Monday was a momentous and historic day in Minnesota. The state Senate debated and passed a bill that made Minnesota the twelfth state with marriage equality, the third state to advance that cause in three weeks, and the first state in the midwest to do so legislatively. A large crowd supporting the bill, sprinkled with a small number of bill opponents, filled the capitol rotunda and many other parts of the capitol. They demonstrated, sang, chanted, and cheered through the afternoon as the senators debated the bill. It created a festive and electric atmosphere, and generated a lot of noise in that beautiful, grand structure. But the real beauty was democracy at work to achieve what is good and right and just. What a noise erupted, and what joy, when the Senate took its vote and passed the marriage bill. It was deafening. It was amazing. Governor Dayton signed the bill into law the next afternoon.
The panoramic photo above (click on it to see a somewhat larger version) was taken Monday, May 13, 2013 in the capitol rotunda during the afternoon while the Senate debated the bill and the crowd anticipates passage. Six separate photos were carefully stitched together creating a 58.2 megapixel image. I hope to have more photos from the afternoon available soon.
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