New York, NY —
City Lawyers yesterday filed papers with the state's highest court, asking it to consider an expedited appeal of last week's decision legalizing gay marriage in New York. The move comes as gays and lesbians in New York and San Francisco are criticizing Mayor Bloomberg's decision not to let the lower court opinion stand. WNYC's Andrea Bernstein reports.
Last week's court ruling put the first term Republican incumbent in an awkward position. He could follow the court order and risk criticism from the right. Instead, he said for the first time he personally supports gay marriage. But --
Bloomberg: I do not want to see what happened in California when people were misled. That's why I'm going to appeal
In San Francisco last year, Mayor Gavin Newsom issued about 4000 marriage licenses to same sex couples, until the courts ordered him to stop and ruled the licenses invalid. We called a sampling of Bay Area same sex couples to ask them about that experience.
Ryan: Oh it was painful. I didn't cry but Carol did.
Kay Ryan, a poet who lives in Fairfax, California got married last year to her partner of 25 years, Carol Adair. Ryan says she WAS sad when the ruling came down invalidating the licenses. She’s not sorry she got married.
Ryan I think we would very much say the exhilaration far outweighed the later suffering. It was just a thrill to briefly have something go our way even if it was taken back.
Some gay leaders, like Lisa Bennett of the Human Rights campaign, say there were couples who were taken off guard and were deeply disappointed when the licenses were nullified. But Shannon Minter, Attorney with National Center for Lesbian Rights, who is suing to legalize same sex marriage in California, says none of the couples he represents have any regrets about getting the licenses.
Mintner: There is just no way that any pain caused by couples having their licenses temporarily voided by the California supreme court was possibly outweighed by the joy and affirmation that couples out here experienced from being able to marry.
Mayor Bloomberg says legal clarity is an important goal.
Bloomberg: We are a country of laws and its in everybody’s interest to get a definitive answer as to what the law is and whether theses laws are constitutional and if they are fine and if they are not then you go to the legislature and make sure you’re in compliance.
Newsom: They all knew exactly what they were getting into no one by any stretch of the imagination thought this was a fait accompli
Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco says there was no widespread pain caused by the way events unfolded in California. And he says Bloomberg was wrong to appeal.
Newsom: He supports gay marriage doesn’t mean he needs to support it in the context I did, but what he’s doing goes to the extreme, and if his lawyers are successful, he will get the the exact opposite of that which he enunciates he supports.
Newsom says all 4000 couples were offered refunds in exchange for their marriage licenses – and almost no one took the money.
At the Big Cup café in Chelsea yesterday, New Yorkers were divided. Some felt uncomfortable with a Mayor who professes support for gay marriage while his lawyers say otherwise. In its previous brief, the city quoted a court decision citing the Book of Genesis and argued that there IS no fundamental right to same sex marriage. Lawrence, a city planner calls the Mayor’s move "a highly cynical ploy."
Lawrence: He tries to put a spin on it this is for your own good it kind of sort of creeps me out.
Opera Singer Anthony Turner said he thinks the Mayor is trying to appease people
Turner: But I'm also thinking in the back of his mind he has trust the appeal will be repealed so it says something stronger when gay marriage is enacted.
Mayor Newsom says this weekend in San Francisco he will celebrate the anniversary of the marriage licenses with some 2000 couples. Meanwhile New York City lawyers say they await the Court of Appeals decision on whether it will take the case on an expedited basis. For WNYC, I'm Andrea Bernstein.