New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
on Thursday delivered a speech in support of legalizing gay marriage
in New York.
“Should government permit men and
women of the same sex to marry?” Bloomberg rhetorically asked a
crowd at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art.
“It is a question that cuts to the
core of who we are as a country – and as a city. It is a question
that deserves to be answered here in New York – which was the
birthplace of the gay rights movement, more than 40 years ago. And
it is a question that requires us to step back from the platitudes
and partisanship of the everyday political debate and consider the
principles that must lead us forward.”
“The principles that have guided our
nation since its founding – freedom, liberty, equality – are the
principles that have animated generations of Americans to expand
opportunity to an ever wider circle of our citizenry. At our
founding, African-Americans were held in bondage. Catholics in New
York could not hold office. Those without property could not vote.
Women could not vote or hold office. And homosexuality was, in some
places, a crime punishable by death.”
Bloomberg said the prohibition on gay
marriage was the “next great barrier standing before our
generation.”
“Today, a majority of Americans
support marriage equality – and young people increasingly view
marriage equality in much the same way as young people in the 1960s
viewed civil rights. Eventually, as happened with civil rights for
African-Americans, they will be a majority of voters. And they will
pass laws that reflect their values and elect presidents who
personify them.”
“It is not a matter of if – but
when.”
The 69-year-old
Republican-turned-independent added that he hopes lawmakers who do
not support marriage equality will “listen to their kids and make
them proud with their foresight and courage.”
“Together, we can work across the
aisle to pass a bill allowing all New Yorkers to walk down the aisle
and lead our state and country toward a more perfect union,” he
concluded.
Bloomberg is among the high-profile
elected officials rounding up support for making New York the sixth
state to legalize the union. With openly gay City Council Speaker
Christine Quinn at his side, he visited Albany earlier this month to
lobby lawmakers on the issue.
His
speech follows a video released by Governor Andrew Cuomo in support
of the proposed legislation.