February 9, 2010
Published: 2 Jul 09 08:28 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/society/20090702-20331.html
Gay and lesbian couples in the German state of Bavaria may now officially register for civil unions, according to a bill approved by the State Parliament in Munich this week.
DDP/DPA/The Local (news@thelocal.de)
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Millions of German families on welfare could receive more government assistance after the nation’s highest court ruled Tuesday the controversial Hartz IV system of payments was unconstitutional. READ (20 COMMENTS) »
National coach Joachim Löw ended his stand-off with the German Football Federation (DFB) on Tuesday, as both parties agreed to plough all their efforts into Germany's 2010 World Cup campaign. READ (1 COMMENT) »
The tough economic climate is failing to dent Germans’ enthusiasm for Karneval, with partygoers set to spend €300 million on costumes and makeup during this year’s season, the Toy Retailers’ Association said Monday. READ »
Jobseekers with Turkish names are clearly discriminated against when looking for work in Germany, a study released this week has found. READ »
Best-selling teenage novelist Helene Hegemann rejected accusations of plagiarism in her debut novel “Axolotl Roadkill” on Tuesday, after it emerged she had taken slabs of text from an anonymous author and blogger. READ »
The president of Hamburg's city parliament is reportedly in hot water for ordering authorities to clear the footpaths of ice outside his own home while leaving the rest of the city to slip and slide their way home. READ (1 COMMENT) »
Eleven months after the deadly collapse of Cologne’s city archive, a construction worker has given investigators their first confession in the case, media reports said on Tuesday. READ »
Buyers at the Berlin film festival will be seeing triple this year, as 3-D productions such as "Avatar" transform the global cinema industry. READ »
See all ads | Join the Marketplace
571 jobs in Germany, in English
397 new jobs this week
78 new jobs today
Dating
Looking for your own blonde bombshell? Or is the strong, silent type more your
style? Find a German sweetheart here.
Weather
"After clouds comes clear weather," say the Germans. But what about after that? Find out in The Local's weather
section.
Blog
German stuff that's distracting us today.
Noticeboard
Whether you want to buy, sell, hire, announce or promote something, here's the place to do it - completely free of
charge.
Discuss
Debate the news, ask for advice, make friends - or just let off steam.
Register now for:
> Free use of noticeboard
> Special discounts
> Weekly news roundup
> Unlimited use of discuss
Your comments about this article:
The law goes into effect August 1.
more
[color=gray]Topics merged by admin
Civil Unions had already been legalized in the whole of Germany in 2001- just the "southern states" couldn't bring themselves to allow couples to register at the registry office like hetorosexual couples do. They instead preferred to continue to discriminate against them. I "married" my partner 7 years ago in Hamburg, and did so, of course, at the local registry office.
The CSU however decreed that a notary should perform the ceremony rather than a registrar and generally registry offices
(with the exception of Munich) were denied to lesbians and gay men wishing to marry.
Theres a lot of things wrong with them, but the FDP as a party are fairly hot on LGBT issues (look who votes for them).
And they made it a condition of the coalition with the CSU that the law was changed.
It's a small step forward which is nice.
Don't really want their sexuality rammed down my throat all the time in public though or think that they should get special legal privileges becasue of what kind of sex they like.
eg My ex boyfriend was unemployed for a long time.
If we were "married" I would have been responsible to keep him, he wouldn't have got welfare.
But I couldn't have used our "marriage" to lower my tax burden.
I have my differences with the notion anyway, but this inequality is one of the reasons I wouldn't want to go give credence to such a union by entering one.
I've a number of lesbian and gay friends who are married though, and am happy for them to have that choice.
ironic that this particular little nazi decided to use the name of a gay vampire as his monicker ...
MT - so basically, if you'd have been in a "civil union" you would not have been responsible for your ex, but "married" you would have been?
Seriously, I'm a fan of an across the board solution. All of the rights and all of the responsibilities - regardless.
The SPD, FDP, Grün-Rosa and Linke fractions already have a LGBT friendly position.
In the last elections, at a city level, even the CSU took part in 2 podium discussions on sexuality issues.
The only party with a council seat pushing "family values" and wanting a "clean up" is one you are quite possibly familiar with:
Bürgerinitiative Ausländerstopp (Wikipedia)
Heteros get the tax splitting benefits and the duty of care responsibilty.
Homos don't get the tax benefits but still have the duty of cae responsibility.
ironic that this particular little nazi decided to use the name of a gay vampire as his monicker …
I guess they know it's the CSD season.
Hope to see some of your reprobrates shamelessly flaunting it next week.
Heteros get the tax splitting benefits and the duty of care responsibilty.
Homos do…
Though, seriously, the tax splitting thing is not worth the hassle. Get married (or unionized?) for love, not for money.
And , get divorced for the same reasons, for lack of love, not for "saving taxes" - but that's another soapbox
ironic that this particular little nazi decided to use the name of a gay vampire as his monicker …
This whole thing seems like a crock of really unless the same rights that hetero couples are given are given to gay couples as well.
That being said...
I…
Do you not agree with people expressing their love in public, hetero or homo?
What don't you agree with??
You live your life, others live theirs, everybody gets equal rights.
And
What is natural? There are documented cases of homosexual behaviour in other animals.
And in the end... what's it to you what other people stick in their bums, kiss on the street or file taxes with?
Live by your old values, let others live our degenerate lives. We'll all meet again in hell someday