April 1st

On this day - April 1st 2001 - the Nederlands became the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriages 

The fight for legalizing same-sex marriages i the Netherlands started in the midt 1980s. In 1995 was a special commission created to look into the possibilities for same-sex marriages. The commission finished its work in 1997 and decided that civil marriage rights should also include same-sex marriages. The bill passed with 109 against 33 votes and it was approved in December 2000. On April 1st 2001, the day the law came into effect, got four same-sex couples married. About 2100 men and 1700 women got married in the first six months after the law became effective. Several more countries have since legalized same-sex marriages, most of them in Europe and America.

Same-sex marriages in the Netherlands, April 2001. Photocredit: Jeffpw.

October 27th

On this day - October 27th 1992 - was the US marine, Allen Schindler, murdered for being gay

Allen R. Schindler, who worked as a radioman in the US navy, was brutally killed in a public toilet in Japan. He had at least four fatal injuries and his penis was cut. His family was only able to identify Schindler due to a tattoo on his arm, because his body was unrecognisable. Schindler had previous to the murder complained to his commanding officer about anti-gay harassment on the assault ship he worked on. Schindler har decided to leave the navy, be his superiors had insisted he remained on the ship until his separation-process was finished. His murderer, airman apprentice Helvey, was sentenced to lifetime in prison. The murdered sparked a debate about gays in the US military culminating in the "Don't ask, don't tell" bill. This bill prohibit military personell from discriminating against or harassing against closet homosexuals and it prohibit openly gay, lesbian and bisexual persons from military service.

Allen R. Schindler died at the young age of 22 due to other peoples hatred. While his death caused a shift for the Navy LGBT rights still remains an issue until this day.

No clause for gays