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Takoma Park City Council and Same Sex Marriages
The Takoma Park City Council passed a resolution supporting same sex marriages in Maryland, making it the first municipality in the state to advocate marriage equality for everyone. “This resolution came about because of grass roots involvement in our community that really demanded for this council to take progressive, vocal action on an issue that’s facing our country and is important to large segments of our community,” said Heather Mizeur, Councilmember (Ward 2), during the Council meeting Monday evening. She continued, “In the shadow of this ugly debate in Congress about whether to write discrimination into our Constitution, our progressive community will be going on record tonight as the first municipality in this state to say that we support marriage equality for all.”In addition to its unanimous passage during the same week that Congress debates the Federal Marriage Amendment, the resolution comes on the heels of another Maryland event pertaining to same sex-marriages. Just last week, a lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of nine couples seeking the right to marry in Maryland.
“The most important message of this resolution is that we as a community value equality and diversity. I disagree with many national political figures who have jumped on the bandwagon proclaiming that this country needs a constitutional amendment to protect marriage,” said Bruce Williams, Council member(Ward 3). “Marriage as an institution will stand based on the respect that all of us hold for it, and that respect is only strengthened by making sure that we perceive it as fair and equitable. The state interest in marriage is in the stability and economic welfare of its citizens. Marriage in this country conveys many legal rights, and those legal rights are foreclosed to those adults who are prevented from marrying.” Williams continued. “The City Council intends that this resolution on same-sex marriage support the legal efforts of same-sex couples to obtain the right to marry in Maryland, but we also intend that it assures our gay andlesbian residents that we are behind them on an issue of such importance to our community,” said Mayor Kathy Porter. The resolution also favors providing the same federal legal benefits that heterosexual couples receivesuch as social security survivor benefits, health insurance, filing joint taxes, etc.
The City will “give full recognition up to the limits of its legal authority to out-of-state and foreign same-sex marriages, directits energies to a public campaign of education and equality in Maryland,” and “use its resources to coordinate activities among other local governments, and private enterprises in furtherance of its educational campaign.” The resolution also directs the City to file a friend of the court brief in supportof the Plaintiffs in the recently filed lawsuit on marriage equality in Maryland (Deane and Polyak, et. alv. Conaway, Baltimore City Circuit Court Clerk, et. al).This is not Takoma Park’s first time taking progressive action to provide equal rights to gay and lesbian relationships. In 1993, the City established a Domestic Partnership registry and the city government offers domestic partnership benefits to its City employees.Council member Doug Barry (Ward 6) commented, “Interracial marriage was illegal in Maryland until the mid- 1960s. Let's remove this other vestige of bigotry and discrimination. Same sex marriage is thenew civil rights frontier. Making same sex marriage lawful is the right and fair thing to do.”
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