"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

As a person of faith myself, I respect Senator Diaz religious beliefs and would fight to protect them within his church. Likewise, I would not tolerate Same-Sex marriage in my house of worship.

But CIVIL MARRIAGE before the County Clerk or a Justice is an ENTIRELY different matter.  There is no convenyance or recognition of god or religious beliefs.  It is simply the state's acknowledgement that certain rights are now being conveyed upon one's partner.  By denying that right to same sex couples, we fly in the face of state and city anti-discrimination laws ALREADY on the books.

NOWHERE in New York's marriage statute is same-sex marriage prohibited.  The state prohibits it between cousins and the like, but not between same sex couples.  If the legislature had wanted to prohibit same-sex marriage, the topic has been in play for at least 10 years now.  Why didn't the legislature act to amend the law to prohibit it, if that was their intent?

I may be the only New Yorker who supports same sex marriage while opposing Civil Unions.  These, to my mind, are the real abomination -- a totally undefined, unknown area of the law where there is no guidance or jurisprudence.  (Shall we, for example, permit a pair of accused criminals to join in a "civil union", and thereby claim the spousal privilege at trial????  If not, when will the spousal privilege apply for "civil unions?"

We HAVE all the rules to understand the relationship between two unrelated, monogomaus adults who wish to share their lives and grow old together.  We've had it for thousands of years.  Its called MARRIAGE, and the sex of the participants -- and the manner in which they choose to have sex --- is none of the state's business.

Thank you Senator Diaz!!!!!

2 comments - one for the first blogger on this post about being drunk in Albany with a boy in the car - that's just a nasty comment and an unlikely scenario if you intended it for either Governor Spitzer or Senator Diaz.

Seconldy, there are many NY'ers who for years have been defending society's traditional definition of marriage - between a man and a woman. Many NY'ers oppose a change in the NYS law to permit "marriage" to be between man and man or woman. Good for Senator Diaz to once again to be brave enough to take the lead and stand up for what so many NY'ers believe in!

When Senator Diaz amassed a crowd of tens of thousands of mostly Hispanic Christians 3 years ago on the steps of the Bronx Supreme Court to defend traditional marriage between a man and a woman, it made a huge statement for this issue in New York.

I hope he continues to build momentum on this issue and on other pro-family issues to strengthen families instead of letting a small percentage of people decide for us how to deteriorate our laws and our instituions.

As I stated earlier, there IS NO STATUTORY PROHIBITION against same sex marriage in New York.  If the legislature WANTED to block it, they could have years ago, just as they prohibited marriages between siblings and cousins and the like.

 The only reason a law change is required is because the Court of Appeals cowered to pressing political considerations instead of reading the law for what it was.

Rev Diaz

I don't undertand Rev Diaz, his religious do not allow him to accept Gay people around him. How come his attorney is a Gay and he work with him without any problems?

A Gay is good for him as a personal attorney, as a law adviser but not as a human been, who want to share life with a love one

Shame on you Rev Diaz

New York State Senator Rev. John "Whitey" Whiteshoe (D-Bronx) opposes New York State Governor Rich Middleground’s bill to offer Negroes equal rights in New York State, something the Governor considers to be a “simple moral imperative”.

“This is a slap in the face to the millions of New Yorkers who support the moral, legal and traditional separation of race relations as established in the Bible,” Senator Whiteshoe stated. “In the minds of millions of New Yorkers, forcing equal treatment of the races is against our religious beliefs.”

Senator Rev. Whiteshoe is calling for his colleagues in Albany, his fellow ministers, papist Cardinal Mulligan, religious leaders, and all New Yorkers who defend the constitutionality of New York’s long-established laws to join him in opposition to this proposed legislation.

How dare you piggyback on the suffering of the Blacks and other minorities and equate your life style choice with the struggles of people who are born into races that have historically suffered denial of equal protection. How insulting for you to draw a parallel to the advancement and acceptance of your sexual lifestyle with the oppression that first came from enslavement and was then perpetuated in race discrimination!

Senator Diaz is a Black Puerto Rican who seems to be proud of who he is and where he comes from - but is still vulnerable to racial discrimination if he stepped out of his role as state senator. When a black or hispanic man shows up and tries to rent affordable safe housing or look for a job to support his family, the discrimination that can confront him is apparent when someone sees the color of his face or hears his voice. Discrimination he can face does not require him to tell the racist about his lifestyle choices, the discrimination occurs instantly.

How people choose to interact sexually does not give them the right to change the marriage laws in New York, or anyplace in the US. Your parellel minimizes the real struggles of those who suffer real discrimination.

Senator Diaz's moral stance is based on the Bible. His courage to celebrate the Word of God should be an example for the others in the State legislator to follow.

All Americans are created EQUAL.  Please practice your religious beliefs in your house of worship, but do NOT  advocate your religious beliefs as NYS law.  If it was even up to a referundum BLACKS, LATINOS and WOMEN still would NOT be voting in NYS.  Our Constitution was written to protect minorities..ALL minorities.  You can NOT define a minority.a person knows when he/she is being discriminated against.  As a white male who spent many years in the Bronx defending the rights of all minorities I find your intolerance a disgrace to the Democratic Party.  You should consider changing to the Party of George Bush and the Chrisitian Coalition.

When the nation of South Africa allows same-sex couples to marry before NY,that tells you something, we as a state are moving backwards.

The bible is not our constitution and the oppression of any minority is un-American. Period.

The fact that you are offended, Mr. Diaz, should not be paramount here. I couldn't care less. By all means live your life as you see fit. Live long and prosper and all that good stuff. While me and my monogamous partner of 15 years will live ours. It has nothing to do with you. We are private citizens who are concerned and interested in the rights and priveleges that come with full recognized marriage under the law which is different than a mere civil union.

If me and my partner got married, Mr. Diaz, you wouldn't even know. You and everyone else who is so offended should really be a non-factor. So why are you trying to meddle with our pursuit of happiness?

Why is it legal for others to get inebriated in Las Vegas and go to the Chapel of Love, get a tacky yet recognized marriage under the law, only to get it annulled the next day when they wake up? How about the $100,000 wedding with everyone flying in from out of town and the gift registry and all the bells and whistles, only to get divorced less than a year later. All perfectly legal.

Now those are people who should not get married.