World's largest mass gay wedding officiated in Rio

A total of 160 homosexual couples were simultaneously wed on Sunday (Nov. 23) in the port area of Rio de Janeiro. This was the fifth mass same-sex civil wedding ceremony held in the state and the world's largest according to the State Secretariat for Social Welfare and Human Rights, which organizes the event. In total, more than 500 couples have benefited from the initiative.

The ceremony opening was complete with a performance by transvestite actress and singer Jane Di Castro, who was also one of the brides. She was wed to her 47-year partner, Otávio Bomfim. “I'm having a wonderful time. We're having a taste of paradise. It's both an achievement and a victory for us,” the artist said, noting that her husband was her first and only love.

Carlos Freire, who works as a teacher, and Antônio Lima, a cook, have been together for seven years and were planning to get married even before a Supreme Court ruling acknowledged same-sex civil partnership as a right in May 2011. They learned about the ceremony while surfing the Web. “We were the first to sign up,” said Antônio. “We had been planning to apply for a marriage license, and in case we got turned down, we'd have gone all the way up through the highest appeal courts so that my partner and I could benefit from the same rights as any other family,” he said. They are going to Recife on honeymoon in January.

Cláudio Nascimento, Superintendent on Individual, Group, and Mutual Rights, and Coordinator for the Rio without Homophobia state policy, and his partner, João Silva, were the first couple to have their partnership legally recognized as marriage in the state of Rio de Janeiro. “This is an affirmative action to raise general awareness of all the achievements and challenges associated with civil and human rights of LGBT communities [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, and transgender]. Marriage ensures that couples can pursue a number of their aspirations together, including buying real state together and growing their families, and provides a considerable level of legal certainty,” he said.

Nascimento explained that the organizers had to expand the venue because of the large number of couples, so that the more than 1,500 guests could attend. “There were 43 couples in the first ceremony, 132 in the fourth, and counting. Couples grow more and more encouraged as they realize the event is praiseworthy and well-organized and they will be treated with respect.” The next ceremony will take place in a sports hall.

TV assistant Suzana Amâncio, 27, and photographer Gláucia Pereira, 25, have been together for nearly six years. They were planning to get married for a while now. “We'd already been living together, but this is a very special moment for us now because it's like giving our partnership official social recognition. We want to build a family and have children, so being recognized as a real couple makes a world of difference,” Suzana said.

After the ceremony, the newlyweds and their guests had a party hosted by the state government to celebrate their marriage.

Translated by Mayra Borges