Freshman Maryland Delegate Tiffany
Alston has wavered again on her position on a gay marriage bill.
Alston is one of the two members of the
House Judiciary Committee who missed Tuesday's early morning vote on
the legislation, forcing Chairman Joseph Vallario, who opposes the
gay marriage bill, to delay the vote. The bill, which
was approved by the Senate last week, was on track for a final
vote in the House by Friday. (The
second member, Delegate Jill Carter, has said she is ready to vote
for the bill.)
Alston, a co-sponsor of the bill, told
the Baltimore Sun on Tuesday that she was reconsidering her
position.
“It's a very important, deeply
personal issue,” she told the paper. “I need time to think it
through. I need time to pray.”
In a statement released Wednesday,
Alston confidently said she believed “all people should be treated
equally regardless of their sexual orientation.”
The following morning, however, she
backtracked, telling WTOP Radio that she's looking for a solution
that will satisfy both “my constituency as well as my conscience.”
Alston said she would propose an
amendment that would replace civil marriages with civil unions for
both gay and straight couples.
“I have what I believe to be a
solution,” she said. “I don't know if it will garner any
political will or favor.”
A Washington Post article noted
that Alston, who is African-American, is being pummeled by the black
churches of Prince George, who oppose giving gay and lesbian couple
the right to marry.
“Maryland is so liberal, yes,” she
told the Post. “But there are the churches.”
The committee is expected to hold a
final vote on the measure Friday.