Subscribe to Breaking NewsWithers: New Jersey pulls back from marriage
Looks like marriage in New Jersey is a no go. There was talk that Democrats, who run both houses of the Legislature, were going to compose a bill for lame duck Gov. Jon S. Corzine to sign; he said a gay marriage bill would get his John Hancock. Well those Democrats are now making the “maybe it’s not time” argument and if not now don’t expect much in the future. The Garden State’s new governor, Christopher J. Christie, has made it clear he’s not for the institution.
Predictably gays in New Jersey are feeling funky.
“If the Democrats don’t enact marriage equality now, after years of telling us to wait, wait, wait, it will cause a huge schism between the state Democratic Party and not just the gay community, but the entire progressive base,” said Steven Goldstein, head of Garden State Equality. “And it could change the political landscape of New Jersey permanently.”
If only. Yes New Jersey gays will rightfully wonder what it takes for Democrats to make a push for marriage, but this is typical. They ask that we work to get them elected, say with tears how their best professor in college was gay, and take a gratuitous shot at the GOP. We do our duty, volunteer, vote and such, to only be told, with those same tears, that now is not the time. We get hopping mad, talk some noise about the people united will never be defeated or the revolution won’t be televised, but return to the very pols who keep pushing us off.
Maybe it’s time to remember the words of writer Michael Joseph Gross:
“The national gay rights movement is trapped between activism and politics, between anger and ambition. We are trapped between wanting equal rights and wanting to get invited to parties at the White House.”
In other words, the Dems in the NJ legislature are afraid that Corzine’s loss puts a target on them, and better to serve up the gays as a gesture of appeasement than risk losing their seats. This does nothing to change the fact that New Jersey’s problems revolve primarily against a phenomenally unwieldy and expensive model of government, which results in high property taxes, which in turn fuels voter anger. There’s no indication that New Jersey voters are against marriage–if anything, they’re more supportive of gays getting married than are New Yorkers.
The last year has been one long depressing lesson. The GOP hates us and will hate us, but at least we know they hate us and they’re not really putting any effort into putting a pretty face on it (other than “Jesus would love you and so would we if you’d stop sucking dick or using a strap-on”). The Dems…well, we have a President who’s willing to offer us up for a “consensus” that can never exist, and we have a Congress which has made some progress, but is still more interested in re-election than in DOING ANYTHING that merits re-election. These are our choices? Sure, there’s the Moderate party in Rhode Island, but it’s indicated a desire to focus on a specific group of issues. Gays getting married is not included in the platform, so even where there is a laboratory for a third party, we seem to lose out again. New Jersey would seem ripe for a third party to sort out its problems, except 1) Jersey’s not as thoroughly fucked as Rhode Island and 2) Jersey voters don’t seem so angry that they really want to dismantle a system that doesn’t work. Maybe if they have a few more years of property taxes based on evaporated value, but even then, what does it take for us to prevail?
equal rights is the issue, NOT marriage. Anyone can get married. It may not be legal, but you can do it, just not in the traditional sense. Who cares. Fight for equal rights, when we win that battle, we will win marriage.
As a NJ resident, it is time for a change. If the Dems are not ready to stand up for us and to Chris Cristie, then they need to lose their seat. Now is not the time, we didn’t say that when inter-racial marriage was approved and NOONE got to vote on that!
EQUAL RIGHTS = MARRIAGE EQUALITY!
To all the Democrats in NJ:
You no longer will get my vote. If I can’t get married then I will switch my priorities to my money.
Under Repungantkins my rights suffer but my money is safer.
Under Democrats my rights are “supposed” to get better but they are not honoring all their promises and my money isn’t safer.
Well Dems since you don’t give a shit about my rights then my only viable choice is to take care of my money.
F@CK YOU DEMOCRATS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Screw you Facebook user. Go back to the islands
Just ignore that self-hating troll.
but some have not seen what facebook was enlightening us with. ‘Both gays and straights have the right to marry opposite sex partners ‘
I’m taking that as a suggestion that a nice gay couple can find a nice lesbian couple, there we have 2 opposite sexed couples that can marry and take advantage of tax credits,health benefits and so on. there is a method to the madness. look for tax loop holes everywhere like repugs do.
wow 367 you missed my point so badly i shan’t even begin to explain
While it is true that the people voted for a governor opposed to recognizing human rights and respecting equality, our supposed supporters in political office need to have the guts to stand for what is right– and respect for equality and human rights for all people, including people in unpopular minorities is always right. Perhaps the time is coming very quickly when LGBT folk need to get angry.
“Funky” What’s that suppose to mean? I’m livid. If we don’t get a vote in the legislature by the end of this year, there will be lots of democratic bloodshed in 2009!
Thanks New Jersey! What are we supposed to do, wait 4-8 years? Thanks but no thanks, I can start looking for another place to live and give my tax money to.
I’ll also be flying to a state that allows marriage and having a wedding there. Given the financial mess your in, you could have used gay marriage business!
To NJ Democrats, I am voting Independent from now on. You’ve fucked us over one too many times.
Everyone should call or email your senators and representatives and let them know you will not be voting for them again.
Poor Steve Goldstein. Like Joe Solomonese, he thought he was an insider. But without leverage, “friendship” is not enough. Time for the gays to start getting tough with the democrats, instead of “working with” them. There is no “working with” — there is only playing. Look how Obama has promised the illegal immigrant community reform before the 2010 midterms! Why could we not get that promise? Back room bullshit, that’s why. Illegals over vets. NICE.
Why am I not surprised? Corzine lost New Jersey’s gubernatorial seat because he cannot keep his promises. Democrats have demonstrated that we mean nothing to them.
We must mobilize, unify, and affirm whom we are and what our rights are!!! Homophobia is not going anywhere, and we have much work to do! We can make a change together we stand!
I’m sorry, but really? I think it is all nice and sweet for us to type this support for equal rights up on our computers. But really? really?? Most of the people on these sites, say stand up for equal rights, fight-fight-fight for your rites. How many of us are actually doing what we are preaching?
I can say all day long, how unequal I feel in the United States, but what am I doing? Just typing away. If all we have time for is to blog, email, and call, then that is not good enough. If you truly want to be taken seriously, you have to become an army of people, that is the only way to prove that you are worth the same as every other voter. I know you all mean well, as do I, but if we don’t have the support of every single GLBT person then we are just whispers in the wind. It is good to call, blog, or email your senators, but if that is all you and I included are going to do, just rest your fingers, because obviously it isn’t working. I’m a disabled man, that has no car, and all I ever do is blog or email or call my senators, in doing that, I’ve met some of the Florida senators. It isn’t easy living in an ass backward state, with the no marriage for anyone that isn’t straight, but at least I have met my senators, and let them no where I stand, right in front of them, with no equal rights.