NY Gay Marriage Bill Up for Vote: Senators Who Would Vote 'No'

Gay Marriage Rights are up for vote in New York!
(pictured left: NY Governor David Patterson)

New York Governor David Patterson introduced a gay marriage bill that would legalize same sex marriage in New York. On Tuesday, May 12, 2009 the bill passed an assembly vote of 82 to 52, moving the legislation to the NY State Senate.

In an interesting turn of events on Monday, June 8, Republicans staged a coup and seized power of the NY Senate. Some speculate Republicans are attempting to take seat in an effort to majority rule on upcoming legislation like the same sex marriage bill. Democratic Senators have only been seated for five months when the Republicans voted them out today, just two weeks short of a term.

A frustrated and angry Governor Patterson released a statement today in a live press conference regarding the Senate take-over:

"The actions taken on the senate floor today need to be exposed for what they are, an unnecessary distraction to government, dressed up in the cloak - falsely - of reform and good government," Paterson said in a statement.

"...I don’t care if I am the only one standing, but someone has got to stand up and say that this is wrong."


NY1, conducted a poll among all 62 New York State Senators recently on the legalization of same sex marriage. Below are the results, and they are astonishing!

This is a perfect opportunity to stand up and do something: write these Senators! Tell the ones who would vote 'Yes' - 'Thank you!'

Especially for those Senators who would vote 'No,' now is the time to make your voice heard. These Senators need to know what the people think! Urge them to vote FOR the legalization of same sex marriage in NY.

I've done an extensive amount of research FOR YOU to help make this process easier. Click the name of the Senator to send a personal email! THAT'S ALL YOU NEED TO DO! You can also connect to those Senators who have a Facebook page listed. A download link for all Senators' email addresses is at the end of this blog entry.

Would vote "Yes" (Email All Supporters)

Eric Adams, D-Brooklyn: Email | Facebook
Neil Breslin, D-Delmar: Email
Martin Dilan, D-Brooklyn: Email | Facebook
Thomas Duane, D-Manhattan: Email
Pedro Espada, D-Bronx: Email
Craig Johnson, D-Nassau: Email
Jeffrey Klein, D-Bronx/Westchester: Email
Liz Krueger, D-Manhattan: Email
Velmanette Montgomery, D-Brooklyn: Email
Suzi Oppenheimer, D-Westchester: Email | Facebook
Kevin Parker, D-Brookyn: Email
Bill Perkins, D-Manhattan: Email
Diane Savino, D-Staten Island/Brooklyn: Email
Eric Schneiderman, D-Manhattan/Bronx: Email | Facebook
Jose Serrano, D-Bronx/Manhattan: Email
Malcolm Smith, D-Queens: Email | Facebook
Daniel Squadron, D-Brooklyn/Manhattan: Email
Toby Ann Stavisky, D-Queens: Email | Facebook
Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Westchester: Email | Facebook
Antoine Thompson, D-Buffalo: Email

Would vote "No" (Email all NON-Supporters)

Darrel Aubertine, D-Cape Vincent: Email
John DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse: Email | Facebook
Ruben Diaz, D-Bronx: Email | Facebook
Hugh Farley, R-Niskayuna: Email
John Flanagan, R-Suffolk: Email
Charles Fuschillo, R-Nassau/Suffolk: Email
Martin Golden, R-Brooklyn: Email | Facebook
Joseph Griffo, R-Rome: Email
Shirley Huntley, D-Queens: Email | Facebook
Carl Kruger, D-Brooklyn: Email
Andrew Lanza, R-Staten Island: Email
William Larkin, R-Cornwall: Email
Kenneth LaValle, R-Suffolk: Email
Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton: Email
Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury: Email | Facebook
Carl Marcellino, R-Nassau/Suffolk: Email
George Maziarz, R-Newfane: Email | Facebook
Michael Nozzolio, R-Seneca Falls: Email | Facebook
George Onorato, D-Queens: Email
Senator Onorato sent me a personal email explaining he believes marriage is between a man and a woman. Tell him you disagree!
Frank Padavan, R-Queens/Bronx/Nassau: Email
Michael Ranzenhofer, R-Amherst: Email
Joseph Robach, R-Greece: Email | Facebook
Stephen Saland, R-Poughkeepsie: Email | Facebook
James Seward, R-Milford: Email
Dean Skelos, R-Nassau: Email
William Stachowski, D-Buffalo: Email | Facebook
Dale Volker, R-Depew: Email | Facebook
George Winner, R-Elmira: Email | Facebook
Catharine Young, R-Olean: Email | Facebook

Undecided (Email ALL Undecided Senators)

John Bonacic, R-Mt. Hope: Email | Facebook
Brian Foley, D-Suffolk: Email
Ruth Hassell-Thompson, D-Bronx/Westchester: Email
Owen Johnson, R-Suffolk: Email
Kemp Hannon, R-Nassau: Email
Roy McDonald, R-Saratoga: Email | Facebook
Hiram Monserrate, D-Queens: Email
John Sampson, D-Brooklyn: Email
David Valesky, D-Oneida: Email

Wouldn't Say (Email ALL Senators Who Wouldn't Say')

Joseph Addabbo, D-Queens: Email
James Alesi, R-East Rochester: Email | Facebook
Vincent Leibell, R-Westchester: Email
Thomas Morahan, R-Rockland: Email

Download ALL Senators' Email Addresses (Text File)

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California Supreme Court Prop 8 Ruling Challenged, Cases to be Heard in U.S. District Court

On Tuesday, May 26, the California Supreme Court ruled six to one in favor of upholding Proposition 8, the state amendment that denied same sex couples the right to marry.  The initial passing of Prop 8 in November 2008 also revoked the 18,000 marriage licenses granted previously in California.  Although the Supreme Court upheld Proposition 8, it ruled to recognize the 18,000 marriage licenses that were granted prior to the Supreme Court's decision.

Tuesday's decision caused an uproar when thousands took to the streets in major cities all across America to rally against Prop 8.  Organized by Robyn Tyler, a plaintiff in one of three cases filed against the State of California, the "Day of Decision" rally brought together congressional district leaders, LGBT rights organizations, members from LAMBDA Legal, LGBT citizens and straight allies to send a clear message that the fight for equality is not over.

Day of Decision rallies merely took a seat behind other breaking news in the media when President Obama nominated the first ever Latina to the U.S. Supreme Court the same day as California's ruling on Prop 8.

Tyler announced in a statement to Daily Queer News on May 27, 2009:

"No civil rights movement has ever lost.  Never.  We will win.  It’s not an “if” its a when.  Only we are going to have to fight like hell.  Shame on the California Supreme Court.  Six of them, except Justice Moreno, issued a cowardly decision based on one word...not amendment, not revision, but re-election.

I pledge that my wife Diane Olson and  I, and the 18,000 other couples who were married in the California prior to Nov. 5, 2009, will be part of a grassroots army of love warriors, and will never stop fighting until all of our rights are won, here in California, and on a Federal level for all of us in every State. Let us take our anger, and our passion to the streets, and never, ever get off. And if the National Democratic party does not, after 35 years of promises to our community, make sure we have full equal rights in this country, the gay divorce you are going to see is the gay communities divorce from the Democratic party.   We are a civil rights movement.  It’s time we acted like one."

The three cases filed against the State of California have now been elevated and are set to be heard federally in a U.S. District Court on July 2, 2009, sources say.

Stay up-to-date on all advances of marriage equality and LGBT rights issues by subscribing to Anything But Straight Blog.

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California Supreme Court to Decide on Prop 8 Tuesday May 26 @ 9 a.m. PST

Proposition 8, the California state bill that denied and revoked same sex marriage licenses, will go in front of the Supreme Court today at 9 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.

The controversial bill has received millions of dollars in funding from right-wing conservatives leading up to the initial passing of the state constitutional ammendment during the 2008 November election.

While millions of people worldwide rejoiced at the election of President Barrack Obama, millions of others were shocked at the result of Proposition 8, especially in a seemingly liberal state like California.

Expect to watch live coverage of the Supreme Court's decision on CNN.

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New York Mayor Bloomberg Announces Support of Marriage Equality Bill

Last night at the New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center's third annual Center Dinner, Mayor Michael J. Bloomberg publicly announced his support for a marriage equality bill. Having Mayor Bloomberg as an ally in this fight for recognition of same-sex marriage is a tremendous triumph, as well a strong indicator of even more inspiring change to come.

"I think you see that the tide is turning, that support is mounting," Bloomberg said to more than 350 guests. "It's still not going to be easy. There are people who don't agree, but it's incumbent on all of us to explain to people that this really is a basic right that people should have, and I think that it's time for Albany to set politics aside and do the right thing, and pass the gay marriage bill."

The Center applauds Mayor Bloomberg for standing up for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) equality. With Senator Schumer's recent call for the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, our community continues to gain significant support for civil rights.

It is extremely meaningful that Mayor Bloomberg chose the Center to make this announcement as the Center has been New York City's home for our community for over twenty-five years. Thanks to every person who is connected to the Center, we remain a strong advocate for LGBT issues. With continued support from our community, we will be able reinforce and act upon the need for change that Mayor Bloomberg has boldly set in motion.


Coutesy:  The Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Community Center

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Proposition 8 Campaign Can't Hide Donors' Names

Proposition 8 proponents' complaint that a California campaign-finance disclosure law has led to harassment of same-sex marriage opponents failed to sway a federal judge, who refused Thursday to throw out the law or shield donors' names.

"If there ever needs to be sunshine on a particular issue, it's a ballot measure," U.S. District Judge Morrison England said after a one-hour hearing in his Sacramento courtroom.

A lawyer for the Prop. 8 campaign said it would ask an appeals court to modify or overturn the law, which requires disclosure of all contributors of $100 or more.

Prop. 8, approved by voters Nov. 4, amended the state Constitution to recognize only marriage between a man and a woman, overturning the state Supreme Court's May 15 ruling that gay and lesbian couples have a constitutional right to marry.

Same-sex couples and local governments led by the city of San Francisco have filed suits to overturn Prop. 8, a case that the state's high court could hear as early as the first week in March.

The federal lawsuit, unrelated to the validity of Prop. 8, was filed Jan. 8 by the ballot measure's sponsoring committee, Protect Marriage. The suit said Internet disclosure of donors' names and other identifying information in state-mandated reports has led to consumer boycotts, picketing and even death threats.

By requiring disclosure, "The government is getting in the middle (of the issue) and saying, 'Here are the people to go after,' " Richard Coleson, a lawyer for the committee, told England.

He argued that the $100 disclosure requirement - adopted by California voters in 1974 - should be struck down, modified to raise the dollar limits, or at least not applied to Prop. 8's contributors. As a first step, Coleson said, the campaign should be exempted from the state's post-election contribution report, due Monday.

Otherwise, he said, in future initiative campaigns "you will have donations dry up, and one side will be able to overcome another by intimidation and not by persuasion."

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld campaign disclosure laws in 1976 but ruled in 1982 that the Socialist Workers Party in Ohio could shield its donors' names because of a history of attacks and reprisals.

Protect Marriage argued that it was entitled to the same exemption because of retaliation against some of its contributors, but lawyers for the state said the two cases weren't comparable. They noted that the Prop. 8 campaign raised nearly $30 million from 36,000 donors.

If the Prop. 8 campaign was exempted from disclosure because of reports of harassments of individual donors, said Deputy Attorney General Zackery Morazzini, the same case could be made for any controversial initiative. Courts would have to "keep the entire California electorate in the dark as to who was funding these ballot measures," he said.

England agreed.

He noted that some of the reprisals reported by the Prop. 8 committee involve legal activities such as boycotts and picketing. Other alleged actions, such as death threats, mailings of white powder and vandalism, may constitute "repugnant and despicable acts" but can be reported to law enforcement, the judge said.

Even if there have been illegal reprisals, that would be insufficient reason to grant a wholesale exemption for a multimillion-dollar initiative campaign, England said. He also rejected the Prop. 8 campaign's argument that the $100 disclosure limit established in 1974 should be increased for inflation, saying some states require reports of contributions as low as $25 and the Supreme Court has never invalidated them.

Any desire by donors to remain anonymous is outweighed by the state's authority to require "full and fair disclosure of everyone who's involved in these political campaigns," England said.

Protect Marriage still has a request pending before England to require the state to remove its past disclosure reports from the Internet. But the state says such an order would be futile because the reports have been widely distributed on private Web sites.

Coleson said the campaign would take its case against the disclosure law to the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

Referring to the donors whose names will appear in Monday's public report, campaign spokesman Frank Schubert said England's ruling "puts 1,600 people in harm's way."

Courtesy:  Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle

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Proposition 8 - The Musical starring Jack Black and an All-star Cast

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

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