Limited Partnership Premiere from Out Boulder, Monday, Sept. 8, Nomad Theatre, 1410 Quince Ave., Boulder, 303-499-5777.
Same-sex marriage is now sweeping across the country, but the first same-sex couples to be legally married were hitched here in Boulder all the way back In 1975 when then Boulder County Clerk Clela Rorex issued marriage licenses to six same-sex couples.
That story is chronicled in the new documentary, Limited Partnership, which will screen on Monday, Sept. 8 at the Nomad Theatre in Boulder.
The film recounts the love story between Australian Tony Sullivan and Filipino-American Richard Adams. After being married in Boulder, the couple sought their marriage benefits and applied for a green card for Tony, but were denied in an offensive and brutal manner.
“You have failed to establish that a bona fide marital relationship can exist between two faggots,” the government response read.
Outraged by the response and desperate to prevent being separated by Tony’s impending deportation, the couple filed a lawsuit against the federal government. It was the first lawsuit against the federal government seeking equal treatment for same-sex marriages in U.S. history.
Decades later, the issue has not been resolved. Despite advances, marriage equality is not yet legal in Colorado.
The event will include a question and answer with former Boulder County Clerk Clela Rorex and present Boulder County Clerk Hillary Hall. Out Boulder, an organization that is the mecca of support for Boulder County’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,Transgender and Queer communities, is hosting the Boulder premiere of Limited Partnership. Everyday, Out Boulder provides help, information and services for the issues that impact the daily lives of the Boulder community. The screening is an event of Boulder Pridefest 2014.
