Knoxville activists to ask for gay marriage

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http://www.outandaboutnashville.com/Knoxvillemarriage.htm

Knoxville activists to rally for marriage equality

KNOXVILLE - A group of same-sex couples will request marriage licenses from the city courthouse on Friday, April 2. Following the approval or denial of their request, there will be a rally in Market Square from 11:30-4:30. Speakers will include leaders of Knoxville's religious communities, long-time nonviolence and queer rights activists, social workers, and political leaders from the city and university. During rush hour, there will be a sign-holding on Henley Street in front of the UT Conference Center.

This action and rally is being organized by involve knoxville, a grassroots campaign that seeks to address discrimination along lines of gender and sexual identity in East Tennessee.

The marriage equality and queer rights movements are well underway. People are challenging the social and political institutions that coerce us into conforming our identities and punish us for being different. The Massachusetts Supreme Court has ruled that denying marriage rights to same-sex couples is unconstitutional. San Francisco began a movement in early February in which city officials issue and recognize marriage licenses for same-sex couples. The definition of family and the issue of so-called