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发帖数: 4174 | 1 Posted on Advocate.com August 27, 2011 09:05:00 PM ET
Is Washington State Ready For Marriage Equality?
By Winston Gieseke
WASHINGTON STATE CAPITOL BUILDING x390 (.gov) | Advocate.com
Even though Washington State took almost 30 years to pass a gay rights law,
two gay Democrats think it’s about ready for marriage equality.
Sen. Ed Murray and Rep. Jamie Pedersen, both Democrats from Seattle’s 43rd
District, are considering a major push toward same-sex marriage legislation
in January.
According to the Seattle Times, the Evergreen State took nearly 30 years to
pass a measure adding sexual orientation to an existing discrimination law.
But Murray, the prime sponsor of that 2006 landmark legislation — which was
followed in 2007 by the state’s domestic partnership law, which provides
same-sex couples legal benefits similar to those of marriage — believes the
subject of marriage equality is less “radioactive” than the gay rights
bill. “I think people in this state have moved on."
While both Murray and Pedersen say they're in early discussions and will be
running the idea past community and legislative leaders, Republican senator
Dan Swecker expects strong opposition from his caucus. "I think primarily
the Republicans, but [also] some Democrats, tend to support the traditional
definition of marriage and think it's a mistake to try to change that," the
Times quotes Swecker as saying.
There are still plenty of issues to sort through, Pedersen says, and a
decision on whether of not they will proceed will likely be made in the
coming months. |
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