Thursday (April 1) wasn't just April Fools' Day; the first of the month also marked 20 years since Dutch couple Gert Kasteel and Dolf Pasker made history together when they tied the knot as part of the world’s first legally-recognized same-sex wedding in the Netherlands.
Kasteel and Pasker were among four couples (three male and one female) to wed after midnight by the mayor of Amsterdam on April 1, 2001. To this day, three marriages are still intact. One of the men, Frank Wittebrood, passed away of a heart attack in 2011. He was 55. "It's nicer to say to other people, 'He’s my husband, he’s my man,'" Dolf said while sitting next to Gert as they looked at photos and newspaper clippings of their headline-making marriage. "It has helped me to accept myself."
As per Reuters, most European Union countries, including Britain, United States, Australia, Mexico and South Africa, are among the 29 nations to have legalized same-sex marriage since 2001. "I'm very proud that it’s possible," Gert said, before Dolf jumped in and finished his sentence. "...That we could play a little part of it. We made history."
Photo: Getty Images