Dear New York Republican Senators,

Even though you represent your constituents, they elected you for who you are. They believed you would act wisely on their behalf. Senator Patty Richi, even though a majority of her constituents support marriage equality, is going to vote no, soley based on her personal religious beliefs.

It is my hope that you vote yes and support it. Please don’t vote one way or the other because it would be the right political thing to do, vote for what you believe in and balance that with what side of history you want to belong on. Republican Senator Roy Mcdonald did just that and changed his vote to a yes...because he felt that would be the right thing to do. I agree with him. Think about what our world is probably going to be like in 75 years to 100 years from now…and think how you want your descendents to remember you.

It is my belief that this is a civil rights issue. People are not gay by choice. At the end of the day, when you get past all the rhetoric based on fears hidden under the guise of protecting others…it’s just people who want basic human rights. Our country has done horrendous things over time. Slavery, Women’s Suffrage, interment camps for Japanese during WWII, our treatment of native American Indians, from the abominations we’ve done to black people to trying to stop interracial marriage. Some of the same reasons people had against all of these Americans back then are being once used again to keep gays from having equal rights. Over time, as our country grew with more social understanding, we’ve realized our mistakes and have done our best to make up for them. I believe with all my heart this is going to happen again. And a hundred years from now people will look back at this time period and find it to be sad and inconceivable.

I’m a straight married Episcopalian originally from Brooklyn New York. I have a wonderful wife and two amazing children. It pains me to explain to my 14 year son the situation in New York. He just can’t comprehend why people think gay marriage is wrong. I told him that there are people who feel that God finds it to be immoral and sinful and even though we don’t live in a theocracy, there are those that put it on a political agenda. Granted, I had to explain what a theocracy was…but this was his only reply. “God is loving to all and tells us that we should treat others the way we’d treat ourselves”. Sometimes I wonder if the children are the ones who should be in charge.

Good luck to you in your decision.

Glenn Farrington