| Part of the LGBTQ rights series |
 LGBTQportal |
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Alberta since July 20, 2005 upon the granting of royal assent to the federal Civil Marriage Act. [1] Alberta was one of the four Canadian provinces and territories where same-sex marriage had not been legalised before the enactment of the Civil Marriage Act, along with Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Since 2003, same-sex couples have had access to adult interdependent relationships, providing some of the rights and benefits of marriage. This includes alimony, health care benefits, inheritance, domestic violence protection, etc.
On June 28, 2005, the House of Commons of Canada passed the Civil Marriage Act , an act which defines Canadian civil marriage as a union between "two persons". The bill received royal assent by Deputy Governor General Beverley McLachlin a few weeks later and went into effect on July 20, 2005. Premier Ralph Klein responded by saying that the Alberta Government might opt to stop solemnizing marriages entirely, suggesting that in its place, the government would issue civil union licences to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples. Religious groups could still solemnize opposite-sex unions as marriages, but any civil ceremony would be permitted to recognize only a civil union. The Alberta Government also considered continuing to issue marriage licences to opposite-sex couples only in court, on the grounds that the federal government's legislation encroached on the provincial government's jurisdiction over the solemnization of marriage. In December 2004, Klein had suggested conducting a nationwide referendum on the legalisation of same-sex marriage, but this was opposed by Prime Minister Paul Martin, saying that "this is an issue that Parliamentarians ought to decide". Klein stated, "In this province, my feeling is the majority -- and I don't know what the percentage of the majority is -- but the majority of people are opposed to same-sex marriage. And I represent the people of this province." [1]
On July 12, 2005, Klein conceded that the advice given to him by legal experts was that a challenge in court to refuse to marry same-sex couples had no chance, and wasting taxpayers' money to fight it would be "giving false hope". Klein said, "much to our chagrin", the Alberta Government would issue marriage licences to same-sex couples when the bill received royal assent. Klein also said that the Alberta Government would enact provincial legislation to protect religious and civil officials who do not wish to perform a same-sex marriage. This would have meant that an Alberta marriage commissioner who refused to solemnize same-sex marriages would not be liable for dismissal on those grounds. [2] However, no such legislation was passed, indicative of the "sea change" in attitudes towards same-sex marriage in Alberta. [3] This mirrored similar developments in the neighbouring province of Saskatchewan where courts have twice struck down attempts to exempt marriage commissioners from performing same-sex weddings.
The first same-sex couple to receive a marriage licence in Alberta were Keenan Carley and Robert Bradford in Edmonton just hours after the Act received royal assent on July 20. The couple had to wait until provincial officials instructed all registry offices to issue marriage licences to same-sex couples, and until the licence forms were changed from stating "Bride" and "Groom" to "Partner 1" and "Partner 2". The couple said, "It's wonderful feeling to know that it can finally be official. [...] It means that when we do have that ceremony, it will be legal, that we will be recognized as a married couple by the province of Alberta and the government of Canada. And that's a great thing." [1] [4]
The position of Premier Ralph Klein and the Progressive Conservative government had been to attempt to block same-sex marriages in Alberta should a court case require it or federal legislation pass it nationwide. [5] On March 16, 2000, the Legislative Assembly of Alberta passed Bill 202 which amended the provincial Marriage Act to include a heterosexual-only definition of marriage. The bill also invoked the Notwithstanding Clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms . This insulated the Marriage Act from any legal challenge based on violation of Charter rights, including the Section 15 equality guarantees. Under the terms of the Notwithstanding Clause, such a declaration is effective for only five years after it comes into force. For the Marriage Act, this period expired on March 23, 2005. Premier Klein sent mixed messages about whether it would be renewed; ultimately, it was not. The Minister of Government Services, Ty Lund, tabled a report at the conservative caucus on April 4, 2005, stating that the federal government, not the provinces, has the exclusive jurisdiction to define marriage. The report further stated that if Alberta renewed the declaration in the Act by using the Notwithstanding Clause, the "government would be needlessly wasting time and money". [1]
While the act could not have been challenged under the Charter, the definition of marriage is outside the power of the provincial government, or ultra vires , and therefore invalid. The Constitution Act, 1867 is universally interpreted as giving provinces jurisdiction over only the solemnization of marriage, while all other aspects, including capacity to marry, are under federal jurisdiction. At the time Bill 202 was passed, Justice Minister Dave Hancock did not support it, saying: "In terms of legal effect, I'm convinced it doesn't have any." Hancock subsequently stated that he believed the act to be constitutionally valid and that Alberta would attempt to uphold it. Following the December 9, 2004 Supreme Court response to the federal reference of same-sex marriage, Hancock's successor, Ron Stevens, conceded that the Bill 202 amendments to the Marriage Act would likely be struck down as unconstitutional on account of its encroachment into what had by then been explicitly ruled a matter of federal jurisdiction. In December 2004, Canadians for Equal Marriage said they were considering filing a court challenge to legalise same-sex marriage in Alberta, similar to what had happened in other provinces and territories, "The essence of the challenge is going to be discrimination based on sexual orientation. They suggest marriage continues to be between a man and a woman, when the Supreme Court and other jurisdictions have stated very clearly otherwise." Michael Phair, a member of the Edmonton City Council, said, "We are tired of being bullied. It is an outrage, and it is nothing but bias and revenge to force us to go to the courts to get what everyone else has in this country." [1]
In May 2014, the Legislative Assembly amended the Marriage Act to remove the Bill 202 amendments added in 2000, to replace references to "husband and wife" with the gender-neutral term "spouses", and to add "or spouse" in section 8(2), nine years after same-sex marriage became legal in Alberta. [6] Several other acts were amended in a similar way. The legislation received royal assent by Lieutenant Governor Donald Ethell on 14 May. Section 8 of the Act states that each of the parties shall, in the presence of the marriage commissioner and the witnesses, declare:
I call on those persons present to witness that I,______________, do take you,______________, to be my lawful wedded wife (or husband, or spouse). [RSA 2000 cM‑5 s8(2)]
Same-sex couples have been allowed to adopt their stepchildren since 1999. [7] In February 2007, same-sex couples won the right to adopt children jointly. [8]
While there are no records of same-sex marriages as understood from a Western perspective being performed in First Nations cultures, there is evidence for identities and behaviours that may be placed on the LGBT spectrum. Many of these cultures recognised two-spirit individuals who were born male but wore women's clothing and performed everyday household work and artistic handiwork which were regarded as belonging to the feminine sphere. This two-spirit status allowed for marriages between two biological males or two biological females to be performed in some of these tribes. [9]
Among the Plains Cree people, two-spirit individuals were regarded as "esteemed persons with special spiritual powers" and were "noted shamans". They are known in their language as iyîhkwêw (ᐃᔩᐦᑫᐧᐤ, pronounced [ˈɪ.jiːhˌkweːw] ). [10] It was likely that they were able to marry cisgender men, though David G. Mandelbaum reported in 1940 that an iyîhkwêw named Clawed Woman had remained unmarried her entire life. The Nakoda people refer to two-spirit individuals as wîyâkte (pronounced [ˈwĩ.jãkte] ), [11] or also as wanârî nûba (pronounced [waˈnãʕĩˈnũba] ). [12] They carried out women's work in the community and married men. [9] In the Blackfoot language, two-spirit people are known as ááwowáakii (ᖳᖶᖷᖽ, pronounced [áːwowâːki] ). [13] [14]
2,485 same-sex couples married in Alberta from 2005 to 2014. [15] The 2016 Canadian census showed that there were 6,110 same-sex couples living in Alberta. [16]
In July 2019, the synod of the Anglican Church of Canada passed a resolution known as "A Word to the Church", allowing its dioceses to choose whether to bless and perform same-sex marriages. [17] A few days after the vote, Bishop Jane Alexander of the Diocese of Edmonton issued a pastoral letter authorising clergy in the diocese to officiate at same-sex marriages. The measure includes a freedom of conscience clause for clergy opposed to performing the marriages. The Diocese of Calgary does not perform same-sex marriages. [18] In October 2017, the diocesan synod voted by a 57.4% majority to request Bishop Greg Kerr-Wilson to permit parishes to bless civil same-sex marriages, [19] [20] but the diocese still does not bless or perform same-sex marriages as of 2024. The Diocese of Athabasca, encompassing northern Alberta, likewise does not perform same-sex marriages. [21]
Some other religious organisations also perform same-sex marriages in their places of worship, including the United Church of Canada, [22] Quakers, [23] the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, [24] and the Canadian Unitarian Council. [25]
An EKOS/CBC poll in 2002 indicated that attitudes towards same-sex marriage were more supportive in Alberta than they were in the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, both of which had recognized same-sex marriage earlier. [26] A June 2003 survey by Ipsos-Reid, conducted a few weeks after same-sex marriage was legalized in Ontario, showed that 57% of Albertans opposed same-sex marriage, while 41% supported it. Opposition was higher among older people (77%) than middle-aged people (60%) and younger people (41%), higher among men (63%) than women (51%), and higher among people living in rural areas (65%) than people living in urban areas (45%). [1] An Ipsos-Reid poll conducted in August 2005 showed that 56% of Albertans remained opposed to same-sex marriage. [1]
An October 2011 poll conducted by the Citizen Society Research Lab at Lethbridge College found that 72.1% of Albertans supported same-sex marriage, while 27.9% were opposed, [27] [28] a big change in comparison to 2005 when a majority of residents opposed it.
Same-sex marriage was progressively introduced in several provinces and territories of Canada by court decisions beginning in 2003 before being legally recognized nationwide with the enactment of the Civil Marriage Act on July 20, 2005. On June 10, 2003, the Court of Appeal for Ontario issued a decision immediately legalizing same-sex marriage in Ontario, thereby becoming the first province where it was legal. The introduction of a federal gender-neutral marriage definition made Canada the fourth country in the world, and the first country outside Europe, to legally recognize same-sex marriage throughout its borders. Before the federal recognition of same-sex marriage, court decisions had already introduced it in eight out of ten provinces and one of three territories, whose residents collectively made up about 90 percent of Canada's population. More than 3,000 same-sex couples had already married in those areas before the Civil Marriage Act was passed. In 2023, polling by Pew Research suggested that more than three-quarters of Canadian residents supported the legal recognition of same-sex marriage. Most legal benefits commonly associated with marriage had been extended to cohabiting same-sex couples since 1999.
This is a list of notable events in the history of LGBTQ rights that took place in the year 2004.
Michael Hendricks and René LeBoeuf are Canadian–American gay rights advocates. At the height of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s and 90s, the couple helped lead ACT-UP activists in a fight with the City of Montreal to create a permanent memorial to Quebecers who died of AIDS. After several years trying to stop the grassroots efforts to create the memorial, city officials abandoned their fight in September 1994 and the 'Parc de l'Espoir' was built in the heart of Montreal's gay village.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Yukon since July 14, 2004, immediately following a ruling from the Supreme Court of Yukon. This made the territory the fourth jurisdiction in Canada, and the seventh in the world after the Netherlands, Belgium, Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec and Massachusetts, to legalise same-sex marriage. Yukon was the first of Canada's three territories to legalise same-sex marriage, and the only one to do so before the federal legalisation of same-sex marriage in July 2005 by the Parliament of Canada.
Same-sex marriage has been unambiguously legal in Ontario since June 10, 2003. The first legal same-sex marriages performed in Ontario were of Kevin Bourassa to Joe Varnell, and Elaine Vautour to Anne Vautour, by Reverend Brent Hawkes on January 14, 2001. The legality of the marriages was questioned and they were not registered until after June 10, 2003, when the Court of Appeal for Ontario in Halpern v Canada (AG) upheld a lower court ruling which declared that defining marriage in heterosexual-only terms violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Quebec since March 19, 2004 in accordance with a ruling from the Quebec Court of Appeal that the heterosexual definition of marriage violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Quebec was the third Canadian province after Ontario and British Columbia and the fifth jurisdiction in the world to open marriage to same-sex couples.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in British Columbia since July 8, 2003, after a series of court rulings in Barbeau v. British Columbia which ultimately landed in favour of same-sex couples seeking marriage licences. This made British Columbia the second province in Canada, the second jurisdiction in North America and the fourth in the world, after the Netherlands, Belgium and Ontario, to legalise same-sex marriage.
The Parliament of Canada has exclusive legislative authority over marriage and divorce in Canada under section 91(26) of the Constitution Act, 1867. However, section 92(12) of the Constitution Act, 1867 gives the provincial legislatures the power to pass laws regulating the solemnization of marriage.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Manitoba since September 16, 2004. In the case of Vogel v. Canada, the Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba ordered the province to begin issuing marriage licences to same-sex couples. This decision followed a suit brought by three couples who were denied the right to marry. Both the provincial and federal governments had made it known that they would not oppose the court bid.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Nova Scotia since September 24, 2004 when the province began issuing marriage licences to same-sex couples immediately following a court ruling from the Nova Scotia Supreme Court. Nova Scotia was the sixth jurisdiction in Canada and the ninth in the world, after the Netherlands, Belgium, Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, Massachusetts, Yukon and Manitoba, to legalise same-sex marriage.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Nunavut since 20 July 2005, when royal assent was granted to the federal Civil Marriage Act making same-sex marriage in Canada legally recognised in all provinces and territories. On this date, Nunavut began granting marriage licences to same-sex couples. Previously, in October 2003, Premier Paul Okalik had announced that same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions would be legally recognized in Nunavut.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Saskatchewan since November 5, 2004 as a result of a decision of the Family Law Division of the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench. This decision followed similar cases in six other provinces and territories, and pre-dated by eight months the federal Civil Marriage Act of 2005, which made same-sex marriage available throughout Canada. Later court decisions have dealt with the issue of marriage commissioners who object to performing same-sex marriages on the basis of their religious beliefs.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in New Brunswick since June 23, 2005 in accordance with a ruling from the Court of Queen's Bench of New Brunswick. This decision followed similar cases in eight other provinces and territories, and pre-dated by only one month the federal Civil Marriage Act of 2005, which legalised same-sex marriage throughout Canada. New Brunswick was the ninth jurisdiction in Canada and the twelfth in the world to recognise same-sex marriage.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Newfoundland and Labrador since December 21, 2004, when the province was ordered by the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador to issue marriage licences to same-sex couples. This decision followed similar cases in seven other provinces and territories, and pre-dated by seven months the federal Civil Marriage Act of 2005, which legalised same-sex marriage throughout Canada. Newfoundland and Labrador was the eighth jurisdiction in Canada and the eleventh in the world to legalise same-sex marriage.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Prince Edward Island since July 20, 2005. The Canadian province began the process of updating its laws to recognize same-sex marriage after the passage of the Civil Marriage Act in the House of Commons of Canada. Prince Edward Island had been one of only four provinces and territories, with Alberta, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, where same-sex marriage had not already been legalized by court challenges prior to the passage of the law.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in the Northwest Territories since July 20, 2005. The Canadian territory began granting marriage licences to same-sex couples upon the granting of royal assent to the federal Civil Marriage Act. The Northwest Territories had been one of only four provinces and territories, with Alberta, Nunavut and Prince Edward Island, where same-sex marriage had not already been legalised by court challenges prior to the passage of the federal law.
The Civil Marriage Act is a federal statute legalizing same-sex marriage across Canada. At the time it became law, same-sex marriage had already been legalized by court decisions in all Canadian jurisdictions except Alberta, Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.
Canadian lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) rights are some of the most extensive in the world. Same-sex sexual activity, in private between consenting adults, was decriminalized in Canada on June 27, 1969, when the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1968–69 was brought into force upon royal assent. In a landmark decision in 1995, Egan v Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada held that sexual orientation is constitutionally protected under the equality clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In 2005, Canada became the fourth country in the world, and the first in the Americas to legalize same-sex marriage. In 2022, Canada was the third country in the world, and the first in North America, that statutorily banned conversion therapy nationwide for both minors and adults.
This article lists the members of the 39th Parliament of Canada and their voting records in regards to the Civil Marriage Act, which amended the Marriage Act of Canada to recognize same-sex marriage. The 39th Parliament was elected at the federal election of January 23, 2006. The Conservative leader, Stephen Harper, who was then leader of the opposition campaigned on holding another free vote on the issue, after one was held in the 38th Parliament to approve the Act.
This article gives a broad overview of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) history in Canada. LGBT activity was considered a crime from the colonial period in Canada until 1969, when Bill C-150 was passed into law. However, there is still discrimination despite anti-discrimination law. For a more detailed listing of individual incidents in Canadian LGBT history, see also Timeline of LGBT history in Canada.
