After a December 2 early morning New York State Assembly vote of 86 to 51 in favor of same-sex marriage, the State Senate voted 38 to 24 against it later that afternoon.
Marriage Equality New York (MENY) Executive Director Ron Zacchi said, "Today equality was denied to New York State families. The State Senate voted against equal civil marriage and turned its back on civil rights. This day will go down in history as the day the New York State Senators decided to be on the wrong side of history by denying an entire community the ability to protect its families!"
MENY Board President Cathy Marino Thomas added, "Marriage Equality New York has been working for over 12 years to bring about gender neutral marriage equality in New York State. We have seen bills sit in the chambers for many years, but in the recent past we have seen governors who support our efforts and our Assembly pass the legislation twice. We are deeply disappointed that our State Senate has made the wrong move for families throughout the state of New York. We look forward to the day when equal rights are the law of our great nation from coast to coast."
MENY has scheduled a rally to protest the Senate vote for Thursday, December 3 from 6 to 7 p.m. at Union Square North, with New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and MENY Board President Thomas as featured speakers.
