Gov. Paterson Calls Special Session For 3 PM Today, Gay Marriage At Top Of Agenda

New York State Governor David Paterson will put the pending gay-marriage bill to a vote when he calls today's Special Session of the State Senate at 3 PM. This is the up/down vote on Senator Thomas Duane's pending bill, S. 4401, that New York's LGBT community has been waiting for. If you live in New York State, you can help to get this bill passed. Call your local State Senator and let him or her know how important it is that this bill be passed. With the Senate split 31-31 along party lines, it is crucial that your Senators hear from YOU.

If you cannot reach your Senator, Call the New York State Senate Switchboard at (518) 455-2800. The time is now!

UPDATE: Homophobic Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr. (D-South Bronx) threatens to "do something big" if gay marriage is voted on today. Although the Senator's two brothers are gay, he continues to preach his anti-gay views everywhere, especially in Senate chambers. Stay tuned.

War On The Floor! NY Senate democrats Fracture, GOP Gains Control Of Senate, Gay Marriage Dead?

Gay marriage may be dead in the New York State senate, as the GOP gains control of that legislative body from the Democrats. Here's a little of my pending article on this:

More shenanigans in Albany! At this hour, the New York State Republicans are announcing that "Hiram Monserrate and Pedro Espada Jr. - are poised to announce that they have decided to cross the aisle and caucus with the Republicans out of anger at Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith." Dean Skelos, a Republican, has replaced Smith as Senate Majority Leader. This from the NYT, NYDN, GOP, AP, and WNBC, as further reports indicate the floor fighting has broken out over two key issues: the removal of Sen. Neil Breslin (D-Albany) as Senate president. He was replaced, 32-30, by Sen. George Winner, (R-Utica), which shows that 2 Dems (Moserrate and Espada) are voting with the GOP.

The second issue is, of course, gay marriage, which was to die in committee if not voted on before the end of the session on June 22. Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr. (D-South Bronx), the most vociferous opponent of the gay-marriage bill, was said to be considering changing parties if Sen. Smith (D-St. Albans) brought the bill to a vote. With the bill beginning to gain undecided votes, Diaz was pulling out all the stops to prevent its passage, along with Sen. George Onorato (R-Astoria).
I still strongly suspect, as do some media pundits around NYC, that there was a back-room deal between Smith and Diaz NOT to put the gay-marriage bill up for a vote. But if Smith saw a clear mandate from the Senate to bring a vote (and made a motion on the floor), Diaz would declare Jihad on the remaining Senate Democrats.

This after a HUGE turnout of registered voters in support of gay marriage at Pride events in Staten Island, Queens, Hudson Valley, and Utica (!) over the weekend. I personally marched with City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Chelsea) in Queens Pride to show my support for this issue.

Sure enough, Monday morning came, and fireworks went off in Albany. As I see it, gay marrige is a dead issue in New York for the time being, with these developments...did gay marriage fracture the Democrats?

NY State Senator Smith: "Not Enough Votes To Pass Gay Marriage"

New York State Senator Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans) said today in a press conference that he "does not have enough votes" to pass New York's gay-marriage bill into law. Responding to NY1 News reporter Josh Robin, Smith said "I do not have 32 votes [the majority needed to pass the bill in the Senate]." Earlier this week State Sen. Tom Duane (D-Chelsea), publicly stated he had more than the 32-vote majority needed to ensure the bill's passage. According to Smith, however, there are currently 20 votes for the gay-marriage bill, 28 against, and 10 undecided.

Among the bill's most vocal opponents are Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr. (D-South Bronx), and Sen. George Onorato (D-Astoria). Both are on record as being vehemently against the passage of a gay-marriage law in New York, with Diaz going so far as to organize a public protest against gay marriage. This protest, it should be noted, was held a mere three blocks from Broadway Impact's pro-gay-marriage rally on Sixth Avenue in Midtown. Among the undecided Senators is Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Howard Beach), who has refused to state a position on the issue, despite numerous calls from his constituency to do so. It's going to be the undecided Senators who will determine the outcome of this bill.

These "undecided" Senators, perhaps fearful of the political backlash of supporting gay marriage, believe it is better to take no voting position on this. Does bigotry speak so much louder than understanding, that it can silence those we send to Albany to vote on issues like gay marriage? Half-measures like "civil unions" are attempts at appeasement which accomplish nothing. New Jersey tried "civil unions" and discovered that this legal construction isn't marriage, nor are other states and countries likely to recognize "civil unions" as anything more than a local law not binding on them.

Marriage equality is important for the fundamental Constitutional principles it represents, the legal protections it affords gay and lesbian couples, and for the permanency it grants to them. The LGBT community should not settle for anything short of this. Just as interracial marriages were once illegal in many states, so too must the criminalization of gay relationships end, as well. The Senate has fifteen more days until their session ends in Albany. Let them hear your voice, particularly so the "undecideds" can find theirs.