Photo credit: Bob Summersgill, who helped write the legislation
This morning, Mayor Adrian Fenty signed legislation legalizing marriage equality in DC (pending Congressional approval). His remarks regarding race, to me, were very poignant:
"We knew this day would come," Fenty said. "I say to the world: An era of struggle ends for thousands in Washington, D.C. . . . Our city is taking a leap forward."
Before he signed the bill, Fenty spoke of his interracial upbringing, noting it was illegal for his parents to get married 40 years ago.
"This is one of the churches my parents would have brought me to when I was a boy," he said as his parents sat among advocates in a second pew. "Things have a way of coming full circle. When you're mayor."
Several months prior to today, in my testimony to the DC Council on this bill, I felt the same way:
As the son of a Catholic father and a Jewish mother, I wouldn't be here if marriage was denied to two loving, committed people. Neither would my boyfriend, the son of a Native American father and a Filipina mother. We are only here because those who have come before us have recognized that marriage is about love and commitment.
A good day here in DC.
Update: Andy Towle's got a video if anyone wants to watch.
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