Compiled by Howard Israel
S/he Said
"On matters of freedom and equality, history has not remembered obstructionists kindly. Not on abolition. Not on women's suffrage. Not on workers' rights. Not on civil rights. And it will be no different on marriage rights."
-New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, in a speech to the state legislature, calling on New York to "lead the American journey forward" by legalizing same-sex marriage this year, http://www.nytimes.com, May 26.
"It's the moral teaching of our faith that we believe in the natural order of marriage. In order to serve our children best, we believe that they be in that kind of a family. This is not a judgment on whether or not they are loving or capable. We are strictly following the teachings passed down by our faith."
-Ellen Lynch, general counsel for the Catholic Diocese of Rockford, Ill., in an announcement that the diocese will end its state-funded adoption and foster care programs at Catholic Charities in Rockford rather than be forced to serve same-sex or unmarried opposite-sex couples, Rockford Register Star http://www.rrstar.com, May 27. Illinois, the sixth state to recognize same-sex unions, will begin to offer civil union licenses on June 1.
"I've had somebody throw the question at me, 'What do you call a Marine who's homosexual?' I call them a Marine. It's really that basic."
-Master Sgt. Salvatore Cardella, about Marine training sessions held to prepare for the lifting of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the ban on gays serving openly in the military, in an article titled "For Marines, Little Drama Over Lifting 'Don't Ask,'" Wall Street Journal Blogs, http://www.blogs.wsj.com, May 25.
"The Department of Defense has made it clear that there will be no change in the way chaplains conduct their business once the ban is lifted. This is yet another example of people with traditional and, quite frankly, anti-gay views demanding protection for something that doesn't need protection."
-Aaron Belkin, director, Palm Center at the University of California, about a letter the leaders of 21 religious groups sent to the Pentagon, wanting guarantees that troops and chaplains won't be punished if they openly discuss their objections to homosexuality and same-sex marriage when the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy is lifted, Associated Press http://www.hosted.ap.org, May 23.
