I Have Seen The Enemy, And It Is … Ruben Diaz

Anyone who has read my work here or at Feministe knows I care a lot about marriage equality. California broke my heart, but I still have a vision of equal marriage rights from the Delaware River to the North Pole*

A bigot is standing in the way of that vision. Not just any bigot. A powerful bigot. This bigot:

For a primer on bigot Ruben Diaz, read this. He hates gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transpeople and everything they stand for and everything their allies hope to achieve. And because he’s essentially the kingmaker in the newly-but-barely Democratic New York State Senate, according to the NY Times, he was single-handedly able to engineer the blockage of a Senate marriage equality bill that would have probably passed, that already passed the Assembly, and that Governor Paterson (I’m a big fan) would sign.

There’s no reasoning with Ruben. He has to be eliminated from his blocking position, by (1) a primary challenger (he’s faces a few); (2) a general election challenger; or (3) a pro-equality Dem majority strong enough to sideline him. I don’t know how much I can do about that. But I can sure make sure that folks who care about this issue know who stands in the way.

*We have Canada, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Vermont, New York, and New Jersey at least may be achievable in the really near term. That would leave only three New England states — Maine, Rhode Island and New Hampshire. (I know New England like no other part of the country, so I have my own views, but folks familiar with the legislative or judicial inside-baseball feel free to enlighten us.)