You can listen here. He's begun with a thanks to the late Sen. Gwendolyn Britt who was the lead sponsor of the bill--to absolutely no political benefit to herself but out of a firm belief in civil rights grounded in her own heroic efforts to integrate Maryland. Sen. Madaleno is now talking about his relationship with his husband, Mark, of many years who yet remains a legal stranger to him.
Rough quote: "Every generation of Americans has held out their hand to a new group, saying you are not the other, you are us."
Now, he's talking about his responsibility as a parent and as legislator. "This will be a memorable day that will help thousands of Marylanders. I am so proud that in Maryland, as we have from the beginning, that we look toward toleration and toward a better future of us all."
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Sen. Madaleno Now Speaking on Marriage to the Senate
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
EM Statement on Passing of Sen. Britt
Equality Maryland issued the following statement over the weekend and has temporarily replaced the front page of its website with a tribute to Sen. Gwendolyn Britt:
Dear Friends,
We are saddened to report that our dear friend and hero, State Senator Gwendolyn Britt, has passed away from a heart attack. We struggle to find the words to convey the depth of our feelings at this loss, and we offer our condolences to her husband, Travis, her children, grandchildren, and entire family. Sen. Britt's loss will be felt deeply by her colleagues in the Maryland State Senate, by her constituents in Prince George's County's District 47, and by virtually everyone who knew her.
Thousands of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Marylanders and their families only knew Sen. Britt by name, and yet this name truly meant everything to them. At a time in our nation's history where LGBT people seek champions for the equal protection of our families, Sen. Britt rose up and declared our cause her own. In a feature article on "players to watch" in the General Assembly printed just last week by the Washington Post, Sen. Britt was described as a "civil rights activist." Sen. Britt fought Jim Crow laws down south and here at home in Maryland. She spent her life seeking to correct injustices.
When Equality Maryland approached Sen. Britt about being a lead sponsor on The Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act, she did not hesitate or ask to think it over first. Her answer was definite, her pride apparent, her convictions solid. In the past few days, as Sen. Britt prepared to file marriage equality legislation and advocated with her senate colleagues on the issue, she made us at Equality Maryland feel that with her by our side, anything is possible. She taught us to keep the faith, never to waver from our commitment to a cause, and to speak truth to power no matter what obstacles stand in our way.
Senator Britt, we will miss your grace, your dignity, your warmth, your intelligence, your smile, your solemnity, your beauty, your hugs, and most of all, your friendship and support.
You will always be with us.
The Staff, Boards and Lobbyists for Equality Maryland
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Sen. Gwendolyn Britt Died This Morning
Gwendolyn Britt on the Glen Echo Park Merry-Go-RoundPrince George's Sen. Gwendolyn Britt (D-47) died suddenly.
The Washington Post reports:
A Democrat who represented Landover Hills, Langley Park and Adelphi, Britt died at 4 a.m. apparently from heart failure or a stroke while still being admitted to Doctor's Community Hospital in Lanham, he said.Senator Britt was a real class act. Reflecting her long history of championing civil rights, she was the lead Senate sponsor on the same-sex marriage bill even though there was no political benefit--and some political risk--in being so outspoken on the issue.
"The legislative arena is one filled with people with sharp elbows. She was the antithesis of that," said Sen. Paul Pinsky (D-Prince George's). "She was warm, caring, honorable, principled and fair."
Britt, a civil rights and community activist, was entering her fifth year in the Senate.
During her first term in office, former Montgomery County executive Douglas M. Duncan strongly considered Britt as a running mate before he dropped out of the race for governor.
"It was clear she was coming into her own," said Pinsky. "She was taking on more responsiblity and she enjoyed that."
This week the county delegation unanimously reelected her as chairwoman. Britt, a lead Senate sponsor on a bill that granted voting rights to ex-felons, was expected this year to be the lead Senate sponsor of a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage. Advocates for gay rights said they were excited to have Britt leading their effort. . . .
Britt was a Freedom Rider in the 1960s who spent 40 days in jail for sitting in a whites-only train station waiting room in Mississippi. Closer to home, she and four other black friends sat on the merry-go-round at Glen Echo Park, which was segregated at the time, and was arrested for trespassing.
I know she'll be missed by many. Sen. Britt is survived by her husband, Travis Britt, two children, and five grandkids. (See also this story in the Baltimore Sun.)
Monday, October 29, 2007
Black Family Alliance
According to the latest Washington Post poll, black Marylanders are more likely than white Marylanders to oppose same-sex marriage. The newly formed Maryland Black Family Alliance has decided to do something to change those numbers:
‘‘About three years ago, when same sex-marriage bans began proliferating the nation, a group of African Americans across the state began saying ‘enough is enough’ and the time is now,” said James, a Rockville resident who ran for the House of Delegates last year.
Same-sex couples argue that the state is denying their right to marry.
For supporters of same-sex marriage, this is an important effort. Liberal anti-discrimination initiatives don't pass the General Assembly without strong African-American support. African-American female legislators have been leaders in the gay rights fight in the state legislature--Sen. Gwendolyn Britt (D-Prince George's) plans to introduce a pro-gay marriage bill in the Senate this year. However, not all of her African-American colleagues feel similarly:‘‘My boyfriend and I feel that we deserve all the rights and responsibilities of marriage,” said H. Alexander Robinson, executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition, a gay rights advocacy group in Washington.
The court’s ruling ended three cases consolidated in Conaway v. Deane, which involved nine Maryland couples.
‘‘When [the lawsuit] didn’t go the way we had hoped, we realized that people don’t quite understand still what we’re trying to do for our family,” said Mikki Mozelle, one of the plaintiffs. ‘‘So, if you can bring understanding to the black community, where there is a lot of division about this, this is a good way to sit down and discuss the issues.”
‘‘I’m against gay marriage through and through, no exception,” said Del. Emmett C. Burns Jr., a Baptist minister, who called the Black Family Alliance ‘‘a loose confederation of individuals talking loosely.”
‘‘Equating homosexuality and civil rights are not an equation as far as I’m concerned,” said Burns (D-Dist. 10) of Woodlawn, one of the General Assembly’s most vocal gay rights opponents. ‘‘Whites can hide their sexual preferences and still get all of the rights that society has to offer. I can’t hide my blackness and get the rights that I’m due, so to say that this is a civil rights issue upsets me to no end.”Black support is crucial for another reason. Any gay marriage bill will almost certainly be petitioned to referendum by the religious right. African-American support is crucial to any effort to win the battle of public opinion key to winning the referendum.
