Religion

In NY? Call Your Senator, Support Marriage Equality

The New York State Senate is voting right now on whether or not to grant marriage equality, and they are currently one vote away from allowing same-sex couples to enjoy the same rights as straight couples. I’m in New York and was walking down the street just now when I was stopped by an activist with the Human Rights Campaign. She had a cell phone and was asking people to call their senator and urge him to vote in favor of marriage equality. What a great idea!

When I returned home (after making my call of course), I was very pleased to find an email from the Center for Inquiry:

On Tuesday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo introduced legislation in the Assembly and Senate to make New York the sixth state to legalize same-sex marriage. The Senate now finds itself one vote away from passing this historic measure, and is expected to vote on it anytime between now and Friday.

Call your Senator at (518) 455-2800 to voice support for marriage equality. Do not allow the religious beliefs of some to prevent equality for all.

Give your name and address and you’ll be directed to your Senator. You can also visit www.nysenate.gov to find your Senator.

“LGBT individuals are entitled to the same rights as anyone else,” said Ronald A. Lindsay, president and CEO of the Center for Inquiry. “Marriage is an important institution in our society. Denying same-sex couples the right to express their love through marriage is to deny them equal protection under the law, as well as a fundamental human right.”

Awesome to see a skeptic organization standing up against foes like the Catholic Church, which has been one of the main opponents of the bill.

So call your senator now! Mark Grisanti and Steve Saland are two Republican senators who have switched from being opposed to the bill to “undecided,” so if you’re in their districts it’s especially important. But if your senator has already voted in favor, why not call to thank them? The Church is trying to scare politicians into backing down from this issue in case it might negatively impact their re-election chances. Luckily, not even all the Republicans are falling for that one. This is what Republican senator Roy McDonald had to say after changing his mind on the issue of same-sex marriage:

“I’m not out to alienate anybody. This is driven by compassion,” the Saratoga Republican said. “I’m not out to hurt some gay guy, gay woman. Live your lifestyle. That’s not my lifestyle, but God bless ’em — it’s America. Be nice to people, and let’s all just live our lives.”

Damn straight, Senator. Pun intended.

Now isn’t that a bit of good news after yesterday’s breakdown of the potential Republican presidential candidates?

Rebecca Watson

Rebecca is a writer, speaker, YouTube personality, and unrepentant science nerd. In addition to founding and continuing to run Skepchick, she hosts Quiz-o-Tron, a monthly science-themed quiz show and podcast that pits comedians against nerds. There is an asteroid named in her honor. Twitter @rebeccawatson Mastodon mstdn.social/@rebeccawatson Instagram @actuallyrebeccawatson TikTok @actuallyrebeccawatson YouTube @rebeccawatson BlueSky @rebeccawatson.bsky.social

Related Articles

4 Comments

  1. I wish I was still a resident here in NYC instead of just a commuter from Jersey. However, we do have an opportunity to fix things in NJ, hopefully, if this vote goes well.

  2. Sent a message. Ironically, my county is the one that *might* be the deciding vote. Our senator’s undecided.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Back to top button