On July 20, 2005 Canada legalized same-sex marriage. At the time, it was one of only four countries in the world to do so. Already legalized in eight out of the ten provinces and one of the three territories by 2003, same-sex marriage had been a long time coming.

Most of the provincial legalization were due to high level court cases, arguing that to deny queer couples marriage would be discrimination in violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Many of the legal benefits that accompany marriage had applied to queer couples since 1999 for similar reasons.

Statements by the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice on January 12 about the validity of same-sex marriage left thousands of same-sex couples who have come to Canada to get married and celebrate their love wondering if they were in fact married at all. And if some same-sex marriages are neither equal nor even valid, are equal marriage rights for Canadian same-sex couples safe and secure?

Those who came to Canada to get married were told by the government of Canada that their love was equal and their relationships would be recognized as legal. These are people who followed the rules, paid their fees, spent their tourist dollars here in Canada, and suddenly had the rug pulled out from under them.

Toronto: Canada's federal Department of Justice has made a conscious decision to intervene in a case that challenges the validity of thousands of marriages. According to their arguments same-sex marriages performed in Canada between non-citizens whose countries of origin do not recognize marriage equality are not now and have never been legally valid. A direct insult to gays and lesbians both in Canada and abroad, this action reflects either complete neglect of the government's responsibilities over the past seven years, or a direct attack on the principle of equality in Canadian law.