#Decor #worlds #gay #wedding #disappears #shame #Domestic
The current council chamber has been in use since 1986 and, according to the presidium, the executive board of the municipal council, is in need of renovation. There is wear and tear, damage and the technology is faltering. Moreover, it is not easily accessible for people with disabilities and is therefore not inclusive.
There will be a thorough renovation in 2025. 3 million euros have been included in the capital budget for this. It is not yet known what the new council chamber will look like. But it is expected that the current design will disappear.
Historical
The council chamber is not necessarily popular with council members. It is a ‘dark hole’, it sounds. But it is also the place where the very first gay wedding in the world took place on April 1, 2001. Due to the renovation, the decor of this historic event will disappear.
“It is a shame,” responds Henk Krol, advocate of gay marriage. He still remembers that night well. “It was a big party. There were film crews from China to America. In that sense, a historical object disappears.”
Despite
Krol was involved in the rollout of same-sex marriage in other countries. He often took foreign guests to the council chamber. “People from Taiwan, for example, thought it was wonderful that they could take a look at the council chamber. It had a very important meaning for those people.”
“We in the Netherlands are not proud enough that we were the first country in the world to open up marriage. You’ve lost a memorable place, that’s a shame. But it’s no different. Things disappear. You and me too,” says Krol.
World first
On the ground floor of the Stopera there is a memorial plaque in honor of the world premiere. Krol hopes that the new council chamber will also be referred to, for example with a photo exhibition. “It is our most beautiful intangible export product. Especially at a time when emancipation is on the decline, we should be proud of that.”
Job Cohen performed the first gay marriage as mayor. “If you ask me what I’m proud of, that’s it,” he says. “Only one person can say that he performed the first gay marriage in the world and that is me.”
The former mayor did not know that the room would change. Like Krol, he calls it a shame. “But that’s it.”
