So a couple of days ago there was the Equality and Justice Day in Albany to lobby NY state legislators to pass the bill Gov. Patterson introduced to recognize same sex marriages, and the governor met with the attendees. And the governor met with supporters and his remarks made the papers.

BECAUSE apparently when our governor opened up his pie hole:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/04/29/2009-04-29_governor_paterson_guilt_drives_opponents_of_gay_marriage.html

"Gov. Paterson said Tuesday gay marriage foes - including religious leaders - are driven by guilt over their failure to oppose discrimination and violence against homosexuals."

"Paterson told a gathering of about 2,000 gay rights advocates that many of the people speaking out against his bill to legalize gay marriage were silent when gays and lesbians were beaten, chastised or blamed for AIDS.

"Where were these leaders of faith when college students of gay and lesbian orientation were beaten and often brutalized for expressing their feelings for each other," Paterson said.

BTW, I first read this in the NY Post, which frames the story totally differently, first saying opponents failed to stand up against attacks on gays and lesbians, and then says "he at one point attributed opposition to same-sex marriage to some kind of religious "guilt".

Anyway, he's being accused of being a bigot.

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Last Sunday, Jose Sucuzhanay, and Ecuadorian immigrant and resident of Bushwick, Brooklyn, was brutally beaten while walking home from a bar with his brother, Romel. The two were walking with their arms linked and leaning close together. They were attacked by four men yelling anti-gay and anti-Hispanic epithets. The men proceeded to beat Jose with a bottle and a baseball bat. Mr. Sucuzhanay, who is on life support at Elmhurst hospital, is a respected business owner and father of two.

The New York City Anti-Violence Project has organized a vigil this Sunday, December 14th at 2:00 PM. The vigil will begin at the corner of Myrtle Ave and Grove Street in Brooklyn, followed by a march to the corner of Bushwick Ave. and Kossuth Place, where the assault occurred. Please join community organizers from organizations from across New York City, including Make the Road NY, New York City Anti-Violence Project, Audre Lorde Project, US Dept of Justice Community Relations, Generation Q, Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition, GLOBE, Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, NAACP, The National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights, NYCLU, New York Immigration Coalition, Sunset Park Alliance of Neighbors, We are all Brooklyn, YKASEC, and elected officials, including City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.

This horrible attack underscores the reality that HOMOPHOBIA HURTS EVERYONE, not just LGBT people. What does it say about our society when two brothers cannot show basic affection without being attacked as gay and brutally beaten? We in the LGBT community need to show solidarity with Latinos, African Americans, and everyone else who is vicitimized by the pathology of homophobia.

For more details, see: http://www.avp.org/documents/AVPtoParticipateinVigilonSundayforHateCrimeVictimJoseSucuzhanay_000.pdf

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