If we can make it here,
we can make it anywhere.
( and they know it )
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| The Empire State Building, after the vote |
- The Stonewall Riots : 1969
- Real Marriage Equality in Massachusetts : 2003
- NEW YORK , FULL MARRIAGE ! : 2011
- Civil Unions in Vermont : 1999
- Bowers v Hardwick : 1986
- Bill Clinton Signs Doma : 1996
- Equality hits the heartland IOWA : 2009
With a four brave votes in the New York Senate, the Empire State joined Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Washington, DC, in full blown, all out, get me to the church on time, MARRIAGE. Under the above-and-beyond leadership of Governor Andrew Cuomo and NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg, Sens. James Alesi of Rochester, Roy McDonald of Saratoga Springs, Stephen Saland of Poughkeepsie, and Mark Grisanti of Buffalo all more or less crossed the aisle in Albany to let freedom ring from Montauk to Niagara! There was one no vote from a Democrat, the ever idiotic Ruban Diaz from The Bronx, but he totally showed his true colors with the entire world watching, refusing to yield the floor before the vote, and just being a general ass.
We , Neil and I and , EVERY OTHER HOMOSEXUAL IN THE WORLD, had been on pins and needles for days as the week tarried on. Joy to panic to resolve to gloom and doom, depending on what rumor was tweeted from this person or that newspaper. Elation came early here in Mendon as our Senator was the first Republican out of the gate to say : YES!, I believe all New Yorkers are equal, many thanks to Senator Alesi. Then came McDonald, who is the Senator for Pompanuck, coming out loud and proud in favor of marriage equality with the now sampler worthy " Only second class states have second class citizens ". He also said "You get to the point where you evolve in your life where everything isn't black and white, good and bad, and you try to do the right thing. You might not like that. You might be very cynical about that. Well, fuck it, I don't care what you think. I'm trying to do the right thing. I'm tired of Republican-Democrat politics. They can take the job and shove it. I come from a blue-collar background. I'm trying to do the right thing, and that's where I'm going with this." But we feel that would be a bit wordy and racy for a sampler! That left us, Wednesday morning, needing just ONE VOTE to go over the top, or maybe it was Tuesday. See, by not blogging about this every day, they just run together. Three Democrats that had voted no in 2009, switched to yes with a little love from Governor Cuomo, the other four had been voted out! Early in the afternoon the word came out from the GOP Senate Majority Leaders office : THE BILL IS ON THE DOCKET.
Quick like little gay bunnies the Democratic controlled state HOUSE, under the leadership of Danny O'Donnell, re-voted on the new GOP bill that carved out all sorts of doo dads and thingamajigs for the Knights of Columbus and the Muslim Brotherhood, all those GOPers scared out of their rep ties that some Hasidic Jewish Bakery was going to be doing wedding cakes with two brides on top.
Forty one years and eleven months ago, no gay man or lesbian was safe in New York City. Well, no OUT gay man or lesbian. You could be arrested for simply walking into certain bars, or really for just looking a certain way in Greenwich Village. Zero rights, everything against the law, even the right to assemble and it has been this way for years. Forty Two years ago, all that changed. June 28th, 1969, folks had enough, and fought back, the three day riots centered on the little hole in the wall bar The Stonewall Inn at 53 Christopher Street. The assorted drag queens, rent boys and party people threw everything they had at the NYPD and started the movement that is now GAY PRIDE ,celebrated all over the world in June. Last night, GLBT folk and our allies gathered again in and around The Stonewall, this time for something a little big more than chucking beer bottles at Officer Krumpkie. Smart phoned and cabled, they waited, as the night dragged on.
OMNIBUS! We heard over and over , all of progressive New York glued to the NEW YORK ASSEMBLY channel on Time Warner or on the internet. Andrew Sullivan said that the normal number watching the New York Senate was around 50, last night the numbers were up around 50,000. The much ballyhooed omnibus bill of a tax cap, new rent control rules and some livery thing came and went with soap boxes galore. Facebook, and twitter were our tools of choice. The Governor got what he wanted from the GOP controlled Senate as all three bills passed. Back the the cheesey Muzak.
BANG, BANG, BANG graveled the one time Rochester Mayor now Lt. Governor ( and all the gay friendly ) Duffy: The Amendments to the Marriage Equality Act. blah, blah and they voted. The yeses win and the internet explodes in rainbows and glitter! WAIT FOLKS... that was just the previews! Slow down. Someone, either Duffy or Leader Skelos had decided that debate would THANKFULLY be limited, as LONG TIME CHAMPION openly gay Manhattan Senator Thomas Duane comes to the microphone and just totally can not get the words he needs to out, so GOP Senator Saland took over. Then Asshat Diaz did his little dog and pony show -Back to a composed Duane, who we love, but he tends to run on AND cry. He did both last night, but Duffy got him to sit after a while. Then Grisanti wowed the world with his reasons for his vote.
We , Neil and I and , EVERY OTHER HOMOSEXUAL IN THE WORLD, had been on pins and needles for days as the week tarried on. Joy to panic to resolve to gloom and doom, depending on what rumor was tweeted from this person or that newspaper. Elation came early here in Mendon as our Senator was the first Republican out of the gate to say : YES!, I believe all New Yorkers are equal, many thanks to Senator Alesi. Then came McDonald, who is the Senator for Pompanuck, coming out loud and proud in favor of marriage equality with the now sampler worthy " Only second class states have second class citizens ". He also said "You get to the point where you evolve in your life where everything isn't black and white, good and bad, and you try to do the right thing. You might not like that. You might be very cynical about that. Well, fuck it, I don't care what you think. I'm trying to do the right thing. I'm tired of Republican-Democrat politics. They can take the job and shove it. I come from a blue-collar background. I'm trying to do the right thing, and that's where I'm going with this." But we feel that would be a bit wordy and racy for a sampler! That left us, Wednesday morning, needing just ONE VOTE to go over the top, or maybe it was Tuesday. See, by not blogging about this every day, they just run together. Three Democrats that had voted no in 2009, switched to yes with a little love from Governor Cuomo, the other four had been voted out! Early in the afternoon the word came out from the GOP Senate Majority Leaders office : THE BILL IS ON THE DOCKET.
Quick like little gay bunnies the Democratic controlled state HOUSE, under the leadership of Danny O'Donnell, re-voted on the new GOP bill that carved out all sorts of doo dads and thingamajigs for the Knights of Columbus and the Muslim Brotherhood, all those GOPers scared out of their rep ties that some Hasidic Jewish Bakery was going to be doing wedding cakes with two brides on top.
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| 1969 |
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| 2011. I love the fact they are all outside THE STONEWALL |
OMNIBUS! We heard over and over , all of progressive New York glued to the NEW YORK ASSEMBLY channel on Time Warner or on the internet. Andrew Sullivan said that the normal number watching the New York Senate was around 50, last night the numbers were up around 50,000. The much ballyhooed omnibus bill of a tax cap, new rent control rules and some livery thing came and went with soap boxes galore. Facebook, and twitter were our tools of choice. The Governor got what he wanted from the GOP controlled Senate as all three bills passed. Back the the cheesey Muzak.
BANG, BANG, BANG graveled the one time Rochester Mayor now Lt. Governor ( and all the gay friendly ) Duffy: The Amendments to the Marriage Equality Act. blah, blah and they voted. The yeses win and the internet explodes in rainbows and glitter! WAIT FOLKS... that was just the previews! Slow down. Someone, either Duffy or Leader Skelos had decided that debate would THANKFULLY be limited, as LONG TIME CHAMPION openly gay Manhattan Senator Thomas Duane comes to the microphone and just totally can not get the words he needs to out, so GOP Senator Saland took over. Then Asshat Diaz did his little dog and pony show -Back to a composed Duane, who we love, but he tends to run on AND cry. He did both last night, but Duffy got him to sit after a while. Then Grisanti wowed the world with his reasons for his vote.
watch this.
This is how we go forward from here.
" I have done the research , and I believe that a person can be wiser today than yesterday"
He was the last Senator before the vote.
WE WON !!
Wow, so this is what this feels like, it had been a while. You have to remember gentle reader, while yall were exploding and not looting post Obama v McCain, my people were licking their wounds as prop 8 passed. As far as BIG wins, this was the first, in a while.
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| The Governor then signed the bill on the spot. Thirty days from yesterday, get me to the church on time! A whole lot of Rochester in this photo! |
This morning I was all over the anti gay folks sites, quickly getting banned from a 33 year old little Paul Ryan wannabe weasel of a downstate Senator Ball (less ) ( wishing him luck in any future state or city wide elections as a proven homophobic theocrat ) and the NOM website itself, as they crow over dumping TWO MILLION dollars into New York to overturn this next year. I just told them that Mayor Bloomberg wipes his nose with two million dollars, and is the largest contributor to the NY GOP. Maybe I will cover the right wings LAME antics this morning, maybe not. It totally does not matter, there is no recall device in NY. This is it...
How do I feel? Well, not a whole lot will change or at least any changes that we know of. We are already married , and New York has already given us all we can get, marriage here is icing on the cake! I will be coming back to this in the next few days, but just for today, be outragously happy, that the number of American citizens living in freedom doubled last night. USA indeed!
Did you really think I could do this post with out LIZA?
play it
LOUD
OH! and for those that do not know : The New York City Pride Parade is tomorrow. " Man, is there gonna be some property destroyed tonight " .
7 comments:
Here's to the rest of the country becoming "wiser today than yesterday."
what are the folks chanting at the end of the second video, after the roll call?
I love this Kyle.
I love this blog post Kyle.
YO! Congratulations Kyle!
Thanks guys.. Beth, they are , for what ever reason, chanting USA! USA! USA!. I think we , as a nation, just don't really have anything else to chant. MUCH to the dismay of the anti everything lefty left left left set. ( men/war/meat/shaving/america, etc )
Does this mean Beth and I have to buy matching Laura Ashley dresses and roadtrip up to slightly south of Canada while the weather is still pretty? Ya'll can wear seersucker--preferably not matching. Great news.
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