ND newspaper changes its policy on wedding notices

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota's largest newspaper is changing its policy to allow for same-sex wedding announcements — provided the marriage is legal.

The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead was criticized locally and online after the paper rejected the wedding announcement for two women. Forum officials say more than 600 people contacted the paper about the policy.

Forum Editor Matthew Von Pinnon announced the change Sunday in his weekly column. He says the paper will publish gay marriages, engagements and anniversaries if the marriage takes place in a state or country where it's legally recognized.

The women who raised the issue — 27-year-old Kelsey Smith, of Fargo, and 31-year-old Allison Johnson, of Austin, Texas — live in Fargo but are to be married Aug. 1 in New York City, where same-sex marriages are legal.

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