Stepping it up on marriage equality

The issue of marriage equality ought to resonate widely on this campus. College, at its best, prepares you for the next steps you take in life, from your career to your relationships. While many members of this community may see a limitless future on their horizons, the fact remains that, for many members of our student body, there are serious, meaningful barriers still in place, keeping them from something that so many see as an obvious right. The possibility of open discussion among students about their futures reflects the ideal of the undergraduate community. If an important part of many of those futures is prohibited by law, for no reason other than sexual orientation, the achievement of this ideal becomes next to impossible. We have a large, active community of LGBTQ students here at Columbia—students whose rights our government systematically denies. Regardless of the broader question of student engagement in politics, the issue of marriage equality is one of basic fairness, which, by affecting our friends and classmates, affects us all. In the fall of 2008, the College Democrats saw an opportunity to bring marriage equality to New York by helping the Democratic Party reclaim control of the New York State Senate for the first time in decades. The Assembly had already passed a marriage equality bill in 2007, and Governor David Paterson had announced his support for the measure—the Senate, it seemed, needed only to fall into Democratic hands to make marriage equality a reality here in New York. College Democrats members devoted hours volunteering on the campaign of Joseph Addabbo, a New York City Council Member from Queens who was running against a very vulnerable Republican. Addabbo had supported LGBTQ rights while on the City Council, and he advocated extending the right to marry to same-sex couples throughout his campaign. On Dec. 1, 2009, however, Addabbo and seven other Democrats voted against recognizing the right of same-sex couples to marry, and, because of their votes, the Marriage Equality Amendment fell in the Senate, 38-24. Just over a year after the passing of Prop 8 in California and less than a month after the referendum in Maine, this vote reflected not only the fragility of the gains made in the fight for full civil equality for LGBTQ citizens but also the cowardice of the politicians in the New York State Senate. Since that vote, LGBTQ activists have been gearing up for another fight to bring marriage equality to New York. This Thursday, the Students Advancing Marriage Equality campaign will bring that fight to Low Plaza. To highlight the hypocrisy of Addabbo and the other seven Democratic State Senators who voted against the bill in December—many of whom also campaigned in 2008 in support of marriage equality—the College Democrats will be distributing petitions to be signed and sent to the offices of these Senators. Students representing the College Democrats and several LGBTQ organizations will speak, reflecting on the personal relevance of this issue as well as its political importance. The students of this community must join together this Thursday to express their anger: anger at the unfairness of a law that prevents two people in love from getting married, anger at the snail-like pace of the progress on LGBTQ rights in this country, anger at the failure of politicians to keep their most fundamental promises. Students, faculty, administrators, and other New Yorkers alike often lament the disconnect between the Columbia campus and our surroundings. Protected by the bubble of our classrooms and our dormitories, we can too often ignore the problems of the real world without feeling their consequences. But we cannot remain complacent this time. Each and every one of us will either be unable to marry or know someone who has been denied this right, simply because they seek to marry someone of the same sex. The SAME campaign hopes to change that. As Columbia students, we have a stake in this city and this state. We all need to realize that and get involved—not for involvement’s sake, but to make New York a better and more just place to live. Sam Klug is a Columbia College sophomore. He is a lead activist for the Columbia University College Democrats. Nancy Huemer is a Barnard College senior. She is the media director of the Columbia University College Democrats. Kate O’Gorman is a Barnard College senior. She is the president of the Columbia University College Democrats. Stephen Davan is a Columbia College sophomore. He is a lead activist for the Columbia University College Democrats. Sarah Gitlin is a Columbia College first-year.