Same-sex couples are already getting married in a number of Michigan counties after today’s Supreme Court ruling.
With TV crews hovering nearby, Lori Hazelton and Stephanie Wade exchanged rings in a tiny conference room at the Muskegon County Clerk’s office.
It wasn’t the quite the wedding Hazelton once hoped for; one with family and friends.
"But honestly I’m glad we were seen as actual people to get married today, which is great and I feel like I’m going to cry again. Love is love regardless," Lori Hazelton said.
The two have been together eight years. They were high school sweethearts.
Other same sex couples lined up behind the Hazeltons, getting their paperwork and getting on with their lives.
Lauren Brown of East Lansing married her partner Lindsey Wren at the Ingham County Courthouse shortly after the decision was announced.
“It’s amazing how fast it went from being nothing to being legally married. In the work of an hour, I guess –although, decades of struggle,” said Brown.
A number of county clerks are waiving the three-day waiting period for marriage licenses today.
In Midland, Andrew and Craig Eagly were married. Watch a video of the ceremony below:
Michigan Radio's political analyst Jack Lessenberry notes that Supreme Court decisions usually take effect 26 days afterwards, "but in this case people aren't waiting."
