New York Governor introduces same-sex marriage bill
Licensed archive · Attributed source reporting · New York
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New York's governor David Paterson introduced a bill Thursday into the state legislature to legalize marriage between same-sex couples, although it appears to lack the necessary support in the state senate. "For too long, the gay and lesbian communities have been told their rights and freedoms have to wait", said Gov. Paterson. "The time has come to bring marriage equality to the State of New York." The legislation would give same-sex couples 1,300 to 1,400 rights that don't exist unless a couple is married, he said. Of the four states in wh
New York's governor David Paterson introduced a bill Thursday into the state legislature to legalize marriage between same-sex couples, although it appears to lack the necessary support in the state senate.
"For too long, the gay and lesbian communities have been told their rights and freedoms have to wait", said Gov. Paterson. "The time has come to bring marriage equality to the State of New York."
The legislation would give same-sex couples 1,300 to 1,400 rights that don't exist unless a couple is married, he said.
Of the four states in which same-sex marriage is presently legal — Vermont, Iowa, Massachusetts, and Connecticut — only Vermont has legalized marriage within the state legislature. The other three states have determined through the courts that the prohibition of same-sex marriage was not allowed under their state constitutions.
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Read the source: Wikinews ↗Source published 16 Apr 2009, 05:30 am IST