November 9, 2010
Straight British couple seeks 'gay' partnership
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 1 MIN.
Tom Freeman and Katherine Doyle are in love and want to tie the knot - but they don't want to get married.
The 26-year-old Londoners think they should be allowed to have a civil partnership, a form of legal union available in Britain only to same-sex couples. Gay rights activists are backing the couple's bid in an attempt to legalize gay marriage.
Activist Peter Tatchell says "denying heterosexual couples the right to have a civil partnership is heterophobic."
Marriage and civil partnership are virtually identical in law, and activists think both should be open to all couples.
Doyle and Freeman are applying for a permit Tuesday from their local town hall. They say they will go to court if they are refused.
Britain introduced civil partnerships in 2005.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
