Yesterday the Rhode Island State Senate passed a civil union bill. The Governor has promised to quickly sign it into law.
For those of us who’ve been working hard for marriage equality this is a bittersweet and very small victory. I personally went out on a very long branch pushing my congregation to take a public stand this year for marriage equality. And bless them they did it. And it cost us in hurt and a sense of isolation on the part of the minority among us who did not want the church to do this. I only asked them to do this because I thought this was our year. That our small part would be a real help in winning the real victory.
Then in a bit of political maneuvering, the marriage equality bill died and was replaced with civil unions. Truthfully I began to fear even that was going to falter until the brave of New York made their historic stand.
Now the vote is in.
Scanning national news outlets what just happened in Rhode Island appears to be pretty small potatoes.
And.
No doubt it provides important protections to same sex couples. And at the same time it enshrines a second class category for marriage. It is a deeply flawed law we’re getting.
In addition to the usual suspects who voted against this my own State senator as well as the senator from my Congregation’s area, prominent liberals, voted against it. Pretty much the entire liberal/progressive crowd were not in support of this bill, in fact some actively opposed it.
Me, I found it something of a bitter pill. And I thought pass the damn thing. And we will come back for the rest later.
No one in the legislature should expect much gratitude from our side.
This is a very small step toward, again, basic civil rights.
I think we now need to spend a year building alliances, healing some wounds, if possible punishing some legislators, specifically working to defeat some legislators.
And then come back for the real deal.
Full civil rights.
My reflection at this moment now turns from politics per se, and tword my concerns with purity.
I see it a lot in religion. And it is never a good thing.
Purity in general is, to my experience, unsavory. I fear the pure. They burn people at stakes.
And among those with whom I stand and work toward marriage equality I sometimes see much of the same attitude.
We need more folk, particularly these days, who play the way of compromise, who think half a loaf is a good thing.
Now here we have some specifics to consider. As far as I’m concerned when we’re talking marriage equality we’re talking civil rights, and so for me, this civil unions bill almost law is distasteful from the get go.
And.
And, there are now a whole passel of protections that don’t currently exist.
My two senators are savvy. I kind of suspect they counted votes before voting no. But I’m not actually sure of this.
A lot of people on my side of the issue called, and fervently, for the defeat of this bill.
Which would have meant we’d have nothing going forward. Nothing. Well, something. A very bitter taste would linger…
Instead the legislature has taken a step toward something.
Something which I’m sure is inevitable.
I hope they, and we, will recall the path to victory can be taken one step at a time.
Just so long as we don’t forget the goal.
Full civil rights.
No one left behind.
Justice will prevail.
Marriage Equality is coming…
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