New York gays say 'I do'

Hundreds of gay couples recited vows in emotion-choked voices and triumphantly hoisted their long-awaited marriage certificates as New York became the sixth and largest state to recognise same-sex weddings.

In turn, thousands of protesters opposed to gay marriage rallied in several cities around the state, a signal that the long fight for recognition may not be over just yet.

New York’s adoption of legal same-sex marriage is viewed as a pivotal moment in the national gay rights movement and was expected to galvanise supporters and opponents alike.

The state joined Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont, along with Washington DC, when it voted last month to legalise gay marriage.

Couples began saying “I do” at midnight yesterday from Niagara Falls to Long Island, though New York City became the sometimes raucous centre of action by daybreak as couples waited on a sweltering day for the chance to exchange vows at the city clerk’s office.

But a party atmosphere reigned in the lobby of the Manhattan clerk’s office, with cheers and applause breaking out whenever a couple was handed their white-and-blue wedding certificate.

Newlywed Douglas Robinson exclaimed: “You bet your life I do!” when asked if he would take Michael Elsasser as his spouse.

The first couple to marry in Manhattan were Phyllis Siegel, 77, and Connie Kopelov, 85, who have been together for 23 years. Ms Kopelov arrived in a wheelchair and stood with the assistance of a frame. During the service, Ms Siegel wrapped her hand in Kopelov’s hand and they both grasped the walking frame.

Witnesses cheered and wiped away tears after the two women vowed to honour and cherish each other as spouses and then kissed.

“I am breathless. I almost couldn’t breathe,” Ms Siegel said after the ceremony. “It’s mind-boggling. The fact that’s it’s happening to us – that we are finally legal and can do this like everyone else.”

The National Organization for Marriage held rallies for opponents of same-sex marriage in New York City, Albany, Rochester and Buffalo, saying governor Andrew Cuomo and politicians had redefined marriage without giving voters a chance to comment in a statewide referendum, as they have in other states.

Mr Cuomo had campaigned in support of gay marriage, which he called a basic human right, then lobbied the state legislature hard ahead of its historic June 24 vote to legalise it.

A rally in New York City that started with several hundred people crowding the street across from Mr Cuomo’s Manhattan office quickly swelled to thousands of people as they marched to the United Nations headquarters, waving signs saying “Excommunicate Cuomo” and “God cannot be mocked”.

“I’m here for God’s sake,” said Steve Rosner, 65, of the Lower East Side. “To sanctify same-sex marriage is an abomination. It’s beyond belief.”

State senator Ruben Diaz, a minister who was the sole Democrat to vote against gay marriage when the legislature approved it, told the crowd he and other opponents would try to get yesterday’s marriages annulled, saying judges broke the law by waiving the 24-hour waiting period without a good reason.

Clerks in New York City and about a dozen other cities statewide opened their doors to same-sex couples. In New York City and other locations, judges waived a mandatory 24-hour waiting period that allowed couples to exchange vows moments after receiving their licences.

Across the state in Buffalo, the first in line were Daniel Rodgers, 54, and Scott Klaurens, 40, who were married in shorts, T-shirts and trainers. They had gone expecting only to get a licence and planned to wed tomorrow, but were told they could go ahead because of their marriage six years ago in Toronto.

“This is just a flower opening up for us and everyone else, a flower of equality,” Mr Rodgers said.