My NY Gay Marriage State Of Mind

By Arlene Gross
Suffolk County Majority Leader Jon Cooper (D-Lloyd Neck) has laid down the gauntlet: If eight-term Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Syosset) doesn't favor Albany's pending marriage equality bill, Cooper, who is termed out of his county office this year, will challenge him in November 2012.

If the state ends up legalizing gay marriage without Marcellino's support, Cooper said he just might vie to represent the 5th Senate District anyway. Meanwhile, other Republican senators on Long Island's North Shore give no indication they will embrace gay marriage rights in New York.

The lawmakers are poised to vote on Gov. Andrew Cuomo's bill by today, June 23, at the latest, said David Kilmnick, chief executive officer of the Long Island Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Services Network.

"We're still cautiously optimistic that it's going to come up for a vote and that it will have the more than 32 votes that it needs," Kilmnick said.

Dubbed the Marriage Equality Act, Cuomo's legislation, introduced June 14, amends domestic relations law to allow same-sex couples to enter into civil marriages while not compelling clergy to perform gay marriage ceremonies or celebrations. The Assembly passed the measure June 15.

Before announcing his intentions, Cooper called Marcellino's office June 14, urging the senator to vote in favor of marriage equality.

Cooper related the story of his son Christopher, who at the age of 6 was diagnosed with a brain tumor and had to be operated on immediately. Eleven years hence, Christopher is in complete remission but Cooper recalled how distraught he and his husband, Rob, were at the time when they were informed their son might die or be paralyzed for life. "If everyone were to tell us then or tell us today that we're not a family, it's outrageous," he said. "This is America, for God's sakes. We should all be treated equally. I expect my representative in Albany to vote for marriage equality."

Later that day, Cooper said, Marcellino called him back and said unequivocally that he plans to vote against the bill.

Marcellino, who has stated his opposition to gay marriage in previous interviews with this paper, did not return calls by press time. Sen. Ken LaValle (R-Port Jefferson) told this paper he will vote "no" on the gay marriage bill.

Though Cooper has had other policy disagreements with Marcellino, the marriage rights question is the straw that broke the camel's back. "If you're not going to do the right thing on what I see as this key civil rights issue, I'm going to challenge you in the next election," he told Marcellino. "I'm giving you advance notice and I will spend whatever it takes to defeat you in 2012."

Cooper alleges that the senator is either a bigot who doesn't believe gays deserve equal rights or a coward, afraid to alienate conservative voters. "I don't know which one is worse: political calculation or prejudice. But either one, I believe, is unacceptable," Cooper said.

Cooper has been in a committed relationship with Rob Cooper for 31 years and the two have raised five children together. They married in Connecticut in April 2009.

"Anti-gay discrimination is the only discrimination that is still allowed in America. Still legal. You can't discriminate, nor should you, against blacks, against Latinos, against Jews, against Catholics," Jon Cooper said, adding that in most states, a person may still be fired from a job or kicked out of an apartment just because he or she is gay. "I happen to be among those who see marriage as a unique institution, sacrosanct. And if you love someone, and If you're in a committed relationship and you want to be monogamous, you get married. … It's a civil institution. It's recognition by the state. ... I'm absolutely convinced that in 20 years this issue will be completely settled nationwide."

As for seeking Marcellino's seat if the legislation does pass this year, Cooper said, "I certainly have a rationale for running against him. I think I would give Carl a run for the money and it would be the toughest race he ever faced."

Marcellino's spokeswoman Kathy Wilson said the senator, who has been in office since 1995, is not available for comment because he is finishing up the 2011 legislative session and noted that his next election is a year and a half away. "We're concentrating now on doing the business that needs to be done in Albany," Wilson said.

Sen. John Flanagan (R-East Northport), who is also in Albany, was not available for comment. "In 2009, he voted against same-sex marriage," said spokesman Rob Caroppoli. "He's in support of civil unions. He's not altered his position, as far as I know."

While Caroppoli says that Flanagan supports civil unions to address matters of discrimination and equality, Kilmnick said that's not enough.

"The bill is all about equality for all of New York's families," Kilmnick said. "Marriage affords people 1,324 rights and benefits just in the state of New York. By not having access to that institution or to those rights and benefits, it perpetuates a system of inequality for so many of New York's families, including myself."

The bill will pass the Senate, according to LaValle, who said, "There will be enough votes." But, calling it "a moral issue," he would have supported placing a referendum before the voters in order to "let the people decide." As it stands, LaValle said he was "sad" the civil union option was not chosen, saying it could have been structured to guarantee all the same "1,324 spousal rights" granted by the state.

"A lot of gay and lesbian couples would be happy with that," LaValle said.

D. Willinger contributed reporting to this story.
North Shore of Long Island
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