc October 17, 2014

          How, precisely, would you being able to do so harm society in any way? Please be detailed.

          Reply
          1. Harold October 18, 2014

            It would not harm society. We should not have any moral absolutes or social norms. Everyone should be able to do what they want, as long as it don’t hurt anyone. This is why I also want to marry my golden retriever, who has shared her unconditional love with me for 11 years.

            Reply
          2. hauntedheadnc October 18, 2014

            I see… So, you can’t honestly provide any credible evidence that your love life would hurt someone else physically or monetarily?

            Your dog can’t legally consent, by the way, and in any case, this really isn’t the place to discuss your sexual fantasies.

            Reply
  4. janet sawyer October 11, 2014

    This literally makes me sick to my stomach. What will it be next?

    Reply
    1. NFB October 15, 2014

      Relax. You don’t have to marry anyone you don’t want to.

      Reply
    2. smytty October 16, 2014

      Somehow I doubt that it literally makes you sick to your stomach. I would love though, for you to explain to all of us how very much it affects you.

      Best I can tell, the only people affected are people who are in love and want to get married, and now they can so they are pretty happy.

      Reply
  5. Barry Summers October 11, 2014

    Can’t recall the last time I saw the joy & relief & happiness on human faces, that I saw today.

    The audio from Drew Reisinger delivering the first same-sex marriage license in Buncombe County:

    bit.ly/1D1Q4J1 (drag & drop)

    Reply
    1. Ashevillian October 11, 2014

      I cried when I saw the photos.

      The human spirit wins.

      The haters lost.

      Reply
  6. Harry October 10, 2014

    Ooooh, goody goody.

    Reply
  7. Pamela October 10, 2014

    This is very discouraging to vote against something that is not Christian then have it overturned very sad

    Reply
    1. cwaster October 15, 2014

      A lot of people aren’t Christians. Separation of church and state exists for a reason.

      ““…legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties.” ― Thomas Jefferson
      ““I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute – where no Catholic prelate would tell the President (should he be Catholic) how to act, and no Protestant minister would tell his parishioners for whom to vote – where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference – and where no man is denied public office merely because his religion differs from the President who might appoint him or the people who might elect him.”
      -John F Kennedy

      Reply
    2. smytty October 16, 2014

      Also, I know lots of Christians who are quite pleased with this outcome.

      You don’t get to define what is and isn’t love for other people. Sorry.

      Reply
      1. Harry October 16, 2014

        Then they’re not Christians. The Bible is very clear on homosexuality. You either believe, or you don’t. You don’t get to pick and choose.

        Reply
        1. hauntedheadnc October 17, 2014

          I do believe in God, I am a Christian, and I believe that if God had any problem with gays, He wouldn’t keep making them. If *you* have a problem with them, though, feel free to stay at home with the doors locked and the blinds pulled, and fretfully handle your snakes. You’ll be happier out of sight of the world, and the world will be happier with you out of sight, and in the end everyone wins.

          Reply
          1. Harry October 17, 2014

            While I do not believe that the nature vs nurture argument has been settled, and no “gay gene” has yet been discovered, feel free to pick through scripture and believe only those parts that suit you. However, God’s word is clear on this.

            And trust me when I tell you that I detest snakes, and am very active in public.

            Reply
          2. luther blissett October 17, 2014

            However, God’s word is clear on this.

            See also: shrimp and polyester-cotton blends.

            Reply
          3. hauntedheadnc October 17, 2014

            Harry,

            I’ll pick through the Scripture with the knowledge that it filtered down to us via imperfect humans with their own biases, and in at least one case, their own probably homophobic self-hatred. If you’re reading the King James version, it also filtered down to use via a king who kept a harem of young men. I’ll take the word of a God who has shown us homosexual behavior in more than 1500 species of animals, humans included.

            Also, I’m very proud of you that you’re active in public. I worry though, that you’re going to spend the rest of your life expending your energy on dislike, if not outright hate, or others for no good reason. I know you yearn for the recently-lost days when you could openly hate gays just because, but that ship has sailed and it’s not coming back. The more you keep after it, the more of a fossil you become.

            So, live and let live and shut up.

            Reply
        2. smytty October 17, 2014

          Oh, so you are an authority on what is and isn’t marriage as well and who is and isn’t Christian?

          You must be so very, very smart and impressive.

          Reply
        3. Harry October 18, 2014

          Don’t tell me to shut up Hauntedahole. It only illuminates the hypocrisy of the left. They claim to be tolerant of others ideas, when in fact they are only tolerant of those with whom they agree. There is not an ounce of hate in my body. As a matter of fact dumba$$, I have homosexual family members whom I love dearly. We just happen to disagree on gay marriage. But I know that it makes you feel like you’re such a good person to (falsely) point out hate in others. “Oh look at me. I’m such a good person. I call those opposed to gay marriage, haters. I’m such a good person. I think it’s ok for a small minority of people who live an unnatural lifestyle to redefine marriage in our country, and I despise and vehemently oppose anyone who believes differently. I’m such a good person”. Go f@@k yourself. I’m sure nobody else wants to.

          Reply
          1. chris October 18, 2014

            “Dumba$$”. “Unnatural”. “Go f@@k yourself”.

            Clearly there’s not an ounce of hate in ya!

            You can’t even pretend long enough to make it through a single paragraph.

            Reply
          2. hauntedheadnc October 19, 2014

            Oh, hairy Harry…

            You love your homosexual family members dearly, but yet you consider them less than yourself? You consider them unnatural?

            Sure you love them. Just like a racist always has a black friend. When you consider those homosexual family members your equal, and when you consider them natural as they are, then perhaps you’ll love them, but you certainly don’t now.

            And for the record, I always find it amusing that gays are supposed to tolerate being hated, being ostracized, being abandoned by their families who love them oh-so-dearly, and being driven to suicide. Sorry, friend, but you don’t get a ticket out of that. I don’t tolerate that. I don’t tolerate any of it.

            You lost this battle. Deal with it. Live and let live and let the rest of the world move on. It’s going to, with or without you, so you really don’t have a choice.

            Unless of course you’d rather move to Russia, Uganda, or the Middle East. Their thinking is still in line with yours.

            Reply
          3. Harry October 19, 2014

            Nah. I didn’t lose anything. Unnatural is an accurate term. Show me a homosexual couple who can produce a human life together and I’ll change my position. Doesn’t mean I hate them. It just means that I don’t support their lifestyle, nor do I believe they have the right to change the definition of marriage. One man, one woman. Just as God intended.

            Reply
          4. chris October 19, 2014

            “Unnatural is an accurate term.”

            No, no it’s not. Not even remotely.

            “One man, one woman. Just as God intended.”

            It’s funny how anachronistic you sound. Everything about it. Like conversing with an episode of Leave it to Beaver.

            Reply
          5. hauntedheadnc October 19, 2014

            Hairy Harry,

            One man, one woman, just like God intended?

            I believe, if you refer to your Scripture, God apparently intended one man and as many wives, concubines, and eunuchs as that man can support, or else all the biblical greats wouldn’t have enjoyed such arrangements.

            The definition if marriage has already changed, in other words, and you don’t seem all that upset about it. Also, you seem to imply that same-sex relationships aren’t valid and should not be recognized because they don’t produce children. Can we safely assume then, that you hold infertile couples and those who marry when they’re elderly in the same disdain? If not, why not? Their marriages don’t produce children either and I don’t see you clamoring to deny them the right to marry, and I don’t see you clamoring to nullify their marriages.

            Lastly, about those gay family members that you love just as dearly as every racist loves their token black friend… if you don’t accept someone as they are, you don’t love them. Gays and lesbians aren’t stupid, and I guarantee you they know good and well you don’t love them, really. I feel sorry for them and I fel sorry for you because it’s tragic to deny yourself and your relatives the true love of family.

            Reply
          6. Harry October 20, 2014

            Oh Haunted. I know you’re still feeling like you’re such a good person. Infertility is a medical issue, and the aging process is natural.

            And just as you would love and accept a close relative who maybe drank too much, gambled too much, or had a few scrapes with the law, I can love and accept my gay family members and still disagree with their choices. And believe me when I say that our family is very close, and full of love. But carry on. Because just like so many other liberals, you just label those with whom you disagree as haters, or even racists. That’s all you’ve got.

            Reply
          7. hauntedheadnc October 20, 2014

            Why, of course you’re just bursting with love, aren’t you? You love your gay family members enough to compare their sexuality to alcoholism, a gambling addiction, or breaking the law.

            Do you even listen to yourself?

            Reply
          8. Harry October 20, 2014

            The point was about disagreeing with their choices, not comparing choices. Do you even read and comprehend?

            Reply
          9. chris October 20, 2014

            Harry, you can’t just pretend that you didn’t equate being gay with being an alcoholic or a gambler. You did, by calling it a “choice” that you disagree with.

            You have the scientific community (and anecdotal evidence, and common sense) arrayed against that nonsensical position.

            You can say you have all the love of the world in your heart, but when you deny someone their biology, you deny them their humanity.

            Reply
          10. Harry October 20, 2014

            Chris don’t be a dope. People make all kinds of bad choices in life. You don’t stop loving them when they do. And please don’t say that this is settled science, because it’s not. There’s been no gay gene discovery. For every study that says its biological, there’s another that says it’s not. Your side continues to look like assclowns for the whole global warming farce.

            Reply
          11. chris October 20, 2014

            “Your side continues to look like assclowns for the whole global warming farce.”

            And here I thought we had plumbed the depths of your ignorance.

            Reply
          12. Harry October 20, 2014

            I remember in the 70’s when the looney left tried to scare us into believing in the upcoming ice age. Same thing, just 40 years later. Now that I think of it though, I don’t believe they were bold enough to actually change data when it didn’t fit their models. I find such amusement in the left.

            Reply
          13. Jason W. October 21, 2014

            “There’s been no gay gene discovery”

            Well I hate to say it, but there has been no straight gene discovery either.

            Reply
          14. hauntedheadnc October 21, 2014

            “People make all kinds of bad choices in life. You don’t stop loving them when they do”

            Well, there’s your problem right there, Harry! You think being gay is a choice. If you honestly believe it’s a choice, then we can infer from that, that you must apparently also believe that gays and lesbians are either stupid, masochistic, or both. When you can be driven out from your family, ostracized in your community, openly discriminated against, beaten, bullied, driven to suicide, or (in some countries) put to death for being gay, and yet you remain gay, what other explanation can there be?

            Aside from it not being a choice, of course, but that’s just crazy talk there…

            Tell me, do your beloved family members know you consider them stupid gluttons for punishment?

            Reply
          15. chris October 21, 2014

            “Now that I think of it though, I don’t believe they were bold enough to actually change data when it didn’t fit their models”

            You do realize, don’t you, that this argument is a complete canard, and has been utterly discredited? Or does The Blaze leave that part out of any of their “reporting”?

            Reply
  8. cwaster October 10, 2014

    Good, and that means more dollars for the city coffers too.

    Reply
  9. skippy October 10, 2014

    Beautiful!

    Reply

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