The New York State Senate voted 38-24 Wednesday against a bill to legalize gay marriage. The Huffington Post picked up the story as it was happening, and their summary reported the NY Democrats believed they finally had enough votes to pass the measure.
I joined more than 10,000 others in watching the live stream of the debate. I was entranced by State Sen. Ruth Hassell-Thompson’s story of her search for an estranged brother, who was born in 1930 and fled to France as a gay adult. And I watched as State Sen. Thomas Duane rambled on for what seemed like hours, possibly allowing party members to strong-arm undecided Republicans into voting for the bill. Duane was funny, weird and sympathetic...
In the end, it wasn’t even close. I finished my lunch, scrubbed off the plate, and went on my way. For half of an hour, I had given myself away to hope. It was time to move one.
The story has something of a happy ending, a minor consolation. I went into the Seals office yesterday and knew I wanted to write about the vote in New York. I had never seen a full brief of Dan’s stance on LGBT issues.
Dan backs same-sex marriage, full legal rights and the repeal of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act. He supported the Matthew Shepard Act and will continue to fight for passage of the Employee Non-Discrimination Act. He’s also on board with some of America’s top generals and officials in supporting a congressional repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which never should have existed in the first place and has probably kept thousands of soldiers from serving our country overseas.
I’m proud of Dan’s progressive platform. As a gay man, the creeping kudzu of intolerance and discomfort grows in my own backyard. Don’t tell me it’s not personal. Marriage is a civil institution in this country. Nuptials require court validation. Civil unions don’t cut it. I am no second-rate citizen.
To paraphrase Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank Redemption, homosexuals are, first and foremost, human. Under the U.S. constitution, all Americans deserve the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. On Wednesday, thirty-eight members of the NY State Senate didn’t agree. It was a bitter reminder of my disappointment earlier this year when I learned even the great Barack Obama couldn’t publicly agree.
But in Dan Seals, I’ve found a leader brave enough to fight for the precepts upon which this country was founded. I’ve found a leader brave enough to fight for me.
Gus Wezerek
Northwestern University 2012
Students for Seals, Chairman
In the end, it wasn’t even close. I finished my lunch, scrubbed off the plate, and went on my way. For half of an hour, I had given myself away to hope. It was time to move one.
The story has something of a happy ending, a minor consolation. I went into the Seals office yesterday and knew I wanted to write about the vote in New York. I had never seen a full brief of Dan’s stance on LGBT issues.
Dan backs same-sex marriage, full legal rights and the repeal of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act. He supported the Matthew Shepard Act and will continue to fight for passage of the Employee Non-Discrimination Act. He’s also on board with some of America’s top generals and officials in supporting a congressional repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which never should have existed in the first place and has probably kept thousands of soldiers from serving our country overseas.
I’m proud of Dan’s progressive platform. As a gay man, the creeping kudzu of intolerance and discomfort grows in my own backyard. Don’t tell me it’s not personal. Marriage is a civil institution in this country. Nuptials require court validation. Civil unions don’t cut it. I am no second-rate citizen.
To paraphrase Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank Redemption, homosexuals are, first and foremost, human. Under the U.S. constitution, all Americans deserve the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. On Wednesday, thirty-eight members of the NY State Senate didn’t agree. It was a bitter reminder of my disappointment earlier this year when I learned even the great Barack Obama couldn’t publicly agree.
But in Dan Seals, I’ve found a leader brave enough to fight for the precepts upon which this country was founded. I’ve found a leader brave enough to fight for me.
Gus Wezerek
Northwestern University 2012
Students for Seals, Chairman
Awesome blog Gus! I think we will get there eventually. ;)
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