As Anne Tischer recalled how she and her wife, Bess Watts, got involved with the movement to legalize same-sex marriages in New York, she said they were "accidental activists."
It all started after they were married 20 years ago in Canada, where same-sex marriages were legal, and Watts tried to get her employer to provide health benefits to her wife. Those efforts escalated, and they eventually found themselves at the center of a grassroots movement to get the Marriage Equality Act passed in New York.
"There is something special about being able to introduce Bess as my wife and my spouse," Tischer said. "People instantly know what that means. They know that our relationship is based on love and caring for each other, and they know that it is of great value to be married in America, where 250 years of legal pounding makes marriage instantly recognizable as guaranteeing 1,324 state rights, and 1,138 federal."
Tischer spoke during a news conference Wednesday at Rainbow Seniors ROC near Village Gate, organized by Assemblymember Harry Bronson to mark the 15th anniversary of the day then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the Marriage Equality Act into law. The date was June 24, 2011.
Cuomo's signature on the bill capped a years-long effort to legalize civil marriages between same-sex couples, one that Bronson was heavily involved in, both at the grassroots level in Rochester and in the legislative chambers in Albany.
Bronson said that initially, the campaign's message centered on rights, but it became about love and family, an argument that ultimately won many people over. He added that it is still one of "the most transformative, impactful and significant wins" of New York's LGBTQ+ community.
"Marriage is one of ... humanity's oldest institutions," Bronson said to an audience that included many of the effort's key local organizers. "Marriage is the way that we publicly declare that we're there for the other person, right, that we're there in the good times, in the bad times, that we're going to be there to support them, we are going to love them and care for them."
Prior to 2011, the state Assembly had passed legislation that would have legalized same-sex marriage several times.
In 2009, leaders brought a marriage equality bill to the floor for a vote, but the measure was defeated. Tischer said that vote "broke our spirit for a while."
Cuomo and marriage equality advocates began pushing hard for another vote on marriage equality legislation in 2011.
When the legislation passed, Cuomo signed the measure into law that same day.
Bronson and Tischer said the anniversary has extra significance, given that the LGBTQ community is under attack across the country, at all levels of government. Watts added that, as activists, they've learned not to give up, not to give in, and not to go away.
"Our families are an integral part of every community," Watts said. "Being able to live freely and comfortably is the American way of life. We will not go into hiding. We are here. We are the LGBTQ community, and we will be seen. We will continue to be outspoken in love and dedication for our communities and our families."
