Will New York legalize same-sex marriage?

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Governor David Paterson's handling of the Kennedy-Gillibrand drama (the protracted silliness surrounding his appointment to fill Hillary's vacated Senate seat) left much to be desired, but this is certainly very admirable -- and very welcome:

Gov. David A. Paterson on Thursday will announce plans to introduce legislation to legalize same-sex marriage, according to people with knowledge of the governor's plans.

Mr. Paterson’s move, which he first signaled last week after Vermont became the fourth state to allow gay and lesbian couples to wed, reflects the governor's desire to press the issue with lawmakers in Albany as other states move ahead with efforts to grant more civil rights to homosexuals.

There may not be the votes, yet, to pass same-sex marriage legislation -- New York is not exactly Vermont -- but it seems to me there is no good reason not to begin the legislative-legalization process, even if the first effort falls short. I understand that there may be some desire to wait until passage is a fait accompli, that is, until there are the votes to legalize, but preparing for the right time could take too long, and, in any event, there will always be some reason to delay, some excuse not to proceed.

As fantastic as it was that Vermont legalized same-sex marriage through the legislative, as opposed to the judicial, process, it would be far more significant for a major state like New York to take a leadership position on the issue -- a big push for the dominoes to start falling, and for justice to be achieved, all across the country. It's a risk, to be sure, and there may be rounds of failure before success, but Paterson is doing the right thing here.