Dallas, TX — Mark "Major" Jimenez and Beau Chandler were arrested on July 5 for standing up for their life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness in Dallas, TX, as they refused to leave the Dallas County Clerk's office without a marriage license. The couple was protesting the ban on same sex-marriage instituted in 2005 by Texas voters.
On the day after Independence Day, while many Americans were still cheerful about their ability to celebrate their freedom, Jimenez and Chandler reminded us that LGBT Americans are still considered second-class citizens in our country. Their sit-in has drawn attention to the inequalities faced by thousands of LGBT couples in Texas and in the entire nation. They were charged with criminal trespassing, which is a class B misdemeanor, though political arrests are usually treated as class C misdemeanors, in which individuals are punished with a $250 fine.
"We are each now facing a $2,000.00 fine and a jail sentence of 180 days," said Jimenez, one of the two men arrested, immediately following his release. "But I stand before each and every one of you and tell you that I would spend 181 days in jail as an unjust penalty for trying to marry the man I love, and as soon as I got out I would start the process over again. We will be married."
"We will continue to demand our marriage licenses until the answer is yes." said Chandler. "We owe it to ourselves to do what our hearts tell us is right."
"The day after we celebrated our country's freedom, Mark and Beau stood with courage for their freedom to marry, only to be arrested. Shame on our government for putting them through this," said Michael Diviesti from GetEQUAL Texas. "Texans are standing up to demand that discrimination be removed from the books. It is up to our government to work for the people. We are outraged that this couple is facing 180 days in jail and more than double the normal fine for demanding their equal right to civil marriage."
While marriage bans are in place in 31 states, including Texas, thousands of LGBT families are denied their civil right to civil marriage. LGBT families cannot wait another day while being denied the same rights that opposite-sex couples receive when they make the decision to build a family. GetEQUAL is committed to bold actions to highlight the injustices experienced by the LGBT community and proudly salute these brave men.
Supporters are asked to join in a rally before their court hearing on August 2 outside of the Frank Crowley Courthouse in Dallas at 8:00 AM, then to join them inside for the hearing which begins at 8:30 AM. The two men have been separated in courtrooms 4 and 5.
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Founded in 2010, GetEQUAL is a national grassroots organization whose mission is to empower the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community and our allies to take bold action to demand full legal and social equality, and to hold accountable those who stand in the way. For more information go to www.getequal.org . You can also follow GetEQUAL on Facebook at www.facebook.com/getequal or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/getequal.
GetEQUAL Texas is a state-based chapter of GetEQUAL, based in Texas and fighting for full equality for LGBT Texans. You can follow GetEQUAL Texas on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GetEQUAL.TX or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/getequal_tx. You can also visit GetEQUAL TX on the web at www.getequaltx.org .