I agree David....New York and New Jersey must pass it this year. Last year I traveled across New York meeting with State Senators calling on them to bring the marriage equality bill to the floor for a vote. I had thought that getting a vote would be a non issue if we had a democratic majority leader but now we are being told that we won't get a vote until we "have the votes" which is just another tactic for stalling. We helped elect this majority and we deserve our vote! No more excuses. If we lose after getting our vote then so be it....but for God sakes give us our vote.

Posted by: Jacob Reitan | Apr 9, 2009 10:47:47 AM

Odds are, we'll soon have the disappointment of the California Supreme Court saying Prop. 8 stays.

But, ultimately, that's bearable (barely) for now. We'll overturn it in the not-too-distant future, and move on to other states.

Ironically, it was probably Prop. 8 that stunned so many straight allies, woke up so many complacent gays, and is prodding everyone on to equality across the land.

(Now, all we have to do is find more spineful Democrats to do their jobs! Could we, perhaps, clone the Democratic leaders of the Iowa legislature?)

Posted by: K in VA | Apr 9, 2009 11:09:48 AM

Right on, David!

Posted by: Gary Belis | Apr 9, 2009 12:22:08 PM

While as ecstatic as you about these unquestionably inspiring events, with respect, it doesn't serve stategies of progress to remotely imply by omission that their roads to success were constructed upon the same proverbial playing fields, and dispects the hard work and successes of those in far different circumstances.

One takes nothing from the achievements of everyone involved in Vermont and Iowa when he points out that it's easier to advance any issue with a smaller number of players than a huge one.

Vermont's ENTIRE POPULATION—623,908—is over 120,000 less than just the city of San Francisco. The population of California—34 MILLION—is roughly FIFTY-FIVE times Vermont's.

Still, starting 4 YEARS ago, thanks to the efforts of gay legislator Mark Leno, California's legislature TWICE voted for marriage equality. Again, based on the numbers above, it's too simplistic to say shame on them for not overriding the governor's vetoes while exalting Lilliputian Vermont.

California's Republican-led Supreme Court, like that of Iowa [population 3 million], endorsed marriage equality.

"William Eskridge, a professor at Yale Law School and scholar on the gay marriage issue, said 'the Iowa decision actually relies on the California decision ... I think that both their legal analysis and their unanimity was surely influenced by the California decision, which they lavishly quote'." - AP.

Even were Iowa and Vermont to face and defeat their own versions of Prop 8, the canyon between the numbers of voters who would be involved there and those involved in California would neutralize any attempt to equate them beyond the propagandistic.

Nonetheless, I celebrate them all.

Posted by: Leland Frances | Apr 9, 2009 2:22:09 PM

My fear is that the Iowa legislature will buckle under the religious bullies barrage and allow a ballot on same sex marriage. It probably will happen next session. I hope I'm wrong.
I think NY will follow sooner than later. CA is going to have to go through the whole mess after the supremes make their decision.

Posted by: Jim | Apr 9, 2009 2:24:42 PM

Leland, I disagree with you from time to time, but I just want to say I'm always in awe of your mastery of detail and facts. David, one of your best postings ever!

Posted by: Gary Belis | Apr 9, 2009 2:26:38 PM

Thank you, Gary; that's very kind of you.

I hope no one reading my comment above will misinterpret it as any disrespect for Mr. Mixner. By his own decades of sucessess and the political scars he's borne, he's earned the right to generalize a bit in a moment of such rare, aggregate victory.

My primary point was that, as a minority numerically and in terms of [willing] financial clout and organization [the power tens of thousands of already organized local churches has beaten us again and again], the closer we get to universal victory the more we must finely focus our targets and choice of weapons.

To the contrary, I just read that the L.A. gay center is sponsoring a marriage equality video contest the winner of which will, apparently, only be shown on their own site—the last place the "moveable middle" is going to be looking for information. Puerile and pathetic [and self-serving].

And 3000 miles away, Empire Pride has produced a video that will change not a single mind that needs changing, regardless of where it appears.

But back to Mr. Mixner: the film "Milk" had many strengths, but one of its failings is that the majority of its audience leaves not knowing that, with respect, far from Harvey Milk, no one was more responsible for the defeat of the Briggs Initiative than David Mixner and his late beloved friend & comrade Peter Scott. They miraculously persuaded Ronald Reagan to oppose it which did more than anything else to turn the election around.

Further, while the Four Horsemen of the Moral Apocalypse of DADT [Dole, Moskos, Powell, Nunn] ultimately trampled reason and justice, and other instruments of Evil created federal DOMA, no one deserves more credit for the gay progress that did come from the Clinton years than David Mixner.

Posted by: Leland Frances | Apr 9, 2009 3:05:18 PM

Do you think the NYS State Assembly passing the Marriage bill last year happened on its own? You can thank Alan Van Capelle and the staff of the Pride Agenda for that.

Posted by: frank selvaggi | Apr 11, 2009 7:08:36 PM

Guys... and I mean gals, here, too. Come on ... we ran a shitty Prop 8 campaign in Calif. Whose idea was it to hide? What gay media wonk thought we should buy ad space and leave it at that? No one has done an analysis of what went wrong with Prop 8. David, I appreciate your fine journalism but where's the critique of our failed campaign to win marriage in Calif. What went wrong? We only have ourselves to blame. Look at the film, MILK, (Leland's reference) how Harvey travelled up and down our state to defeat the Briggs Initiative and rallied gays and lesbians to tell their families, friends and employers how proud they were being gay. The very public campaign Harvey lead defeated Prop 6 in the 1970s. Where is that leadership today in Calif.? ... Still smoldering in Hermosa Beach... AC

Posted by: Allen Carrier | Apr 14, 2009 9:49:34 PM