Small victory for same-sex marriage in Delaware

Delaware is one step closer to securing marriage equality in the mostly Democratic state. On April 22, the state House passed the bill that would legalize same-sex marriage with a 23-18 vote. The bill will now move to the Senate, where it is expected to have a similar outcome. Gov. Jack Markell then would sign the bill into legislature. The bill, which would preclude religious institutions from having to perform same-sex marriages, would be a follow-up to Delaware’s most recent legislative victory for the LGBT community: the legalization of civil unions in 2011. Lisa Goodman, president of Equality Delaware, spoke with PGN prior to the vote and said the organization has been working around the clock to ensure equality for all of the state’s residents. “We were the group that worked on drafts and advocated for the civil-union bill, which passed in 2011, and we are the group that has done the organizing and grassroots campaigning for the civil-marriage equality bill,” she said. “We’ve been working on this nonstop since last fall, and have been doing all types of promotion, from social media to canvassing, phone-banking, and lobbying with legislators to support the bill and get it passed.” Goodman said she has seen overwhelming support for the bill, which would cease civil unions after July 1. Such unions eventually would be converted to legal marriages. “The majority of Delaware is supportive. We did statewide polling and people are in support of the bill. We believe we have the votes to pass the bill; however, there is no security to that.” Goodman, who lobbied with fellow supporters until mere hours before the House vote, said there is much work to be done now that the bill is moving to the Senate. “Yes, we believe it will pass. Do we still have work to do? Yes, but we are working around the clock to make sure all of the hard work this huge group of supporters has been doing can come to fruition when legislators stand up to vote,” she said. If the bill is passed, Delaware will become the 10th state to legalize same-sex marriage.