Appellate Court Upholds New York’s Marriage Equality Law

As some readers will recall, following New York State's passage of gay marriage last summer a far right lunatic organization - the so-called New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms (NYCF) which describes its mission as influencing “legislation and legislators for the Lord Jesus Christ” - filed a lawsuit claiming that the law was invalid because of the violation of General Assembly open meeting requirements.  That claim went down to defeat in a unanimous opinion the New York Appellate Division.  The court declared that “defendant New York State Senate did not violate the open meetings law ("OML")  in enacting the Marriage Equality Law ("MEA") and that marriages performed thereunder are not invalid.”  Here are highlights from Gay City News:

A unanimous panel of the New York Appellate Division has rejected a challenge to the state’s Marriage Equality Law (MEA) enacted on June 24, 2011.

The July 6 ruling, from the Rochester-based 4^th Department, came in response to a suit bought by New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms (NYCF), a group whose website describes its mission as influencing “legislation and legislators for the Lord Jesus Christ” and “voicing the pro-life and pro-family perspective.”

The group’s suit claimed the law was not validly enacted based on three factors –– the appearance of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Governor Andrew Cuomo at closed-door meetings of the State Senate’s Republican caucus where the bill was discussed; Cuomo’s issuance of a “message of necessity” that allowed the Senate and the Assembly to vote on the bill without allowing members three days to study its final text; and the locking-down of a part of the State Capitol building during the Senate floor debate and vote.

The closed-door GOP meetings violated the state’s Open Meetings Law, NYCF alleged, while the “message of necessity” was “ultra vires,” or beyond the governor’s authority, and the Capitol lockdown prevented the plaintiffs from accessing senators, violating their freedom of speech.

Livingston County Supreme Court Justice Robert Wiggins, last November 18,  .  .  .  .   refused to dismiss the first claim, holding that the Open Meetings Law may have been violated. He accepted the plaintiffs’ argument that a meeting of the Republican caucus that also included non-Republicans meant it could not be sheltered by the OML’s exemption for private caucuses. That exemption states that a private party caucus qualifies even if it invites “guests,” but NYCF argued such “guests” must be members of the same political party.

In unanimously reversing Wiggins and ruling that the Senate did not violate the law, Justice Eugene Fahey wrote that the plain meaning of the statute did not limit the term “guests” in that way. A Senate party caucus can invite anybody as a guest other than a member of the Legislature from a different party, said the court.  Since neither Bloomberg nor Cuomo were members of the Legislature, they could be invited as guests without the caucus losing its exemption from the requirement that public business be conducted in public.

The court’s ruling went one step further, finding that even if the Open Meetings Law had been violated, that would not by itself justify invalidating the Marriage Equality Law. The OML gives the court the power, “in its discretion, upon good cause shown,” to declare that a violation justifies voiding legislation subsequently enacted. In this case, the court concluded, the plaintiffs failed to show “good cause.”

As a native of New York State, I am proud of the state of my birth.  Would that Virginia would drag itself out of a 19th century mindset and embrace the 21st century and equality for all citizens.

Wealthy New York Donors Are Backing New York Gay Marriage Push

The New York Times has coverage of a strange phenomenon: wealthy GOP donors supporting the push for same sex marriage in New York State. Is it yet another sign of the schizophrenic nature of today's GOP - i.e., the crazies versus the rational, longer view pragmatists - or something else? Whatever the cause of the phenomenon, it's a shift from wealthy donors pandering to the nastiest aspects of the far right elements in the party. Personally, I suspect that some in the GOP - e.g., those who haven't already bailed from the party - are frightened of the ever increasing insanity of the party base and undue sway of the the Tea Party and Christofascist elements. In addition, some may simply see that long term, history is on the side of full LGBT civil equality and want to position themselves and the party so that they don't forfeit the younger generations of voters. Here are some story highlights:

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As gay rights advocates intensify their campaign to legalize same-sex marriage in New York, the bulk of their money is coming from an unexpected source: a group of conservative financiers and wealthy donors to the Republican Party, most of whom are known for bankrolling right-leaning candidates and causes.
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Their behind-the-scenes financial support — about $1 million in donations, delivered in recent weeks to a new coalition of gay rights organizations — could alter the political calculus of Albany lawmakers, especially the Republican state senators in whose hands the fate of gay marriage rests.
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The donors represent some of New York’s wealthiest and most politically active figures and include Paul E. Singer, a hedge fund manager and top-tier Republican donor, as well as two other financiers, Steven A. Cohen and Clifford S. Asness.
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The support is likely to jolt the traditional financial and political backers of gay rights causes, who now find themselves in the unfamiliar position of being outraised and outspent in New York.
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The donations are financing an intensive campaign of television advertisements and grass-roots activism coordinated by New Yorkers United for Marriage, a group of same-sex marriage advocates. The campaign is aimed chiefly at persuading several members of the Senate Republican majority to join most Senate Democrats in backing same-sex marriage
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The newly recruited donors argue that permitting same-sex marriage is consistent with conservative principles of personal liberty and small government. . . . “This is an issue of basic freedom,” Mr. Asness said.
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Some of those involved have made what might be termed the pro-business argument for same-sex marriage, arguing that the legalization of same-sex marriage would help keep New York economically competitive. One of the donors, Daniel S. Loeb, who has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Republican candidates for federal office in the last two years, said he hoped to make clear to Republicans that same-sex marriage had a broad coalition of support.
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The involvement of Mr. Singer is the most striking, given his devotion to conservative candidates and philanthropy: He is chairman of the Manhattan Institute, a right-leaning research group, and one of the most generous Republican donors in the country. But he also has a personal stake in the issue: he has a gay son who married his partner in Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage is legal.
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Aides to Mr. Bloomberg said he viewed the marriage issue in a larger context: Freedom, he argues, is New York’s “competitive advantage” and its brand, and he has become committed to vigorously defending it, as he did amid criticism of a proposed Islamic center near ground zero.
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Would that Virginia had leaders focused on freedom and competitive advantage as opposed to groveling to the foulest elements of the Christofascist at The Family Foundation, CBN Broadcasting, and Liberty University among others.

New York State Senate Votes Down Gay Marriage Bill

Sadly, religious based discrimination triumphed today in the New York State Senate where marriage equality was defeated by a unanimous vote of the Republican senators and a number of spineless Democrats. These Benedict Arnolds included the following:
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• Joseph Addabbo (D-Queens) — NO
• Darrel Aubertine (D- Cape Vincent) — NO
• Ruben Diaz (D-Bronx) — NO
• Shirley Huntley (D-Queens) — NO
• Carl Kruger (D-Brooklyn) — NO
• Hiram Monserrate (D-Queens) — NO
• George Onorato (D-Queens) — NO
• William Stachowski (D-Buffalo) — NO
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Obviously, the LGBT boycott of Democrats candidates needs to be extended to these folks. Better yet, let's hope that they face primary challenges in the next election. The photo above shows Senator Thomas K. Duane, the sponsor of same-sex marriage legislation, embracing Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson after she announced her support for the bill during the debate on the senate floor on Wednesday in Albany.

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Not surprisingly, among the gloating are Maggie Gallagher and Brian Brown at NOM and the Roman Catholic Church. Of course, Ms. Maggie and Ms. Brown love it because they are further enriching themselves with each additional state they beg for money to fund their campaign of lies and untruths. Their merchandise is bigotry and discrimination veiled behind religion. I increasingly believe that the most tawdry prostitute has more intrinsic integrity than Ms. Maggie. One can only long for the day when history views her and her allies as the equivalents to George Wallace when he stood blooking the school house door. Here are some highlights from the New York Times on this unfortunate development:

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The New York State Senate decisively rejected a bill on Wednesday that would have allowed gay couples to wed, providing a major victory for those who oppose same-sex marriage and underscoring the deep and emotional divisions surrounding the issue.
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The 38-to-24 vote startled proponents of the bill and signaled that political momentum, at least right now, had shifted against same-sex marriage, even in heavily Democratic New York. It followed more than a year of lobbying by gay rights organizations, who poured close to $1 million into New York legislative races to boost support for the measure.
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The defeat revealed stark divides: All 30 of the Republican senators opposed the bill, as did most of the members from upstate New York and Long Island. Support was heaviest among members from New York City and Westchester County and among the Senate’s 10 black members. Seven of the Senate’s 10 women voted for it.
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“I’m a woman and a Jew and so I know about discrimination,” said Senator Liz Krueger of Manhattan.
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The state’s Roman Catholic bishops lobbied for its defeat, however, and after the vote released a statement applauding the move : “Advocates for same-sex marriage have attempted to portray their cause as inevitable,” Richard E. Barnes, the executive director of the New York State Catholic Conference, said in the statement. “However, it has become clear that Americans continue to understand marriage the way it has always been understood, and New York is not different in that regard. This is a victory for the basic building block of our society.”
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Alan Van Capelle, executive director of the Empire State Pride Agenda, New York’s largest gay rights group, hinted that senators who voted against the bill on Wednesday could face repercussions. “Had there been no vote today, we would not know who would stand by our community in a fight, and who would walk away. We wouldn’t know what work needed to be done in 2010.

700 Clergy and Lay Religious Leaders Support Gay Marriage in New York

Yet again a reminder has popped up that not all Christian clergy and religious leaders of other faiths are the enemies of LGBT equality and marriage equality. This time, the reminder stems from a statement sent to the New York State Senate urging the passage of the pending marriage bill that would give full marriage rights to same sex couples in New York State. The list of supporters was released by Empire State Pride Agenda and includes religious leaders from all over New York State, including the central New York area where I lived through high school. The Empire State Pride press release reads in part as follows:

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The geographic list of clergy and faith leaders in support of New York State allowing same-sex couples access to marriage includes a number of denominations including Lutheran, Episcopalian, Methodist, United Church of Christ, American Baptist, Reformed Church in America and Reform and Conservative movements of Judaism. It also includes influential leaders like Bishop Prince Singh of the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, Bishop Robert Rimbo of the Metropolitan New York Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Rev. Dr. Serene Jones, President of Union Theological Seminary.
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“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 Empire State Pride Agenda Executive Director Alan Van Capelle.
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“These faith leaders—a number of which are not allowed to perform marriages of same-sex couples themselves because of their faith traditions—consider this to be an issue involving the rights and protections of civil marriage, not the traditions and ceremonies of a religious marriage.
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The statement itself is very simple and reads as follows: We, the undersigned, urge the New York State Legislature to protect families in New York State by extending marriage to same-sex couples. For a full list of signatories, see the Empire State Pride Agenda website. I am proud to note that among the signers are a number of representatives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ("ELCA").

New York Upholds Recognition of Out of State Gay Marriages

A New York appellate court has reached what I believe is the correct result based on past practices and case law and affirmed a lower court ruling that Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano did not violate the state constitution or earlier court rulings when he ordered county departments to recognize gay marriages legally performed in other states and countries. No doubt, Christianists will decry the ruling, but it is the only correct result. At least until the standoff in the New York Senate gets resolved and marriage legislation can be moved forward out of state gay marriages will be recognized. Unfortunately, it will be years before Virginia's vicious "Marriage Amendment" is either repealed or struck down by the federal courts. Here are some highlights on the New York ruling:

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A state appeals court has upheld an unflinching ruling by a lower court that Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano did not violate the state constitution or earlier court rulings when he ordered county departments to recognize gay marriages legally performed in other states and countries.

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The unanimous ruling by the Appellate Division in Brooklyn is the second in a year to include gay couples in the state's tradition of recognizing marriages performed elsewhere even if the marriages could not be legally performed here. In February, an appeals court in Rochester ruled that Monroe County must provide health benefits to the woman who was married to a female county worker in Canada.

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"Marriage has come to New York for same-sex couples," said Susan Sommer, senior counsel with Lambda Legal, a gay rights group in New York City that defended Spano's order against the four Westchester residents who challenged it in court. She said the next step is for the state "to allow same sex couples to marry here at home instead of having to travel to a foreign country or another state."

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A gay marriage bill passed the Assembly but went nowhere in the Senate, where the Republicans who controlled that chamber until this week refused to allow it to a vote. Democrats now control the Senate, but their support for gay marriage is not unanimous.