After the disaster that is Proposition 8, I have to admit that I was feeling pretty down in the dumps when it came to gay marriage equality in the United States- but the last month has been packed with exciting news… and I’m here to share some more! (Thanks to my buddy Colby who shared this with me yesterday!)

According to CNN, New York Governor David Paterson is set to introduce same-sex marriage legislation in the state Assembly this week!  The report comes from New York assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner, who reports Gov. Paterson has asked him to stand with him for the announcement.  Kellner responded that he would be “thrilled to stand with the governor…”

This isn’t the first time this type of legislation has been proposed in New York.  Former Governor Eliot Spitzer also introduced a bill in 2007 which passed through the Assembly, but was killed in the state Senate. Having said that, a lot has changed in the last 2 years, and with Iowa being the first state to pass same-sex marriage through the legislative process, a precedent has been set. It wouldn’t be surprising to see more states follow suit now that the ice has been broken.

Based on the success of the previous bill, Paterson’s bill is expected to pass through the Assembly, but will need 32 votes to pass through the Senate. Supporters of the bill hope to have it passed at the end of June, which marks the end of the current legislative session. Naturally they are doing all they can to ensure its success and are quoted as saying “No one wants to bring this to the floor to fail, it would be a huge disaster. We want to make sure that if we bring this to the floor for a vote that it passes.” (Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner)

I still find it incredible that states such as New York & California are still playing catch-up on this issue while states like Iowa take the main stage. That’s not meant to be derogatory towards Iowa, or any of the other 3 states who have now legalized gay marriage, it’s just that New York and California, in my opinion, would be the obvious choices to be leading the gay rights equality battle. Each is home to industries that are completely saturated with homosexuality- whether it’s fashion, film or theater- that have greatly contributed to the success of each state as a whole.

We already know people are fighting tooth and nail for California, and we’ll continue to support that fight. Hopefully, New York will get it right this time around and we’ll have yet another shining example of what the US should be.

Related Stories:

• All of Us vs. The National Organization for Marriage
• Equality in Vermont!
• Iowa:  Who Knew You Were So Awesome?!