Mayor Jerry Sanders joined with more than 75 other U.S. mayors to pledge to support marriage for same-sex, gay and lesbian couples today in Washington at the 80th Winter Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
Among some of the other big-city mayors who also pledged their support were Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa; Mayor Thomas M. Menino of Boston; Mayor Annise Parker of Houston; Mayor Marilyn Strickland of Tacoma; Marc Solomon, Freedom to Marry’s National Campaign Director; and Tom Cochran, U.S. Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director.
The coalition officially launched a campaign called Freedom to Marry this morning at during a press conference, followed by a nationwide conference call.
Mayors for the Freedom to Marry includes mayors from cities and towns—large and small—with diverse geographic, ethnic and political backgrounds. The list includes the mayors of America’s four largest cities—Michael Bloomberg of New York, Rahm Emanuel of Chicago, and Annise Parker of Houston. It also includes mayors from cities including Juneau, Alaska; Des Moines, Iowa; Bloomington, Indiana; and Lewiston, Maine, where the freedom to marry may go to the ballot in 2012. You can click here to view the full list of Mayors.
“We’re launching this effort at a time when more Americans than ever support the freedom to marry,” said Marc Solomon, Freedom to Marry’s national campaign director, in a written statement released today. “When New York ended its exclusion of gay couples from marriage this summer, the number of people living in states that treat all committed couples equally more than doubled—from 16 million to 35 million Americans. Marriage is on the march in towns and cities across the nation and these mayors will play an important role in advancing the” cause.”
San Diego’s Republican Mayor Jerry Sanders- a chair of Mayors for the Freedom to Marry- explained why he has joined the effort:
“Allowing loving and committed couples to join in marriage has benefits not just for couples and their families—but also for society,” said Sanders, who has a daughter who is a lesbian, and who married her partner Meaghan Yaple in Vermont, where same-sex couples can marry legally.
“Marriage encourages people to take responsibility for each other, provides greater security for children, and helps our country live up to its promises set forth in our founding documents. These are important values for a strong society, and we should encourage them,” Mayor Sanders continued.
