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Estonia Has Legalized Same-Sex Marriage And Adoption In A Win For LGBTQ Rights

The new law will take effect on Jan. 1, 2024

Meg Chen

Jun 23, 2023 — 2 min read

Estonia has legalized same-sex marriage and adoption after a historic vote at its parliament.

a woman holds a sign that says, "Love is a terrible thing to hate."

Same-sex partnerships have been legal in Estonia since 2016 but only heterosexual couples could get married.

People take part in an LGBTQ demonstration

Same-sex couples were also unable to adopt children together; one partner had to adopt the biological child or children of the other partner as a step-parent.

But on Tuesday June 20, Estonia’s parliament voted to amend the law so that two adults can marry “regardless of their gender” and adopt children together.“

“Everyone should have the right to marry the person they love and want to commit to,” Estonia’s first woman prime minister, Kaja Kallas, said in a statement after the vote.

people celebrate same-sex marriage and adoption

“I’m proud of my country. We’re building a society where everyone’s rights are respected and people can love freely,” Kallas wrote on Twitter.

people on the streets celebrating same-sex marriage and adoption

This made Estonia the first Baltic state and ex-Soviet country to legalize same-sex marriage and adoption.

same-sex marriage and adoption are legal

It is also the second central European country to reach marriage equality, after Slovenia in October 2022.

same-sex marriage and adoption celebration

The new law will go into effect starting January 1, 2024.

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