After a 33 to 29 vote in the state senate and a lengthy debate, gay marriage is legal in New York.
Gov. Cuomo pledged that he would not introduce gay marriage legislation to the Senate until he was sure of a victory. In a surprise shift from previous resistence, a number of Republican senators also pledged their support for gay unions. "You might not like that. You might be very cynical about that. Well, f--- it, I don't care what you think. I'm tired of Republican-Democrat politics. They can take the job and shove it. I come from a blue-collar background. I'm trying to do the right thing, and that's where I'm going with this," Sen. Roy McDonald (R-Saratoga) told reporters after his move to support gay marriage.
The vocal debate pushed the Senate nearly a week past their session and ended in victory for gay marriage supporters. New York became the sixth state behind Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Iowa and Washington, D.C. When the news was announced on Friday, 24 June, GLBT New Yorkers celebrated in the streets.
Equal Protection for Outsiders
Gov. Cuomo's momentum differs from his predecessor former Gov. David Paterson, who in 2009 reversed his decision to push same-sex marriage legislation through the Senate after a successful House vote. However, Gov. Paterson's gay rights record wasn't all bleak. In 2008, he mandated state agencies (including insurance and health care departments) to immediately recognize out-of-state same-sex marriages legally performed elsewhere. Legally wed gay couples that are now New Yorkers can take advantage of the same benefits as heterosexual married couples in the state, including state tax breaks, inheritance rights, etc.
Marriage by Defiance
In 2004, New Paltz Mayor Jason West married 25 same-sex couples in defiance to the state law prohibiting gay unions. He was charged with nineteen misdemeanors, which were all thrown out in court. However, in a turn of fate, Ulster County Court Judge J. Michael Bruhn reversed the decision in appeal and stuck West with the charges, claiming that he violated his oath as a state officer and his criminal offenses had nothing to do with gay marriage. State prosecutors later dropped the charges.
Gov. Cuomo pledged that he would not introduce gay marriage legislation to the Senate until he was sure of a victory. In a surprise shift from previous resistence, a number of Republican senators also pledged their support for gay unions. "You might not like that. You might be very cynical about that. Well, f--- it, I don't care what you think. I'm tired of Republican-Democrat politics. They can take the job and shove it. I come from a blue-collar background. I'm trying to do the right thing, and that's where I'm going with this," Sen. Roy McDonald (R-Saratoga) told reporters after his move to support gay marriage.
The vocal debate pushed the Senate nearly a week past their session and ended in victory for gay marriage supporters. New York became the sixth state behind Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Iowa and Washington, D.C. When the news was announced on Friday, 24 June, GLBT New Yorkers celebrated in the streets.
Equal Protection for Outsiders
Gov. Cuomo's momentum differs from his predecessor former Gov. David Paterson, who in 2009 reversed his decision to push same-sex marriage legislation through the Senate after a successful House vote. However, Gov. Paterson's gay rights record wasn't all bleak. In 2008, he mandated state agencies (including insurance and health care departments) to immediately recognize out-of-state same-sex marriages legally performed elsewhere. Legally wed gay couples that are now New Yorkers can take advantage of the same benefits as heterosexual married couples in the state, including state tax breaks, inheritance rights, etc.
Marriage by Defiance
In 2004, New Paltz Mayor Jason West married 25 same-sex couples in defiance to the state law prohibiting gay unions. He was charged with nineteen misdemeanors, which were all thrown out in court. However, in a turn of fate, Ulster County Court Judge J. Michael Bruhn reversed the decision in appeal and stuck West with the charges, claiming that he violated his oath as a state officer and his criminal offenses had nothing to do with gay marriage. State prosecutors later dropped the charges.
