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Contact: Jim Ver Steeg
18 Trinity Place
Buffalo, New York 14201
(716) 852-PRIDE (7743)
PrideCenterWNY
News Release
LANDMARK MASSACHUSETTS RULING
IS MET WITH SUPPORT FROM WESTERN
NEW YORK’S LGBT COMMUNITY.
BUFFALO, NY, November 18, 2003 - - Today’s decision by the Massachusetts
Supreme Judicial Court to end that state’s ban on gay marriages marks an
important step in guaranteeing equal rights for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual
and Transgendered individuals seeking recognition and legal protection
for their unions.
Although the decision falls short of allowing the issuance of marriage
licenses to same sex couples, the end of the ban on gay marriages
signals an increasingly popular shift in public opinion about the rights
of all U.S. citizens.
“We truly applaud the Court’s decision,” said Jim Ver Steeg, Director of
the Pride Center of Western New York, “It’s our hope that this resonates
beyond Massachusetts and becomes a guiding light for other states to
follow suit.”
While other high courts have reached similar conclusions regarding the
unconstitutional act of such bans, the states they serve often fall
victim to knee-jerk legislative action that works to define marriage as
only existing between a man and a woman.
“The action today in Massachusetts goes beyond mere legality,” said Ver
Steeg, “Instead it speaks to the humanity of the issue by acknowledging
the desire for many LGBT individuals to enter into marriage with their
partners.”
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