While many gays in Hawaii and Illinois were jubilant when their states recently passed legislation establishing civil unions, LGBT Rhode Islanders aren't seeing much to cheer about.
Rhode Island's Senate will likely pass a bill this week that allows same-sex couples to form civil unions; the state House already approved civil unions in May. The legislation comes after the state tried for marriage equality and failed — years after its neighbors, Connecticut and Massachusetts, legalized same-sex marriage. To add insult to injury, the civil unions bill comes with heavy concessions to the state's Roman Catholic community — according to The Boston Globe, gay rights activists believe the bill includes overly broad protections for religious groups "that could, for example, allow a Catholic hospital to bar a gay man from participating in his partner's medical decisions."
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