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Kolbe ‘astonished’ by pace of change in same-sex marriage debate

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Monday, Oct. 20, 2014

By Justin McDuffie

WASHINGTON – It’s been close to 20 years since former U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe of Arizona came out, making him the first Republican congressman to acknowledge he was gay. While that may seem like a long time, Kolbe said Monday that the speed of changes in same-sex marriage laws since then – a federal judge struck down Arizona’s ban on such marriages Friday, capping a 10-day period in which bans in several states fell – has astonished him. He called the fight for same-sex marriage another fight for civil rights. And, like that fight, he said that while the campaign for marriage equality “is essentially over,” the fight against discrimination and hate crimes is ongoing.