Columnists :: Guest Opinion
What a difference a governor can make by Patricia A. Gozemba
Bay Windows ContributorThursday Jun 19, 2008 The First Family of Massachusetts raised the celebratory level of the 2008 Pride Parade in Boston to dizzying new levels. During Pride Week, the Patrick family showed enormous grace, leadership, and love as the political met the personal. In a vacuum of national leadership on marriage equality, governors, and sometimes their families, can and must lead the way.
On June 9, 2007, Governor Deval Patrick made history when he became the first sitting governor to march in a Gay Pride parade. His youngest daughter, Katherine, joined him. As they marched up Beacon Street past the State House, the crowds cheered wildly.
Five days later, Patrick, who ran on a platform of marriage equality, followed through on his commitment to our community. On June 14, 2007, he stood on the State House steps with legislative leaders and celebrated the defeat of an anti-marriage equality ballot amendment. Their leadership protected our state constitution and same-sex marriage in the Commonwealth.
In the crowd that day as well was 17-year-old Katherine Patrick, who says she "never felt more proud of her father." A month later she would come out to him and her mother, and a year later she would publicly come out in a Bay Windows interview with Laura Kiritsy (See "With love and pride, Governor Deval Patrick’s daughter comes out publicly".)
Katherine quickly pointed out that her father’s support for marriage equality was not premised on his daughter’s sexuality: "He didn’t know that I was gay then. . . . For someone . . . to fight for something that doesn’t even affect him was just like, ’That’s my dad,’ you know."
Now it affects him.
Diane and Deval Patrick have become a textbook model of loving parents and when the governor called his daughter’s coming out "just no biggie," he uttered words that LGBT children, of whatever age, all over this country long to hear from their parents.
But then again this is a politician who already has spent a lot of capital, political capital that is, on marriage equality, convincing many who were wavering that defeating an anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment was the right thing to do.
New York
Governor Patrick has set a standard for fathers and for his fellow governors. Thus far, only Governor David Paterson of New York, also an African American, has come close to showing the personal courage and commitment of Patrick.
On May 28, 2008, Governor Paterson directed state agencies to recognize marriages of same-sex couples that are legally performed outside of New York. Paterson’s courageous stand for equality evoked the wrath of some New York lawmakers who subsequently sued him for "violating the state’s separation of powers requirements by setting policy without legislative consent." The state Assembly has approved of same-sex marriage. Those most disgruntled are in the state Senate where consideration of same-sex marriage has been stonewalled. The state legislature became a refuge of hope after the July 6, 2006, New York high court decision that said that same-sex marriage was not a New York constitutional right.
In the midst of this legal and political morass, Paterson found a way to support equality.
California
All eyes now shift to California, where Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s role is likely to be crucial to protecting marriage equality. As opponents gear up their ballot initiative campaign for a constitutional amendment to limit marriage to one man and one woman, Schwarzenegger should take his lessons from governors Patrick and Patterson. A strong voice for equality in the corner office will buoy the LGBT community and their allies and build momentum for defeating the ballot initiative.
When the court ruled in favor of gay marriage, Schwarzenegger vowed that he would not lobby to help pass the constitutional amendment in November. But will he urge voters to support equality and reject the ballot amendment? If he sits out this critical challenge, he misses an opportunity to be known as a leader who supports the civil rights of all Americans. After all, even the great Republican icon Ronald Reagan spoke out against the Briggs Amendment that would have banned gay and lesbian teachers from public schools. With more than 51 percent of Californians supporting gay marriage, a brave stand for the "Governator" seems easy. As governor, he can make a difference.
Patricia A. Gozemba wrote Courting Equality (Beacon Press) with Karen Kahn and Bay Windows photographer Marilyn Humphries.
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