FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 6, 2006

CONTACT:
Meredith Curtis
410-889-8550 ext. 115

The ACLU today expressed deep disappointment in the New York Court of Appeals decision upholding by a 4 to 2 vote a state law that bars same-sex couples from marriage and the hundreds of family protections provided to married couples. The NY decision does not have any impact on our Maryland marriage fairness case, Deane & Polyak v. Conaway.

“The decision by New York’s high court is deeply disappointing, especially for the thousands of same-sex couples and their children denied basic protections due to a backward-looking view of the march toward freedom in this country,” said David Rocah, staff attorney for the ACLU of Maryland. “Thankfully, how New York interprets its constitution has no bearing on how Maryland interprets its constitution, and does not affect the strong case here in the Free State for fairness for all families.”

The court accepted the justifications advanced by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Attorney General Eliot Spitzer for the state law barring marriage by same-sex couples. Pointing out that stable relationships between parents are important for children, that straight couples can conceive children by “accident,” and that gay couples can only have children with advance planning, Bloomberg and Spitzer argued that straight couples need the stability of marriage, but gay couples do not.

"Regardless of how children are conceived, they, and their parents have the same need for legal protections and legal relationships, regardless of the parents’ sexual orientation,” said Deborah Jeon, legal director for the ACLU of Maryland. “It is ironic, given the rhetoric of those opposing marriage fairness, that the court's decision to uphold the denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples rests on the assertion that heterosexual couples need an exclusive privilege as an incentive to stability because they are more likely to act irresponsibly (by having children by accident) than same-sex couples. That is not the reason that marriage is denied to same-sex couples, nor should it be the reason in law."

Accepting an argument that was rejected by the Arkansas Supreme Court just last week when it struck down a policy barring gay people from serving as foster parents, the court also found that the ban is justified because some people may think that children do better with a mother and a father. To reach this conclusion, the court ignored the advice of the majority of leading child health and welfare organizations as well as decades of social science research proving that same-sex couples are as capable of being good parents as straight people and their children are equally well adjusted.

“The majority of New Yorkers support marriage for committed same-sex couples. Today’s decision by the court is disheartening given this state’s long history of tolerance and justice for gay and lesbian people and other minority groups,” said James Esseks, Litigation Director of the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Project.

Chief Justice Kaye, joined by Judge Ciparick, wrote a dissenting opinion harshly criticizing the majority opinion stating, “This state has a proud tradition of affording equal rights to all New Yorkers. Sadly, the Court today retreats from that proud tradition.” The dissent further stated, “I am confident that future generations will look back on today’s decision as an unfortunate misstep.”

The Maryland marriage fairness case will ultimately come before the Court of Appeals for a final ruling. Go to our website for more information: http://www.aclu-md.org

For more information about the NY marriage fairness case, go to the national ACLU’s website:
http://www.aclu.org/lgbt/

CONTACT US | SEARCH | PRIVACY POLICY