Nassau County District Attorney and attorney general candidate Kathleen Rice said a couple of weeks ago that she plans to sue the federal government over the Defense of Marriage Act if elected New York’s next attorney general.
Shortly thereafter, we started a campaign ask the other candidates for Attorney General in New York whether, if elected, would he or she defend all citizens and families of New York, including the married same-sex couples there, and legally join the fight against Section 3 of DOMA, which denies all 1,138 federal marriage benefits to married same-sex couples of Rhode Island.
Since then, candidate Eric Schneiderman has also come out against DOMA. Now, I’m please to report that attorney general candidate Sean Coffey has also spoken out on the matter. See his full statement below:
When one group of citizens is denied equal treatment and protection under the law, no group is truly free. The Defense of Marriage Act wrongfully denies gay and lesbian couples not only their right to full expression of love and commitment, but also perpetuates a culture of discrimination that infects other areas of American life. As the next Attorney General, I pledge to be New York’s top legal advocate on this issue. I will file suit against the federal government based on constitutional challenges and support any action to repeal DOMA. I fully support NY Congressman Jerry Nadler’s bill – the Respect for Marriage Act – that would repeal this draconian law.
But we can’t stop there. As Attorney General, I will fight vigorously to defend the right of our fellow gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens to marriage equality – and against the larger pattern of discrimination in other areas, such as jobs and housing.
For example, a recent study by Michigan’s Fair Housing Center revealed that nearly 30 percent of gay and lesbian couples faced discrimination when attempting to buy or rent a home. I was pleased to learn that the Obama Administration will soon conduct a nationwide review of housing discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. While it is illegal in New York to discriminate based on sexual orientation in the area of housing, as Attorney General I will ensure that these laws are enforced and violators are held fully accountable.
Moreover, I will seriously consider legal challenges that force the federal government to include sexual orientation and gender identity to the Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination in sales and rentals of homes. If Congress does not act to give every American the full and fair protection of the law, I will do so for New Yorkers as your next Attorney General.
(Emphasis mine)
Mr. Coffey deserves a lot of credit for such a strong and bold statement. That is simply one of the strongest statements I have seen thus far from any candidate for attorney general against DOMA and in favor of full LGBT equality. Major kudos Mr. Coffey!
And if you would like to support Sean Coffey for attorney general, you can do so through http://coffey2010.com/
Tagged: Dan Donovan, Defense of Marriage Act, DOMA, Eric Dinallo, Eric Schneiderman, Gay Marriage, Gay Rights, Kathleen Rice, LGBT Rights, Marriage Equality, New York Attorney General, Richard Brodsky, Sean Coffey
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