Dan Savage to Stephen Harper: Stop screwing with my marriage, motherfucker

by Stephen Hui on Jan 12, 2012 at 1:20 pm
Like many Canadians, Dan Savage has called Stephen Harper a "motherfucker".
Stephen Hui

Georgia Straight sex columnist Dan Savage is understandably pissed about the Stephen Harper government pulling the rug out from under same-sex couples who came to Canada from abroad to get married.

The Seattle-based journalist and activist, who wed his partner in Vancouver, has published a blog post titled "Canada's Conservative Government Turns My Husband Back Into My Boyfriend".

He's been reading the Globe and Mail's coverage of today's (January 12) hot-button issue. The newspaper reports:

The reversal of federal policy is revealed in a document filed in a Toronto test case launched recently by a lesbian couple seeking a divorce. Wed in Toronto in 2005, the couple have been told they cannot divorce because they were never really married – a Department of Justice lawyer says their marriage is not legal in Canada since they could not have lawfully wed in Florida or England, where the two partners reside.

In response to the story, Harper has told reporters: "We have no intention of further re-opening or opening this issue."

Savage calls that bullshit. And he has some choice words for Canada's prime minister:

Sorry, motherfucker, but this "issue"—the civil equality of gays and lesbians—is wide open now and your fucking government opened it. The debate over same-sex marriage and the civil equality of gays and lesbians has been returned to the frontpages of Canada's newspapers and a renewed debate over same-sex marriage will dominate Canadian television and radio news programs. And Canada's religious conservatives will doubtless complain—loud and long—about their precious children having to hear about homosexuality every time they turn on the news. Stephen Harper's government reopened this issue, not the gays, and Stephen Harper's government deserves the blame.

Harper is scheduled to make an announcement today at 3:30 p.m. at Seaspan Vancouver Shipyards (50 Pemberton Avenue) in North Vancouver, where he'll no doubt be asked to explain his government's latest attack on equality.

And you can bet Savage will have something to say about it when he appears at the Vogue Theatre on January 21.

See also

Canadian Justice Minister announces Canadian law will change to allow divorce for all same-sex couples

Stephen Harper questioned about Canada's same-sex marriage stance during Metro Vancouver visit

You can follow Stephen Hui on Facebook and Twitter. You can also follow the Straight's LGBT coverage on Twitter at twitter.com/StraightLGBT.

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Comments (61) Add New Comment
eric anthony
Jan 12, 2012 at 1:32 pm
While he's @ Seaspan, he should swab a few poop-decks.
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Jessica Werb
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:00 pm
Maybe it's time to give "Harper" a new meaning, a la Santorum?
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Gary Dee
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:03 pm
Harper is the epitome of the Neo-Fascist Right-Wing Christian that is currently destroying the American economy...and we, Canadians all, elected this prick to office. His cronies are destroying Canada's reputation as an open-minded, friendly country that stands for equality, human rights and ethics. Harper has shit on us all since elected and needs to be removed.Since his recent conversion to Christianity, which , as many before me have said, is the Poison of Society, he has removed 5-6 decades of well fought rights and ideas that We, as Canadians, brought into law. His utter contempt and complete disrespect for the people of Canada makes him, in my mind, a traitor and and a horrible Fascist.
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sixofour
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:21 pm
This fucking Harper guy should open his god-damned eyes a bit to the world outside his little rosy bubble.
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NoLeftNutter
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:29 pm
Take a chill pill people. Harper hasn't done anything, a Crown lawyer aurgued against the vailidity of Canadian gay marriages for couples from jurisdictions where gay marriage is not allowed. This is not a Canadian marriage issue but one of the legality of marriage in other jusrisdictions. Dan, myabe your vitriol should be directed at lawmakers in your own state and country so your boyfriend can become your husband where you actually live, not just in Canada.
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jared mitchell
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:36 pm
Maybe this guy should take up issue with his own county and states policy of gay marriage instead of bitching about what Canada is doing. Gay marriage in canada was enacted as a human rights law by the canadian courts for canadian citizens.
It was never intended to be an international loophole for others whose countries are stuck in the 19th century.
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DavidH
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:40 pm
It's refreshing to see Harper described as a "motherfucker".

With any luck, Harper will sue ... and then attempt to prove in court that he "did not have sexual relations with that woman". Please Steve, go for it. We can't wait to hear about your real relationship with Mommy Dearest.

Nobody grows up to be a Stephen Harper without some very serious "stuff" in childhood. Right Steve? Tell us all about it.
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Charlie R
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:41 pm
I agree with Dan, Harper is a motherfucker! He has no right to do this. Many people traveled long and far and planned elaborate costly weddings and now they were all for naught? WTF?? Is Harpo the new Hitler or what?
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Jacob Russell
Jan 12, 2012 at 2:41 pm
This is not Harpers fault. It has to do with courts,trade relations and international laws. Of course all the liberals in Canada (I mean people who align themselves with us vs. them mentality) will get pissed off and blame Harper when the real enemy here is UN human rights (which does not recognize gay marriage yet) and international trade laws. There is a lot of shit you can blame Harper for so let's stick to the facts on this and blame the real enemy. No reason to pin it on Harper.
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You
Jan 12, 2012 at 3:03 pm
Having sat down and read BC's guidelines for getting married, nothing indicates that Dan's marriage should be nullified.
And what were people doing performing these ceremonies if they weren't real anyway?

Something must have changed, because I'm sure that all of these couples that were fighting for these rights were reading the fine print all along.
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Asif
Jan 12, 2012 at 3:10 pm
That Harper comment is NOT in response to this story. It's something he said about the gay marriage issue years ago to assuage concerns people had about conservatives reopening the gay marraige issue. Sorry all you people are letting Mr. Savage rile you up, go read an actual account of what is happening in Canadian law around this issue and you will see it has nothing to do with politics, AND the "Neo-Fascists" have already said they would look into fixing what is essentailly a legal loophole.
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Nancy Kathleen
Jan 12, 2012 at 3:17 pm
I did NOT vote this ass-hat into power. Not only is he going back on the equality issue, he has done more to remove funding for women's and children's rights since, well, before I was born, and I'm 40!!
Get him out of office!!
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Douglas Arthurs
Jan 12, 2012 at 3:21 pm
As soon as he called Harper a motherfucker, Dan Savage lost all respectability in anything further he had to say. Learn how to respect people and you might get it back.
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nomi malone
Jan 12, 2012 at 3:51 pm
maybe dan savage should invite harper to "screw with" his marriage, might loosen up the *sshole a bit , & dan would probably "blow his mind" , if you can't beat em f*@k 'em (excuse the profanity)
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Bellatrix76
Jan 12, 2012 at 3:57 pm
Jessica Werb...let's do it!

Harper, the name you give to the guy that brags about his big dick even though everyone knows he's embarrassingly small. (eg, oh, he tells everyone he's enormous, but he's really just a Harper).
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canadiangirl
Jan 12, 2012 at 3:57 pm
Don't let the apologists fool you. The case was about a lesbian couple from outside Canada trying to get divorced. There was NO need for the government lawyers to argue their marriage was invalid in the first place unless they were testing the waters politically. So, don't let the conservatives on here saying it's just a legal loophole etc. persuade you it's much ado about nothing. They're lying or they've bought the party line. Canada needs to change its divorce laws for non-residents, that much is true. That should have been done a long time ago when the issue was first discovered. The government NEVER needed to invalidate thousands of same sex marriages to do it. That's just their mean way of winning back a bit of a battle they lost years ago. Simply awful.
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Cliff
Jan 12, 2012 at 4:05 pm
I've stopped wearing any Canadian flag abroad since Harper got a majority.
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Michael J. Kaer
Jan 12, 2012 at 4:10 pm
So if i went down to Las Vegas to get married I am not legal here? That is basically what harper is saying.
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SJT
Jan 12, 2012 at 4:19 pm
Thanks to Dan Savage, we all know what Santorum is...but what's a Harper? Can we Google it to find out?
;)
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Ryan Heart
Jan 12, 2012 at 4:59 pm
I miss the original Canada that was a peace keeping, forward thinking, humanitarian and evolved, respectful example to the rest of the world.
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