Ellen DeGeneres cancels trip to Bermuda after equal marriage ban
Celebrities have been calling for people to boycott Bermuda
Ellen DeGeneres has cancelled her trip to Bermuda following its same-sex marriage ban.
Bermuda made history last month for being the first country to repeal same-sex marriage less than a year after it was legalised in the country following a Supreme Cort ruling.
Bermuda’s governor John Rankin signed the Domestic Partnership Act 2017 last month, which clarifies that a marriage is void “unless the parties are respectively male and female.”
The repeal will take effect in May this year, but celebrities have already started speaking out against it, Gay Star News reports.
In response to the news, Ellen DeGeneres revealed she was boycotting the island in a tweet posted on Wednesday (March 7).
She wrote: “Bermuda just banned marriage equality. I guess I’m cancelling my trip. Anybody else?”
The talk show host was followed by pop duo Tegan and Sara who called on fans to support efforts to overturn the policy.
Retweeting Ellen’s original tweet and a link to a crowdfunding campaign to reclaim equal marriage on Thursday (March 8), the pair wrote: “Thinking of our friends in the LGBTQ community in Bermuda.
“‘Bermuda is the first country in the world to remove the right to marry for gay and lesbian couples.’ Learn more here and consider supporting the fight for justice and equality.”
Actress Patricia Arquette also urged fans to boycott the island, tweeting last month: “Bermuda just overturned marriage equality. Boycott #Bermuda”.
Meanwhile, cruise lines registered in Bermuda will not be able to host same-sex marriages, regardless of where the ships travel to.