FIFA Bans World Cup Biter

Advertisers Snark On World Cup Biter

Here's what happened today:

Uruguay striker Luis Suarez could once again be in trouble after appearing to bite an Italian opponent Tuesday in a key World Cup qualifying game. The incident, shown on television replays, showed Suarez apparently bite the shoulder of Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini as the pair clashed in the Italian penalty area. It happened about a minute before Uruguay scored in the 81st. Suarez was sanctioned with a heavy ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic in the English premier League in 2013. FIFA can sanction players for biting with bans of up to two years.

The McDonald's tweet translates as "Hey Luis Suarez, if you're still hungry, come take a bite out of a Big Mac."

Uruguay Becomes World's First Nation To Legalize Pot Sales, Growth, Usage

In what Reuters describes as a  "pioneering social experiment" that  will be watched around the globe, Uruguay yesterday became the world's first nation to completely legalize marijuana.

A government-sponsored bill approved by 16-13 votes in the Senate provides for regulation of the cultivation, distribution and consumption of marijuana and is aimed at wresting the business from criminals in the small South American nation. Backers of the law, some smoking joints, gathered near Congress holding green balloons, Jamaican flags in homage to Bob Marley and a sign saying: "Cultivating freedom, Uruguay grows." Cannabis consumers will be able to buy a maximum of 40 grams (1.4 ounces) each month from licensed pharmacies as long as they are Uruguayan residents over the age of 18 and registered on a government database that will monitor their monthly purchases.

In addition to the commercial sales, Uruguayans will be able to grow their own at home, with a limit of 480 grams per year.

Marriages Begin In Uruguay

Same-sex marriage went into effect today in Uruguay.

Acting under legislation passed in April, Rodrigo Borda and Sergio Miranda, aged 39 and 45, flashed big smiles as they addressed a gaggle of reporters upon leaving a civil registry in Montevideo. "We are celebrating it and sharing it because this law establishes that we all have rights. There are no first and second class citizens," said Miranda. The men said they will pick a date for their actual wedding later this month.

Updated Global Marriage Map

After last week's first gay wedding in France, the Agency France-Presse posted the above map.

Uruguay President Signs Marriage Bill

We knew he would, but still. Details. (Tipped by JMG reader Hong)

Updated Gay Marriage Map

Source.

Marriage Equality Nations

(Via JMG reader Thomas)

VIDEO: History In Uruguay

No narration needed.

Uruguay Finalizes Marriage Equality

Today the finishing touches on Uruguay's marriage equality bill were made after minor changes to the original bill were reconciled between the two national legislative chambers. President Jose Mujica has promised to sign the bill and marriages should commence within a few months.

Uruguay Approves Same-Sex Marriage!

Moments ago the Uruguay Senate approved its marriage equality bill by a vote of 23-8. The bill now returns to the nation's lower legislative chamber to reconcile a minor change.  President Jose Mujica has promised to sign the bill and marriages should commence within a few months. ¡Felicidades Uruguay!

UPDATE: Freedom To Marry cheers via press release.

“Freedom to Marry applauds the people of Uruguay and their government for moving forward into a future in which all loving and committed couples can share in the freedom to marry and the meaning and protections marriage brings to families. Uruguay’s vote today to move past civil union to marriage itself, Argentina’s enactment of the freedom to marry in 2010 and the Mexico Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling last month in favor of the freedom to marry -- citing the U.S Supreme Court cases of Brown v. Board of Education and Loving v. Virginia -- all are inspirations and examples decision-makers here in the United States, including our Supreme Court justices, should swiftly follow to get the U.S. where it needs to be.”

Uruguay To Advance Marriage Tomorrow

Rex Wockner passes along this email from Uruguay's LGBT rights group.

The Uruguayan Senate will vote the marriage equality bill tomorrow, Tuesday, April 2. As you may remember, the bill had been passed by the Chamber of Deputies in December, but the Senate has modified it. According to our Constitution, those modifications will have to be confirmed by the Deputies for the bill to be finally approved. The modifications are minor and do not affect the bill's essence. We know the bill will be passed by both Chambers by an overwhelming majority, and in a speedy way. After this Tuesday's vote by the Senate, the lower chamber will probably vote and pass it in one or two weeks (all in April). Once passed, the government has up to 90 days to regulate it, i.e., to make the necessary changes in red tape to implement it. Hopefully, the first couples will be getting married in July/August.

Zoom, zoom, zoom.

Uruguay Postpones Marriage Vote

Uruguay's Senate was widely expected to pass its marriage equality bill today.  No such luck. Via On Top Magazine:

The “Marriage Equality Law” seeks to modify some 20 articles of the Civil Code, including whose surname goes first when children are named. Opponents asked for the bill's vote to be postponed until the Senate's first meeting in April to allow more time to study the proposal. The request received unanimous approval. The bill has already received an initial nod in the Senate and it cleared the nation's lower house earlier this month. President Jose Mujica has said he'll sign the bill into law. Uruguay currently recognizes gay couples with civil unions. After a couple has lived in a “stable relationship” for 5 years, they may petition the government for the recognition.

Another report notes that senators opposed to the bill claimed that the ruling party was trying to rush the bill through without "the normal procedures."

Uruguay House Overwhelmingly Approves Same-Sex Marriage By 81-6 Vote

Rex Wockner and Andres Duque have the good news:

Eighty-one of the 99 members of Uruguay's House of Representatives voted to legalize same-sex marriage this evening. Twelve members of the chamber were not present for the vote. The bill now advances to the Senate, where support is equally strong, according to LGBT activists. President José Mujica plans to sign the measure into law in early 2013. "Very happy here!" said Álvaro Queiruga of the LGBT lobby group Colectivo Ovejas Negras (Black Sheep Collective). Uruguay will be the 12th nation to offer same-sex marriage nationwide. Same-sex marriage is legal in Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden and Mexico (where same-sex marriage is legal in the Federal District, i.e. Mexico City, and in the state of Oaxaca, and those marriages are recognized nationwide).

Yet another victory in our best year ever. So far!

LIVE VIDEO: Uruguay Votes On Marriage

It's happening right now. Go watch.  If the House approves the bill as expected, it goes to the Senate next year.

URUGUAY: Lower House To Vote On Same-Sex Marriage Bill Next Week

Uruguay's Chamber of Deputies, that nation's lower legislative body, will vote on same-sex marriage on December 11th.

Five months ago, the government approved the recognition of same sex marriage legalized in other countries. The law was supported by the Constitution Committee and the Codes of the House including two opposition legislators.  Frente Amplio legislator Julio Bango, a supporter of the law, said the law would pass the Senate in 2013 after the summer recess. He noted the dispute about name order for children of same sex marriages but said that issue would be resolved in the next week. The law reads, “the institution of marriage will mean the union of two parties, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation thereof at the same terms with the same effects established in the Civil Code”. The law will extend to include homosexuals, lesbians and transsexuals.

In 2007 Uruguay became the first South American nation to legalize civil unions.

Uruguay Considers Marriage

Uruguay, which already has civil unions, began this week considering a move to full marriage equality.

The proposed "marriage equality" law would change Uruguay's nearly-century-old civil code and give married gays and lesbians all the rights and responsibilities of heterosexual married couples, including the possibility of adopting children. It was drafted by gay rights activists in the so-called "Black Sheep Collective" and now has the support of lawmakers in the ruling Broad Front coalition, which decided Wednesday to debate the measure next week in the House of Deputies' constitutional commission. "Today's society is much broader than the heterosexual, and the civil code should reflect this: a marriage institution that applies equally to all," Federico Grana, a member of the collective, told The Associated Press on Wednesday. "This goes well beyond homosexuality — it's a law that gives all the same rights and responsibilities."

Uruguay Poised To Approve Gay Marriage

Uruguay's Parliament appears ready to legalize same-sex marriage.

The bill is being driven by the country’s ruling coalition, the Frente Amplio which has a majority in both houses – giving it an excellent chance of succeeding. The bill’s author, Frente Amplio MP, Sebastián Sabini, told the newspaper, “We do not focus so much on the issue of gay marriage but of equal marriage regardless of sex, gender or religion.” The bill, would amend the country’s Civil Code to refer to spouses instead of husband and wife, meaning transgender and intersex people would also be covered, and would allow non-biological parents in a marriage to be given parental rights and obligations to their partners’ biological children.

LGBT rights in Uruguay are already among the most advanced in South America. Gays can serve openly in the military and in 2008 civil unions were made available to couples that have been together for five years.

Uruguay Legalizes Gay Adoption

Uruguay lawmakers have approved the bill legalizing adoption by same-sex couples. The bill was first proposed last month to great objections by local Catholic leaders.

Lawmakers voted Wednesday to extend adoption rights to gay couples in Uruguay, the latest measure to relax laws on homosexuality that has drawn criticism from church leaders in the country, which is predominantly Roman Catholic. Members of Congress said the law made Uruguay the first Latin American country to permit gay couples to adopt. The measure, which will now go to President Tabaré Vázquez for his signature, will also for the first time allow unmarried couples to adopt. “This law is a significant step toward recognizing the rights of homosexual couples,” Diego Sempol, a member of the gay rights group, Black Sheep, told Reuters Television earlier this week.

In 2007 Uruguay approved civil unions for same-sex couples, giving gays many (but not all) of the rights of marriage. Last year they lifted the ban on gays in the their military. That's Uruguay folks, more progressive than the USA.

Uruguay May Allow Gay Adoption

The march for LGBT rights across South America continues as Uruguay prepares to legalize adoption by gay couples.

The legislation is expected to pass in the Senate, where the ruling party has a majority. The Senate will vote on the bill next month. In December 2007, Uruguay's parliament passed legislation to recognise same-sex civil unions. The country of 3.6m people was the first nation in South America to grant such protections, although some cities and regions throughout the continent have made similar legal provisions. The Congress passed legislation creating a civil union registry for same-sex and unmarried heterosexual couples who have lived together for at least five years. In May Uruguay lifted a ban on gays serving in its military.

The Archbishop of Montevideo opposes the proposed legislation. Of course he does.