US: Amusement park cancels wedding contest after protest as it excluded gay couples
A US amusement park has cancelled a wedding contest following a protest by a gay couple who complained as it excluded same-sex couples.
The competition at Cedar Point amusement park in the US state of Ohio was initially limited to straight couples, because, the company said, the state does not allow gay couples to marry.
A spokesman for Cedar Point said it took the decision to cancel the competition once it began to attract political attention.
The competition had intended to select thirteen couples to marry on Friday 13 September.
Speaking to the Sandusky Register, the gay couple said they wanted to enter until they saw the rules. An online campaign was then started with the hope of having the rules changed.
Equal marriage advocacy group FreedomOhio hopes to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot for Ohio later this year or next, which would remove the 2004 amendment which banned equal marriage.
In 2004, the amendment banning equal marriage passed with 62% of voters supporting.
