First Gay Italian Couple Marries in New York

| Fri, 07/29/2011 - 02:42

Longtime partners Matteo Cavalieri and Matteo Giorgi bid arrivederci to their home in Bologna and traveled to New York for a destination wedding. In doing so, the couple became the first Italian pair to take advantage of New York’s legalization of gay marriage.

Matteo and Matteo tied the knot yesterday in Atlantic Beach, New York.

Italian gay association Arcigay announced the union and expressed their hope that their own country would soon make strides in allowing other couples to follow suit at home in Italy.

The Arcigay statement spoke of the Italian couples “still deprived of the right to marriage, in violation of the principle of equality enshrined in our Constitution.”

While many European Union countries have legalized gay marriage, Italy still does not recognize same sex unions.