resolution in support of ending discrimination against same-sex
couples in marriage.
“The mayors’ leadership reaffirms that the freedom to marry
should not be partisan or political,” said Evan Wolfson,
executive director of Freedom to Marry. “But rather is part of the
security and respect all couples…should have.”
In reference to the freedom to marry, the resolution said, “BE IT
FURTHER RESOLVED that The U.S. Conference of Mayors supports
marriage equality for same-sex couples, and the recognition and
extension of full equal rights to such unions, including family and
medical leave, tax equity, and insurance and retirement benefits,
and opposes the enshrinement of discrimination in the federal or
state constitutions.”
Entitled, “Equality and Civil Rights for Gay and Lesbian
Americans,” the resolution included support for federal bills
such as Employment Non-Discrimination Act, the Military Readiness
Enhancement Act, the Uniting American Families Act, and the Mathew
Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act.
Wolfson called on the New York State Senate to be the next leader
in enacting marriage equality at the state level. Recent political
developments in the New York Senate have called the prospect of New
York Governor David Paterson’s marriage bill into question.
New York’s Assembly passed the bill in May. Political leaders
from across the state, including NYC’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg
and U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, have been
working to support the bill’s passage in the State Senate over the
next few weeks. Next door in New Jersey, Governor John Corzine has
promised to sign his state’s marriage bill once it reaches his
desk.