Our Clients' Statement

Michelle "Monst*r" Esguerra and Boo Torres de Esguerra

Monst*r and Boo, together 7 years, share last names as a symbol of their love and commitment, and held a ceremony to celebrate that commitment in the summer of 2004. They purchased their first home together in Shoreline a couple of years ago, and currently live in Renton.

Monst*r is Filipina-American. Boo was born in California after her parents came to the U.S. from Guam, and is Chamorro. The two met in high school, though did not know each other well. After meeting by chance on a ferry boat a few years later, they fell in love. Both women share a passion for social justice and activism, and are trained electricians.

Like any other young couple, Monst*r and Boo have to make difficult decisions, and worry about their future. Their worry is different from married couples, however, because they do not have the legal protections that marriage provides. They have thought about obtaining wills and medical powers of attorney to protect themselves, but currently do not have the resources to do so. Boo is concerned, for example, that if something happened to her, the woman that she loves will not have access to the inheritance from her father's death.

In addition to concerns for the future, they have also struggled with day-to-day problems associated with not being married. Although they registered their domestic partnership in 2002, Monst*r cannot subscribe to Boo's healthcare plan because her employer does not offer domestic partnership benefits. Boo is troubled by the fact that she pays into the system to help supply coverage to the spouses of her heterosexual co-workers, but does not get the same in return. Monst*r has had to go without insurance, since individual coverage is so expensive. The couple also strongly believes that they would have to face less discrimination and homophobia if the state recognized their marriage.

When asked why she thinks that marriage is so important for them, Boo says that "I feel like if marriage were normalized, we would spend a lot less time doing all the things we need to do to have a life together and more time just living." Monst*r also talks about their marriage in terms of having children one day. She says that "Wanting to have children is another reason why we want to be married. We worry that there would be more risks to us, and to our children, if we had children without being married, and I want our children to be assured that their parents' commitment to one another isn't seen as different or less important."

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