Assembly Resolution No. 629

BY: M. of A. Glick

MEMORIALIZING Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim
June 2017, as Gay Pride Month in the State of New
York

WHEREAS, Members of this Legislative Body support the rights,
freedoms, and equality of those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender and queer (LGBTQ); and

WHEREAS, Those who took a stand for human rights and dignity at the
Stonewall Inn in New York City on June 28, 1969, are among the pioneers
within this movement; and

WHEREAS, The LGBTQ Stonewall protestors were subject to police
harassment and invidious discrimination based on sexual orientation and
gender identity and expression; and

WHEREAS, This decisive moment in history was followed by the
creation of gay rights organizations in every major city in the United
States within two years of the Stonewall uprising; and

WHEREAS, The Stonewall uprising has been followed by many positive
progressive historic moments; and

WHEREAS, In December of 1973, the board of the American Psychiatric
Association voted to remove homosexuality from its list of mental
illnesses; and

WHEREAS, A Marriage Equality Bill first passed the New York State
Assembly in 2007; and

WHEREAS, The Marriage Equality Act passed both houses and was signed
into law in New York State on June 24, 2011, making the state the sixth
in the nation to do so; and

WHEREAS, This more than doubled the percentage of Americans who
lived in states with fair marriage laws and affected more than 42,000
same-sex couples raising 14,000 children in the state; and

WHEREAS, The year 2012 marked the first year all 50 States in the
United States had at least one openly LGBTQ elected official; and

WHEREAS, On June 26, 2013, New York State resident Edith Windsor,
represented by Roberta Kaplan, won her case against the United States;
the Supreme Court ruled that section three of the Defense of Marriage
Act was unconstitutional and the Federal Government cannot discriminate
against married lesbian and gay couples for the purposes of determining
Federal benefits and protections; and

WHEREAS, On June 9, 2015, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter announced
that the Military Equal Opportunity policy has been adjusted to include
gay and lesbian military members; and

WHEREAS, On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that states
cannot ban same-sex marriage; and

WHEREAS, On June 24, 2016, then President Barack Obama announced the
designation of the first national monument to lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) rights; the Stonewall National Monument will
encompass Christopher Park, the Stonewall Inn and the surrounding
streets and sidewalks that were the sites of the 1969 Stonewall
uprising; and

WHEREAS, On April 4, 2017, the 7th District Court of Appeals ruled
that the Civil Rights Act prohibits workplace discrimination against
LGBT employees, after Kimberly Hively sues Ivy Tech Community College
for violating Title VII of the act by denying her employment; and

WHEREAS, The month of June reminds us of all the achievements of the
past and highlights the work that remains to be done; now, therefore, be
it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
memorialize Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim June 2017, as Gay Pride
Month in the State of New York; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of the State of
New York.