[BwayDems] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: IN IRELAND, O'DONNELL LOBBIES FOR MARRIAGE EQUALITY

[Callie Wilson]

NEWS FROM ASSEMBLY MEMBER DANIEL O'DONNELL

Contact: Callie Wilson, 206-898-2918; callieewilson at gmail.com
245 W 104th Street, New York, NY 10025

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

IN IRELAND, O'DONNELL LOBBIES FOR MARRIAGE EQUALITY

May 1, 2015—Today, Assembly Member O’Donnell returned from a successful
trip to lobby for Marriage Equality in Ireland. While there, Assembly
Member O’Donnell met with Lawyers for Yes, a group campaigning for Marriage
Equality in Ireland, and with Brian Sheehan, director of the Gay and
Lesbian Equality Network (GLEN). He also met with the Irish Department of
Foreign Affairs and Trade, and visited the Oireachtas, the Irish
legislature, where he lobbied TDs (the Irish equivalent of Members of
Congress) on behalf of Marriage Equality. Returning home today, Assembly
Member O’Donnell reflected on his trip, saying:

"Visiting Ireland brought me back to the last few months of fighting for
Marriage Equality in New York. In every fight for Marriage Equality, the
importance of personal stories is paramount. There is great power in
telling our stories, stories that reveal how much we have in common with
our straight counterparts, and how reasonable it is to desire that our
partnerships be recognized by the state. I am very impressed and excited by
the work that Brian Sheehan and organizations like Lawyers for Yes are
doing to advocate for Marriage Equality, and I look forward to a successful
vote on May 22nd. As I let President Obama know when I met him in 2012, no
straight people were harmed when I married my husband that year. I know
that the ability to marry will be just as positive and successful in
Ireland as it has been in New York."

While in Ireland, Assembly Member O’Donnell not only lobbied members of the
Irish legislature, but everyone he encountered, and is proud to report that
even every cab driver with which he spoke has committed to vote in favor of
Marriage Equality on May 22nd. He looks forward to returning to Ireland
when Marriage Equality has been legalized, and spending more time in County
Donegal, the land of his grandparents and much of the O’Donnell clan.

###

Daniel O’Donnell, the first openly gay man elected to the New York State
Assembly, has been a progressive voice advocating fair and sensible
legislation since he was elected to represent the 69th District in 2002,
including the author and sponsor of New York State’s Marriage Equality Law,
which was signed into law in 2011. His district includes Manhattan Valley,
Morningside Heights, and the Upper West Side.
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