Mexico City's First Gay Marriages

Four gay couples legally married at Mexico City's Municipal Palace yesterday in the first such event in their nation's history. ¡Felicidades!

The mayor was there. So were the protesters. Judith Vazquez wore an ivory wedding dress. So did her bride. Vazquez and Lol Kin Castaneda on Thursday became the first gay couple to marry in Mexico under a new law that allows same-sex couples to wed and to adopt children. The law was passed by the Mexico City legislature in December and applies only to the capital. It is the most far-reaching gay-rights law in Latin America and one of several measures that have put the city and its leaders at odds with the more conservative country. "This is a historic day," presiding judge Hegel Cortes said shortly after pronouncing Vazquez and Castaneda "legitimately united in matrimony." Three other same-sex couples also tied the knot.

Mexico's federal government is challenging the law.