Assembly Resolution No. 373
BY: M. of A. Glick
MEMORIALIZING Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim
June 2021, as Gay Pride Month in the State of New
York
WHEREAS, Members of this Legislative Body support the rights,
freedoms, and equality of those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender and queer (LGBTQ); and
WHEREAS, Those who took a stand for human rights and dignity at the
Stonewall Inn in New York City on June 28, 1969, are among the pioneers
within this movement; this year marks the 52nd Anniversary of the
Stonewall Riots; and
WHEREAS, The LGBTQ Stonewall protestors were subject to police
harassment and invidious discrimination based on sexual orientation and
gender identity and expression; and
WHEREAS, The Stonewall uprising and the LGBTQ movement included the
contributions of many people of color like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia
Rivera, who brought attention to the continued struggle for the rights
of transgender and gender non-conforming people; and
WHEREAS, This decisive moment in history was followed by the
creation of gay rights organizations in every major city in the United
States within two years of the Stonewall uprising; and
WHEREAS, The Stonewall uprising has been followed by many positive
progressive historic moments; and
WHEREAS, One year after the Stonewall uprising, on June 28, 1970,
the first gay pride marches took place in New York City, Los Angeles and
San Francisco; and
WHEREAS, Each year, since the Stonewall uprising, the end of June
has been celebrated as gay pride with LGBTQ pride marches and other
events being held throughout New York State, and throughout the world;
and
WHEREAS, A Marriage Equality Bill first passed the New York State
Assembly in 2007; and
WHEREAS, The Marriage Equality Act passed both houses and was signed
into law in New York State on June 24, 2011, making the state the sixth
in the nation to do so; and
WHEREAS, The year 2012 marked the first year all 50 States in the
United States had at least one openly LGBTQ elected official; and
WHEREAS, On June 26, 2013, New York State resident Edith Windsor,
represented by Roberta Kaplan, won her case against the United States;
the Supreme Court ruled that section three of the Defense of Marriage
Act was unconstitutional and the Federal Government cannot discriminate
against married lesbian and gay couples for the purposes of determining
Federal benefits and protections; and
WHEREAS, On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that states
cannot ban same-sex marriage; and
WHEREAS, On June 24, 2016, then President Barack Obama announced the
designation of the first national monument to lesbian, gay, bisexual
Transgender and queer (LGBTQ) rights; the Stonewall National Monument
encompasses Christopher Park, the Stonewall Inn and the surrounding
streets and sidewalks that were the sites of the 1969 Stonewall
uprising; and
WHEREAS, On April 4, 2017, the 7th District Court of Appeals ruled
that the Civil Rights Act prohibits workplace discrimination against
LGBTQ employees, after Kimberly Hively sues Ivy Tech Community College
for violating Title VII of the act by denying her employment; and
WHEREAS, On June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court affirmed
that the 1964 Civil Rights Act protects LGBTQ Americans from
discrimination in the workplace after Gerald Bostock, the late Aimee
Stephens, and the late Donald Zarda, also a New Yorker, brought suit
against their former employers when they were fired for identifying as
either gay or transgender only after their employer was made aware of
their gender or sexual identity despite positive job performance; and
WHEREAS, On January 25, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. signed
the Executive Order Enabling All Qualified Americans to Serve Their
Country in Uniform, which allows transgender Americans to openly serve
in the military; and
WHEREAS, On February 2, 2021, the United States Senate confirmed
Pete Buttigieg with 86 votes in favor as Secretary of Transportation,
and is the first openly gay member of a Presidential Administration's
Cabinet and is currently serving as the highest-ranking LGBTQ American
in the Presidential line of succession; and
WHEREAS, The month of June reminds us of all the achievements of the
past and highlights the work that remains to be done; now, therefore, be
it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
memorialize Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim June 2021, as Gay Pride
Month in the State of New York; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of the State of
New York.
