June 27, 2015
Same-sex marriage ruling stirs local support
June is “pride” month for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and its allies, and this year advocates of marriage equality are celebrating the U.S. Supreme Court’s historic ruling Friday that affirms a constitutional right to same-sex marriage.
Local advocates of marriage equality expressed their support for the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in favor of marriage equality on Friday, but acknowledged that the fight for equal protection under the law continues.
In New York, the state Senate failed to bring two pieces of bipartisan legislation up for a vote before the legislative session ended this week.
The pieces of legislation that were stalled were the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act, or GENDA, and a bill to prohibit the practice of “conversion therapy” on minors, even though both bills passed the Assembly earlier this year.
“Just because our government is telling us it’s not important, doesn’t mean it isn’t important,” said Leah Calzolaio, program coordinator for the LGBT Resource Center in Cortland.
Though Calzolaio said she had been receiving numerous calls and emails rejoicing over the court’s decision, she said she was disappointed that the state government had not pursued protections for gay and transgender New Yorkers, meaning those two stalled pieces of legislation.
Calzolaio noted that the court’s decision coincided with the New York Landmark Commission grantinghistoric landmark status to the Stonewall Inn in New York City. This is credited as the location where the gay rights movement began following a riot and incidents of police brutality against the gay patrons of the tavern in 1969.
Asked how she reconciles these events, both positive and negative for the ongoing gay rights movement, Calzolaio said, “I reconcile them because I have to, but marriage equality does not mean the fight is over.”
Timothy Delaune, an assistant professor and pre-law advisor at SUNY Cortland, pointed out that there are no federal protections for transgender Americans, though many states have passed anti-discrimination and anti-conversion therapy laws. He added that Gov. Andrew Cuomo and President Barack Obama have expressed their support for such anti-discrimination and anti-conversion therapy legislation.
In New York, there are several municipalities that have enacted their own versions of the anti-discrimination law, but Delaune describes this as a patchwork approach.
Delaune said he supports GENDA and the anti-conversion therapy legislation.
“We don’t allow parents the right to refuse to treat actual diseases, that would be abuse,” Delaune said in a phone interview on Friday. “Similarly, treating a non-disease, that’s also a form of abuse.” He was referring to conversion therapy, or the belief that through psychological treatment a homosexual person can be converted to heterosexuality.
Delaune said he expects the legislation to be reintroduced during the next legislative session.
“It’s very clear the advocates are not going away,” Delaune said.
Pastor Peter Williams of Grace Episcopal Church, said many churches have been part of the larger advocacy for LGBT rights.
At Grace Episcopal Church, on Court Street in Cortland, Williams has officiated at least three same-sex marriages, and several others elsewhere.
“Those were especially joyful because they were couples who were together for many years waiting to have a ceremony blessed by the church,” Williams said.
Many of Cortland’s churches are very supportive of the LGBT community, said Williams, who noted he discusses issues related to LGBT equality quite often with his congregation.
Williams was extremely happy with Friday’s Supreme Court decision, he said, but added that the court did not grant gay people a new right.
“Nobody gave people rights today. The Supreme Court just recognized rights that already existed,” Williams said.
Bishop Robert J. Cunningham of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse did not share Williams’ sentiment, instead saying he was saddened by the court’s decision to overturn the definition of marriage.
“While this may settle a legal question, it will not curtail the moral debate,” Cunningham said in a prepared statement.
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