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发帖数: 4174 | 1 For New York's same-sex couples, the legalization of marriage marks a huge
victory. For some local advocates of the historic legislation, though, the
triumph is bittersweet.
"When the organization was founded, our main goal was marriage equality in
New York state, so [in] that way we can all go home," said Ron Zacchi,
former executive director of Marriage Equality New York, an advocacy
organization. After the legislation was passed in June, Zacchi stepped down
to pursue a master's degree in public administration.
Zacchi, who had helmed the organization for almost four years, says that it
was only when Connecticut legalized gay marriage in 2008 that some members
began to consider the future of their group beyond statewide marriage
equality. Love Makes A Family, a similar, Connecticut-based advocacy group,
closed its doors after marriage equality was achieved there.
But Zacchi said MENY "can't take that approach."
Brian Silva, who recently stepped up as MENY's executive director, worried
that the New York law's passing may make it harder for the organization to
gain support and resources.
"I think these things always run in cycles," he said. "Leading up to the
vote, there was a tremendous amount of new resources, new people, but there
will be a tapering off of people [now that it's passed]."
Lorrie Millman, a New York City resident, donated twice to MENY's Political
Action Committee. She said that now she didn't see a need to continue her
financial support.
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"I'm not planning on making contributions in the future," she said. "My
feeling is that it's a probably a moot issue at this point."
Even for LGBT groups that don't just focus on marriage equality, the
legislation presents new challenges for gaining and maintaining support. Ron
Levi, the Executive Director of Empire State Pride Agenda, admitted that it
's tough to get citizens and lawmakers to pay attention to other LGBT issues.
"Marriage, for one reason or another, is an issue that sucks all the oxygen
out of the room," he said. "It's something that everyone has experience with
in life and as a result it's an issue that people have strong feelings
about and a sense of familiarity with. That's not necessarily the case with
other issues."
Levi expects that a decline in support and public interest will follow the
New York victory.
"We've had this issue in the past," he said. In 2003, when New York passed
the Sexual Orientation Non Discrimination Act -- a key project for the group
at the time -- many people, including supporters, expected the group to "
close up shop."
Zacchi expressed the same worry for MENY.
"It's going to take another wave of education in New York State on why we
still have more to go," he said.
Levi agreed that it will take a major awareness campaign to refocus public
interest, and there are plenty of other issues affecting LGBT New Yorkers
that need attention.
"Just because we have marriage doesn't mean there's not going to be LGBT
homeless youth and seniors that need effective services," he said.
Holly Delany Cole, who runs Community Research Exchange, a group that helps
manage non-profits, says that single-issue groups may face serious
challenges of purpose once they reach their goal.
"If your mission has been fulfilled, you need to think about how your
talents can be applied to other related issues," she said
Silva says MENY is working on refocusing its efforts.
"A lot of us def[initely] looked at it as a two-part of effort," he said. "
We always knew that the second step was that the Defense Of Marriage Act is
going to be repealed."
Although same sex couples can enjoy state-wide marital benefits, DOMA
prevents them from receiving federal benefits. Passed in 1996, the
legislation defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
"I am convinced that it is a surmountable obstacle," said Silva.
Plus, according to Levi, there's still plenty of work to be done in-state.
"We can't just pop the champagne on marriage without planning on defending
it," he said, pointing to the legalization and subsequent banning of same-
sex marriage in California. "Every one of these legislators in New York who
voted for marriage will be up for election. We need to make sure we can
defend them." |
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