Meet The Pastor Who leads marriage equality push
Pastor leads marriage equality push
Perry
In the battle for marriage equality, the Rev. Elder Troy Perry has seen progress in the struggle he has led for more than 40 years, but there is much left for him to do.
The Supreme Court has struck down sodomy laws. And gay marriage is legal in five places, including New England, Iowa and Washington, D.C. As such laws and domestic partnerships become more common, the son of a Tallahassee bootlegger remains focused.
"There's no reason to discriminate anymore," said Perry, who will speak as part of Trinity Metropolitan Community Church's installation of its new senior pastor, the Rev. Charles Tigard. "We have won the war, but there are some things we'll have to do. These are the skirmishes we're in now."
Perry, the founder of Metropolitan Community Churches nationwide, returns to his home state to reflect upon all that has transpired during his lifetime. Raised in the Pentecostal and Baptist faiths, he moved from Tallahassee to Daytona Beach and Winter Haven before marrying heterosexually and having two children.
After coming out as gay, he conducted the first gay wedding in the country -- he is not sure if it was late 1968 or early 1969 -- and then became the minister to seek out for such ceremonies. Perry conducted a wedding for 10,000 couples in front of the Lincoln Memorial in 2002 and has conducted other mass weddings in front of the Internal Revenue Service, a target of gay marriage proponents since gay couples still cannot file joint federal tax returns.
He recalled with a chuckle a marriage he performed in Sioux Falls, S.D., that riled the local constabulary.
I performed a holy union and as I finished it, six policemen came out of the bushes and arrested me," he said. "A Baptist minister had called them. The city attorney had better sense and said, 'Do not arrest Rev. Perry.'"
Perry calls himself an assimilator these days as he lives in Los Angeles with Philip DeBlieck, his partner of 25 years. The couple married in Canada; then former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced California would recognize such unions.
"This is a different day today," he said. "The culture is catching up with us all the time."
He spoke of a three-pronged gospel that involves Christian community, social action and salvation. And, he said, the battle he pioneered will continue.
"I'm an American citizen and certain things are guaranteed," he said. "As an adult, with another adult, I have the right to marry. I have fought for that all of my life."
Jim Ferrell of Sarasota is among those who appreciate Perry's efforts. As a 14-year member of Trinity, he has seen Perry before and is excited about his appearance as part of Tigard's installation.
"He stands up for human dignity and acceptance of individuals whoever and wherever we are," he said. "In the broader gay community, he's recognized for the leadership he's provided. He has a charisma like no one else."
Ferrell, 69, and his partner of 22 years, Ted Strenger, 76, were joined in a civil union three years ago in New Jersey. As a result, Ferrell's status as a former state employee there means Strenger has health benefits.
Such a development was stunning to Ferrell at first, he said.
"We never thought gay marriage would be a thing that would happen," said Ferrell, noting that they also could file state income tax jointly in New Jersey if they lived there. "There was a time 10 or 12 years ago and we were sitting in the dining room and saying gay marriage will never happen in our lifetime."
That it has in many states is not surprising to the Rev. Nancy Wilson, but she is equally focused on what remains to be done. The new moderator of MCC Churches worldwide and a Bradenton resident, she pointed to bullying during the past year and suicides by teenagers uncomfortable with revealing their sexuality.
As various court battles proceed and the public perception of gay marriage continues to shift, Wilson said, progress will continue. Perry's voice will be heard as it happens, said Wilson, who was the pastor at Trinity from 2001 to 2005.
"Rev. Perry is a pioneer of both religious inclusion of gay people and of civil rights," she said in comparing him to Martin Luther King Jr. "It's a dance between the legislative, the fight in the courts and the fight for the hearts and minds of the people."
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