Defeat of same-sex marriage bill disappoints many

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After the New York State Senate voted down an amendment on Wednesday that would have legalized same-sex marriage, neighborhood advocacy groups and students expressed disappointment and surprise.

Despite support from Governor David Paterson, CC ’77, the 38-24 vote was a setback to the gay rights movement, with 30 Republicans unanimously opposing the measure and eight of the 32 Democrats siding with them.

Assemblymember Daniel O’Donnell—whose district includes the Columbia campus—supported the amendment, along with Harlem’s State Senator Bill Perkins.

New York is not the first state to reject gay marriage this year. Maine voters turned it down in a Nov. 3 referendum, and California revoked the right last year.

Avi Edelman, CC ’11 and vice president the College Democrats, said, “It’s a shame that the Democratic Party has shown lackluster support.” He added that the Dems will not volunteer to campaign for the eight candidates who voted the bill down, unless they pledge to support same-sex marriage in the future.

Ty Martin, the Harlem program manager for Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Elders on 125th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue, said the vote was especially disappointing for Harlem LGBT residents. “Homophobia is real in Harlem. It is the unspoken truth. You don’t have to say certain things, but you feel it,” Martin said.

Speaking of the LGBT residents at SAGE, he said, “We were hopeful, but uptown, they are very realistic.”

The decision was upsetting on a personal level, he added. “I should have a right to marry someone I love,” Martin said, adding his concerns that he is not legally or financially tied to his partner. He said, “Why should my life be one big date?”