This year, everyone gets to say ‘I do’

In Spanish, you don’t say “I do.” You say, “I accept.” And that makes the name of the nonprofit organization working to usher in Costa Rica’s era of marriage equality – Sí Acepto – all the more poignant. It’s what gay couples will finally be able to say once the law changes in May, but it’s also what the rest of the country needs to say, over and over, in larger and larger numbers.

The campaigns that Sí Acepto has been organizing around the country are aimed at easing that transition. I’ve just been sitting here worrying about what might lie ahead for same-sex couples who enter the spotlight once marriage equality arrives in May, not realizing that Sí Acepto, among other amazing organizations in this field, are on it. They’re making advertisements, highlighting the economic benefits that increased wedding tourism will bring, and organizing workshops to help raise awareness about what marriage equality is all about.

At their website, you can sign a statement showing your support for marriage equality, share your story (no matter what your background or sexual orientation) about why this issue is important to you, donate time or money to the cause, and more. And their Facebook feed is the clearinghouse for inspiring stories about people planning to wed this year, news about the work going on nationwide, and more.

Thanks, Sí Acepto, for charging to the fore in building a country that says “I do,” not just to more weddings but to a better, fairer society.

I’m a writer in San José, Costa Rica, on a year-long quest to share daily posts on inspiring people, places and ideas from my adopted home as a kind of tonic during a rough time in the world. Sign up (top right of this page) to receive a little dose of inspiration every weekday in your mailbox; tell a friend; check out past posts; and please connect with me on Instagram or Facebook! Each month in 2020 has a monthly theme, and February’s is marriage equality, so scroll back through the month to see several posts highlighting people and organizations working on behalf of this issue in Costa Rica.