Via HRC:

Dear Daniel,

The hopes and dreams of millions just came true: Marriage equality is about to become the law of the land in New York.

Just now, in a bipartisan vote, the New York State Senate approved a bill granting same-sex couples the same rights and responsibilities of marriage as everyone else. It'll soon go to Governor Cuomo – a stalwart champion of marriage equality – for his signature.

This was no easy victory. In 2009, right-wing groups helped derail marriage equality at the last minute. And just a few weeks ago, the extremist National Organization for Marriage (NOM) committed $1.5 million to stop us from passing this law. But you helped prove once again that with commitment, dedication, and the will to fight, anything is possible.

Here's how your support has helped make this win possible:

• First, you laid the groundwork by investing staff and money in key campaigns that put pro-equality lawmakers in office last year, including Governor Cuomo.
• For the marriage fight, you helped recruit more than 1,000 volunteers, deliver more than 75,515 post cards, and place more than 25,622 phone calls to state senators. You also helped deploy 30 grassroots organizers across the state, who mobilized volunteers and got tens of thousands of people involved.
• Then you helped power a major media campaign featuring actors, athletes, three NYC mayors, two U.S. senators, President Bill Clinton, and even President Bush's daughter, Barbara.
• And you helped fund a unified coalition of LGBT groups that lobbied the New York Legislature and aired TV ads all over the state.

Here's another way to see the impact we've had together:

Watch our recap video of the incredible New Yorkers who spoke out for marriage equality.

Soon, New Yorkers young and old will be able to marry whomever they choose. Loving, committed couples will be recognized by law. And the cause of equality will have advanced yet again, in one of our nation's largest states. New York joins just five other states and the District of Columbia in allowing same-sex couples to marry.

But this isn't just a victory for New Yorkers – it's a victory for supporters of equality nationwide. It brings us closer to the day when fair treatment is not just a hope or an aspiration, but a reality.

Daniel, you and I both know we won't win every fight along the way. But even the most heartbreaking losses are only temporary detours on the path to full equality. When we stand together, fight smart, and refuse to give up on a dream, we will get there in the end – just as we have in New York.

Thank you for all that you have done, and will do, to continue winning the civil rights battle of our generation.

Sincerely,

Joe Solmonese
President

P.S. To join the thousands of people on HRC's Mobile Action Network who are among the first to hear about exciting victories like these, text MAP4NY to 30644. We'll text you instructions on how you can add a note to our map of support for New Yorkers.

New York Senate passes same-sex marriage bill 33-29

Via JMG: NY SENATE APPROVES MARRIAGE!!!

Joe says, 

The vote was 33-29!!!!

I love you, New York.

Now please excuse me as I slip away for some heavy drinking. Marriage equality in New York has been one of the top focuses of this here website thingy for a long, long time.

Labels: Andrew Cuomo, celebration, Daniel O'Donnell, LGBT History, marriage equality, New York state, NY Senate, Thomas Duane

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Via JMG: New York Marriage Reactions

Empire State Pride Agenda

“Love and fairness wins the day for all New Yorkers and our families. Today is a historic day and a victory for equality and justice – it is the culmination of many years of work by the Pride Agenda and others across the state,” said Ross D. Levi, Executive Director of the Empire State Pride Agenda. “We are thrilled that finally all loving, committed New Yorkers will be able to make the commitment of marriage here in the Empire State.”

NY Sen. Thomas Duane

"There are rare moments when the historical significance of an action speaks for itself and words can’t capture the magnitude. This is one such moment. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered (LGBT) New Yorkers will no longer be denied the right to marry the ones they love. For the first time in New York’s rich history they will be granted equal protection under the law. I want to commend the incredible leadership and passion of Governor Andrew Cuomo who made good on his promise to make Marriage Equality the law in New York State. I also want to thank my colleagues in the State Senate on both sides of the aisle, and in the Assembly, who took a courageous stand when it would have been far easier for them to turn away from what I know for many was a difficult issue."

NY Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell

"Thomas Jefferson once wrote, 'our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions.' Today, the New York State Legislature has affirmed the truth of that fundamental principle with the passage of the Marriage Equality Act. I am proud to have played a central role in this crucial moment for our state. Once Marriage Equality is signed into law, our state will be the most populous in the entire nation with these rights. I hope that with this prominence, our great state will shine as a beacon of equality and lead other states from the darkness of injustice. I will never forget this day."

Freedom To Marry

"Winning the freedom to marry in New York truly is a transformative moment for committed couples and for our country, a triumph for love and equality under the law,” said Evan Wolfson, founder and President of Freedom to Marry. “Now that we’ve made it here, we’ll make it everywhere – and as Americans’ hearts open and minds continue to change in favor of the freedom to marry, the momentum coming from New York’s giant step forward brings a nationwide end to marriage discrimination closer than ever.”

American Foundation for Equal Rights

“New Yorkers have plenty to celebrate this Pride Month. There’s no doubt that today will be revered as a major turning point in civil rights history. A bipartisan group of legislators have affirmed that equal rights for every citizen is not a partisan issue, but an American value. Yet for millions of Americans who do not live in New York, Washington DC, or the five other states that have recognized the constitutional rights of gay and lesbian Americans, they are still suffering the injustice of discrimination every day. The freedom to marry is a constitutional liberty and the birthright of every American. Constitutional rights belong to every individual, regardless of the state you inhabit. This has recently been affirmed within the past year by federal courts in our nation’s most prominent civil rights cases."

Labels: AFER, Daniel O'Donnell, Empire State Pride Agenda, Freedom To Marry, New York state, NY Senate, Thomas Duane

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Via NPR: Jose Antonio Vargas, Will Journalist Face Deportation? Signs Point To 'No'

1. Will Journalist Face Deportation? Signs Point To 'No'

   June 24, 2011 Although US Immigration and Customs Enforcement declined to comment directly on the case of Jose Antonio Vargas, the agency's recent actions ... By Corey Dade http://www.npr.org/2011/06/24/137390554/will-journalist-face-deportation-signs-point-to-no
    

2. 'Washington Post' Debated 'Undocumented' Reporter's ...

   June 23, 2011 Some editors did not think Jose Antonio Vargas was giving them the full story, the newspaper reports. His account ended ... http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/06/23/137363517/washington-post-debated-undocumented-reporters-veracity?print=1

3. Pulitzer-Winning Reporter: I Am An Undocumented Immigrant ...

   June 22, 2011 Jose Antonio Vargas, a reporter who shared a Pulitzer Prize at The Washington Post, reveals that over many years he obtained a series of false ... http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/06/22/137344247/pulitzer-winning-reporter-i-am-an-undocumented-immigrant?print=1

4. Jose Antonio Vargas

   June 22, 2011 ... Public Radio Programs AZ | close. Jose Antonio Vargas archive. Thursday, June 23, 2011. ... Search Jose Antonio Vargas. Podcast + RSS Feeds. ... http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=137344260

*Countdown with Keith ...: Special Comment: Same-Sex Marriage

Via JMG: HomoQuotable - David Mixner

"The man [Obama] has done an enormous amount and I’m supporting him for president. But I would be more than delinquent if I didn’t say that I’m more disappointed than I thought I would be with his handling of marriage tonight. I didn’t come with any expectations that he would support marriage. But it was awful, it was embarrassing, and as soon as he reached that point, it was like he couldn’t wait to get off the stage. [snip]

"This is one of our big nights of celebration – I mean, we’re going to win this I think tomorrow, but we know this issue could go either way. This was a room full of people waiting to be jubilant. I knew he wasn’t he going to support marriage, but there were so many different ways he could have let us know that he understood this moment for us and how happy he was for us. I support him. After all, who wants President Bachmann?" - Longtime activist David Mixner, speaking to Equality Matters at last night's Obama fundraiser in NYC.

Labels: activism, Barack Obama, David Mixner, HomoQuotable, marriage equality, New York state

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Via JMG: SAN DIEGO: Active Duty Military To March In Gay Pride Parade For First Time

Some real American history will be made at San Diego Pride.

"To my knowledge [it is] the first time in the history of Pride in the United States, ever, that we have said, 'Active duty, you are welcome,'" organizer Sean Sala said. "We want you to be there without fear of repercussions, because we love you." Sala, an active-duty sailor, said he was bothered to see that police and firefighters were represented in the Pride parade, but not the people who serve this country. "I thought it was weird because San Diego has the biggest military installation in the United States, and military are public servants as well," he said.

About 200 service members have reportedly signed up to march. They will not wear their uniforms, as per military regulations.

Labels: California, DADT, gay Pride, LGBT History, military, San Diego

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Via JMG: NYT Rips New York Senate On Inaction

The New York Times tears into the GOP-led New York Senate for dragging their feet on marriage equality.

As we wrote this editorial on Thursday evening, we were still waiting for the New York State Senate to do what it should have done long ago — end a basic inequality under the law by allowing same-sex couples the full right to marry. The solution is obvious: Pass a clean bill that allows all adult New Yorkers to marry whomever they choose to marry, without unneeded exemptions for religious-affiliated organizations. [snip] In Albany, they say hidden talks are necessary to get anything done. Nonsense. The state’s leaders just don’t want public scrutiny. It’s a cowardly way to conduct the public’s business.

Right fucking on.

Labels: New York state, New York Times, NY Senate

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JMG Tweet Of The Day - Mrs. Wright

Labels: New York state, silliness, Tweet Of The Day

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BrowseUpload Sign Out Joy Behar - Dan Savage, Alec Mapa & Raven-Symone On Pilot Rant & Gay Pride Parade

Via JMG: Gay Rights?

You don't often see "gay rights" mentioned on homocon sites, which are typically more concerned about "wealth preservation" and screwing the poor. So I had to follow the tweet that heralded the above story. It turns out that the right to carry a concealed handgun anywhere you please is a gay rights issue. At least it is the bizarro world of Gay Patriot.

Labels: dumbassery, Gay Patriot, homocons, Wisconsin

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Via 365 Gay; Obama says gay couples deserve same rights as all

(New York) President Barack Obama praised New York state lawmakers who were debating landmark legislation Thursday to legalize gay marriage, saying that’s what democracy’s all about. But the president stopped short of embracing same-sex marriage himself.

“I believe that gay couples deserve the same legal rights as every other couple in this country,” the president said at a fundraiser in Manhattan, his first geared specifically to the gay community. Coincidentally, the long-planned event occurred just as lawmakers in Albany were debating legislation that would make New York the sixth state to legalize gay marriage. 

That served to spotlight the president’s own views on same-sex marriage, a sore point with gay supporters who’ve otherwise warmed to him. The president has said his views are “evolving,” but for now he supports civil unions, not same-sex marriage.

“Traditionally marriage has been decided by the states and right now I understand there’s a little debate going on here in New York,” the president said to laughter. He said New York’s lawmakers are “doing exactly what democracies are supposed to do.”

Debate on the measure continued into the night at the statehouse, and the outcome was uncertain.
As Obama spoke a handful of people shouted out “marriage!” And Obama said, “I heard you guys.”

Report on Loving Case 1967

Via JMG: Decisions Are Best Left To The States

Video and transcript via Igor Volsky at Think Progress:

Part of the reason that DOMA doesn’t make sense is that traditionally marriage has been decided by the states and right now, I understand there is a little debate going on here in New York about whether to join five other states and DC in allowing civil marriage for gay couples. And I want to say that under the leadership of Governor Cuomo, with the support of Democrats and Republicans, New York is doing exactly what democracies are supposed to to do. There is a debate, there is a deliberation about what it means here in New York to treat people fairly in the eyes of the law and that is — look, that’s the power of our democratic system.

Labels: Barack Obama, marriage equality, New York state, NYC

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Via JMG: Quote Of The Day - Anita Bryant

"I was before her time, but Sally Kern is here for such a time as this. I am grateful for her life and her friendship. Reading The Stoning of Sally Kern was at times like déjà vu, reminding me of my stand in Dade County in 1977. I can highly recommend this book to anyone who loves God, their family, and their country. It is a must-read for any believing woman or man who wants to make a difference in these perilous times. Those soldiers who have counted the cost of character assassination or endured other losses yet are willing to take a stand in truth and love for the glory of God, our children, and future generations will especially enjoy this inspiring book." - Anita Bryant, from a blurb on the cover of fellow homophobe Sally Kern's autobiography.

Labels: Anita Bryant, bigotry, books, homophobes, Quote Of The Day, religion, Sally Kern

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Via JMG: Today In Albany , NY

I'm fairly sure I first posted this cartoon here a couple of years ago, but it's being passed around on Twitter today and feels just as true as when it was first published.

Labels: Albany, bigotry, religion

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It Gets Better: Target Team Members

JMG Asshat Of The Day - Sam Trombley

"I'm surprised the health department has not come out against this because we are going to have an HIV epidemic if this passes. They (health department) are always complaining about tobacco and smoking, I'm surprised they didn't say anything about this. You don't see two male dogs sleeping in the same dog house together. It blows my mind to think of it." - Clinton County GOP legislator Sam Trombley, who has a big future in New York state Republican politics.

Labels: asshattery, douchnozzles, New York state

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