Summersgill defends Mayor's record on same-sex marriage
The Washington Blade
April 20, 2001
STRONG STATEMENT
The introduction to the interview with Mayor Anthony Williams mischaracterized his stated position on same-sex marriage during the 1998 campaign for mayor (April 13, Blade). The article states, "Williams expressed support on virtually all Gay-related issues except for same-sex marriage."
In fact, when asked by the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance in a questionnaire, "Do you support legal recognition of marriages between partners of the same sex?" Williams replied: "I believe that a civil marriage should not be the purview of the government to prohibit. If a bill on same sex marriage were to come to me as mayor to sign, I would sign it."
That is a very strong statement in favor of same-sex marriage. The only candidate with a stronger statement in favor of same-sex marriage came from Councilmember Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), who also received a higher rating.
However, Williams’ rating of 8 on a scale of +10 to -10 is outstanding for a first time candidate with virtually no record on our issues. All candidates’ full questionnaire responses are on GLAA’s Web site at www.glaa.org. Check our archive for August and October 1998.
While longtime Gay community supporters Jack Evans and Carol Schwartz (R-At Large) earned higher ratings that year, the Blade interview shows that the strong rating earned by first-time candidate Williams was no fluke.
Bob Summersgill, President
Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance
Washington, D.C.