At last nights Santa Fe City Council meeting, Mayor David Coss signed a resolution in support of same sex marriage and asked NM Attorney General Gary King for a favorable opinion. Coss and supporters are hoping the Attorney General will order County Clerks in the state to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples. Besides Mayor Coss and Co-sponsor Pati Bushee, two other councilors, Chris Calvert and Ron Trujillo, signed on Wednesday as co-sponsors of the resolution. Bushee told a reporter she expects more support from councilors when the City Council votes on it in an April meeting.
A statement by Catholic Bishops, Archbishop Michael Sheehan, Gallup Bishop James Wall and Las Cruces Bishop Oscar Cantu was released.
The statement from the Catholic Bishops said: “The effort to include same-sex unions within the institution of marriage has been presented as a civil right. Indeed, there have been tragic instances of discrimination, hatred, and even violence against people with same-sex attraction. We call for peace, tolerance, and understanding in these cases. We recall the words of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: homosexual persons “must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided …
“However, the redefinition of marriage to include same-sex couples cannot be classified as a civil right as it would infringe upon other important rights such as the right of children to a mother and father as well as the right to religious freedom,”
Sate Rep. Bill Mc Camley Democrat of Las Cruces has also asked Attorney General Gary King for an opinion on the legality of same sex marriage in the state.