'I Do' Support Marriage Equality

I have to admit, huge gatherings have never really been my thing. As my friend Frank put it as we stood there waiting for the speakers to begin at yesterday's marriage quality rally in Midtown, "I feel like we're in line for something that's never going to happen," to which I replied, "We sort of are, our rights." (Remind me. Why am I still having to beg for them, again? I thought James Madison and the boys already took care of this. Could the Supreme Court stop being such spineless, partisan hacks and do its job already and interpret the Constitution the way our Founding Fathers intended it?) But even so, ever since Prop 8, it's hard not to feel obligated to hit the pavement when duty calls, and that's just what Michael and I did Sunday afternoon, which was made far more enjoyable when we caught up with said Frank and his longtime companion, Craig (pictured with me, below).

The turnout for Broadway Impact's Action = Marriage Equality event was impressive, even if Michael was more-than-half-right when he jokingly pointed out that most people with enough money to really impact the cause were probably "away in the Hamptons" for the weekend. (Or is it Fire Island?) The politicos who were there, however, were quite impressive, including Gov. David Paterson, who wasn't even on the agenda. With six weeks left before the state Legislature adjourns for the year and still not enough votes to ensure passage, you could definitely feel the sense of urgency in the air. Paterson's last-minute decision to come, which was made after he endured a (far larger) hate protest outside his Manhattan office led by Sen. Cocksucker himself, Ruben Diaz, and the New York Hispanic Clergy Organization, underscored the gravity of the situation. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, state Sen. Tom Duane and Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell also took to the stage, as did boldfaced names like Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis from "Sex and the City," Cheyenne Jackson, David Hyde Pierce, plus the cast of "Hair" and numerous Broadway types.

I think Tom Duane, the Senate's only openly gay member, put it best: "There are 18 days left in the Senate session. I need your help." So if you haven't already, make sure you contact your state senator to let him/her know that your support of them is contingent on their support of you. Click HERE to contact your state senator. And click HERE six easy steps to get involved. As Cynthia Nixon put it, one day the children of New York "won't believe that same-sex marriage was NOT legal in our state." I hope she's right. I know it's childish of me to say, but I'm completely running out of patience for this bullshit. Something's gotta give before I go Larry Kramer on someone's ass ...