A bill to outlaw same-sex marriages on the Navajo Nation is an unwarranted intrusion of government into persona; lives, Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. said in vetoing the measure this week.

Shirley said gay marriage is a non-issue on the reservation. He said the Din Marriage Act of 2005 doesn't address real family problems faced by Navajo families, including domestic violence and gangs.

Shirley said he would only support a ban on same-sex marriage if the Navajo people called for it through a referendum. The bill at issue would have amended tribal law to ban marriages between members of the same gender and close family members.

Get the Story:
Navajo president vetoes bill banning same-sex unions (The Gallup Independent 5/2)

Relevant Links:
Navajo Nation - http://www.navajonation.org

Related Stories:
Navajo president vetoes bill to ban gay marriage (5/2)
Navajo president weighs bill to ban gay marriage (4/26)
Navajo Nation Council votes to ban same-sex marriage (4/25)
Navajo Nation Council takes up same-sex marriage (4/22)
Tim Giago: Gay marriage debate killed Democrats (4/19)
Navajo Nation Council to take up same-sex marriage (4/18)
Blackfeet man says homosexuals unnatural (03/17)
Vote scheduled on tribal same-sex marriage ban (01/18)
Opinion: Cherokees learned bigotry from Baptists (10/01)
Navajo Nation bill would ban same-sex marriages (07/15)
Cherokee couple fights tribe's same-sex marriage ban (06/28)
Cherokee Nation couple denied right to marry (06/16)
Cherokee Nation council votes to ban gay marriage (6/15)
Few Oklahoma tribes have same-sex marriage rule (05/19)
Cherokee Nation seeking to ban same-sex marriage (5/17)
Giago: Gays were highly respected by Sioux Nation (09/22)