France prides itself on its progressive, enlightened politics, but now finds itself a bit behind the curve as several of its European neighbors have legalized gay marriage. Today Time magazine reports on a French man who lost his French citizenship after marrying a man in the Netherlands, where gay marriage is legal. A Franco-Dutch treaty normally allows French citizens who marry Dutch nationals to become dual French, Dutch citizens. However, France does not recognize gay unions and thus considers the man in this case to be a single man who has taken on Dutch citizenship. They have therefore stripped him of his French citizenship.
As the European Union tries to harmonize its laws, these issues remind me of problems in the U.S., where gay couples who were married in Massachusetts now find it difficult to divorce in other states that don’t recognize gay marriage. I blogged about that topic here.
I understand the logic behind the French government’s decision, but I think it’s hard not to see it as somewhat discriminatory. But then that’s because I think that France not allowing gay French couples to marry is discriminatory.
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