The City of Austin on Thursday became
the first Texas municipality to endorse marriage equality.
The 7-member Austin City Council
unanimously approved a resolution sponsored by Mayor Pro Tem Sheryl
Cole. Co-sponsors included Mayor Leffingwell and Council Member
Laura Morrison.
Symbolic only in nature, it cites
historical, moral and political imperatives in support of granting
marriage rights to gay and lesbian couples.
The state's largest LGBT rights
advocate, Equality Texas, cheered the move, calling the vote “the
first time in recent history that so many local advocacy
organizations in Austin have united in support of equality.”
“The Austin City Council UNANIMOUSLY
passed resolution supporting the freedom to marry!” the group
announced on its Facebook
page. “Passage of this resolution [sends] the message to state
and national leaders that Austin is a community that values equality
for all its citizens. The resolution [also sends] the message that
the City of Austin believes all couples in loving and committed
relationships should be given the opportunity to create stronger and
more successful families through civil marriage.”
A law criminalizing gay sex remains on
Texas' books. While technically unenforceable after the Supreme
Court's groundbreaking 2003 Lawrence vs. Texas ruling,
lawmakers have steadfastly refused to remove their sodomy law, making
Texas one of only three states where such laws remain. The other two
are Oklahoma and Kansas.
In 2005, an overwhelming majority (76%)
of voters approved Proposition 2, Texas' gay marriage ban.
However, acceptance is increasing in
the Lone Star state. A
February 2012 Texas Politics survey found a majority of Texas
voters support either marriage (31%) or civil unions (29%) for gay
couples. Thirty-three percent said they were opposed to all legal
recognition.