Kyle, his partner of nearly three years, was doing the same at his desk in the offices of SkyWest Airlines, where he was a systems-support supervisor. He was at home, aware the Supreme Court was releasing the ruling, refreshing his Twitter feed every few minutes. It was June 26, 2015-a crystalline morning in St. Garett remembered the day the Obergefell decision was announced. Church spokesman Eric Hawkins says, "the Church is on record repeatedly supporting rights for LGBT people, including in the areas of housing and employment."This new policy, however, caused some serious existential whiplash. Their support for 2015's "fairness for all" legislation in Utah was praised by the LGBT community both in the state and across the country. The Church had been taking small but significant steps forward, acknowledging that being gay isn't a choice and that families should accept their LGBT loved ones. The Church had often fought against the rising tide of marriage equality its members were major financial backers of 2008's Prop 8 in California, which briefly banned same-sex marriage in the state before being overturned.Īfter more progressive Church members voiced strong disapproval, Garett, like many Mormons, believed the spiritual leaders were warming to gay rights. It had always been challenging to be gay and Mormon. The new policy puts children of LGBT couples on the same level as children of those who ascribe to a practice long ago abandoned by the Church: polygamy.
This put children of LGBT couples at the same level as children of those who ascribe to a practice long ago abandoned by the Church: polygamy. (The policy was later clarified to apply only to children whose primary residence is with same-sex parents.) Children of same-sex parents could not be blessed, baptized, or ordained into the priesthood until they were eighteen, and only if they first disavowed their parents' relationship and all other same-sex marriages.
She wanted her son to know that, for once, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints did not reflect her views, and that her faith-until then unflappable-was being tested.Ī policy change to the Handbook, the manual Mormon leaders use to enforce doctrinal consistency across the Church, had just been made public: Mormons in "same-gender marriages or similar relationships" would be deemed apostates at risk of excommunication.
On November 5, 2015, Garett received a series of distraught texts from his mother, Linda. "But it's everywhere you look." He's visibly frustrated. "People tell us not to think about the Church and leave it alone," says Kyle. They don't even feel comfortable holding hands in public-"unless it's Sunday, when most people who wouldn't like us are at Church," says Garett.On the drive home, they pass the local Mormon temple. "This is where we live," Kyle adds with a halfhearted chuckle.
Garett points to a postcard of Jesus taped to the windshield of a car parked at the venue. Kyle and Garett often fly to Salt Lake City to feel surrounded by a stronger LGBT community. George." He estimates that there are a few hundred LGBT people in the area, with about eight hundred allies who come to special events they organize. "We don't see them a lot, but these people are our family in St. Kyle nearly loses his voice from all of the supportive whooping."There's no pride center or gay club or place that unites us," Kyle says as he walks out into the night. Kyle and Garett sip on hard cider, whisper in each other's ears, and sneak quick kisses throughout the night. Minutes later, the lights dim and a belly dancer jumps onstage, slinking about with a yellow snake around her neck while Britney Spears' "I'm a Slave 4 U" blasts in the background. "I think every gay Mormon child wishes for a mom like that," Garett says wistfully. She's a "mama dragon," a term the Mormon community uses to describe mothers who fiercely advocate for gay rights. Linda Stay, their close friend and future wedding officiate, walks over and gives both men large hugs.
Kyle shrugs and they both put their hands together. Their letters of resignation from the Mormon church had been submitted five months earlier soon after, they received confirmation from the Church that their names had been removed from the membership records. "Put your hands together if you're Mormon," Drag Donald shouts. George, Utah, to raise money for the cancer treatment of the mother of a gay man in the community, and the Fire House is one of the few venues in town that hosts LGBT events. We're at a drag-show charity event in St. Garett Smith sits in Kyle Cranney's lap, laughing and clapping, as Drag Donald Trump emcees at the Fire House Bar & Grill.