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Affirmation Had Filed a Brief as a “Friend of the Court” by Olin Thomas July 2006 Recently the New York State Supreme Court decided the case of Hernandez vs. Robles in favor of the defendant, who happens to be Victor Robles, City Clerk of New York City and the man responsible for issuing marriage licenses in the big apple. Mr. Robles will not have to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples. Five same sex couples filed suit seeking the right to marry, and Affirmation was part of this case from the beginning. We were one of the Amici Curiae, or friends of the court, who filed with the court to explain that though we weren't plaintiffs, the outcome of the case would impact us. Though the court decided that the New York constitution does not guarantee that right to marry to same sex couples, something very important has happened in this case: The supporters of this measure in the nation's second most populous state now have no choice but to lobby the legislature to change the law in New York to allow same sex marriage. Assemblyman Dick Gottfried was quoted as saying that "this is New York, not Kansas" and that such a change was "inevitable." If, or when, it does happen, it will be the first time same sex marriage was approved by a legislature and not a court. Christian conservatives complain about "activist judges" on a regular basis. What the gay community needs is to win the approval of marriage equality through a majority vote. Perhaps the defeat in the courts has planted the seeds of popular victory.
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www.affirmation.org