Post #2 - Gay Marriage in New York

Thanks to everyone that commented on the first post, I hope you'll check out this one as well. Feel free to comment on the previous post as well, if you haven't.

The first article is here: CLICK

The second article is here. CLICK


Posted for your convenience: 

FIRST ARTICLE - Catholic Broadcasting Network

May 13, 2009

New York: The Next State to OK Gay Marriage?

New York is one step closer to becoming the sixth state to legalize gay marriage.

The state assembly passed legislation Tuesday night, but the bill could face a tougher battle in the state senate.

Same-Sex Marriage Bill Passes

It was a long Tuesday night in the New York Assembly. After about four hours of debate, the same-sex marriage bill passed by a vote of 89 to 52.

However, the assembly passed the bill in 2007 and it died in the senate. So far, there does not appear to be the 32 votes in the senate to pass the measure.

But the battle continues with New York's Catholic governor leading the charge to get a bill on his desk and New York's Catholic archbishop taking a vocal stand against it.

"We stand to tell the world that we want equality for everyone," said Gov. David Patterson. "We stand to tell the world that we want marriage equality in New York State."

"My brother bishops here in New York are already beginning to formulate a good stand and public posture on that, and you can count on me to be a part of that," said Archbishop Timothy Dolan.

Not Clear When State Senate Will Work on Measure

Democrats did not control the New York State Senate when they defeated this bill in 2007. They do now. But it is not clear when the senate will take up the issue.

The legislative session ends in June and the majority leader says he won't bring the issue to the senate floor until the 32 votes are secured.

So for now, gay marriage is legal in the states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont and Maine.

SECOND ARTICLE - The Huffington Post

April 16, 2009

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New York Gay Marriage Bill Introduced by Governor Paterson

NEW YORK — Gov. David Paterson introduced a bill Thursday to legalize same-sex marriage in New York, comparing the effort to the fight for the abolition of slavery.

Paterson, whose job approval rating has plunged below 30 percent, is making a political gamble that he can ride the momentum of other states that have recently allowed the practice, and it's unclear how the legislation will play in New York.

The proposal is the same bill the Democratic-controlled state Assembly passed in 2007 before it died in the Senate, where the Republican majority kept it from going to a vote. Democrats now control the Senate, but opponents are vowing to make sure this one fails, as well. Some Democrats in the Senate have indicated they won't support a same-sex marriage bill.

Gay marriage is a crucial issue of equal rights in America that cannot be ignored, Paterson said. He was joined by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, other elected officials, gay rights advocates and his wife, Michelle Paterson.

"For too long, gay and lesbian New Yorkers _ we have pretended they have the same rights as their neighbors and friends," he said. "That is not the case. All have been the victims of what is a legal system that has systematically discriminated against them."

Paterson, the state's first black governor, framed the issue in sweeping terms, invoking Frederick Douglass and Harriet Beecher Stowe and drawing a parallel between the fight to eliminate slavery in the 1800s and the current effort to allow gay marriage.

"Rights should not be stifled by fear," Paterson said. "What we should understand is that silence should not be a response to injustice. And that if we take not action, we will surely lose."

Gay and lesbian couples are denied as many as 1,324 civil protections _ such as health care and pension rights _ because they cannot marry, Paterson said.

"Look me in the eye and tell me that Kim and I aren't a family, that we don't struggle every day, that we don't pay taxes, that we don't work every day in this city," she said. "No one can look me or her in the eye and tell us that, because it is not true."

At the same time Paterson was announcing his proposal, Sen. Ruben Diaz, also a Democrat but an opponent of same-sex marriage, met with religious leaders to discuss how to block the bill.

Diaz, an evangelical pastor from the Bronx, said his meeting was to inform Hispanics, Catholics, evangelicals and others opposed to same-sex marriage of their options to prevent the bill's passage.

Diaz said it was disrespectful of Paterson to introduce the legislation in the same week that Catholics celebrated the installation of New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, who has voiced opposition to same-sex marriage.

"I think it's a laugh in the face of the new archbishop," Diaz said Thursday before the start of his meeting in the Bronx. "The Jews just finished their holy week. The Catholics just received the new archbishop. The evangelical Christians just celebrated Good Friday and resurrection. He comes out to do this at this time? It's a challenge the governor is sending to every religious person in New York, and the time for us has come for us to accept the challenge."

Paterson, who attended Dolan's ceremony Wednesday at St. Patrick's Cathedral, defended the timing of his announcement and brushed off suggestions that he was deflecting attention from the state's financial troubles, saying he has supported same-sex marriage publicly since 1994.

"I haven't in any way changed my point of view," he said. "We stand to tell the world we want marriage equality in New York state."

Paterson noted he was introducing the proposal with "the winds at our back," referring to the recent approval of same-sex marriage in Iowa and Vermont.

New York Democrats gained a 32-30 Senate majority in November's elections. Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith, who did not attend Thursday's announcement, supports the measure but has said he doesn't believe there are enough votes to pass it.

A Quinnipiac University poll this month showed that 41 percent of New York voters backed legalized same-sex marriage; that 33 percent favored civil unions; and that 19 percent wanted no legal recognition for such couples.

In March, a Marist College poll showed Paterson's job approval rating was 26 percent, down from 46 percent in January and 57 percent in October.

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What do you think about these articles individually and in comparison? Did either seem biased? How do you feel about the source? Did it present the issue effectively? Also I want to get some feedback concerning public opinion about the issues themselves, so don't be afraid to state your own opinion.

Thanks,

Sofie