Tag: NY State

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NY: Gov. takes marriage equality agenda on the road

Called the “People First” Tour, Governor Cuomo will take his legislative agenda to the people of NY state to talk about his priorities in the final days of the legislative session, including marriage equality.

“Our entire team is going to travel the state to speak directly to New Yorkers about the issues that can move this state forward, and it begins in Syracuse,” said Cuomo in a statement that announced the first stop of the tour late Monday. “We need to pass a property tax cap, ethics reform, and marriage equality during this legislative session. The clock is ticking, but when the people speak, the politicians will listen. We will assemble a broad coalition of New Yorkers to support this agenda and work tirelessly to get it passed in Albany.”

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NY Rangers Sean Avery: Speaks Out for Gay Rights

NY Rangers forward Sean Avery recently recorded a video, becoming one of only a few active athletes in American team sports to voice support for gay rights, and is believed to be the first in New York to publicly advocate for same-sex marriage. No active male player in a major American team sport has declared his homosexuality, and homosexual slurs remain in use to insult opponents and officials.

Avery, a 31-year-old from Pickering, Ontario, has played nine seasons in the N.H.L. Known as a fashion-conscious, on-ice agitator, he has never been afraid of what others think of him.

“The places I’ve played and lived the longest have been in West Hollywood, Calif., when I played for the L.A. Kings, and when I moved to New York, I lived in Chelsea for the first four years,” Avery said in a phone interview. “I certainly have been surrounded by the gay community. And living in New York and when you live in L.A., you certainly have a lot of gay friends.”

More from the NY Times.

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NY: Conjugal visits for gay married inmates

NY State prison officials are allowing conjugal visits for gay inmates involved in same-sex marriages or civil unions.

Recent regulation changes will also allow gay prisoners to take leave from their cell when their loved one is terminally ill.

From the NY Daily News: “If they seek a furlough based on the partner, it’s likely it would be granted,” said Peter Cutler, spokesman for the Department of Correctional Services.

“We’ve been doing it,” Cutler said of the leave policy, which previously applied to only traditional marriages.

Cutler said the regulation, which appeared in the state Register this week, formalizes a policy change initiated in 2008 by then-Gov. David Paterson, who ordered New York State agencies to recognize same-sex marriages that were legally performed in other states and civil unions.

Regulations to allow conjugal visits to gay prisoners will only apply to those who are already involved in a marriage or civil union. Though marriage equality has not yet reached New York, the state does recognize out-of-state same-sex marriages and civil unions.

The regulation formalizes a policy change begun in 2008 by then-Gov. David Paterson, who ordered New York State agencies to recognize same-sex marriages that were legally performed in other states and civil unions. Cutler could not explain why it took so long for the regulation to be finalized in the Register, which lists recent rule-making activities by state agencies.

Cutler was unaware of any inmate in a same-sex relationship who has had a conjugal visit, known officially as family reunions. Less than a third of the state’s 67 correctional facilities allow conjugal visits.  An inmate must be in one of those facilities for a “family reunion” and it must be requested.

Gay marriage advocates welcomed the move, saying any recognition of same-sex relationships is a positive step – even when it occurs in the prisons. “The more the state is consistent with that status of law the better off we are,” said Ross Levi, executive director of the Empire State Pride Agenda.

In 2007, California became the first state to allow for conjugal visits for same-sex couples.

Read more: http://www.towleroad.com/#ixzz1KMjmM4O4

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Lady Gaga asks Buffalo-NY State Senator to support marriage equality

At a concert stop in Buffalo, NY, Lady Gaga asked the crowd to please email their state senator and ask him to support marriage equality.

From the Buffalo News: “There’s a senator here in Buffalo that’s on the fence about whether or not to vote for this particular bill and I would like to give you all his e-mail,” Lady Gaga told the crowd in HSBC Arena. “His name is Sen. Mark Grisanti.”

She urged her fans to e-mail Grisanti and suggested “2,000 e-mails in his BlackBerry this evening or tomorrow” might help sway his position on marriage equality.

Later, she posted this message on her Facebook page:

“Buffalo, we need SEN.GRISANTI to help pass NY STATE MARRIAGE BILL e-mail grisanti@nysenate.gov #IWasBornThisWay.”

A spokesman for Sen. Grisanti said: “Sen. Grisanti has already reached out to the local chapter of Outspoken for Equality, and is meeting with them next week. Additionally, I have personally met with the Outspoken for Equality in Albany, and we had a very informative and constructive conversation. We look forward to learning more about their issues and concerns with regards to same-sex marriage.”

Lady Gaga has become famously outspoken on behalf of civil rights, and LGBT rights in particular. Her newest single, “Born This Way”, which has been attributed to her stance on equality for all, is a runaway hit. Elton John has called it “the anthem that’s going to obliterate ‘I Will Survive.'”

Go Gaga!