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Friday, December 4th, 2009
Is it enough to have your heart in the right place even if the decision you make is wrong? Or, in local state Sen. Jim Alesi’s case, if the vote you cast is unjust? He left me wondering about that question yesterday after we spoke about the clip, now making the YouTube circuit, of him holding his head in his hands while voting no to legalize same-sex marriage in New York.
Lots of people want to speak to the Perinton Republican these days. The New York City papers are beckoning. So deluged Thursday morning was his Albany office with venomous calls, he says, that staff there summoned State Police to monitor the lines. Comments left on his Facebook page changed from appeals to support marriage equality to warnings that he’s going to lose the next election.
Alesi says he’s planning now to visit with a few people he’s disappointed in hopes of rebuilding frayed ties.
Full Story from the Democrat & Chronicle: http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20091204/NEWS0203/912040331
Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in Gay Marriage, new york, ny, republican explains, senate vote | No Responses »
Friday, December 4th, 2009
The state Senate vote Wednesday defeating gay marriage, while devastating to supporters of marriage equality, clarified the road map they must follow to make it the law in New York state. The bill needed nine more votes, and gay activist Corey Johnson, a veteran political operative, says that’s attainable by 2011.
But he emphasizes, “The first priority is definitely to protect the 24 members who voted yes.” Dave Valesky of Syracuse and Brian Foley of Long Island will get the most help because they could face viable Republican challengers.
Of the eight Democrats who voted against the bill, two in Queens might have been on their way out already. George Onorato has been in office for 26 years, following 15 years as a union treasurer, and could retire (possible successors Assemblyman Mike Gianaris and Councilman Eric Gioia are pro-marriage). Hiram Monserrate was looking at a serious challenge from Assemblyman Joel Peralta even before Monserrate abandoned his support for gay marriage. Peralta favors marriage equality and is in line for major campaign donations from its supporters.
Full Story from York Business: http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20091204/INS/912039986
Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in election, Gay Marriage, new york, senate, senators | No Responses »
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009
Orthodox leaders commended and Reform leaders condemned the New York State Senate’s vote to defeat a measure legalizing same-sex marriage. Agudath Israel of America and the Orthodox Union lauded Wednesday’s 38-24 vote against the bill.
“While we must always respect all individuals as created b’tzelem Elokim, in the image of G-d, Jewish teaching clearly opposes homosexual conduct and the legal recognition of such relationships as being akin to traditional marriage,” the Orthodox Union said in a statement. The OU also said it must “respectfully repudiate those who misquote or misappropriate Jewish law or thought in support of this legislation.”
Agudah noted the work its members did in advocating against the measure. “When our community comes together to respond to challenges, good things happen,” said Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zweibel, the group’s executive vice president. New York Reform leaders were disheartened by the vote.
Full Story from JTA.org: http://jta.org/news/article/2009/12/03/1009517/orthodox-laud-reform-disappointed-by-ny-gay-marriage-vote
Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in Gay Marriage, jewish groups, jews, new york, ny, orthodox, reform, vote | No Responses »
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009
After the State Senate deals with an Assembly-passed $2.8 billion deficit-reduction bill in a special session starting around now, advocates are saying there’s a strong chance they’ll begin debate on the marriage-equality bill that has been waiting outside their chamber doors for months now.
Last night, the State Assembly re-passed their version of the bill, which had been passed in a regular session earlier this year. By passing it in a so-called “extraordinary session,” they ensured that if the Senate passes it in their own extraordinary session today, there are no obstacles to sending it straight to the governor. (A bill can be halted if the versions passed by both bodies are even only slightly different from one another.)
Gay-rights group the Empire State Pride Agenda hailed this move as a sign of “continued momentum.” Of course, nothing ever goes as planned in Albany, so that “momentum” could easily “continue” in a holding pattern for days, if not weeks.
Full Story from NY Magazine: http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2009/12/there_could_be_a_gay_marriage.html
Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in Gay Marriage, new york, ny, senate, vote | No Responses »
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009
The New York Senate will likely vote on a gay marriage bill Tuesday, local NBC affiliate WGRZ reported. A spokesman for state Senator Dale Volker confirmed to the television station that the bill could reach the Senate floor for a vote tomorrow.
The bill remains a priority of Governor David Paterson, who has pledged to sign it into law if it clears its final hurdle in the Senate. Whether Democrats have the votes to approve the measure, however, remains unclear. Several senators reversed course after voters in Maine “vetoed” a gay marriage law approved by lawmakers in the spring. Win or lose, gay activists say they want a vote on the bill to put senators on record.
A similar bill is expected to receive its initial vote in the District of Columbia on Tuesday and final approval before Christmas.
Full Story from On Top Magazine: http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=4934&MediaType=1&Category=26
Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in floor, gay marriage bill, governor david paterson, new york, ny, senate, Tuesday, vote | No Responses »
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009
With tomorrow’s expected vote on same-sex marriage, advocates of the legislation say they’re busing in 700 clergy members from around the state.
“This list represents a diverse group of faith traditions and congregations from all corners of our state. The leaders of these religious institutions understand the spiritual value of respecting all members of their community, including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender,” said Alan Van Capelle, executive director of the Empire State Pride Agenda.
Full Story from the NY Observer: http://www.observer.com/2009/politics/vote-tap-pro-same-sex-marriage-clergy-are-coming
Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in clergy, Gay Marriage, new york, vote | No Responses »
Monday, November 9th, 2009
Gay rights advocates have launched a final push to win support of a same-sex marriage bill in New York, as state lawmakers are slated to gather tomorrow to vote on the measure.
Gov. David Paterson has called legislators to Albany for the vote — saying he believes the measure will win enough support to sign into law. But, sources said negotiations are expected to go late into Monday night as Democratic leaders discuss whether to put the bill to a full vote in the Senate without knowing whether it will have enough votes to pass. The State Assembly passed the bill earlier this year.
Advocates on both sides of the issue lobbied senators over the weekend, but it was still unclear whether the measure could earn the 32 votes needed for approval. Democrats hold a shaky 32-to-30 majority in the Senate — and the measure does not have full support across the party line.
Full Story from NBC NY: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/Gay-Marriage-Bill-in-Albany-Faces-Uncertain-Fate-69554487.html
Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in bill, Gay Marriage, governor david paterson, new york, ny, senate, special session | No Responses »
Friday, November 6th, 2009
An Atheist state-church separation group today called for an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service into the activities of a Roman Catholic Bishop in Brooklyn, NY for possible violation of campaign and IRS regulations.
On Monday, The New York Times revealed that Bishop Nicholas A. DiMarzio praised Brooklyn Democratic boss Vito J. Lopez in a barrage of “robocalls” to voters. Lopez was key in defeating a bill that would have permitted victims of childhood sex abuse to file suit years after alleged molestation. The Roman Catholic Church has paid out hundreds of millions of dollars to settle or avoid lawsuits and protect clerical molesters. Mr. Lopez was supporting Working Families Party candidate Maritza Davila who came in second in a three way race.
In The New York Times piece, a prominent legal scholar warned that Bishop DiMarzio could have violated laws pertaining to electioneering by nonprofit religious groups. Dr. Ed Buckner, President of American Atheists, said that the bishop’s robocalls “are another example of where Roman Catholic leaders are engaging in partisan campaigning in order to further their own social agenda and insulate themselves from the legal system.
Full Story from Opposing Views: http://www.opposingviews.com/articles/opinion-did-brooklyn-bishop-violate-campaign-irs-regulations-r-1257451320
Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in brooklyn, campaign violations, catholic church, diocese, new york | No Responses »
Friday, November 6th, 2009
Gov. David A. Paterson said Thursday that he would include gay marriage on the agenda of an extraordinary session he is calling for Tuesday, potentially setting up the first vote on the issue in the State Senate and a dramatic floor debate.
Senate Democratic leaders could still block the issue from coming to the floor and have done so before, though it appears more likely to be put to a vote this time. Gay rights advocates, who feared holding a vote amid a Senate leadership feud this summer, cheered the governor’s action.
The measure’s chances of passing, though, are seen as far less likely. While a same-sex marriage bill has already been passed twice in the Assembly, it faces an uphill battle in the Senate. Democrats have a shaky 32-to-30 edge in the chamber, but several Democrats have said they will vote against the measure, and no Republicans are publicly supporting it.
Full Story from the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/06/nyregion/06marriage.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion
Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in agenda, Gay Marriage, governor david paterson, new york, ny, senate vote | No Responses »
Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009
The next few weeks could prove to be a crucial time for the national gay-rights movement, which invested heavily in New York to try to pass same-sex marriage but was stymied in the chaos over the summer. Unfortunately for the activists, the battle has become a game of chicken or hot potato, depending on whom you talk to.
On one level, not a lot has changed from the situation in the summer. Again, Governor Paterson, grasping for political traction, has brought the issue to a head, promising to order lawmakers back to Albany next month and to force them to take up the marriage bill. Malcolm Smith is no longer running the Senate. But John Sampson, a Brooklyn lawyer who supplanted Smith as Democratic leader, is stirring similar doubts about his willingness to hammer holdouts into yes votes. (Like Smith, Sampson wasn’t a supporter of gay marriage before assuming power.) And still, not a single Republican has openly endorsed gay marriage.
The trouble for supporters is that the ground that has shifted has raised the odds against them. Sampson is already struggling to unite Democrats behind an emergency plan to rescue New York from a swelling midyear deficit. The possible expulsion or resignation of Queens senator Hiram Monserrate, who was convicted of a misdemeanor assault against his girlfriend, could remove another yes vote. And the conservative revolt against Republican Dede Scozzafava, who voted for gay marriage in the Assembly, has shaken the nerves of moderate Senate Republicans.
Full Story from New York Magazine: http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2009/11/as_paterson_calls_senate_back.html
Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources in New York.
To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.
Posted in Gay Marriage, governor david paterson, new york, senate, vote | No Responses »
