National
Down to the wire in N.Y.
All eyes on GOP caucus in N.Y. marriage debate; tense negotiations over marriage bill in Albany


New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo encountered delays this week trying to get a same-sex marriage bill passed in the state Senate. As of Blade press time Thursday morning, the bill hadn't been voted on. (Photo by Pat Arnow; courtesy of Wikimedia)
New York’s same-sex marriage bill was in limbo as of Blade press time Thursday morning, as the legislative session was extended and lengthy negotiations took place over which religious exemptions would be included in the final language.
The state’s top political leaders said they supported several religious exceptions that had been added on Wednesday. The Democratic-led Assembly has already approved the bill but will need to approve any revised version that may come out of the Senate.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said late Wednesday that negotiations over the exemptions were going well.
“We are going back and forth on language,” the AP quoted Cuomo as saying. “But we have not hit any obstacles.” Negotiations were expected to continue Thursday, many New York-based media outlets said.
Negotiators are trying to include enough protections in the bill so that religious groups can not be sued for discrimination if the bill passes.
Though the New York Assembly, the state legislature’s lower house, is controlled by Democrats, Republicans have a slight majority (32-30) in the Senate. The measure needs only one more vote to pass the Senate after being approved by the Assembly last week. Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos said this week that Senate Republicans had not discussed the marriage proposal because they were sidetracked by other issues like rent control laws and caps on property tax increases. Cuomo said this week he was “cautiously optimistic” the marriage bill will pass.
The religious protections weren’t available by Blade deadline but were expected to include protection for religious groups such as adoption agencies and marriage counselors who oppose gay marriage.
Among Democrats in the Senate, 29 of the 30 say they’ll vote for gay marriage meaning only three Republican votes would be needed for it to pass the 62-seat chamber. Two have said they’ll vote for it. Two others are undecided on the record, though some reports from New York say the needed Republican votes are there.
New Yorkers United for Marriage, a coalition group of LGBT groups including Empire State Pride Agenda, Freedom to Marry, Human Rights Campaign and others, said Wednesday in a statement, it is pleased with the way things are unfolding.
“We are pleased that thoughtful discussion on marriage equality are ongoing and that progress continues to be made,” the release said. “The voices of the overwhelming majority of New Yorkers who support marriage for all have clearly been heard and momentum is on our side. The people of the state of New York expect and deserve a vote on this important issue.”
Gay Manhattan resident Lou Weiss, who wed his partner Danny Martin in Canada in 2005, said Wednesday he’s optimistic.
“It’s moved away from the sinning and the man-and-woman argument to the argument of how can we protect the church from these evil gays,” Weiss said. “That’s a major shift. We’re not discussing where it’s going but a minute portion of it. These religious exemptions have been in the bill for years. It should be clear we’re talking about civil ceremonies. They want a promise they won’t get sued. Well anybody can sue anybody. Nobody can give them a guarantee of that.”
Weiss said he’s embarrassed his city, usually a leader on progressive issues, is lagging behind on marriage, especially since the Stonewall riots happened there.
“I have friends say, ‘Oh, we thought New York would be the first to get it,’ but instead we’ll be number seven. We’ve had great domestic partner benefits for years, but I’m disappointed that it’s taken this long and that we’ll be number seven and not in our usual first place. It’s easy to forget, it’s not all that liberal outside of Manhattan.”
Weiss predicts it will pass in either this session or next. If it does, he and Martin plan to reaffirm their vows.
Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Iowa and D.C. allow gay marriage. Of them, all but Massachusetts and D.C. allow at least limited religious exemptions.
New York’s legislative session had been scheduled to end Monday.
New York
Two teens shot steps from Stonewall Inn after NYC Pride parade
One of the victims remains in critical condition

On Sunday night, following the annual NYC Pride March, two girls were shot in Sheridan Square, feet away from the historic Stonewall Inn.
According to an NYPD report, the two girls, aged 16 and 17, were shot around 10:15 p.m. as Pride festivities began to wind down. The 16-year-old was struck in the head and, according to police sources, is said to be in critical condition, while the 17-year-old was said to be in stable condition.
The Washington Blade confirmed with the NYPD the details from the police reports and learned no arrests had been made as of noon Monday.
The shooting took place in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, mere feet away from the most famous gay bar in the city — if not the world — the Stonewall Inn. Earlier that day, hundreds of thousands of people marched down Christopher Street to celebrate 55 years of LGBTQ people standing up for their rights.
In June 1969, after police raided the Stonewall Inn, members of the LGBTQ community pushed back, sparking what became known as the Stonewall riots. Over the course of two days, LGBTQ New Yorkers protested the discriminatory policing of queer spaces across the city and mobilized to speak out — and throw bottles if need be — at officers attempting to suppress their existence.
The following year, LGBTQ people returned to the Stonewall Inn and marched through the same streets where queer New Yorkers had been arrested, marking the first “Gay Pride March” in history and declaring that LGBTQ people were not going anywhere.
New York State Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, whose district includes Greenwich Village, took to social media to comment on the shooting.
“After decades of peaceful Pride celebrations — this year gun fire and two people shot near the Stonewall Inn is a reminder that gun violence is everywhere,” the lesbian lawmaker said on X. “Guns are a problem despite the NRA BS.”
New York
Zohran Mamdani participates in NYC Pride parade
Mayoral candidate has detailed LGBTQ rights platform

Zohran Mamdani, the candidate for mayor of New York City who pulled a surprise victory in the primary contest last week, walked in the city’s Pride parade on Sunday.
The Democratic Socialist and New York State Assembly member published photos on social media with New York Attorney General Letitia James, telling followers it was “a joy to march in NYC Pride with the people’s champ” and to “see so many friends on this gorgeous day.”
“Happy Pride NYC,” he wrote, adding a rainbow emoji.
Mamdani’s platform includes a detailed plan for LGBTQ people who “across the United States are facing an increasingly hostile political environment.”
His campaign website explains: “New York City must be a refuge for LGBTQIA+ people, but private institutions in our own city have already started capitulating to Trump’s assault on trans rights.
“Meanwhile, the cost of living crisis confronting working class people across the city hits the LGBTQIA+ community particularly hard, with higher rates of unemployment and homelessness than the rest of the city.”
“The Mamdani administration will protect LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers by expanding and protecting gender-affirming care citywide, making NYC an LGBTQIA+ sanctuary city, and creating the Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs.”
U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court upholds ACA rule that makes PrEP, other preventative care free
Liberal justices joined three conservatives in majority opinion

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday upheld a portion of the Affordable Care Act requiring private health insurers to cover the cost of preventative care including PrEP, which significantly reduces the risk of transmitting HIV.
Conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh authored the majority opinion in the case, Kennedy v. Braidwood Management. He was joined by two conservatives, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett, along with the three liberal justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown-Jackson.
The court’s decision rejected the plaintiffs’ challenge to the Affordable Care Act’s reliance on the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force to “unilaterally” determine which types of care and services must be covered by payors without cost-sharing.
An independent all-volunteer panel of nationally recognized experts in prevention and primary care, the 16 task force members are selected by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to serve four-year terms.
They are responsible for evaluating the efficacy of counseling, screenings for diseases like cancer and diabetes, and preventative medicines — like Truvada for PrEP, drugs to reduce heart disease and strokes, and eye ointment for newborns to prevent infections.
Parties bringing the challenge objected especially to the mandatory coverage of PrEP, with some arguing the drugs would “encourage and facilitate homosexual behavior” against their religious beliefs.
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