Fresh on the heels of strong marriage equality endorsements from South Jersey's two largest papers, now it develops that Central Jersey's two largest papers, the Courier News and Home News Tribune are joining the call for equality via the online news site they share. It is the right thing to do:
So this is a call for all of our state senators to show some leadership and courage, do the right thing and support gay marriage, even if that vote stands in opposition to the majority of your constituency.
That last part is crucial, because we recognize the enduring strong public resistance to the concept of gay marriage. For some it's a religious issue, a belief that a same-sex union doesn't fit God's view of marriage. For others it conflicts with long-accepted societal mores. And for others it's strictly a lack of acceptance of gays.
They deal head-on with those calling for a public referendum. This is not, they say, an issue to be left in the hands of the public to decide directly, not because it might fail, but because that's the easy way out for legislators, a mistake other states made that we shouldn't repeat. The comparison to racial inequality is inescapable. They remind us that we look back on indefensible Jim Crow laws. And it was legislative and judicial action that made it right, when a public vote would have failed. Quoting: Simply put, the public isn't always right. And nor should it always be granted the opportunity to make the decision, not on something this fundamental to America's core values of freedom and equality.
These are the hometown papers that Sen. Chris "Kip" Bateman reads. And Bateman, a Republican, still hopes for a way to "fix" civil unions, which we know does not exist. But what's important about him is that he's clearly struggling to find an answer that is right and fair. If you want to alert him to this editorial, and let him know you hope he votes yes, Bateman's District Office is (908) 526-3600. As always, of course, be polite and brief. Bateman's remarks at Monday's hearing were intelligent and searching. We can see he believes in equality. There's only one way to get there now.
The editorial urges us to remember we'll look back one day on "foolish biases" this issue raises. That it's "frankly embarrassing that we're still arguing this issue." Here's how they leave it:
Society shouldn't be drawing a line in the sand where sexual orientation fails to receive the same protections against discrimination as race or religion or gender. Gay marriage is, at its heart, about equality. And that is something that always deserves support.
We urge lawmakers to ignore all of the noise and the inflammatory rhetoric, the biblical interpretations and lessons in legal history, and look into their own hearts before casting their votes. If they do that, gay marriage will soon be legal in New Jersey, as it should be. |
