Chicago’s first openly gay alderman on Wednesday called on the Cook County Board to give the green light to same-sex marriages, though he conceded that the issue is controversial even among homosexuals and that other matters may rank higher in importance to many gays and lesbians.
Despite President Bush’s contention that homosexual unions threaten “the most fundamental institution of civilization,” Ald. Thomas Tunney (44th) contended that just the opposite is true. Allowing gay and lesbian couples to wed would “add stability to an institution that is shaky at best,” he asserted.
“Fifty percent of marriages fail,” Tunney said. “I look at my own family, and I know my parents are divorced. I have brothers and sisters who are divorced. The fact that … a gay person wants a relationship I think is no threat to the institution.”
Tunney said many gays and lesbians may be less focused on the same-sex marriage issue than on working to elect a Democratic president or for passage in Springfield of a long-stalled bill to bar discrimination against homosexuals in employment and housing.
Tunney said some members of the gay community worry that the same-sex marriage controversy could result in a backlash against them, while others contend that gay political leaders have not pushed hard enough for the right to wed.
But Tunney said the time has come for the County Board to consider the issue, and he said he will seek to meet with board President John Stroger to discuss it.
“It is my job to make sure that I am a leader on this issue,” he said. “It is an important issue to me as a gay. … I feel very strongly that lesbians and gays need the same rights and have the same responsibilities that heterosexual couples have in the institution of marriage.”
Tunney said there is support for gay marriage among County Board members. But Caryn Stancik, a spokeswoman for Stroger, said the issue falls beyond the board’s authority.
“The issuance of marriage licenses is dictated by state law,” she said. “Therefore any change must be directed by the state.”
Mayor Richard Daley weighed in on the issue last week, voicing support for gay marriage, though he said he has no authority as mayor to authorize it. Gov. Rod Blagojevich has said he is opposed to the idea.
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Tunney’s comments came one day after Bush called for a constitutional amendment to prevent same-sex marriages.
Tunney said he fears Republicans will try to use same-sex marriage as a “wedge issue” to divide Democrats as the November elections approach.