Mexico Leads US in Human Rights

As some of you know, I lived for about a year in Mexico City back in the 1980's.  I was working for the television network Televisa and had an apartment in the DF as well as here in Dallas.  It was an eye opening experience for me and one that I would never trade.

Mexico City is about as cosmopolitan a city as any in Europe.  It has a thriving arts and culture scene, world-class restaurants with every cuisine and entertainment of all types.  There is even a thriving LGBT scene and was even back in the 1980's.  What's more, my employer knew I was gay and even offered to move me and my partner to Mexico if I so desired. 

It was not so much of a surprise when I heard that Mexico City was issuing same-sex marriage licenses this year.  What was a surprise was a ruling by the Mexican Supreme Court stating that couples married in Mexico City would be legally married anywhere in Mexico's 31 states. 


In a New York Times article one of the judges was quoted as asking, “What’s going to happen to a same-sex couple” who marry in Mexico City “when they cross the border” to another state. Does this marriage disappear? They go on vacation and they’re no longer married?” The judge, Justice Arturo Zaldívar, makes the point clearly and precisely.  Equal is equal or it is not.

It is telling when the US falls behind its Latin American neighbors.  Our place as the premier world power is slipping away.  Our economy has been sold down the Yang-see River by greedy corporations looking to squeeze every nickle from consumers by outsourcing the production of just about everything.  Our knowledge base is slipping as we dumb down text books to pander to back woods religions and our record in human rights looks pretty bad these days.  It's time we reversed this trend.  Maybe we should take a lesson from Mexico?