Twenty years ago, just after the stroke of midnight on April 1, the mayor of Amsterdam married four couples in city hall as the Netherlands became the first country with legalized same-sex marriages.
“There are two reasons to rejoice,” Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen told the newlyweds before pink champagne and pink cake were served. “You are celebrating your marriage, and you are also celebrating your right to be married.”
Same-sex marriage is legal in 29 countries. That includes most of Western Europe. Yet its spread has been uneven — Taiwan is the only country in Asia to take the step; South Africa