Left In Lowell

History is a funny thing. Looking back, Jim Crow laws are obviously horrible, embodying the social slavery of an entire race, a bygone era which is thankfully moving more and more distant from the present. Someday, there will be no one left alive who remembers what it was like to live with Jim Crow. As it should be.

To Representatives Kevin Murphy and Tom Golden: we may not agree all of the time. But today, I am proud to call you friends and stand shoulder to shoulder with your historic vote for equality. There are families all over the Commonwealth who should, and likely will, tip a glass to you and your colleagues tonight. You have provided well for your constituants - those whose families remain legitimate today because of you, and those who were dreading the influx of out-of-state hate should this amendment reach the ballot. History will look kindly on your actions today.

History will also remember 45 legislators, those who voted to advance this hateful anti-family amendment, very contemptuously. They will go down in the annals of time as backwards, superstitious, or downright blind. And that, my friends, is also how it should be.

As reported in comments here, and at BMG.

I am happy for my fellow citizens that Massachusetts will remain a haven of sanity for gays and lesbians to live out their lives in the peace and protection that their hetero neighbors have already enjoyed all theirs.

I knew there was a reason I moved to Massachusetts from New Hampshire…I am so proud to be a Masshole! Viva la civil rights!

On tomorrow’s Thinking Out Loud, we’ll have a “crash course on Kerouac” (in honor of the Kerouac scrolls coming to Lowell) with UML professor Hilary W. Holladay, Director of the Jack and Stella Kerouac Center for American Studies. If you haven’t read Kerouac but always wanted to, or even if you have read On the Road or other novels, tune in tomorrow to get the context and analysis of Kerouac’s work so you can put him on your summer reading list! I always find that it helps to have some study under my belt before taking on a classic piece of literature.

Your humble radio host has not herself read Kerouac yet, so this is as much an education for me as it is for you! Tune in at 10am tomorrow on WUML, 91.5FM, or stream it live.

In less than one hour, at 1:00 p.m.the Massachusetts State Legislature will meet in a joint session to once again decide if our state’s constitution may include an amendment denying certain citizens their civil and human rights.

Article of Amendment: When recognizing marriages entered into after the adoption of this amendment by the people, the Commonwealth and its political subdivisions shall define marriage only as the union of one man and one woman.

The initiative requires 50 votes in order to pass. Not a majority or a plurality, merely 50 votes. As we have discussed numerous times on LiL, during the last vote Lowell’s State Senator Steve Panagiatakos and State Representative David Nangle voted in favor of putting this amendment on the ballot; while State Reps Kevin Murphy and Tom Golden voted against it.

Perhaps this time, the votes from the Lowell legislative delegation will be unanimous and they will all realize that a personal choice is just that, a personal choice. Or as Lynne suggested last month, “If you can’t vote no, abstain!”

You can watch (maybe) the live webcast on the Legislature’s web site. I said maybe, because during last year’s debate, they had numerous technical difficulties.

Ryan is liveblogging as well as Bay Windows, the Boston-based newspaper serving the Gay community.

I am optimistic. I think the trio of Patrick, Murphy and DiMasi will put an end to this attempted injustice once and for all.