I receive this bill in the name of the whole society in Argentina, even on behalf of those that disagree with it. In a few years this debate will be absolutely anachronistic. ... I think [this] constitute[s] a major milestone on the road to equality. ... [W]e have not really passed a law, we have enacted a social construct and a good social construct is diverse, it is plural, broad and does not belong to anyone but those who built it: society.

The legislation faced strong opposition from the Catholic Church [official website], which organized protests outside of the capitol building during debate on the bill, gathering more than 60,000 people [AP report]. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio [official website] criticized the legislation, stating that it interfered with a child's right to be raised by a mother and father. Freedom to Marry [advocacy website], a US-based same-sex marriage advocacy group, described the passage as a "human rights achievement" [press release] demonstrating Argentina's movement to "true democratic values." Recent polling has shown that 70 percent [NYT report] of the Argentine public support the legislation. Same-sex marriage is recognized in jurisdictions in Mexico and the US, and is recognized nationwide in Canada, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Norway, Iceland and South Africa [JURIST reports].