The movement to unite city leaders behind marriage equality saw an influx in support from Pennsylvania elected officials this month.
The original Mayors for the Freedom to Marry coalition included three Pennsylvania mayors, and an additional six mayors from the Keystone State have signed on in the past few weeks.
The local support reflects a growing national trend, as the coalition has swelled from 80 to nearly 145 members in its first three weeks in operation.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and the mayors of Erie and Bethlehem were among the original supporters and are now joined by Lansdowne’s Jayne Young, Doylestown’s Libby White, Newtown’s Dennis O’Brien, Macungie’s Rick Hoffman, Easton’s Salvatore Panto and Reading’s Vaughn Spencer.
The coalition is a joint partnership of the Conference of U.S. Mayors, of which Nutter is vice president, and Freedom to Marry to further awareness and acceptance of marriage equality across the nation.
Adrian Shanker, president of Equality Pennsylvania, welcomed the local support for the effort.
“This is more proof for anyone who still needs it that our basic rights are really not that controversial,” he said. “With Pennsylvania mayors jumping on the marriage-equality train, coupled with polling demonstrating majority support for marriage equality, it is only a matter of time before our legislature will have to catch up with the rest of Pennsylvania and provide equal rights for us all.”
A number of the municipalities have made recent strides for LGBT equality: Newtown last year adopted an LGBT nondiscrimination bill, similar to a measure that Doylestown approved in 2010 and Reading in 2009. Lansdowne and Easton approved LGBT nondiscrimination measures in 2006, and Panto signed Easton’s domestic-partner bill into law last year.
Although Macungie does not have an LGBT-specific ordinance, Hoffman said his support for the initiative was an easy decision.
“My feeling is that we live in America and two consenting adults should be able to do what they want as long as they’re not harming anyone else,” he said. “Gays getting married wouldn’t harm anyone else.”
Spencer shared the same sentiments.
“To me, it’s an issue of people wanting to be happy in their relationship, and I don’t think anybody has the right to determine what type of relationship is acceptable or not,” he said. “I support this initiative because it’s a matter of equality and fairness. Everyone should be entitled to a happy life and a relationship with a loving partner, no matter if they’re male or female.”
Hoffman said he hasn’t seen any reaction, positive or negative, from residents of Macungie — a suburb of Allentown that is home to just about 3,000 people — to his joining the coalition.
He said the initiative can be a useful tool in combating homophobia by encouraging open dialogue on the issues same-sex couples face.
“I hope people begin to rethink things,” he said. “Some of these ideas are ingrained in people and it’s going to be a hard thing to fight. But it’s something we need to fight because it isn’t right.”
New Jersey now also has nine members of Mayors for the Freedom to Marry.
In addition to the mayors of Newark and Princeton, who were original members, New Jersey mayors from Cherry Hill, Maplewood, Collingswood, Voorhees, Haledon, South Orange and Hoboken have joined.
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].