Green Party of New York State
www.gpnys.org
GREEN PARTY CANDIDATE FOR LT. GOV. DUNCAN CRITICIZES COURT OF APPEALS FOR
ANTI-GAY/LESBIAN DECISION -- BLAMES SPITZER FOR SETTING WHEELS IN MOTION
July 12, 2006
Released July 10, 2006
Contact:
Ann Link (347) 226-1195 eastst@hotmail.com
Rebecca White (646) 229-2547 darbykat@gmail.com
NEW YORK, NY - "The NY Court of Appeals showed cowardice and ignorance in
the 4-2 decision to rule marriage discrimination constitutional," said
Alison Duncan, Green Party Candidate for Lieutenant Governor. "This decision
is an insult to all families. The court has ruled that one class of New
Yorkers can be less deserving of rights than another. I am confident that
New Yorkers will express their outrage over this decision to their legislators and that we will not wait 31
years for equal marriage laws, as we did for SONDA."
Duncan was in campaigning in Rochester on Saturday. She marched with Green
Party members in the Rochester Pride Parade.
"The Court of Appeals acknowledged in its opinion that "Articles 2 and 3 of
the Domestic Relations Law . . . nowhere say in so many words that only
people of different sexes may marry each other," but then made assumptions
regarding marriage and childrearing - disregarding scientific evidence to
the contrary - in an awkward attempt to justify restricting marriage to
couples of the opposite sex," said Duncan. "This opinion is clearly in
violation of the due process and equal protection clauses of the NY Constitution, despite the justices' claims to the contrary. I commend Chief
Justice Kaye for her dissenting opinion that so clearly reveals the prejudice and hypocrisy of the majority's decision."
"Attorney General Eliot Spitzer had the opportunity two years ago to take a
strong stand for equal marriage rights in his position of power after Green
Party Mayor Jason West and Deputy Mayor Rebecca Rotzler married lesbian and
gay couples in New Paltz," added Duncan. "Instead he issued a legal opinion
directing NY officials not to marry couples of the same sex, in advance of a
permanent injunction against West and Rotzler. Spitzer takes LGBT voters for
granted, asking us to wait until it is more convenient for him to act. How
can he present himself as a progressive alternative to a Republican administration if it is morally acceptable to him to argue for a side that
defines our state's constitution as a discriminatory one?"
"The Green Party has always been ahead on the issue of equal rights for LGBT
folk," said Duncan. "West and Rotzler bravely risked legal sanction when
they married lesbian and gay couples in New Paltz and both the state and
national Green Party platforms support gay marriage and full equal rights
for LGBT people."
Green Party of New York State Platform
http://www.gpny.org/?page_id=274
(pdf)
Green Party of the United States Platform
http://www.gp.org/platform/2004/
Spitzer legal opinion on same sex marriage
http://www.oag.state.ny.us/press/2004/mar/mar03a_04.html
