By Yepoka Yeebo
DNAinfo Reporter/ Producer
MANHATTAN — Just one same-sex couple in Manhattan was legally linked yesterday when the City Clerk's Office opened it's chapels to domestic partnership ceremonies.
City Clerk Michael McSweeney told the Wall Street Journal's Metropolis blog that one same-sex couple opted for the ceremony in the Bronx, and one opposite-sex couple also went for the ceremony, but none of the couples had apparently done much advanced planning.
"I got the sense that maybe it was a last-minute decision," McSweeney told the Journal. "The proof will be tomorrow. Friday is always the biggest day for ceremonies in general."
Mayor Michael Bloomberg told the Journal that he was in favor of domestic partnerships for same-sex couples who can not legally get married in New York State, however: "I don't see any reason why they shouldn't just be able to get married."
The new ceremony, held in a small chapel, involves a script close to marriage vows, a token of commitment like a ring, and an additional $25 on top of the $35 domestic partnership fee.
"It's inequality, it's a sham," said Cathy Marino-Thomas of Marriage Equality New York. "It's another way to celebrate how people can be treated unequally in New York City."
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the city council's first openly gay leader, said the city was ahead of Albany.
"Every time we find a way to go further than we thought in this municipality, it shines attention on the fact that the state Senate has not gone as far as it could go," she told the Journal.
A marriage equality bill failed in the state Senate last fall. Domestic partnerships, for all couples, have been legal in new York City since 1993.
