Same-sex marriage has been legal in Ontario since June 2003. It gradually spread to other provinces as provincial courts declared that laws prohibiting same-sex marriage were unconstitutional. By June 2005, same-sex marriage was legalized in eight provinces and one territory.
The House of Commons passed The Civil Marriage Act (Bill C-38) on June 28, 2005 by a vote of 158-133. This law made same-sex marriage legal in all of Canada. (Alberta had been the major holdout against same-sex marriage.)
Recently, the new Conservative government of Stephen Harper put a motion to re-open the debate on same-sex marriage. The motion was voted on today and the result is ....
defeat for Harper. MP's voted 175-123 to not re-open the debate. The law stands and same-sex marriage is still legal.
Canada remains on the same side of this issue as most other civilized countries.
Why hasn't America legalized same-sex marriage? Is it because of religion? Is it because the American constitution, and the concept of human rights, is different than all other constitutions?
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