Traditionally, No. 6 is the Iron Anniversary. Last weekend marked the sixth anniversary of the gay weddings in New Paltz, and the mood was appropriately grim for the couples joining former mayor Jason West to mark the occasion.
As a member of one of the couples who were married under an umbrella of controversy in 2004, High Falls resident Jay Blotcher celebrated what he dubbed an “unhappy anniversary” at Saturday’s rally saying, “I will continue to tell my personal story to anyone who feels that they can deny me my rights as an American, as a taxpayer, and a Hudson Valley resident.”
Blotcher's marriage, like all those performed by West in Peace Park on Feb. 27, 2004, was later annulled by the state. In a bizarre twist of New York State law, if Blotcher had been married in another state that recognizes gay marriage, New York State would now consider him married; the state does not conduct its own gay marriages, but recognizes those of other states.
Today, Feminist Review posted an article about One Summer in New Paltz, a 2008 documentary film about the New Paltz weddings.
[Nancy] Nicol explores the relationship of same-sex marriage, gay/straight alliances, civic engagement, race and the family. The raw footage of protests and thought-provoking interviews offer spectators an intimate window into the ground level of the burgeoning gay rights movement. Additionally, the film conveys how the courage and determination of a few can give rise to the mobilization of many.
