National
and
state
gay
rights
groups
will
step
up
efforts
to
advance
legislation
allowing
gays
to
marry
in
California
and
New
York,
saying
chances
for
passing
such
legislation
are
expected
to
improve
significantly
after
the
November
elections.
The
Democratic
National
Committee,
meanwhile,
assisted
a
gay
group
in
Illinois
with
its
efforts
to
block
an
anti-gay
marriage
amendment
from
going
before
voters
in
November
and
has
adopted
a
five-point
plan
for
fighting
similar
ballot
measures
in
other
states,
according
DNC
spokesperson
Danien
LaVera.
“As
we
move
forward
in
this
election
year,
we
will
help
in
a
variety
of
ways,”
LaVera
said.
LaVera’s
disclosure
of
the
DNC’s
role
in
fighting
a
specific
anti-gay
ballot
measure
was
part
of
a
flurry
of
statements
from
advocates
on
both
sides
of
the
gay
marriage
debate
that
followed
a
controversial
court
decision
in
New
York
on
July
6
upholding
the
state’s
law
banning
same-sex
marriage.
The
New
York
Court
of
Appeals,
the
state’s
highest
court,
issued
a
4-2
decision
July
7
saying
the
state
law
banning
same-sex
marriage
was
based
on
a
legitimate
rationale
that
it
is
better
“for
children
to
grow
up
with
both
a
mother
and
father.”
DNC
Chair
Howard
Dean
made
headlines
this
year
by
going
on
the
anti-gay
Christian
Broadcast
Network
and
erroneously
claiming
his
party’s
platform
opposes
marriage
for
same-sex
couples.
He
later
apologized
for
the
mischaracterization — the
2004
platform
leaves
the
issues
to
the
states — and
issued
a
strongly
worded
statement
last
week
criticizing
the
New
York
court
decision.
“Today’s
decision
by
the
New
York
Court
of
Appeals,
which
relies
on
outdated
and
bigoted
notions
about
families,
is
deeply
disappointing,
but
it
does
not
end
the
effort
to
achieve
this
goal,”
Dean
said.
“As
that
essential
process
moves
forward,
it
is
up
to
the
state
legislature
to
act
to
protect
the
equal
rights
of
every
New
Yorker
and
for
the
debate
on
how
to
ensure
those
rights
to
proceed
without
the
rancor
and
divisiveness
that
too
often
surrounds
this
issue.”
LaVera
said
he
could
not
comment
on
whether
Dean
was
changing
his
position
on
gay
marriage,
other
than
to
say
Dean
and
the
DNC
strongly
oppose
efforts
to
ban
gay
marriage
by
amending
the
federal
or
state
constitutions.
Officials
with
the
Human
Rights
Campaign
and
the
National
Gay
&
Lesbian
Task
Force,
the
nation’s
two
largest
gay
political
groups,
said
they
would
step
up
efforts
to
promote
gay
marriage
bills
in
several
states.
“HRC
is
committing
$3
million
to
the
fight
for
equality
in
the
states,
including
marriage
battles
as
well
as
state
legislative
elections,”
said
HRC
president
Joe
Solmonese.
NGLTF
Executive
Director
Matt
Foreman
said
his
group
plans
to
give
$300,000
to
fight
anti-gay
marriage
ballot
measures.
Task
Force
spokesperson
Roberta
Sklar
said
that
when
staff
salaries,
related
travel
expenses
and
additional
grants
to
state
and
local
groups
are
added
to
the
equation,
NGLTF
would
spend
about
$1
million
this
year
on
the
ballot
measure
fights.
Foreman
said
NGLTF
continues
to
work
with
HRC
and
others
to
advocate
for
state
bills
to
provide
same-sex
couples
the
full
marriage
rights.
“[O]ur
collective
goal
is
to
win
marriage
equality — either
through
legislative
or
judicial
action — in
10
states
in
10
years,”
Foreman
said.
“There
is
no
question
that
if
our
movement
is
resourced
to
scale,
this
is
an
achievable
goal,
and
the
New
York
court
decision
has
no
impact
on
that.”
‘Strategy?
What
strategy’
Foreman
and
Solmonese
said
their
organizations
would
work
cooperatively
with
statewide
gay
groups
to
educate
voters
about
the
important
role
marriage
plays
in
families
headed
by
both
same-sex
and
opposite
couples.
“The
reality
is
that
these
are
uphill
struggles
in
every
state
because
they
put
the
rights
of
a
minority
up
for
a
popular
vote,
which
is
not
only
wrong,
it
is
immoral,”
said
Foreman.
“Our
goal
is
to
build
grassroots
strength,
win
or
lose.”
Lesbian
activist
Robin
Tyler,
one
of
the
lead
organizers
of
the
California-based
group
pushing
for
same-sex
marriage
rights,
said
NGLTF,
HRC
and
other
gay
groups
were
not
taking
an
aggressive
enough
stand
against
court
decisions
and
state
ballot
measures
that
have
blocked
same-sex
marriage
rights.
“Strategy?
What
strategy?”
asked
Tyler.
“In
the
red
states,
once
they
lose
on
Election
Day,
the
national
groups
leave,”
she
said.
“The
local
people
feel
deserted,
just
like
the
people
left
behind
after
Hurricane
Katrina.
“We
need
to
mobilize
for
another
march
on
Washington
to
get
back
into
the
streets.
We’re
not
getting
anywhere
being
nice.”
Gay
Democratic
activists
in
New
York
and
California
have
said
public
opinion
polls
look
favorable
for
the
election
of
Democratic
governors
in
the
two
states
who
have
pledged
to
support
and
sign
bills
legalizing
same-sex
marriage.
In
New
York,
state
Attorney
General
Elliot
Spitzer,
a
longtime
gay
rights
supporter,
is
leading
his
Republican
gubernatorial
rival
by
more
than
60
points
in
most
polls.
Democrats
in
New
York
also
say
the
state
Senate,
which
has
been
controlled
by
Republicans
for
generations,
could
be
taken
over
by
Democrats.
That
would
open
the
way
for
the
passage
of
a
same-sex
marriage
bill.
Democrats
already
control
the
State
Assembly,
which
is
expected
to
easily
pass
a
same-sex
marriage
bill.
Spitzer
has
pledged
to
sign
such
a
bill.
“I
would
say
we
have
a
50-50
chance
of
getting
...
