New York City Council Speaker Christine
Quinn says being denied federal recognition of her marriage is
“painful.”
Quinn, who leads among Democrats in her
bid for mayor, in May married her longtime partner, lawyer Kim
Catullo.
In an appearance on CNN to discuss a
Supreme Court case challenging the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA),
Quinn said gay people are full citizens and praised the woman at the
center of the case, Edith Windsor.
“Waking up everyday in a country
where your sexual orientation puts you in a position where you have
fewer rights than somebody else is actually a very painful thing,”
Quinn said. “I mean, LGBT Americans are full citizens. We're full
contributing parts of this country. And all we want is the same
rights and responsibilities as everybody else.”
When Windsor's wife Thea Spyer got sick
“Edie took care of her until she died. And then after that tragic
death the federal government basically sent Edie a letter saying,
'You are less than [the] heterosexual Americans that you know.'
That's horrible. It's just wrong. And I'm so excited that this
issue has gotten all the way to the Supreme Court.” (The video is
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