Statement on NYC Council Condemning Proposed Federal Amendment to the U.S. Constitution Banning Same-Sex Couples from Equal Treatment

"Today, the New York City Council took an important stand for fairness and against an extremist measure that would add discrimination into our nation's Constitution for the first time. Marriage isn't just a piece of paper; it's the basic fairness and equality that every American is promised under the U.S. Constitution. The constitutional amendment President Bush supports would put thousands of New York families in jeopardy. As the voice of 8 million New Yorkers, the City Council's opposition to this dangerous amendment is significant. The message New York is sending President Bush today is that he is not the leader of the entire nation as long as he turns his back on lesbians and gay men by supporting such extreme discrimination."

-- Kevin Cathcart, Executive Director of Lambda Legal

Lambda Legal represents seven same-sex couples in a lawsuit seeking full marriage rights in New Jersey, is helping defend the City of San Francisco as it continues issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples (with the ACLU and NCLR), and is working with many other lesbians and gay men who have been seriously harmed because they were not allowed to get married. For more information and background, go to www. LambdaLegal.org.