Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

OK for same-sex marriages sought in N.J.
The Record of Hackensack ^ | 01.15.03

Posted on 01/15/2003 9:32:34 AM PST by Coleus

OK for same-sex marriages sought in N.J.

Wednesday, January 15, 2003

By RUTH PADAWER Staff Writer

More than 200 of the faithful squeezed into the small church hall, applauding wildly as believers offered testimonials of love. One by one, they bore witness to the power of commitments. They were met with hoots and whistles from an adoring flock.

This was no religious revival. Instead, it was a pep rally for gay rights in New Jersey. With a lawsuit pending in state court over same-sex marriage, gay-rights leaders this week unveiled the first of 10 meetings designed to rouse sympathizers from Cape May to Teaneck.

"My name is Alicia and this is my wife, Saundra," said plaintiff Alicia Toby, her hand draped across Saundra Heath's knee, as the crowd broke into applause. For 14 years, she and Heath have been together, raising their children and now enjoying grandchildren. "We pay first-class taxes and we're not going to tolerate being treated like second-class citizens."

Toby handed the microphone to Heath, who hesitated, then blinked back tears. "I'm so nervous," Heath said haltingly. "I want to cry."

From the audience, a man called out, "That's all right. We're all family now."

Monday evening, the mood was jubilant inside the grand mansion that houses Morristown Unitarian Fellowship. Three of the seven couples suing the state sat before an audience shoehorned into the sanctuary's 180 seats. Other spectators leaned against the wall or spilled into the foyer.

The first plaintiff to speak was Maureen Kilian, who squeezed her partner's hand as their two children swung their feet. The children are legally related to each other, and each mother is legally related, through adoption, to both children. But the women have no legally recognized relationship.

"Cindy and I have been together for 28 years," Kilian said, "and we're ready to get married." The crowd went wild.

Lambda Legal - the group suing the state - and the state's Gay Activist Alliance are hosting the meetings to alert their constituents of their plan to push for victories in both the court and the State House. Though the approach is two-pronged, the message Monday night was singular: get involved.

"It is our responsibility as activists and members of the community to support both the judicial and legislative fight," said Laura Pople, head of the New Jersey Lesbian and Gay Coalition. "We are urging people to stay informed, get active, and be ready to respond."

As plaintiffs talked, volunteers worked the crowd, collecting signatures on petitions, and addresses for mailing lists for legislative alerts. The plan is to turn constituents in every legislative district into soldiers in the battle for civil rights and to reach out to other New Jerseyans.

"I'm your neighbor next door," Toby urged people to say. "I ride the bus with you, I sit next to you at lunch. ... I am the face of gay and lesbian America."

The suit was filed in June in Hudson County and is moving to Mercer County at the attorney general's request. It argues that denying same-sex couples the benefits and responsibilities of marriage violates their constitutional right to equal protection and privacy. The state's first response is due at the end of the month; the case is expected eventually to reach the state Supreme Court by mid-2004.

The state's position is ironic, said Mark Lewis, an Episcopal minister in Secaucus who is a plaintiff with his partner of 10 years, Dennis Winslow, another Episcopal priest.

"The state of New Jersey believes we are perfectly fit to officiate at wedding ceremonies," he said. "But it says we are not fit to be married ourselves. It's saying, 'You're good enough to work for us, but you're not good enough to receive what we have to offer.'"

Same-sex marriages are not legal anywhere in the United States, though gay activists have filed lawsuits in several states. In Vermont, gay couples are allowed "civil unions," granting them some benefits of marriage. In Hawaii, the court ruled that same-sex couples had a right to marry, but voters intervened, amending the Hawaii Constitution so state legislators could limit marriage to a union between a man and a woman. In New Jersey, constitutional amendments are more difficult to obtain, but Lambda is leaving nothing to chance.

"It's possible to win in court but not in the court of public opinion," said Michael Adams, Lambda's lawyer for the case.

Already, several traditional-values groups have vowed to fight the suit, though they have called no public meetings and filed no papers with the court.

"If people want to live together outside the common code of marriage - that is, between one man and one woman - that's their prerogative," said Len Deo, head of the New Jersey Family Policy Council in Parsippany. "But marriage is the one institution that supports the family and once you start redefining all these relationships, it becomes a mess."

On Monday night, gay-rights leaders urged support for a bill that Assemblywoman Loretta Weinberg, D-Teaneck, has promised to introduce, providing some marital benefits to adults living in an "emotionally and economically committed relationship."

The plan would cover not only same-sex couples, but also heterosexual couples, such as senior citizens who live together but avoid marriage because it would reduce their Social Security benefits. But it would not change responsibilities toward children, and would not confer joint-property status.

By evening's end, 217 people had signed the petition. The mailing list grew fat, too. Several couples wore wedding bands; a few talked of longtime engagements that will proceed no further until same-sex marriage is allowed. Outside, cars in the parking lot bore bumper stickers with slogans of the movement: "Hate is not a family value."


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; US: New Jersey
KEYWORDS: catholiclist; episcopal; episcopalian; family; familyvalues; gay; gomorrah; homosexual; homosexualagenda; lambdalegal; marriage; morristown; newjersey; prisoners; unitarian; weinberg
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-49 last
To: Coleus
Monday evening, the mood was jubilant inside the grand mansion that houses Morristown Unitarian Fellowship.

Unitarian. Hardly surprising, unfortunately.

41 posted on 09/30/2003 9:48:49 AM PDT by Zack Nguyen
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Coleus
Not to mention the cultural, moral chaos that will ensure if we teach the next generation that marriage has no meaning.
42 posted on 09/30/2003 9:50:01 AM PDT by Zack Nguyen
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: Zack Nguyen
What's going to happen when BI-sexuals want to marry? Will they legislate 2 partners (one of each gender) for each bi sexual, one man and one woman? When is this nonsense ever going to stop?
43 posted on 09/30/2003 10:12:58 AM PDT by Coleus (Only half the patients who go into an abortion clinic come out alive.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 42 | View Replies]

To: Zack Nguyen
The divorce rate's already taught them what marriage means to most heterosexuals. I fail to see how monogamous gay people really hurt my marriage. I guess I'm just not burdened down by a 2000 year old fairy tale.
44 posted on 09/30/2003 10:13:05 AM PDT by hunter112
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 42 | View Replies]

To: hunter112
Homosexual marriage will deal a blow to our culture from which we will never recover. What is true is true and cannot be changed.
45 posted on 09/30/2003 10:24:59 AM PDT by Zack Nguyen
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: Coleus
The nonsense won't stop soon, I am afraid. This is a clash of religion and morality more than anything else.
46 posted on 09/30/2003 10:28:32 AM PDT by Zack Nguyen
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 43 | View Replies]

To: Zack Nguyen
Come up with a non-religious reason how homosexual marriage, or civil unions will do any more damage to our "culture" than the current status quo (homosexuals cannot marry) is already doing. I keep hearing about this damage, but other than offending some people's sensibilities (much the same way interracial marriage did decades ago when it was outlawed), I just can't see it. I will be able to live my life in just the same way if the homosexual couple down the street or next door or across town is either "married" or not.
47 posted on 09/30/2003 11:39:34 AM PDT by hunter112
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 45 | View Replies]

To: hunter112
The root cause I have in opposing homosexual marriage is that homosexual behavior is extremely dangerous physically and destructive morally and spiritually, and thus should not be encouraged or deemed normative by our government. If homosexuals can marry they can also adopt children in even larger numbers than before, and the sexual/gender confusion this will bring in young children is a horrible thing.

If marriage is whatever we decide it to be rather than what God has said it is, then we will confuse and bewilder and entire generation on what family is. If we are not sure what family is, then how do we expect them to grow up with a firm psychological or moral foundation?

But if you do not object to any of this, it is entirely possible that homosexual marriage will have no effect at all on your life. I really cannot say.
48 posted on 10/01/2003 1:59:41 PM PDT by Zack Nguyen
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 47 | View Replies]

To: scripter
Domestic partner bill called in line with McGreevey's concerns
 
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — A Democrat-sponsored bill that would allow same-sex couples to form domestic partnerships and thereby gain some of the tax and insurance benefits enjoyed by married couples could become law by early next year, according to a spokesman for Gov. James E. McGreevey.
 
The measure introduced by Senate Co-President Richard Codey, an Essex County Democrat, would limit domestic partnerships to heterosexual couples 63 and older who could jeopardize pension benefits by remarrying, and to adult same-sex couples.
 
An earlier measure in the Assembly would have enabled any two unmarried adults living together to gain the benefits of domestic partnerships. The Assembly version drew criticism from McGreevey as too broad and expensive.
 
"Now we're at a point where we're hopeful we can get a domestic partnership benefits bill on the governor's desk during the lame-duck session," McGreevey spokesman Micah Rasmussen told The Sunday Star-Ledger of Newark.
 
"This has been the governor's position for a long time," he said. "The state seems to be supportive of an equitable solution like this one."
 
Advocates for gay rights embraced the prospects of the legislation. But they vowed to continue court fights to form same-sex marriages. In November, a Mercer County judge rejected a lawsuit by same-sex couples, who argued they had a constitutional right to marry.
 
While turning away the suit, Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg did urge lawmakers to consider legislation for domestic partner benefits.
 
"We're hoping this is going to be a good holiday for a lot of families, and we're going to get some benefits out of it," said Laura Pople, president of the New Jersey Gay and Lesbian Coalition.
 
Under Codey's measure, those who form domestic partnerships would have to be unmarried and living together, and they would have to agree to be responsible for each other's basic living expenses.
 
Private employers would be allowed to charge their employees for extending health benefits to their domestic partners.
 
Domestic partners would gain tax advantages, including the right to inherit property like spouses. Domestic partners also would be considered each others' next of kin for the purposes of making medical decisions and hospital visitation.
 
"It's very difficult when your partner of 30 years is in the hospital and you're not allowed in," said Michael Blake, president of New Jersey's chapter of the gay rights organization Stonewall Democrats.
http://www.nj.com/newsflash/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1070824442264842.xml

49 posted on 12/08/2003 8:19:44 AM PST by Coleus (Only half the patients who go into an abortion clinic come out alive.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-49 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson