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Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler is now the first statewide elected official to support same-sex marriage. Gansler made his support known yesterday before the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee on the proposed same-sex marriage bill.
Gansler's office -- under his predecessor, J. Joseph Curran, Jr. -- successfully defended Maryland against a suit brought by gay couples who wanted to overturn the 34-year-old state law defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman. But Gansler has now told the Washington Post he considers the same-sex marriage bill to be a "basic matter of fairness." "This bill is fundamentally about equality," he told the paper. "It would be wrong for me to have this job knowing there's something so wrong in our society and just ignore it."
The senate committee heard arguments from both sides of the issue. Proponents of the measure made it a priority, according to the Baltimore Sun, after the Maryland Court of Appeals ruled that the ban on same-sex marriages does not violate the state's constitution. The bill's opponents say that if it passed, it would tear the fabric of society; they also suggested that voters should decide on the matter.
The committee considered several measures, including those that would either legalize gay marriage, ban it outright, or establish domestic partnerships. Citizens also testified both for and against the bill. Kathleen Crank, for example, felt compelled to testify because she finds homosexuality "devastating" and "redefining marriage is an activity undertaken to the peril of our civilized society."
But the money quote goes to 89-year-old Bernice Melov, who has lived for more than 20 years with her gay son and his partner. According to the Sun, she said:
Before I leave this earth, I want to celebrate fully equal civil marriage rights in Maryland. My time is short, and I'm in a hurry. Please don't make me come back another year.
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yay doug gansler! now, sir, if you can just get gov. o'malley along for the effort.
and two things: the person who said this (The bill's opponents say that if it passed, it would tear the fabric of society) should really just lock themselves in their house and just stay there until they die. really? tear and the fucking fabric of society? if they're that scared of things, i would LOVE to hear what they have to say about their fear of other things...
also, kathleen crank? does anyone else see some irony with that last name?
equal rights for all americans? pfffft who would support something so crazy?
The touch, the feel of marriage, the FAAAABRIC of our lives.
The bill's opponents say that if it passed, it would tear the fabric of society
Ah, fabric, so easily torn. That's why I've always said that a proper society wears leather.
Well, that plus my love of fetish-wear.
O'Malley is at least in favor of civil unions. I'm wondering what dc vs md is vs benefits.
i love the picture! did dcist make that or is from another site?
@yochi: That was a Photoshopping job by yours truly.