Just hours after a U.S. District Court Judge declared Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage to be unconstitutional, Williamsburg residents Joe Vickstein and Tom Fell went to the courthouse Friday to apply for a marriage license.
The license was not granted, however, as Judge Arenda Wright Allen’s decision included language barring any same-sex marriages in the state until the matter has had a chance to be appealed.
“We were very happy,” Vickstein said of Allen’s decision. “It made us sort of hopeful that things would change sooner than we had even expected.”
The couple has been together for nearly 32 years and together own a house in the area. They previously lived in California, where they had a reservation to be married that fell just four days after the California Supreme Court decided to halt same-sex marriages in the state.
Vickstein, Fell and several other people — including many from the Williamsburg Unitarian Universalist community, with whom the couple is affiliated — went to the Williamsburg-James City County Courthouse around noon Friday. The group’s presence at the courthouse was part of a statewide celebration by People of Faith for Equality in Virginia. People from throughout the state who support marriage equality went to their local courthouses Friday to show their support for Allen’s decision.
“I think opinions are changing and with more people coming out, people know at least one gay person,” Vickstein said. “I’m hopeful that has changed some minds.”
Vickstein said the group encountered “no hostility,” a sentiment shared by others who showed up in support of the couple and of Allen’s decision.
“The clerks were very polite, the [Williamsburg-James City County Sheriff’s Office deputies who provide security services at the courthouse] were very helpful,” said Robert Oliver, a Williamsburg resident who was with the group. “They represent the city and county very well.”
Following the attempt to apply for a license, the group went outside with signs and stood along Monticello Avenue, eliciting many honks and waves from passing drivers.
“It’s just a matter of time [until same sex couples can legally marry],” said Jennifer Ryu, the Unitarian Universalist reverend. She said that along with members of her congregation, people of other faiths had also joined them to show support Friday.
She said the disparate laws governing same-sex marriages across the country are confusing for couples who go to file tax returns or deal with child custody issues.
“If the voters of Virginia had another chance to vote, the results would be very different,” Ryu said of the 2006 vote, when about 57 percent of the votes cast supported a prohibition on same-sex marriage. “Soon we will have equality nationwide.”
Williamsburg-James City County Sheriff Robert Deeds, who oversees security at the courthouse, said small groups have shown up to share their message in past years, but that Friday’s group was the first one with signs and organization. He said the group was “very quiet” and “no trouble whatsoever.”
Deeds said any group is welcome to share their message at the courthouse anytime as long as they do not interfere with the courthouse’s operations.
