[JURIST] Mexico City's local assembly [official website, in Spanish] approved a same-sex marriage law [text, PDF; in Spanish] on Monday, seeking to extend equal rights to gay couples throughout the city. The proposed legislation would allow for marriage, adoption, inheritance, and other human, economic, and social rights. The provisions also seek to end discrimination based on sexual orientation. Mexico City mayor Marcelo Ebrard [CityMayors profile] is expected to sign the bill [LAT report] into law, against the wishes of many of the country's Roman Catholic population.
While Mexico City's proposed legislation may be the most far-reaching in Latin America, rights for same-sex couples currently exist in Uruguay and in several Argentinian cities. Last month, some 50,000 protesters marched [JURIST report] in Buenos Aires in support of proposed legislation in Argentina's parliament. Earlier this year, Uruguay passed a law to allow same-sex couples to adopt [JURIST report].