The issue arose recently when Somerville residents in committed, unmarried relationships approached Davis and other councilors with concerns about being able to visit sick partners in the hospital during the coronavirus pandemic, he said. Under the ordinance, people qualify for a domestic partnership if they “consider themselves to be a family” and are “in a relationship of mutual support, caring and commitment and intend to remain in such a relationship.” It does not require that domestic partners be in a romantic relationship. While the rights of domestic partners can vary across states, domestic partners can often enjoy some similar spousal benefits, such as survivorship, hospital visitation, shared property and finances, and power of attorney. See: gay marriage in Somerville. “The Somerville ordinance is an exciting turning point for people who are polyamorous or in multipartner families,” said Diana Adams, the executive director of the Chosen Family Law Center in New York. Regardless, Izenson is hopeful that this move indicates even a small change in the way we think about the legal rights of families. 6. Davis said it’s not usually like him to let legislation sit once it’s been worked out, but something told him to give this one some time. “There are two kinds of legal advocacy: the bottom-up kind and the top-down kind," they said. … “The first draft required domestic partners to notify the city of any change of address, which struck me as not in line with what married folks have to do, and required that they reside together, which again struck me as something I’m not required to do as a married person, so we got rid of those provisions.”. “The Somerville ordinance is an exciting turning point for people who are polyamorous or in multipartner families,” said Diana Adams, the executive director of the, Any benefit that the city provides to domestic partners — like hospital or prison visits — can now also apply to multiple partners in a domestic partnership. “However there are legal pitfalls involved with the ordinance. That recognition is one of the crucial parts of the new ordinance, said Jay Sekora, who runs the group Poly Boston, which has about 500 members and hosted dinner outings and discussion group in pre-pandemic times. “I was really excited that a town in my state would recognize the fact that families can’t be defined by government restricting the number of people, or the genders of the people involved, or anything like that,” said Valerie White, the executive director of the Sexual Freedom Legal Defense and Education Fund, which is based in Sharon. Seek out a counselor who will give you hardcore polyamory facts so that you’re both armed and ready. White said she has been practicing non-monogamy since the 1960s. The center also has an initiative, the Poly Families Project, which offers direct, affordable legal support to polyamorous families across the country. Marriage is commonly defined as the legal union of a couple. Scott. While it broadens and reframes the idea of who counts as a family, the legal protections conferred by the ordinance seem to be narrow, said Kimberly Rhoten, an attorney and graduate student at Boston University who focuses on how the law relates to gender and sexual minorities. Groups of “3 or more” people can now register with the city to seek the same rights as married couples. The ordinance codifies family structures that already exist in Somerville and around the country, and helps to reduce some of the social stigma of having multiple partners, Adams and others said. Polyamory is usually defined as the practice of having multiple consensual intimate relationships, and is often described as consensual non-monogamy. So, I pulled it out, went through quickly making whatever word changes necessary to make it not gendered or limited to two people.”, “I’ve consistently felt that when society and government tries to define what is or is not a family, we’ve historically done a very poor job of doing so,” said Davis. “There’s a reflexive flinch away from families including more than two partners,” they said. Last Tuesday, while I was teaching at a Summit Virtual conference, that prediction had additional punch. Residents in Somerville, Massachusetts, may now have more than one loving partner and have some marriage rights, following a new ordinance recognizing polyamorous relationships that was … SOMERVILLE, Mass. The Massachusetts town of Somerville has become the first in the nation to legalize polyamorous relationships. “I tripped over my words a bit, and played devil’s advocate, but I had no good reason. “I’ve seen a few other small-scale or local entities that have taken steps towards recognizing that relationships between adults are not only between two adults, but this is the first time I have seen this strategy brought to fruition.”. “It’s a very good thing for a domestic-partnership ordinance to be written broadly enough to encompass all sorts of families,” Sekora said, “both as a matter of principle to respect people’s relationships, and also as a practical matter.”. Domestic partnerships were initially created as a pathway to a legal union for couples of any gender. View entire discussion ( 15 comments) More posts from the polyamory community. For example, in Massachusetts, domestic partners are not legally considered family and so cannot their partner’s assets in the event of death, and must ensure a will that directs those assets. On June 29, Somerville quietly became one of the first cities in the nation – if not the first – to recognize polyamorous domestic partnerships. Solo polyamory means you’re not interested in becoming part of a couple or any other relationship that includes entanglements, such as sharing finances, housing, or marriage. The city of Somerville, Massachusetts, has passed an ordinance making it one of the first cities in the nation to officially recognize polyamorous relationships. The move is thought to be the first of its kind in the nation, and another step forward in the push for civil rights for those living outside heterosexual marriages. “It hasn’t gone well, and it’s not a business that government should be in, so that guided my thinking on this.”. Any benefit that the city provides to domestic partners — like hospital or prison visits — can now also apply to multiple partners in a domestic partnership. After all, every argument supporting gay marriage—“Love is love,” “we deserve equal protection under the law,” and “we’re not harming anybody”—also supports group marriage. Vital coronavirus stories are being provided for free as a public service to our readers during the coronavirus outbreak. For example, instead of being defined as an “entity formed by two persons,” Somerville’s ordinance defines a domestic partnership as an “entity formed by people,” replaces “he and she” with “they,” replaces “both” with “all,” and contains other inclusive language. Although the definitive number of polyamorous households and families living in Somerville … Please support local journalism by subscribing at explore.mypapertoday.com/wickedlocalpremium, and subscribe to our newsletter here. Some also wanted to be able to access their partners’ health insurance. We’ll wait and see what happens.”. The City of Somerville has adopted a domestic partnership policy that recognizes polyamorous relationships after a unanimous vote of the City Council, Councilor Lance Davis said … “[He] reached out and said, ‘Why is this two?’ And I said, ‘I don’t have a good answer,’” said Davis. Other changes came later. Izenson noted states recognizing third-parent adoptions as action that is close to offering broader rights to families, but pointed out that most gains in “marriage equality” have all been carefully defined as between two people. “During our initial conversations, a couple things jumped out,” said Davis. Sometimes it means having a primary relationship and seeking casual intimacy, and sometimes it means involving a third or fourth (and so on) person in building a family structure. A Massachusetts city northwest of Boston is believed to be the first in the nation to adopt an ordinance recognizing polyamory. Christine Rouselle reports for Catholic News Agency, July 2, 2020, that the city of Somerville, Massachusetts, has broadened its … It is defined as the practice of having more than one husband or wife at the same time, and does not reference romance, intimacy, or consent. About an hour before the June 25 council meeting, he heard from fellow Councilor J.T. On June 25, the City Council passed the ordinance recognizing domestic partnerships unanimously, and on June 29 Mayor Joe Curtatone signed it into municipal law. Polygamy – which is illegal in the United States – is specifically tied to marriage, and is also gendered. The historic move was a result of a few subtle language shifts. Follow her on Twitter @zoegberg. Being in polyamory can, at times, be … Wicked Local Somerville reports Somerville may have just become the first city in the country to formally recognize domestic partnerships of more than two people. So one of the primary concerns that prompted the ordinance, accessing health insurance during the coronavirus pandemic, remains unaddressed, Rhoten said. It potentially matters for such things as hospital visitation rights… Polyamory refers to people in consenting relationships with multiple partners. But, “I would say that polyamory and consensual non-monogamy in general is riding on the coattails of queer liberation,” said. Globe correspondent Jeremy C. Fox contributed to this report. “There has been tremendous momentum and energy and hope for this for many years.”. LibraryThing is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers On June 29, Somerville quietly became one of the first cities in the nation – if not the first – to recognize polyamorous domestic partnerships. Under its new domestic partnership ordinance, the city of Somerville now grants polyamorous groups the rights held by spouses in marriage, such as the right to confer health insurance … For some, that official recognition was a long time coming. However, many domestic partners cannot receive healthcare on a partner’s policy. Izenson called out mainstream media, certain sects of Christianity, and the bottom-line of capitalism for maintaining this cultural flinch. CNN reports: The domestic partnership ordinance was brought to the city … The city has never had a domestic partnership ordinance, said City Councilor Lance Davis, who introduced this one. SOMERVILLE, Mass. Adams said the law center hoped to push similar ordinances in other small, progressive cities, in a strategy similar to the one that secured the legalization of same-sex marriage across the country. Relationships can be sexual or romantic, and are not gender-specific. And so, I think that there was an argument for same-sex marriage that was similar to that, and also, we should recognize universally love between two people, despite their sex. By Monica Jimenezmjimenez@wickedlocal.com Thursday Feb 13, 2014 at 8:00 AM Feb 20, 2014 at 11:17 … In his book, Legalizing Plural Marriage: The Next Frontier of Family Law, Emory law professor Mark Goldfeder presents the push for polyamory as something of an inevitability. Due to the commonwealth’s anti-polygamy laws, recognition of such relationships through legal marriage is not only impossible, but criminalized. The city is in the process of changing the application to include space for more than two partners, but polyamorous partners will be able to file soon. Since domestic partnerships are not recognized by federal law, partners also face barrier filing joint tax returns or petitioning for a non-citizen spouse. On July 1, the New York Times reported, the City Council of Somerville, Massachusetts “now grants polyamorous groups the rights held by spouses in marriage, such as the right to confer … Izenson is the senior legal director, vice president, and secretary of the nonprofit Chosen Family Law Center in New York. Boston, Cambridge, and many other Massachusetts cities introduced such policies before same-sex marriage became legal in the state in 2004. Have a clear picture of what you want. For more coverage go to somerville.wickedlocal.com/topics/coronavirus. A left-leaning Massachusetts city has declared it will recognize polyamorous relationships following a unanimous city council vote, according to reports Wednesday. A left-leaning Massachusetts city has adopted a domestic partnership ordinance granting polyamorous groups the same rights as married couples.The Somerville City Council voted … At a June 25 city council meeting in Somerville, Massachusetts, council members broadened the city’s definition of domestic partnerships to include relationships between three or … (ChurchMilitant.com) - A city-suburb of Boston is the first U.S. city to treat so-called polyamorous relationships as civil marriage. A new domestic partnership policy in Somerville that recognizes polyamorous relationships is a powerful symbol, advocates and academics said, though the specifics of its protections remain limited. And to Hell goes America in the proverbial handbasket. Polyamory, I believe, at least in Somerville … Recently, the city council of Somerville, Massachusetts legally recognized polyamory. This type of bottom-up work – local people making policy regarding their neighbors – that’s the sort of thing that’s not only reflective of a culture shift, but a shift towards acceptance and support of a broader variety of families.”, (Sources: Psychology Today, Merriam Webster Dictionary, GLAD Legal Advocates & Defenders, Miller Law Group - Massachusetts Family Law Attorneys. Zoe Greenberg can be reached at zoe.greenberg@globe.com. And the question of how the ordinance might affect state and federal family leave is unclear, she said. Polyamorous and other multiple-partner relationships are now officially recognized in the city of Somerville, where Mayor Joe Curtatone signed a new domestic partnership ordinance into law … But private employers aren’t required to provide health insurance for domestic partners. It’s the first time that family law attorney Andy Izenson has seen a municipality do anything like this. Somerville didn’t have one, and a constituent request moved the council to work with the city on an ordinance. Somerville’s legal recognition of polyamory … The … "Top-down meaning law that comes from the Supreme Court…which, in terms of day-to-day life is more reflective of culture change than leading the way. ), somerville.wickedlocal.com/topics/coronavirus, explore.mypapertoday.com/wickedlocalpremium, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Massachusetts became the first state to recognise same-sex marriage in the US in 2004, and Somerville has now joined Boston and Cambridge in having a domestic partnership ordinance. The changes are small, but powerful: If you put the Cambridge and Somerville ordinances side-by-side they appear nearly identical save for a few differences, namely that the Cambridge ordinance defines a domestic partnership as including only "two persons" and requires partners to live together. My predictive … (CNN) The city of Somerville, Massachusetts, will now recognize polyamorous relationships after the city council voted in favor of a new domestic partnership ordinance in a meeting … — The city council of Somerville, Massachusetts has unanimously passed an ordinance recognizing “polyamorous” domestic partnerships as they could not find a “good … Under its new domestic partnership ordinance, the city of Somerville now grants polyamorous groups the rights held by spouses in marriage, such as the right to confer health insurance benefits or make … Ward 6 Councilor Lance Davis, who chairs the Legislative Matters committee that reviewed the ordinance, said this began by just wanting to draft an ordinance recognizing domestic partnerships. Feels like this is more about the housing crisis in Somerville and less about poly rights. “It’s a signaling boost for this community that the city is recognizing more than two partnerships,” Rhoten said. For example, health insurance companies are incentivized to limit the definition of family so they do not have to cover more people. In Somerville, MA just northwest of Boston, the city council voted unanimously to redefine what constitutes a family by granting polyamorous relationships the same legal recognition given to … Somerville, Massachusetts, became the first city in the U.S. to recognize polyamorous relationships this week. Some described it as one piece of a much broader movement for LGBTQ rights. Recently, the city council of Somerville, Massachusetts legally recognized polyamory. Hodges, legalized so-called same-sex marriage, I’ve told them that polyamory will be legal in their lifetime. As reported in the New York Times, “ A Massachusetts City Decides to Recognize Polyamorous Relationships. The city of Somerville has broadened the definition of domestic partnership to include … In July 2020, Somerville, Massachusetts, became the first U.S. city to extend domestic partnership rights to groups of more than two who identify as polyamorous, that is, multi-spousal. “I would say that polyamory and consensual non-monogamy in general is riding on the coattails of queer liberation,” said Elisabeth ‘Eli’ Sheff, an international expert on children growing up in polyamorous families and author of the book “The Polyamorists Next Door.” “I definitely see it as a trend towards greater recognition of existing diversity.”. In some states, it has been defined as between a man and a woman but the 2013 Supreme Court ruling legalized marriage between same-sex couples. Sharing the love: Polyamorous Somerville residents balance multiple relationships . 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