On Monday, September 16, Tracey and Cheryl Bridges, residents of Guilford County, North Carolina, will request a marriage license at their local Register of Deeds’ office as the WE DO Campaign continues to grow across the South. In this stage of the WE DO Campaign, we are seeking a local elected official in the South who will grant a marriage license to a LGBT couple as an act of conscience.
You can send Tracey and Cheryl a message of support here. You can read their letter to Jeff Thigpen, the Guilford County Register of Deeds, below. The couple had the opportunity sit down with Mr. Thigpen in person before they wrote the letter.
Jeff
Dear Mr. ^Thigpen:
As you are aware, my partner, Cheryl, and I are planning to apply for a marriage license in the Greensboro office of Guilford County on September 16, 2013, at 9am. Your office issues a number of marriage licenses each day, so this is nothing out of the ordinary, except that we are a same-gender couple.
The reality is, we are like most other loving couples. Our life has been full of celebrations and sadness. In the 12 years we have been together, we have loved, encouraged, and upheld each other through a number of major accomplishments and significant events, including the birth of our first grandchild, the deaths of siblings and parents, and life-threatening health issues.
Jeff, what we are asking of you is very simple: we want to be treated the same as heterosexual couples and be issued a marriage license. We want the state in which we live to grant us legal status as a married couple. At the same time, we realize that what we are asking of you is no small feat. But, it is an act that moves all of North Carolina toward equality and justice for same-gender couples. We are asking you to take a courageous stand for full equality under the law by granting us a marriage license, despite the law.
The shift towards marriage equality has already begun. Already, 13 states and Washington, D.C. have legalized same-gender marriage. Federal benefits have been extended to same-gender couples who are married, regardless of the state in which they live. We could do what many couples have done and travel to a strange place to be legally married. But, North Carolina is our home. Guilford County is where we live, where we work and pay taxes. We want to be surrounded by our family and friends as we are married at our beautiful home in Guilford County.
As you have said, Jeff, “We”—you, Cheryl, and I—“are the people, and we need to stand up…for equal dignity and equal justice.” The question is: as Cheryl and I take a stand for the dignity and justice of marriage equality, will you be standing beside us?
Sincerely,
Tracey H. Bridges
