Today, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, chair of the Democratic National Convention, co-chair of President Obama’s reelection campaign, and a chair of Mayors for the Freedom to Marry, endorsed the inclusion of a freedom to marry plank in the 2012 national platform of the Democratic Party. In doing so, Villaraigosa is joining dozens of Democratic leaders including 22 U.S. Senators, as well as more than 32,000 voters, in Freedom to Marry’s Democrats: Say I Do campaign to secure a marriage plank in the platform.
Marc Solomon, National Campaign Director of Freedom to Marry, released the following statement:
“Freedom to Marry thanks Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa for his leadership in urging the national Democratic Party to include a marriage plank in the platform that will be ratified at the Democratic National Convention, which he is chairing this September. For many years, Mayor Villaraigosa has been a tireless champion, in California and throughout the country, for the freedom of gay and lesbian couples to marry the person they love. He knows that loving and committed couples should not be denied the freedom to profess their commitment in front of their communities, to protect and take care of their families, and share in the critical safety-net of protections that only marriage provides.”
Villaraigosa’s announcement comes just days after 22 U.S. Senators indicated their support of a freedom to marry plank in the platform. In addition, Freedom to Marry’s proposed plank language has been endorsed by House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, former Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI), Executive Director of Young Democrats for America Emily Sussman, the co-chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and more than 32,000 voters across America. Freedom to Marry launched its Democrats: Say I Do campaign in February.
As a chair of Mayors for the Freedom to Marry, Villaraigosa also leads a bipartisan coalition of more than 175 mayors from 32 states who support marriage for gay and lesbian couples. He will chair the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina this September.
Comments