A Victory In Connecticut
I just received this wonderful news from Love Makes A Family, concerning the marriage equality bill in Connecticut. I wanted to share it.
Thanks to your support, we made history today in Connecticut!
By a vote of 27 to 15, our legislature’s Judiciary Committee passed a marriage equality bill, making Connecticut only the second state in the country to win a marriage vote in a state legislature.
The legislators who voted with us today are the first in our state’s history to have had the opportunity to cast an up or down vote on a marriage bill. Whatever happens next, we will always remember them for their strong leadership.
The marriage equality bill will now go to the House of Representatives for a full debate.
Today we will celebrate this incredible victory, but tomorrow we will turn our attention back to the hard work of winning over a majority of House votes.
We will need YOUR help to win the next vote. If you have not made a donation this year to support our work (or if you can make another!), please consider doing so today by clicking here.
Thank you!
Sincerely,
Anne Stanback, Executive Director
Love Makes a Family
How the legislators voted...
Judiciary Committee Votes on HB 7395: An Act Concerning Marriage Equality
YES VOTES
Rep. Ryan Barry (Manchester)
Rep. Beth Bye (Avon, Farmington, West Hartford
Sen. Eric Coleman (Bloomfield, Hartford, Windsor)
Rep. Pat Dillon (New Haven)
Rep. Gerry Fox (Stamford)
Rep. John Geragosian (New Britain)
Rep. Bob Godfrey (Danbury)
Sen. Ed Gomes (Bridgeport, Stratford)
Rep. Minnie Gonzalez (Hartford)
Rep. Ken Green (Bloomfield, Hartford)
Rep. Gail Hamm (East Hampton, Middletown)
Sen. Mary Ann Handley (Glastonbury, Manchester, Bolton, Marlborough)
Rep. Bryan Hurlburt (Ashford, Tolland, Willington)
Rep. Michael Lawlor (East Haven)
Rep. David McCluskey (West Hartford)
Sen. Andrew McDonald (Stamford, Darien)
Rep. Faith McMahon (Bloomfield, Windsor)
Sen. Ed Meyer (Branford, Guilford, Madison, Durham, Killingworth, N. Branford)
Rep. Tim O’Brien (New Britain, Newington)
Rep. Melissa Olson (Norwich)
Sen. Andrew Roraback (Brookfield, Canaan, Cornwall…)
Rep. Joe Serra (Middletown)
Rep. Jamie Spallone (Chester, Deep River, Essex, Haddam)
Rep. Cam Staples (Hamden, New Haven)
Rep. William Tong (New Canaan, Stamford)
Rep. Toni Walker (New Haven)
Rep. Elissa Wright (Groton)
NO VOTES
Rep. Al Adinolfi (Cheshire, Hamden, Wallingford)
Rep. Bill Aman (South Windsor)
Rep. Jeff Berger (Waterbury)
Sen. David Cappiello (Bethel, Danbury, New Fairfield, Sherman)
Rep. Mary Fritz (Cheshire, Wallingford)
Rep. Jan Giegler (Danbury, New Fairfield)
Rep. William Hamzy (Bristol, Plymouth)
Rep. Debralee Hovey (Monroe, Newtown)
Sen. John Kissel (E. Granby, Granby, Enfield, Somers, Suffield, Windsor, Windsor Locks)
Rep. David Labriola (Naugatuck, Oxford, Southbury)
Rep. Bruce Morris (Norwalk)
Rep. Art O’Neill (Bridgewater, Roxbury, Southbury, Washington)
Rep. Dolly Powers (Greenwich)
Rep. T.R. Rowe (Trumbull)
Rep. Chris Stone (East Hartford, Manchester, Glastonbury)
ABSENT
Rep. Themis Klarides (Derby, Orange. Woodbridge)
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I oppose civil unions because they are less than equal. They set up a second class system for gay couples. Do they have a place in the reality of Connecticut politics? Yes, they do.
But, your argument for having civil unions (we have to go in steps) could have been applied to African Americans as well. Was it right that they were tolerated (had to sit in the back of the bus, yet they still had a seat on the bus), or allowed to have restrooms separate from "white's only" restrooms, or forced to drink from separate water fountains?
Did the march on Washington by African Americans ask for a second-class system for their existence?
No, it did not. It demanded equality. Nothing else really cuts it. And THAT is why I oppose civil unions. Would I ever get a civil union? Perhaps I will someday if marriage is never allowed, just so I can have the legal protections it supposedly offers. There is no case law to back it up or how it will be interpreted by a court. We ASSUME they will treat it like a marriage, but it's never been tested (this is what my personal attorney, who specialized on legal issues for gay couples, tells me). Civil unions also offer no way to challenge the federal system, since the federal system does not recognize what a civil union is. Also, there was testimony at the hearing about the confusion that some hospitals had over what a civil union is. Some who testified told the hospital that they were in a "civil union". The hospital knows what a marriage is.
If I were to get a civil union, I will have to live with the fact that I have just labeled my 31 year marriage to my partner as second rate, and not equal to marriage. I can't do anything with it. I can't leave the state with it. Can we get health insurance coverage with a civil union? Yes, if we happen to work for a public company, or the state. BUT, the premiums you pay for that insurance are TAXABLE, unlike that of a married couple. How equal does that sound to you?
These are some of the reasons that I oppose civil unions. Anyway you slice it, that is reality, and who the hell needs that?
Without civil unions, which Bill & Kent opposed, I guarantee you that this victory would not have happened today.
Civil unions has helped advance the cause for gay rights. It has all been about going one step at a time.
Today is a great day for our state!
With an opposition like this, how can you lose?