LifeSiteNews is reporting that Mayor Colo, who heads a town in the southern Basque region of Pyrenees-Atlantiques, has flatly refused to marry two men in spite of the fact that he could be sent to prison for up to five years and be forced to pay a fine of $100,000 USD.
“I don’t give lessons, I’m not inciting other mayors to follow my example, but I won’t enforce an illegitimate law,” says Colo. “My seven councilmen and I are completely in agreement in saying that we will not participate in this charade.”
Colo told the French media that he is prepared to "go all the way to the gallows" to oppose the law.
Men and women have every right to do what they want in the privacy of their bedroom, but a true marriage can only exist between a man and woman.
“When I wanted to have a child, I had a woman, I did not turn to my neighbor,” he told the AFP. “I refuse to marry two men. No homosexual weddings will be celebrated in Arcangues.”
The recent passage of the same-sex marriage law in France was enormously controversial and drew millions of French citizens into the streets in protest. As a result, Mayor Colo is enjoying a great deal of support for his actions and says he has already received 1,500 messages cheering him on.
But he is far from a lone voice. According to the national organization Mayors for Children, almost 15,000 mayors from small towns throughout France have already said they will refuse to perform these "marriages" which they are compelled to do in their positions as mayor.
The new law does not grant conscience protections for public officials and Interior Minister Manuel Valls is already warning Colo to be reasonable.
“The laws are applicable everywhere and there can’t be the least violation of equality,” Valls warned. “I hope that reason wins out there (in Arcangues) as elsewhere.”
The two men seeking to marry in Colo's district, Jean-Michel Martin and Guy Martineau-Espel, are already hinting that they may take further action if the mayor does not relent.
“The mayor will have 15 days to indicate his refusal to marry us and we will be able to go to the Procurator (Attorney General) of the Republic,” Jean-Michel told Le Parisian in a recent interview.
Send a message of support to Mayor Colo at: arrangoitze@wanadoo.fr
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