After Senate Vote, Celebration For Maryland Same-Sex Couples

Some gay and lesbian couples in Maryland are celebrating today after the state senate passed a measure allowing same-sex marriage. The bill now heads to Governor Martin O'Malley, who is expected to sign it into law in a ceremony set for this coming Thursday.

At Rams Head Tavern in Annapolis, Lisa Polyak and Gita Deane are chatting and stealing bites from each others' plates. In many ways, today is just like any other day for the women, who have been together for more than 30 years. And, in some ways, it's totally different. Polyak explains how what it feels like: "Redemption. Of all the years. Of all the families. All the heartbreak that has gone before us."

Polyak and Deane have been fighting for legalized same-sex marriage in Maryland for years. And while they got married themselves a year ago in D.C, Deane says last night's vote means so much to them, and their two daughters.

"They've seen us through some of the struggle and how sad it's been," says Deane. "And it was a happy moment to see that there were some people willing to stand on the Senate floor and talk about our families as respectable and needing protections."

Critics of the bill have already made moves to bring the issue to a referendum. Neil Parrott, a delegate to the Maryland House of Representatives, has already filed draft language for a referendum with the state board of elections, and hopes to bring the issue to a vote in November.

Polyak, who chairs the board of the advocacy group Equality Maryland, says she knows there are obstacles ahead.

"We're just pausing in this moment of happiness before whatever comes next," says Polyak.

For now, she's celebrating.