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First state to legalise gay marriage will also see first gay marriage in an African-American church
Mayor Denise Simmons
First black lesbian mayor in US is to marry
The first black lesbian mayor in America is to marry her partner next weekend. Denise Simmons was elected to the post in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts, in January 2008, and the announcement was made in a press release from her office. Massachusetts was the first state in the US to legalise gay marriage.
She will marry her longtime partner, Mattie B. Hayes, on Sunday August 30, in 'a celebration of love, acceptance, and togetherness' the statement said. 'The wedding will take place at the historic St Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, which has predominantly been serving Cambridge's African-American community for over 100 years.'
Simmons added: "I believe this may be the very first African-American church to hold a same-gender wedding, and that's something that just wouldn't have happened years ago. But times are changing, people are becoming more accepting of their fellow citizens, and we are slowly arriving at more of a 'live-and-let-live' kind of world.
"It's not an easy process, and there have certainly been some detours along the way, but I think all the kind words I've received about the ceremony suggest we're living in a friendlier, more open society. Our society is definitely making progress."
