Meet the US chaplain hurrying to help LGBTQ+ couples tie the knot before Trump’s presidency

Ever since Donald Trump was elected for a second, non-consecutive presidential term in office, the LGBTQ+ community has worried about what that could mean for equal marriage rights in the US. One Iowa chaplain is helping these couples plan their weddings before his presidency begins.

The last Trump presidency led to a roll-back of protections and anti-discrimination laws for LGBTQ+ people, and it doesn’t look as if his second term would be any different, based on campaign promises and the detailed policy proposals outlined in Project 2025.

Before Trump’s win, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) suggested a new Trump administration would “reinstate and significantly escalate the removal of anti-discrimination policies… proactively require discrimination by the federal government [and] weaponise federal law against transgender people across the country”.

There are fears that marriage equality could be reversed in the country. After crucial abortion legislation Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, many people suggested that next, they would be coming for Windsor and Obergefell and Lawrence – three rulings that unlocked a national right to same-sex marriage.

Alongside the organisation Lesbians of Iowa, Chaplain Anitta Milloro has launched the database For A Time Such As This to connect queer couples with suppliers that are willing to provide comped services to them. This includes photographers, officiants, venues, living will and notary services, and everything in between to help get their wedding underway within “the next two months”.

As per local news outlet KCCI, the organisation is currently supporting over 40 queer couples to wed. Milloro said to the news station: “There’s only so long that I can sit in suffering before I have to roll up my sleeves and do something.

“We take care of ourselves. That’s what we’ve had to do, that’s what we’ll continue to do.”

Milloro’s project provides those looking to wed with an interactive map showing which services are offered across the US before the new administration comes into office. 

The state of Iowa legalised marriage equality in 2009, and the state GOP told the outlet that it does not have plans to overturn marriage equality, and those who suggest otherwise are “fearmongering”.

Those seeking wedding resources or suppliers willing to provide them can contact Milloro through the Lesbians of Iowa website here.