Dear Editor:
We are proud to support Proposition 1, the Equal Rights Amendment for the New York State Constitution. As clergy in the Unitarian and Universalist religious traditions, we have deep appreciation for the equal protection clause, freedom of conscience and freedom of religion.
Proposition 1 ensures that New York’s laws will reflect and protect the diversity of experiences of its people. Proposition 1 ensures individuals will not face undue and unfair burdens or discrimination based on decisions of conscience, accessing healthcare and identity. The deeply personal realities ensured legal protection include, among others: where a person worships or not, disability, family planning and reproductive healthcare choices, and family origins.
The first section of the proposed proposition reads: “No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws of this state or any subdivision thereof. No person shall, because of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, creed, religion, or sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy, be subjected to any discrimination in their civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation, or institution, or by the state or any agency or subdivision of the state, pursuant to law.”
Our religious tradition, like many others in the state, affirms every person is inherently worthy and has the right to flourish with dignity, love, and compassion. We hope our fellow New Yorkers affirm the call to respect personal freedom in our shared home and reject state discrimination based on identity or personal conscience.
With care,
Rev. Arlin Roy, First Unitarian Society of Westchester
Rev. Emily De Tar Birt, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Northern Westchester
Rev. Daniel Lawlor, Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Hudson Valley
Rev. Danielle Lindstrom, Community Unitarian Universalist Congregation of White Plains
Rev. Lane Cobb, Fourth Unitarian Universalist Society of Westchester
Rev. Mark Cutolo, Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Rockland County
