Judge Blocks Latin America's 1st Gay Wedding

Argentine couple's case sent to supreme court at last minute
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 1, 2009 7:05 AM CST
Judge Blocks Latin America's 1st Gay Wedding
Alex Freyre, right, and Jose Maria Di Bello kiss as they apply to marry at the civil registry in Buenos Aires, Monday, Nov. 16, 2009.    (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

An Argentine judge put the kibosh on Latin America's first gay wedding before it could take place today. The federal judge ruled yesterday to reverse a decision from a Buenos Aires judge allowing the wedding to proceed, the AP reports, until the country's supreme court can consider the issue. Jose Maria Di Bello and Alex Freyre have vowed to go to the registry office anyway and lead a protest if the ceremony doesn't take place.

The couple, who are both HIV positive, scheduled the wedding for today—World AIDS Day—to bring attention to the cause. "We are in love and excited about getting married, but we can't really think about the wedding party, the wedding night, or the honeymoon," Freyre said before the ruling. "We are activists, and how can we show our faces if we forget about the rights we are representing?" (More Latin America stories.)

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