Mayor of New York town marries gay couples



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Wedding shots deepen gay-marriage divide
Marriage ceremonies have put a human face on an abstract issue, bolstering support and opposition.
By Amanda Paulson | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

CHICAGO – As images of gay couples exchanging heartfelt vows flicker across TV screens nationwide, the cultural debate on one of today's most divisive issues has grown as clangorous as wedding bells, as contentious as a nasty divorce. With coverage from Massachusetts to San Francisco, where thousands have lined up for marriage licenses, an abstract issue suddenly has a human face - thousands of them.

Some say all the talk of "gay marriage" has made the term less dissonant, scattering it through the public consciousness so that it grows familiar, if not popular. San Francisco's move has sparked spontaneous support from far-flung places - Australians sending flowers to couples at City Hall; a Minnesota church mailing cards; a message from Atlanta reading "Straight, but not narrow-minded." . . . (more)