This 3-year-old cutie patootie, media darling, and future diva joined a crowd of about 50 same-sex marriage activists at a rally on the steps of Troy City Hall on Friday evening.
Coming on heels of the NJ Supreme Court decision instructing the legislature to develop comparable marriage benefit legislation for same-sex couples, Jim de Seve of the grassroots group Feet to Fire organized a press conference calling on local representatives State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and Assemblymember Ron Canestrari to approve same-sex marriage in New York. This summer, the NY Supreme Court decided that the state constitution didn't preclude such equality, but it didn't mandate it either. A case of one step forward, one step back.
The event was covered by WNYT Channel 13 on their 11 p.m. broadcast and in the local newspaper The Record. Conspicuously absent was any representation from the capital district's largest newspaper The Times Union with a bureau office just one block from the rally.
Additional Resources:
Lambda Legal
Empire State Pride Agenda
I have been very active in the fight for GLBT rights in California. This press conference shows how times have changed. About ten years ago, before same-sex marriage was a household phrase, GLBT activists decided on a dual track approach to achieving marriage equality in California. Now, instead of taking bites of the apple, the whole pie is within reach!
Track one would establish a Domestic Partnership Registry (thank you, Carole Migden) and build upon it. Each legislative session, more rights and responsibilities would be added to the framework. Now, in 2006, Domestic Partners in California are nearly "married" — lacking all those federal benefits. Don't expect to enjoy them unless you live there, though, thanks to DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) passed by a Republican congress and signed by former Democratic President Bill Clinton.
Track two would strive for complete marriage equality, making gains through the courts and legislature as public opinion allowed. For those that complain of "activist judges" and say the people should decide, they should be concerned that both houses of the Democratic-controlled California legislature passed a same-sex marriage bill in 2005 (thank you, Mark Leno). What happened to it? Republican Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed it. His reason? This is an issue that needs to be decided by the courts. Feel like you're chasing your tail yet? Democrat Gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides is on record as saying he will sign such a bill. But alas, it appears that the Governator's approval rating is rising and is likely to be re-elected.
California is crucial in this struggle since it often leads the country in public policy. Its shear size, both politically and economically, allows it to excert a lot of influence and gives other public figures the political cover to do the right thing. One good example of this is how states in the Northeast adopt California's auto tailpipe emissions standards.
New York, for all its size and strength, is way behind the curve on this one.
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