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Gay marriage victory
Proposed amendment defeated at Con Con, but the war continues
BY DEIRDRE FULTON

Gay-marriage supporters scored a historic victory on Wednesday, when Massachusetts legislators soundly defeated a proposed constitutional amendment that would have banned gay marriage in the state while establishing civil unions by a tally of 157-39.

"We knew we were going to win, and we knew we were going to win big," said Arline Isaacson, Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus co-chair. "But this is better than we expected."

The dramatic defeat of the Travaglini-Lees amendment, which needed 101 votes to pass, means that Bay Staters will not vote on a gay-marriage amendment when they go to the ballot box in 2006.

It was an important success for equal-marriage supporters, who have opposed the so-called compromise amendment since it passed the 2004 Constitutional Convention (Con Con), 105-92. Since then, as a result of November 2003 Supreme Judicial Court decision, 6500 same-sex couples have tied the knot, and supporters credited their victory to those couples, who demonstrated to legislators that gay marriage did not cause the sky to fall.

Wednesday’s vote proved that an 18-month strategy of grassroots political action and State house lobbying helped switch the votes of about 20 legislators who voted for the ban last time around.

In one of the biggest surprises of the day, senate minority leader Brian Lees voted against his own amendment, acknowledging in House floor speech that much has changed since last year’s Con Con. At that point, gay marriage wasn’t yet legal, and the future of the institution was unclear. But now that "gay marriage is the law of the land," Lees said, he’s realized that his vote affects "more than hypothetical couples in the future."

"I want all of you to know that this is all about, in my mind, respecting other people," he said to a cheering crowd of gay-marriage supporters after the vote.

However, for Lees and every other gay-marriage advocate, the glow of victory was eclipsed by the knowledge that starting September 21, equal-marriage foes will begin collecting signatures in support of their Protection of Marriage Amendment, which would define marriage in Massachusetts as the union of one man and one woman (with no mention of civil unions). If passed through two consecutive constitutional conventions with just one quarter of the legislature’s support (51 votes), the amendment would appear on the 2008 ballot.

A chunk of legislators who oppose gay marriage contributed to Wednesday’s impressive margin of victory, voting against the Travaglini-Lees amendment only because they’re holding out hope for the harsher Protection of Marriage Amendment. Backers of that proposal, such as the conservative Massachusetts Family Institute, and Governor Mitt Romney, were also lobbying for the defeat of Wednesday’s amendment, and after the vote, they too claimed victory.

But it was difficult to hear their argument above the joyous cheers that echoed through the State house around 3:30 p.m., as legislators such as Byron Rushing, Carl Sciortino, Dianne Wilkerson, and Liz Malia congratulated their pro-gay-marriage supporters. More than 200 supporters crowded into the building’s Great Hall, hugging and waving signs that read: "Thank you Massachusetts."

"This is our victory today," MassEquality campaign director Marty Rouse repeated several times, as if underscoring that fact for supporters as well as opponents. "We have a solid equal-marriage majority in this legislature."

CON CON CONTRAST

The relatively calm atmosphere at the State house on Wednesday was far different from last year’s circus-like Con Con, where both sides came out in full force to chant, sing, and wave signs --- on three separate occasions, no less.

In contrast, this Con Con was quick, and fairly painless. Although more than 200 gay-marriage supporters gathered outside the building, and about 200 more congregated inside, there were scarcely any gay-marriage opponents on the sidewalks, and only a handful inside the State house.

Chris Mason, a 23-year-old Cambridge resident, carried a sign that read, "No Discrimination in the Constitution." He's a MassEquality team leader who's spent the past few months knocking on doors all over Massachusetts, trying to change minds. He and other grassroots advocates canvassed about 20 towns and cities where state representatives or senators might be persuaded to switch their votes, and encouraged residents to send postcards or make phone calls voicing their support for equal marriage.

By explaining how civil unions do not afford equal rights to gays and lesbians, "once in a while you would change somebody's mind," Mason says. "That was definitely the best part of the job."

Equal-marriage supporters can count on a lot of door-knocking in the months ahead. But for today, they’ll savor the victory.

"We realize it’s just another fight again tomorrow," says 24-year-old Kelly Exley, of Mission Hill. "But we’ll take this for today. It’s one less thing to worry about and to fight."


Issue Date: September 15, 2005
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