DUBLIN– Ireland on May 22 became the first country to hold a public vote amending its constitution to allow gay marriage, but the change will not force houses of worship to perform the unions. Instead, gay couples will be able to enter in “civil marriage,” a separate institution from but affording all the legal benefits […]
DUBLIN — Ireland became the first nation to adopt same-sex marriage by popular vote May 22 after a months-long campaign by advocates of traditional marriage to preserve the institution failed. The referendum drew more than 1.2 million people to the polls for the vote, which has now shifted once-conservative Ireland squarely into the liberal column […]