New York to recognize gay marriages
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Gov. David Patterson of New York has told state agencies to recognize same-sex marriages performed in states and countries where they are legal, his spokeswoman said Wednesday.
New York agencies have been told to recognize same-sex marriages performed in places where they are legal.
The governor's legal counsel told state agencies in a May 14 memo to revise policies and regulations to recognize same-sex marriages performed in California and Massachusetts as well as Canada and other countries that allow gays and lesbians to marry, said Erin Duggan, the governor's spokeswoman.
The memo informed state agencies that failing to recognize gay marriages would violate the New York's human rights law, Duggan said.
The directive follows a February ruling from a New York state appeals court. That decision says that legal same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions are entitled to recognition in New York.
"This was in direct response to a court ruling," Duggan told CNN. "Just to make sure all the state agencies are on the same page."
Duggan says that the court's decision was consistent with the findings of several lower courts in New York State.
Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriages in 2004, and gay couples need not be state residents there to wed. However, then-Gov. Mitt Romney resurrected a 1913 law barring non-resident marriages in the state if the marriage would be prohibited in the partners' home state.
Subsequent court and agency decisions have determined that only residents of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Mexico may marry in Massachusetts, unless the parties say they plan to relocate there after the marriage.
New Hampshire, Vermont, New Jersey and Connecticut permit civil unions, while California has a domestic-partner registration law. More than a dozen other states give same-sex couples some legal rights, as do some other countries.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/05/29/nygay.marriage/index.html
While New York has not made it legal to perform marriages, it has said that it will grant recognition to same-sex marriages that have been made official in other states and countries. This is one more step towards recognition of same-sex marriage at the state level within this country.
But will gay marriage ever be safe from the the threat of legal opposition or legislative/judicial reversal? When San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom granted same-sex marriages back in 2004, they were quickly annuled by the state. Even with the apparent legalization of gay marriage in the state of California, the California Supreme Court still has an opportunity to intervene. California will officially be granting marriage licenses to same-sex couples beginnng on June 17th 2008. However, the Court will have until June 16th to review their decision and possibly overturn their prior action.
Many people have been excited about these recent developments in California and New York, but will same-sex couples ever be able to live without the fear of knowing that their marriage may soon be invalidated? While we have moved towards a much more tolerant view of homosexuals in American society, these victories for the LGBT community must unfortunately be celebrated with caution.
4 comments:
I'm totally excited about the progress the Gay Movement has made.
I think this is a great step for our country. Lets hope this goes all the way up to teh supreme court so it can be legal throughout the country
"The state has an ability to intervene in judicial decisions..."
Hmm, now what other locale does that sound like? Oh yeah...China. :)
One of the looming questions surrounding this decision is whether enforcement will follow in the footsteps of Brown or Roe. It will be interesting to see if the court will enforce this decision by ruling that churches must perform same sex marriage ceremonies. It has always been my belief that any decision granting same sex marriage would eventually be treated like and challenged like the Roe decision. Already, I have read newspaper articles in which people who grant marriage licenses and churches are challenging the ruling and refusing to issue licenses and perform ceremonies on grounds that it goes against their religious beliefs. Similarly, doctors and pharmacists refuse to issue contraceptives or terminate pregnancies on the grounds that it is against their personal beliefs. So far, the same sex marriage ruling sounds a lot like Roe to me!
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