The fulfillment of military obligations, then marriage and the creation of a family, alongside of course the arduous effort for professional and social recognition, these are the basic stages in the life of every responsible Greek man.
And although he defined his own timeline, subverting the usual and established sequence of milestones in his life's journey, Stefanos Kasselakis confirms through his marriage to his partner, Tyler McBeth, that he does not deviate at all from the conventional male model , as the majority of Greeks perceive it.
First, therefore, Mr. Kasselakis is getting married today in New York and then he will enlist in the army, so that he can then devote himself undividedly to his duties as president of SYRIZA-PS and de facto leader of the official opposition in the Greek political scene. It is a common secret, after all, that a successful politician without a transparent and conventional personal/family life is not understood. So, with his marriage, Stefanos Kasselakis closes this important pending matter.
And although absolute silence and secrecy were observed regarding the performance of the wedding ceremony until the moment he announced the happy news to his SYRIZA comrades, Stefanos Kasselakis proves to be exemplary consistent with the moral obligation - especially according to the most traditional, until and still conservative concept - to officially restore the man with whom he intends to spend the rest of his life.
The couple's intimates, family members and close friends of Mr. Kasselakis and MacBeth will probably not have the opportunity to hear how wonderfully the text of the wedding ceremony in the orthodox Christian tradition evokes such happy occasions, that is, shocking words such as "not only is the man on earth. Join them [ss: the couple that marries] in oneness, crown them in one flesh. You grant them the fruit of the belly, the enjoyment of eutecnia" etc. However, regardless of the ritual itself, no one doubts that today's wedding - certainly not "in Cana of Galilee" since war is taking place in those places at the present stage, but in New York - will remain unforgettable for the privileged attendees.
The union with the bonds of marriage follows the covenant of cohabitation, as an even stronger identification in the common destiny henceforth, between two people evidently in love, as Mr. Kasselakis and McBeth. Besides, part of the communication tactics of Stefanos Kasselakis from the beginning of his appearance in our political scene, was the clear and open admission that he not only identifies himself as gay, but is also in a stable relationship with his American partner.
Also, it is very important that Tyler McBeth is always by his man's side in every appearance, whether in the public or private aspect of their lives. Always smiling and unabashedly proud of what his 4-year-older partner is achieving, 31-year-old Mr McBeth has already become well-known and popular in his own right. After all, as Stefanos Kasselakis has emphasized since his first victory speech as the new president of SYRIZA-PS, "Tyler has a lot to offer our country".
If nothing else, Tyler McBeth has a lot to offer Greece and the change of gender identity stereotypes, etc., even if he does absolutely nothing: It is enough to show up, for example, at the next reception of the President of the Republic, in honor of someone of a distinguished foreign visitor or on the occasion of the restoration of the Republic. As the first legal same-sex spouse of a Greek political leader in history.
As for their relationship so far, everything anyone would want to know about how Stefanos met and fell in love with Tyler and Tubalin is covered in the most extensive interview the two have ever given and is detailed in their bios. This interview was granted to Antivirus magazine in July 2023, when Mr. Kasselakis was still just a new face surrounding Alexis Tsipras.
From this specific publication, it is worth mentioning, in connection with today's wedding, the following excerpts from the confessions of Mr. Kasselakis and Macbeth:
"My first coming out [ss: says Stefanos Kasselakis] happened 4 years ago, at the age of 31, when I told Tyler. In America, when you're 31 and you're coming out, they say 'Oh my god, that's late'. This was the first time for me. Until then, I had buried the question of my sexual preferences. I was also in a relationship with a girl from 21 to 26, after university. I don't identify as bi, it's just that sometimes things are more fluid. But the older I got, the more I realized my orientation. In fact, the oxymoron was that I had a good relationship with the girl. So in 2019, I made the decision to seek help and reach out to mental health professionals with experience in LGBTI+ issues.
» Until then no one knew anything, maybe only a friend of mine from high school, with whom we had grown up together. Then I met Tyler. I ran into him in various places in New York - at the gym, at Starbucks, on the street, etc. After some phase when you start seeing a person so many times, you greet them. At one point we happened to be walking together leaving the gym. I didn't know what to say and decided to put on my headphones. Then he touched me and asked if I lived in the neighborhood. And so we started talking.
» I wasn't open about your sexuality at all when we met, but I saw a diamond man in terms of heart and personality. At one point and after we hung out, I remember him trying to fish me out. He asked my opinion of the children. I told him that at some point I would like to. He then explained to me that in his case it's something you have to plan well. I understood what he meant. Why do you only talk about your own case? The same is true in my case,' I replied. This was the first time I said it openly.
» Even before we officially started our relationship as a couple (two months passed), I introduced him to my friends. It went very well. I would also say it went great when I introduced Tyler to my family – by Greek standards. For American ones, not so much. But the important thing is that my family accepted it. My mother at first, although a professor at the dental school at UPENN with experience in diversity training, had the reaction that 'OK, you're going through a phase'. My father for 2-3 weeks simply did not want to talk about the issue. He didn't want us to have any discussion about it. Fortunately, though, that didn't last long. Ever since then, they have adored Tyler, my mother wants nothing more than for us to have children and be able to come help us.
» Having children is something we would very much like. We have made a cohabitation agreement in America and what we are planning now is to have children with a surrogate mother. But it saddens me that in America we can have children and a family that will not be recognized in Greece".
Especially on the issue of having children, Mr. Kasselakis' views have recently sparked stormy reactions. Personalities with wide recognition and influence, such as the former minister Mr. Thanos Pleuris, the MP of SYRIZA-PS Ms. Elena Akrita, the criminologist Mr. Alexis Kougias among others, severely criticized Stefanos Kasselakis. Emphasizing that gender pre-ordering is morally and ideologically unacceptable, dangerous, racist, etc. So is the perception of children as "in the image and likeness" of any of their parents. But even surrogacy itself on behalf of same-sex couples is simply not provided for by Greek law.
The controversial statement of Mr. Kasselakis was made in the context of his in-depth interview with Stavros Theodorakis. In his own words verbatim, Stefanos Kasselakis said at the time that "someone may look blindly, but at the end of the day we know who we are. I think we are already family. Tyler and I would like to expand our family. We want to have two boys, Apollo and Ilias. With a surrogate mother. We would like the personality of each of us to be transferred to the children. It is very important that other couples choose adoption and in my eyes they are just as much families. We are talking about people's lives. The government must finally understand this."
However, in the same interview, Mr. Kasselakis referred to Mr. McBeth with obvious tenderness: "We are already a family with Tyler. You become a family when you have a fellow human being with whom you align psychologically, value-wise and create your ecosystem. Two people who choose love are family. Love makes a family."
Source: First issue